The Drinking Fountain From Heaven

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink."  - John 7:37

Spurgeon's thoughts: "Patience had her perfect work in the Lord Jesus, and until the last day of the feast He pleaded with the Jews, even as on this last day of the year He pleads with us and waits to be gracious to us. The long-suffering of the Savior is truly admirable as He bears with some of us year after year despite our insults, rebellions, and resistance to His Holy Spirit. Wonders of wonders that we are still in the land of mercy!

Mercy expressed herself most plainly, for Jesus "cried," which implies not only the loudness of His voice, but the tenderness of His tones. He entreats us to be reconciled. "God making his appeal through us," says the apostle, "we implore you on behalf of Christ..." What earnest, pathetic terms are these! How deep the Father's love that causes Him to weep over sinners and, like a mother, to tenderly call His children to Himself! Surely at the sound of such a cry our willing hearts will come.

No waiting or preparation is even hinted at. Drinking represents a reception that has no special requirements. A fool, a thief, a harlot can drink; our sinfulness is no barrier to the invitation to believe in Jesus. We need no golden cup, no fine china, in which to convey the water to the thirsty; the mouth of poverty is welcome to stoop down and drink of the life-giving stream... Jesus is the fount of hope. Dear reader, listen to the dear Redeemer's loving voice as He cries to each of us, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.""

Candy's thoughts: Such a beautiful sentiment to close out one year and begin another. Unlike many other religions, Christianity is one without any "requirements" except to believe the blessings that we receive through the work of the Son on the cross. We are invited to drink and be satisfied. Let's all endeavor in this upcoming new year to run to the fountain that never runs dry and fill our cup to the brim.

Here is the link to a hymn written by James Montgomery Boice which expresses Spurgeon's thoughts very well. Below are the lyrics.

1 Come to the waters, whoever is thirsty;
drink from the Fountain that never runs dry.
Jesus, the Living One, offers you mercy,
life more abundant in boundless supply.

2 Come to the River that flows through the city,
forth from the throne of the Father and Son.
Jesus the Savior says, "Come and drink deeply."
life more abundant in boundless supply.

3 Come to the Fountain without any money;
buy what is given without any cost.
Jesus, the gracious One, welcome the weary;
Jesus, the selfless One died for the lost.

4 Come to the Well of unmerited favor;
stretch out your hand; fill your cup to the brim.
Jesus is such a compassionate Savior.
Draw from the grace that flows freely from Him.

5 Come to the Savior, the God of salvation.
God has provided an end to sin's strife.
Why will you suffer the Law's condemnation?
Take the free gift of the water of life.

Doubt Your Doubts Before You Doubt God

"Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens." (Ps. 119:89)

Elyse Fitzpatrick's thoughts: "We must ask ourselves, does the Bible give us reason to believe or to doubt?

One of the ways we can know that the Bible is God's Word is because it is filled with prophecies that have come true. Of the approximately 2,500 prophecies in the Bible, about two-thirds have already been fulfilled. Some of the prophecies are so specific that anyone with a reasonably open mind would be convinced that the Bible is uniquely inspired. Here are just two examples:

1. Isaiah prophesied about a man named Cyrus, who would conquer the Babylonia empire and let the Jewish exiles go. This prophecy was uttered 150 years before Cyrus was even born and 80 years before the Jews were even taken into exile (see Isa. 44:28; 45:1, 13). That Cyrus lived and accomplished all this is a fact proven by archaeology. The probability of this being just a chance fulfillment is 1 in 10 to the 15th power, which is one chance in 10,000,000,000,000,000.  Do you have reason to doubt with those odds?

2. The Old Testament foretold that the ancient Jewish nation would be conquered twice and that the people would be carried off as slaves each time, first by the Babylonians (for a period of seventy years) and then by another kingdom (see Deut. 29; Isa. 11:11-13; Jer. 25:11; Hos. 3:4-5; Luke 21: 23-24). These prophecies were fulfilled exactly. The probability of this being a chance fulfillment is 1 in 10 to the 20th power."

Candy's thoughts: I think these statistics are pretty impressive! Even a skeptic or atheist might be surprised by the mathematics of the Bible. As believers, then, we should brush off doubts as soon as they reach the surface of conscious thinking. Let's doubt our doubts before we doubt God and His Word.

The Eternal Potential of Suffering

The Northern New England Presbytery of the PCA recently hosted a conference entitled "Disability and the Gospel." Joni Eareckson Tada joined the event via video feed in which she commended all in attendance to take up the cause of graciously and completely including those struggling with disabilities within the full life of our churches. Less than two weeks later Joni herself underwent surgery for cancer - her second time around. She gave an interview to John Stonestreet in which they discussed what John describes as the "eternal potential of suffering." The difficulties we all face now are somehow preparing us for life in a future world without trials. John's conclusion is that we will all profit the most from afflictions when we are willing to treat others with different frailties as fellow heirs of the covenant. Amen to that!

John Stonestreet Column

Thoughts on Money

"And Amaziah said to the Man of God, 'But what shall we do about the hundred talents that I have given to the army of Israel?' The Man of God answered, 'The Lord is able to give you much more than this.'" (2 Chronicles 25:9)

Spurgeon's thoughts: "This seemed to be a very important question for the king of Judah, and possibly it is of even more significance for the tried and tested Christian. To lose money is never pleasant, and when it involves principle, we are not always ready to make the sacrifice. 'Why lose what could be put to good use? Is it not possible to pay too much for truth? Remember the children and our small income!' All these things and a thousand more would tempt the Christian to participate in dishonest gain or prevent him from carrying out his conscientious convictions when they involve serious loss. Not everyone views these matters in the light of faith; and even with the followers of Jesus, the idea that 'we all have to live' carries quite a bit of weight.

'The Lord is able to give you much more than this' is a very satisfactory answer to the anxious question. Our Father holds the funds, and what we lose for His sake He can provide for us. The Lord will be no man's debtor in the end. Christians know that an ounce of contentment is more valuable than a ton of gold. The person wearing a threadbare coat over a good conscience has found a spiritual treasure far more desirable than any he may have lost. God's smile and a dungeon are enough for a true heart; His frown and a palace would be hell to the trusting soul. Let the worst become worse still, let all the talents go, we have not lost our treasure, for that is above, where Christ sits at the right hand of God. In the meantime, even now the Lord makes the meek to inherit the earth, and He keeps back nothing that is good from those whose walk is blameless."

Candy's thoughts: I distinctly remember the day when Steve and I decided to tithe to our local church. We were relatively new believers, and the concept of giving a set amount to our church was truly daunting. We were living in one of the most expensive towns in the state of Connecticut, in the cheapest rental house we could find, and we had wild mushrooms growing up through the floor in one of our rooms! We also just had our second child with a third one following soon after, the business that Steve was working in was struggling (and did fail), so financially we were looking at an uncertain financial future. But Steve did a biblical study on tithing as a Christian minimum and was persuaded (and then persuaded me) that we should do this. So I said "Okayyyyyy, we'll see how this goes" and more than 30 years later I can validate Spurgeon's claim that "Our Father holds the funds, and what we lose for His sake He can provide for us."

I'm guessing some of you may have had a similar experience?