THE KING’S BUSINESS
330
becoming a perennial inward source of blessing. Further on we will find our Lord teaching that this fountain not only forever springs up within but overflows and runs out in rivers of blessing to others (ch. 7 :37-39). But this was not the thought that the wo man of Samaria needed at the.present moment, what she was after was per sonal satisfaction and the Lord tells her where to find it. The Greek word translated “ spring ing up” signifies primarily not a mere- gushing up of a fountain but a leaping1 up of a living creature. This word is found in two other places in the New Testament (Acts 3 : 8 o f the man once lame now leaping and in Acts 14 :10 of the lame man healed and leaping). Used in connection with a spring the word is most expressive of the abun dant, bounding life that the Holy Spirit becomes within the one who re ceives Him from the Lord Jesus. The ultimate goal of this abounding life within is “ everlasting (or eternal) life.” Eternal life is an infinite ocean of being and blessedness. There are three stages in the thought of Christ : First, A drink of water fully and for ever satisfying; Second, The water be coming a fountain leaping up in rich abundance; Third, the fountain be come an ocean—eternal life. Ever since boyhood there has been for the writer an indescribable charm in verse 14. Long before he under stood at all the meaning of the words they seemed like some sweet strain from a heavenly world, but now that he has come to understand, at least something of their meaning, these words are among the most precious that ever fell from the lips of the Son of God. They show how the Holy Spirit whom one receives, or drinks from the cup that the Lord Jesus holds out, comes to dwell within the one who thus drinks and fully and forever satisfies every deepest longing of the
more literal and expressive transla-' tion would be “ Shall not thirst for* ever,” The words translated “ forever” mean literally ‘for the aeon.” The: phrase found here in the Greek, in the double negative form, is used five other times in John’s Gospel (8:51, 52; 10:28; 11:26; 13:8), and is found in one other place in the New Testa-, ment (1 Cor. 8:13). In every place it evidently refers to absolute endless ness. The kindred phrase in positive form is of frequent occurrence in the New Testament. The Lord’s thought is that whoever drinks of the water that He shall give, for him thirst is past and gone forever, he shall be fully and forever satisfied. He uses thirst here "in the sense of feeling the pain of an unsatisfied want” (cf. Rev. 7: 16). Of course, there will be thirst in the ■sense that the believer daily thirsts for fuller and deeper draughts of the Divine life (cf. Ps. 42:4; ch. 7: 37, 38). But that sort of thirst is a source o f joy and is ever being satis fied the moment it arises (Matt. 5 :6). In the Old Testament it was of Je hovah that it was written, “With thee is the fountain of life” (Ps. 36:9) but here our Lord Jesus says to the woman of Samaria, “ With me is the fountain of life.” He might as well have said in so many words, “ I am Jehovah.” Our Lord goes beyond saying, " Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst:” He adds, ‘The water that I shall give him shall become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life.” So one not only drinks one draught and is satisfied by that draught forever, but continuously drinks of the fountain that he now has within him1 self. The gift of water received be comes a spring of continual satisfac tion and blessing. This water, as al ready said, is the Holy Spirit (cf. ch. 7 :37-39) and the Spirit is here repre sented as indwelling the believer and
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online