Thread: "Jesus said unto her, 'Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life' " (John 4:13�14).
"Jesus said unto her, 'Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life' " (John 4:13�14).
Posted : 28 Sep, 2011 02:38 AM
Devotional
What is your best and sweetest temporal mercy? Ask yourself: Does it satisfy your soul? Does it�even in its fullest enjoyment�leave no want unsupplied, no desire unmet, no empty space unfilled? Does it meet the cravings of your mind? Go into the garden of creature-blessing and pick the loveliest flower; taste the sweetest fruit. Go to the cabinet of friendship and select its choicest pearl. Go clear around the wide circle of earth-born joy and choose the chief and the best. Can you sincerely say, "I am satisfied, I want no more?" Does it quench your spirit's thirst? Does it soothe your heart's sorrow? Does it meet your mind's cravings? Does it quiet your troubled conscience? Does it lift the burden from your aching heart? Oh no! the height, the depth, the length, and the breadth all exclaim, "No! It is not in me! I cannot take God's place"
But how blessed is that which truly satisfies! Listen again to the gracious words of the Savior: "Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never be thirsty again." Did words ever utter a sentiment more true than this? Jesus is an all-satisfying portion!
They who have tried him can testify that it is so. His is not a satisfaction in name only, but in reality and in truth. There is a felt sense of holy gratification. The mind is content. The believer no longer wanders in quest of happiness or of rest. He has found them both in Jesus. He is satisfied to stake his eternal all upon the finished work of Immanuel�to live upon his smile, to abide in his love, to draw upon his grace, to submit to his will, to bear his cross, to be guided by his counsel, and afterwards to be received by him into glory.
The Lord Jesus imparts contentment to the soul in which he enters and dwells. Vast as were those desires before, urgent as were those necessities, insatiable as were those cravings, and restless as was that mind, Jesus has met and satisfied them all. The magnetic power of his love has attracted to, and fixed the mind upon, himself. "He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things" (Ps. 107:9).
The believer is satisfied that God should possess him fully, govern him supremely, and guide him entirely, and be the sole Fountain from where he draws his happiness, gratefully acknowledging, "All my springs are in you" (Ps. 87:7). For this reason, he is content to be just what, and just where, his Father would have him. He is satisfied that he possesses God, and that, possessing God, he has all good in God. He knows that his Father cares for him. He knows that he has undertaken to guide all his steps and to provide for all his needs. The only anxiety which he feels as to the present is how he may the most glorify his dearest, his only Friend, casting the future on him in the simplicity of child-like faith.
Nor is the satisfaction thus felt limited to the present state. It passes on with the believer into eternity. It enters with him into the mansions of bliss. There, in unruffled serenity, in unalloyed joy, in unmingled bliss, it is perfect and complete. "You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Ps. 16:11).
Happy saint! who have found your all in Jesus! Glorified spirit! would we recall you to these scenes of sin, of suffering, and of death? No! the compass of your soul no longer varies and trembles, diverted from its center by other and treacherous objects�Jesus fixes it now, and fixes it forever.
