Wells of Heaven

On Sunday May 20th we celebrated the Day of Pentecost, a day in history that changed everything. It was the day the disciples were born again in the power of the Holy Spirit. The day when Peter, over 2000 years ago, was able to stand up and say, “This is that” referring to the promise made by the Prophet Joel when he said, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people.” (Joel 2:28) Peter reminded the Jews of this promise now fulfilled as the empowering baptism in the Holy Spirit took place. From that day wherever the disciples went preaching the Gospel, they saw the signs and wonders follow them. People were born again, baptized in the Holy Spirit, healed and demons were cast out. The Holy Spirit was poured out. God had opened the Wells of Heaven.

When the Spirit of God came, things began to happen and the mystery of the New Testament began to rapidly unfold. (Romans 16) The New is not a modification of the Old, the New is completely New and Original. God’s plan to save His creation had been perfectly executed in and through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The power to fulfill it was released on the day of Pentecost. It is here that you and I come in, for as believers we are part of this plan as we serve God, trusting and obeying Him.  As explained in previous blogs, we are those perfectly designed jars able to hold the Water of Life, the Holy Spirit, prepared by God for service. As different as we may be from one another, our calling is the same, we are to point to Jesus and share His truth.

This month, as we talk about wells, I realize how differently I see the wells of the Old Testament compared to the wells spoken of in the New Testament. The Old Testament evokes a picture of a very deep hole, dug into the ground, going down until it finally reaches water. Enough water to meet the needs of the whole community, all the sheep, goats and cattle. It was often named and usually owned by a person, who then claimed the territory in which the well was built as his own. Battles were fought over the wells. An enemy would block them up or poison them. They were highly valued because without water, no village could survive nor prosper.

Ezekiel 47:5

Again he measured a thousand [cubits]; and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen, enough water to swim in, a river that could not be crossed [by wading].

Turning to the New Testament, I see pictures of rivers, streams and fountains of water, gushing out, freely available. Water that we can wade into, ankle deep, waist deep and suddenly over our heads. Fresh water that is uncontaminated and available to us all, no matter our age, or gender. It’s there for the queen, businessperson, teacher, drug addict, terminally ill or murderer; no one person is excluded. You don’t have to travel to find it and it never runs dry. It is within each one of us! It is that which Jesus spoke about in John.

John 4:14                                                                                                                                       

But whoever drinks the water that I give him will never be thirsty again. But the water that I give him will become in him a spring of water [satisfying his thirst for God] welling up [continually flowing, bubbling within him] to eternal life.

Of course, this scripture comes from the story about the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:4-42.) The woman who Jesus met at the well of Jacob, an ancient well that still exists today. Hot and tired, He asked her for a drink and as a result a revival broke out. This narrative contains so much truth, it shares the gospel of repentance, forgiveness, new life and freedom in the Holy Spirit. It reveals something so real, so powerful to our understanding of the New Covenant.

Jesus and the Samaritan woman met at Jacob’s well, not just any well. Remember the Old Testament is often a type of shadow of the New Testament and we have that here. Jacob was a deceiver and a supplanter. When he met with God and wrestled with Him, he received a new identity and a new name, Israel. After meeting with God, he was not the same man that had set out to meet Esau. He was a new man. So too this woman, when she met Christ, her old ways were exposed. She recognized the promise of something new. It literally blew her mind and she rushed off to tell the whole village about Jesus.

At the time the Jews held possessively to the truth that the Temple was the place to worship, nowhere else. They believed they had it all and, as an Israelite, they had the right to go up to the Temple and worship the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob, offering their sacrifices and going through their rituals that all others were excluded from. They felt a legalistic entitlement which had corrupted the truth but here in this narrative. Jesus breaks it all down and shows that a time was coming soon when all men could come and worship God, and not only at the temple. All would be welcome. Here was Jesus, I AM He, introducing the new way. What once was, was to be changed completely and forever. 

As Jesus began to speak to the woman about water that would satisfy, she was curious. Who was this man and what did He think He had to offer her. He was a Jew, and the Jews didn’t like Samaritans, they thought they were unacceptable to God. Although they had a form of worship the Jews said it was false, it had no scriptural authority, they didn’t worship in the right place, they went up the Mountain and not the Temple. Most Jews would not even go through Samaria, it was full of gentiles and "half breeds."  So this Samaritan woman wondered what could this Jew offer her…an outcast?

And then He told her things about herself that opened her eyes, and she knew this was the Messiah, this was the One they were all waiting for. He revealed a new freedom; that in Him, man was called to worship God. This worship was not on a mountain or manmade temple in Jerusalem but from deep within. In spirit and truth. This was the Messiah who would fulfill the words of the prophets, the words spoken to Jacob.

Genesis 28:14                                                                                                            

Your descendants shall be as [countless as] the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and the east and the north and the south; and all the families (nations) of the earth shall be blessed through you and your descendants.

The entire blessing (which was given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendants after them) was not given for them alone, but rather through them. God’s blessing would be available to all the families of the earth. And so, the Israelites forged their way into the promised land, building wells and continuing to proclaim their God Jehovah until such time that God saw fit to send His Son. And here He was, the Messiah, the promised One, Jesus Christ, Who made a covenant that embraced all who believed. And now, because of Him, we have received the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit Who was poured out on the day of Pentecost brought a freedom enabling us to worship from our hearts. Worship not in a temple but in the mountains, in the woods, the walkways, the streets or wherever we may be. No structure can contain His glory, no man made well can harness His Living Water. Today, as Jesus said, we will worship in spirit and in truth. The wells of living water are in you and me. We are His temple.

The Holy Spirit is a gift beyond measure. He lives in us and with us.  He seals us with a mark that says we belong to God and He teaches us, giving us courage and strength to do all we need to do. We must not quench or grieve Him for He will not interfere with our free will. He will never coerce us to obey Him but will gently teach us to hear His voice and help us to obey. How vital it is that we remain teachable and willing to learn. We can ask Him all that we need to know. He will find a way of getting through to us, all He asks is our open heart and a desire to obey.  

Sometimes I have worried that I wouldn’t hear Him. Sometimes I have worried that maybe I would hear wrong or step out of line but He is faithful and He finds a way to get through to me. As we yield to Him and trust Him we will not go wrong. 

The wells of the New Testament are within us and as we spend time with Jesus they will never run dry. May we learn to know Him more. May we all be baptized, fully immersed in and filled up with the Spirit so that our lives reflect Him and our ways be blameless. We are free to draw refreshment and strength from God’s River that flows without limit or measure for each of us as we journey on the path that God has ordained. 

Let’s meditate on this scripture this week and focus on the Truth of the Lord:

Isaiah 12 2-6

“Behold, God, my salvation! I will trust and not be afraid. For the Lord God is my strength and song; Yes, He has become my salvation.” Therefore with joy you will draw water From the springs of salvation. And in that day you will say, “Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name [in prayer]. Make His deeds known among the peoples [of the earth]; Proclaim [to them] that His name is exalted!” Sing praises to the Lord, for He has done excellent and glorious things; Let this be known throughout the earth. Rejoice and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.