Jesus Invited the Desperately Thirsty to Drink

What Did Jesus Do?

“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.”
John 7.37

Has your body ever thirsted, and you didn't realize it? I mean, have you ever been in serious need of water and not recognized how much you needed a drink? I might not have thought it was possible, if I hadn't experienced it. On a mission trip several years ago I felt nauseated for days, but I wasn't really sick at all—I was dehydrated. I never felt particularly thirsty, never understood how my body was desperate for water. I was gobbling Tums and Pepto-Bismol tablets all the time, but I still felt sick. Finally, someone noticed how miserable I was, and told me I needed to stop working and have a drink. Well, I've been chugging a gallon or so of water a day ever since! Funny how we can be in great need of something and not know it. Though many did not recognize their need for him, Jesus invited the desperately thirsty to drink.

Isn't it funny how ignorant we can be of what we need more than anything? Well, I guess it isn't so funny when we understand that people perish because of this ignorance. And it really should not be all that surprising that we are so out of touch with what we most need. For the world is good at convincing us that what we want is what we need, and it is very good at creating in us desperate desires for what it has to offer. But, even with fabulous wine cellars and kegs of beer, and even with cisterns full of water, we can be dying of thirst, and not recognize our plight.

One of the purposes of the Gospel is to help us realize just how thirsty we really are, just how starved we are, not for what the world offers, but for what the Father alone supplies: the gift of the Holy Spirit who leads us to the living water—the Son, Jesus Christ. It's not an easy job, showing people how desperately hungry and thirsty they are. Most folks will either resent the suggestion that they are in so great a need, or, if they are somewhat aware of their need, they will be likely to look to the world to satisfy their thirst and allay their hunger. For inviting the desperately thirsty to drink, Jesus was ultimately arrested and crucified. We too will often find our invitation falling on deaf ears, or even eliciting anger and resentment from those we invite. But when someone receives the living water, well that joy is almost indescribable.

I believe hard times, lean times, dry times, may well lay ahead of all of us in the not too distant future. People may become increasingly desperate in the days to come. Believers will need to be ready to invite the desperate to come and drink though they might not realize their thirst. That's what Jesus did.

S.D.G.

Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4