A Conversation In The Water

My son had an interesting conversation last week with a fellow. I will share that with you in a bit…

Have you ever thought about how many stories in the Bible deal with water? Water is a very big deal to God.

At this time in the world more than 783 million people do not have access to clean drinking water. I heard that on a radio program this month and I was surprised at the number.

1 out of 5 children’s deaths worldwide is due to the lack of clean water.

Water is of the upmost importance for life.

I heard a prediction from who I do not remember but it said that the end days will be fought over water. Not oil, not uranium, not land, but water. The tv program was a focus on how different countries were trying to make fresh water from the ocean because having enough water to sustain life was vital.

We need water to live, it’s essential.

With the drought we are experiencing here in the Peace Country area I see first hand the affects that lack of rain has on crops, nature, animals and people. Without crops there is no feed for the cattle and animals. Without cattle and gardens there is not food for people.

In the opening book of the Bible, Genesis, God talks about water on the first page, actually in the 2nd sentence. Followed by a description of a special garden called Eden whose river splits into 4 great rivers; Tigress, Euphrates, Pishon, Gihon.

Then the story turns wild and the whole earth gets flooded except for 8 people and the animals they preserved on their boat. Noah’s ark.

But that is like water, be it a lake or ocean, calm one minute and wild and dangerous the next.

There are over 2,000 mentions of water in the Bible. Interesting to see that water is 2 sides of the same coin. Water is used as a blessing and a curse. Water sustains life, has delivered people, it has killed millions.

God uses water to save and to judge. He uses it as miraculous and for destruction.

Jesus’ first miracle involved water. He turned water into wine. Moses, whose name means “drawn from water”, was hidden in a basket on the Nile river so he would not be killed by the Egyptians. This same Moses hit a rock and God caused water to flow out of it to give sustenance to people in the desert. Jonah asked to be thrown into the water and was saved. Jesus walks on water. Jesus talks and commands the water.

Wild stories, hard to believe stories.

The Red Sea when God parted the water so the Israelites could walk through to the other side when being chased by an enemy army was miraculous and a provision. But a paragraph later the sea closed back in overtop of the Egyptian army and killed them all. Salvation and destruction, same water.

Was it coincidence that Jesus first disciples were fishermen. They were those whose livelihood depended on water.

Believers are commanded to be baptized with water, symbolizing dead to our old life and emerging out of the water into new life. This act was important enough that Jesus Himself was baptized in the Jordan River.

Jesus claimed that He had “living water” available for anyone who is thirsty. Then proclaimed that He Himself is that “living water”. A radical statement.

The introduction of the “River of life” is first found in the Old Testament in Ezekiel 47. It is mentioned again in the last book, Revelation 22. This river of life “flows from the throne of God.”

I have mentioned that around my entire area where I live, we haul water in to live. I respect water, without it we cease to be able to live here.

I kind of think that is the point of 2,000 mentions in the Bible. Without water we cease to live. Jesus said if you come to Him and ask, He will give you the “living water” that He claims to be. Water in the form of nourishment for your soul, your life.

In this crazy world right now there is a lack of something. We look around and it all just seems to get messier and wilder.

Case in point:

Last week Glen my son was at the local aquatic center. I hope it is not lost on you that water was involved. He and another man were chatting about lots of things in the water of the hot tub. A friendly conversation, the other fellow mentioned “religion” and Glen started to talk about our faith as Christians. Immediately the man got uptight and said, “That’s a very controversial subject to be having in a public setting.”

It actually happened. Talk of religion was fine, but not Christianity. The man up and left, his wife on the other hand was very interested but he hustled her away quickly.

When Glen told me about it, I was stunned. Not shocked, but more like… “it’s happening…” Canada whose very existence was formed on Godly principles has been unraveling for a while. It is now becoming clearer to see.

Water…it will sustain and give you life or it can cause destruction, in this case, you get to choose which water you drink from.