Rivers Of Life

"He that believeth on Me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."
Note the plentitude of it, the figure would have been a surprising one if it had said"a river" but it is not so; it says "rivers." Ah you say "I have not reached to that."A point has been reached when you know and regret and confess failure. If you had said "I have all things and abound" I would have had reason to suppose that you will never obtain the fulness of the blessing.
But if you know something of your failure, then the Lord can lead you forward. It may be that the spirit of life that comes forth of you is but a trickling brooklet, or even just a few tiny drops; be sure to confess that and you will be on the way to a fuller blessing.
What a word this is "rivers of living waters"! and see how spontaneous it is "out of the midst of him shall flow."no pumping is required, nothing is said about machinery and hydraulics, the man does not need exciting and stirring up, but just as he is, influence of the best kind just flows out of him.
Did you ever hear a great hubbub in the morning, a great outcry, with trumpets and drums? and you ask "what is it?" and a voice replied "the sun is about to rise, and he is making a great noise about it so that we will be aware of it" no, no, he just shines.
Even so the genuine christian just goes about flooding the world with blessing, and far from claiming attention for himself it may be that he is unconscious of what he is effecting. God so blesses him that his leaf does not wither and whatsoever he doeth it prospers, for he is like a tree planted planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth it's fruit in it's season.His verdure and his fruit are the natural outcome of his vigorous spiritual life. Oh the blessed spontaneity of the work of grace when a man or a woman gets into the fulness of it, they seem to eat and drink and sleep eternal life, and they spread the savour of salvation all around. And this is to be perpetual, not intermittent springs which burst forth and flow in torrents then cease,
every day, in summer in winter by day by night, wherever they are they are a blessing.
I hope I hear many sighs, I hope I hear friends saying "oh I wish that I could get to that."
I want you to attain the fulness of the favour. I pray that we may all get it.

DO AS THOU HAST SAID

God's promises were never meant to be tossed aside like waste paper, He intended that they be used. God's gold is not miser's money it is minted to be traded with.
Nothing pleases Our Lord better than to see His promises being put into circulation, He loves to see His children bringing them up to Him and saying "Lord do as Thou hast said."
We glorify God when we plead His promises.
Do you think that God will be any the poorer for giving you the riches He has promised? Do you dream that His holiness will be any the less for sharing it with you? will He be any less pure for washing you from your sins? He has said come now and let us reason together saith The Lord, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
Faith lays hold of the promise of pardon, it goes straight to the throne of grace and pleads "Lord here is the promise, do as Thou has said." He will reply "be it unto thee even as thou wilt."
When the child of God grasps the promise and hastens to the throne of grace with it and cries
"Lord I have nothing to recommend me but this " Thou hast said it" his desire shall be granted.
Our heavenly Banker delights to cash His own notes.
Never let the promise rust. Draw the sword of promise out of its scabbard and use it with holy violence.
Don't think that God will be troubled by your importunity in reminding Him of His promises, He loves to hear the loud outcries of needy souls, it is His delight to bestow favors He is more ready to hear than you are to ask.
The sun is not weary with shining, nor the fountain with flowing. It is God's nature to give,
He will keep His promise. Therefore go at once to Him with this petition "Do as thou hast said."

STRONG IN FAITH

Christian, take good care of your faith for remember faith is the only way whereby thou canst obtain blessings. If we want blessings from God, nothing can fetch them down but faith.
Prayer cannot draw down answers from God's throne except it be the earnest prayer of the man who believes.
Faith is the angelic messenger between the soul and The Lord Christ in glory, if that angel be withdrawn we can neither send up prayer nor recieve the answers.
Faith is the invisible telegraph wire which links earth and heaven on which God's messages fly so fast that before we call, He answers, and while we are yet speaking He hears us. But if that telegraph wire is cut, how can we recieve the promise? Am I in trouble? I can get help for trouble by faith, Am I beaten about by the enemy? I can find refuge beneath the wings of faith, but take faith away and in vain do I call to God, for there is no path betwixt my soul and heaven.
Faith links me to the great King and clothes me with the power of God. Faith engages on my side the all-powerful Jehovah, it ensures every attribute of God most high in my defence and enables me to defy the host of hell. Faith makes me to march triumphantly over the necks of my enemies. But without faith I can recieve nothing from my Lord. Let not him that wavereth-who is like a wave of the sea-expect that he will recieve anything from The Lord.
So then beloved watch well thy faith for with it thou canst win all things, however poor you are,
but without it, though thou be the wealthiest man in England, thou canst obtain nothing.
If thou canst only believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

THE POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION.

The doctrine of a risen Saviour is exceedingly sweet and precious, it is the corner-stone of the entire building that is the church, it is the key-stone of the arch of our salvation.
It would take a volume to set forth all the streams of living water that flow from this one sacred source. Jesus a-risen from the dead and alive forever more. But to know that He is risen, and to have fellowship with Him as Risen Lord, communing with Him by possessing a risen life ourselves, seeing Him leave the tomb by leaving the tomb of worldliness, this is sweeter and more precious still. The doctrine is the basis of the experience, but as the flower is lovelier than the root, so is the experience of fellowship with the risen Saviour more lovely than the doctrine itself. I would have you to believe that Christ arose from the dead and sing about it, and get all the joy and comfort that the well attested and witnessed to fact affords, but I beseech you rest not contented even there. Though you cannot see Him as the disciples did, yet I bid you aspire to see Him by the eye of faith; And though like Mary Magdalene you may not touch Him you can talk with Him and walk with Him in newness of life.
To know a crucified Saviour as having crucified with Him all my sins, this is high knowledge, but to know a risen Lord as having justified me, as having bestowed upon me new life making me a new creation through His own life, this is a grand style of experience, short of that ought none to be satisfied.
May you both "know Him" and know "the power of His resurrection."
Why should newly alive souls in Jesus wear the grave clothes of worldliness and unbelief? Arise for He is risen.

BROAD RIVERS AND STREAMS

Broad rivers and streams produce fertility and abundace in the land. Places near broad rivers are remarkable for the variety of their plants and their plentiful harvests.
God is all this to His church, having God she has abundance what will He not give her or what will He not provide that she may ask of Him? "In this mountain shall The Lord of hosts make unto all the people a feast of fat things."
Do you want the Bread of life? it falls like manna from the sky, do you want refreshing streams? The Rock follows you where-ever you go, and that Rock is Christ. If you suffer want it is your own fault; if you are straitened you are not straitened in Him but in your own bowels.
Broad rivers and streams also point to commerce, our wonderful Lord
is to us a place of heavenly merchandise. Through the Redeemer we have commerce with the past, the wealth of Calvary, the treasures of the covenant, the riches of the Ancient of days and election, the stores of eternity past all come to us down the broad stream of our gracious Lord.
We have commerce with the future too. What treasure ships laden with booty come to us from the millennium! what visions of heaven on earth during our Lord's reign in that day.
Through Jesus we have commerce with angels, with blood-bought saints who have gone before us to see The King in His beauty and to worship Him hallelujah, better still we have Him whom our souls love even Jesus our Lord. Broad rivers and streams are especially intended to set forth the idea of security. Rivers were in olden times a defence. Oh beloved what a defence is God to His people! The devil cannot cross the broad river of God, how he wishes he could turn the current but God abideth unchanging and unchangable forever. Satan may fret us but he cannot destroy us. No galley with oars shall invade our river, neither shall warship pass there-by.