======================================================================== RIVERS OF LIVING WATER by Aaron Hurst ======================================================================== Summary: The sermon emphasizes the necessity of being spiritually thirsty for God and the transformative power of the Holy Spirit flowing through believers as rivers of living water. Duration: 1:22:54 Topics: "Life Of The Spirit" Scripture References: Isaiah 35:1-3, Luke 4:17-18, Luke 14:21-23 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------ In this sermon, the preacher shares a powerful story of a blind woman selling fruits in a busy market corner. Despite being ignored and having her fruits knocked over, a kind person stops to help her gather them and pays for the damaged ones. This story serves as a reminder that we should strive to be like Jesus and show compassion and selflessness in our daily lives. The preacher emphasizes the importance of fully surrendering ourselves to God and allowing His spirit to flow through us, bringing healing and life to those around us. The sermon also references biblical prophecies about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the transformation it brings, turning deserts into flourishing gardens. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENT ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hello, this is Brother Denny. Welcome to Charity Ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold. You are welcome to make copies for your friends and neighbors. If you would like additional messages, please go to our website for a complete listing at www.charityministries.org. If you would like a catalog of other sermons, please call 1-800-227-7902 or write to Charity Ministries, 400 West Main Street, Suite 1, EFRA PA 17522. These messages are offered to all without charge by the free will offerings of God's people. A special thank you to all who support this ministry. Hallelujah for the blood. Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Greetings to all in Jesus' name. Thank you to my family for sharing in that family verses and to you young men, we're glad you could join us sharing those songs together. Well, grace to you. Blessing from the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's good to see you all here today, especially you young men. And I'm sure you are getting richly blessed and stretched, is what we heard in our house from as you enter into study of the Word. But you will never be sorry. Amen. Amen. I want to especially say thank you to the congregation here for those who remembered me in prayer last weekend as I had the opportunity to be at Halsey Oregon with the brothers and sisters there at Valley Christian Fellowship. Brother Emmanuel felt sort of sorry for me that I was missing a blessing by not teaching here at CBI for a week. And I'm sure that was missing a blessing. But I had a blessing, blessed privilege to be with those brothers and sisters there at Halsey Oregon. And I got to meet some new friends, new brothers and sisters in Christ that I didn't know before. And we had a beautiful time of seeking the Lord together. And I just want to thank you for your prayers. And the Lord was gracious unto us as we met together there. And I do believe, Brother Emmanuel, I did get a blessing there, as you got a blessing here this week teaching on how to study the Bible as well. There is a proverb that says that he that watereth shall be watered himself. And I can say that that is a true proverb. Amen. And that's not just for the preachers. That's for all of us as God's children. The Lord has a lot to say about water. And we want to look at that this morning from the Word of God. We want to look at the subject of rivers of living water or broken cisterns. It's the will of God for the redeemed children of God to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to be so connected to Jesus Christ, the fountainhead, that his life flows in and through us and it flows out of our innermost being as a river of living water. Now, I will hasten to say this morning that I am not satisfied with where I'm at in my experience. And I believe there is a lot more to tap into than what I have experienced. But I can say this, I am blessed and have that assurance that I'm in Christ Jesus and that he's in me and the life that I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. Hallelujah. So today we have a wonderful opportunity to sit at Jesus' feet and learn of Jesus. And we don't just want to learn something in our heads. We want to connect with our hearts. Listen to the words of Jesus as he spoke there on that great day of the feast when he stood and he cried and he said, he said, in that great day of the feast, he cried unto the audience that was there that day. He said, he that believeth on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But he prefaced it with something else first. He said, if any man thirsts, Are you thirsty? I must say, one of my nervous things is I get very thirsty. And so I'm a little nervous this morning. I'm a little apprehensive. Oh God, please do help me to preach the word in its rightful presentation and in its rightful grace and truth that it has been given unto us that I wouldn't weaken it or try to strengthen it because, you know, it's not within man. We have this treasure in earthen vessels. And so God help us today that we can open up the word and we can tap in. But I'm thirsty this morning. Are you thirsty this morning? Hallelujah! Thirsty for God? Thirsty for more of Jesus? Oh, more, more of Jesus. Oh, earnestly, fondly longing, thy holiness to know. Open the wells of grace and salvation. Pour the rich streams deep into my heart. Amen? If any man thirsts, that's the prerequisite. That's the condition. If any man thirsts, let him come unto Jesus and drink. And he that believeth on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. Out of his innermost being, not from an intellect, but from a heart. Out of the belly, out of the innermost being, out of the very spirit and heart and soul of the man shall flow rivers. Rivers. And to me, that is just, that is just almost unfathomable. I just can't get my mind around it to get a hold of that. He doesn't say a cup of water. He doesn't say a stream of water. But he says rivers. Rivers. Oh, how I sell the Lord short with my own unbelief or my own fears and faithlessness and, you know, my timidness and I just shy back. When the Lord would want to say, hear my son, let me flow through you. My daughter, let me flow through you. Like the hymn writer said, Jesus flow like a river. This is found in John chapter 7. If you want to turn there, you probably already knew that. But John chapter 7 and verse 37, 38 and 39, Jesus said in verse 39, But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive, for the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified. Oh, the fullness of the blessing of the Lord. In our little singing revival book, we sing that song, Bring your empty vessels, not a few. And he will fill your heart today with the Holy Ghost and fire. He will fill you to overflowing. Bring your vessel. Now, what is your vessel? Someone tell me. What is your vessel? It's your life. It's my body. It's who I am. It's myself. Oh, he that will sanctify himself, he that will perch himself from all that is unclean, from all that is unholy, from all that is earthly and sensual and devilish, he that will perch himself from these, he shall be a vessel, meet for the Master's use, prepared unto every good work. A vessel sanctified. Bring your vessel. Bring yourself. Come to Jesus and let him fill you. He will fill your heart today to overflowing. If you're hungering and thirsting after him. If any man thirsts, let him come unto me and drink. And then if we would turn back in John to chapter 4, we see again this matter of water and of the well of water and the living waters in John 4. And this is the account of the woman there at the well, the Samaritan woman. And Jesus met her there and he shared with her. And then in verse 13, we won't take time to read all of the Scripture. But in verse 13, Jesus said to this woman, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. And he's speaking of the water there in the well. But then he says, But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst. But the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. Oh, I love that. The water that Jesus gives shall be in you. It shall be in that individual. A well of water springing up. Oh, I love the picture. It's a well of water. It's like an artesian well. It springs up. It just bubbles up. You ever meet any people like that? Who they're so full of Jesus that he just bubbles out all over their life. You know what I mean, amen? You know? And their life is a testimony of living waters. Their life may be a very holy life, may be very godly, but it doesn't condemn you. Because you're not walking in a holier-than-thou attitude. They know that all they are is an earthen vessel. And this treasure that they have within themselves, they're just a channel. They're a recipient of the living water of Christ Jesus Himself. Jesus is the water of life. Jesus is the bread of life. Jesus is the fountainhead. Jesus is revival. You know, we talk about having revival meetings. And we meet together to look into the Word and hear preaching and so forth. And that's good, that's right. But today, my brothers and my sisters, Jesus Christ is the fountainhead. He is the one from whom all blessings flow. He's the one who is the vine, and we're the branches. That's all we are. We're just branches. Like another hymn writer said, Channels only. Blessed Master. That's all that we are. Channels. But oh, what God can do, brother Dwight. You know, we're nobody special. I so appreciated that. Sometimes we, in our humanity, and in our carnality of thinking, we say, this was a great man of God. Or these were very special people. Well, the thing is, they broke them, they humbled themselves enough that the greatness of God could flow through them. And then we look at them and say, they're somebody great. But they were broken men. They were sinners saved by grace. They were the ones who came to realize that in this flesh dwelleth no good thing. I can't do anything good for God. It's all because of my Savior. And He's made unto me righteousness and wisdom and power and sanctification and redemption. He's my all. He's my all-sufficiency. And all that I am, I am by the grace of my Lord Jesus who loved me and gave Himself for me. He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. And I think we should be hastening quick to glory in the Lord. But we should be hastening quick when we sense any sense of pride or self-ambition or vain ability of ourselves. Oh, God forbid! You know, it's not weakness that hinders God. It's not weakness in men that hinders God. It's greatness in their own mind or even other people puffing them up. You're such a great man of God. God forbid! You're such a good person. No, there's none good but God, said the Lord Jesus. There's none good but God. He's the one who desires and is worthy to receive all praise and honor and glory. Oh, Jesus is the fountainhead. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Him, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Jesus. Oh, the prophets, they looked forward to this time. It was prophesied. The well shall spring up. Turn with me to Isaiah. Isaiah chapter 35 and we'll look there at a prophecy. Oh, the prophets longed and looked forward. Isaiah 35. Beautiful Scripture. And we can look at many this morning. I hasten to say that I really wrestled with Scriptures to eliminate from the message, you know, because the whole Word of God is inspired, you know, and breathed out by the Lord and anointed. But we can't preach the entire Bible this morning, so I had to wrestle my way through to narrow it down to a few Scriptures that we can look at this morning that could be edifying and helpful to our hearts here today. Isaiah 35. The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as a rose. Hallelujah. It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice even with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and of Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord and the excellency of our God. Strengthen ye the weak hands and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense. And He will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened. The ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as in heart and the tongue of the dumb shall sing. For in the wilderness shall waters break out and streams in the desert. Oh, I love it. In the wilderness, where there's parched ground, where there's drought, where there's no life. Oh, there shall streams of water break out. There shall the waters break out in the desert and the desert shall blossom as a rose. Hallelujah. And the parched ground shall become a pool. And the thirsty land springs of water. In the habitation of dragons where each lay shall be grass with reeds and rushes. Hallelujah. And a highway shall be there. And a way and it shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for those. Those wayfaring men, those fools shall not err therein. No lion shall be there, no ravenous beast shall go up thereon. It shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing or with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness. And sorrow and sighing shall flee away. Oh, when the water of the life of Christ Jesus springs forth. I like the way it says it there in Ezekiel. And I chose not to read all of that text where Ezekiel saw a vision of the water rising up out in the temple. And it started to flood out through the door. And it started to flood out into the street. And they took a measuring line and they measured a thousand. And then he walked out and it was up to the ankles. Then they measured another thousand. And it was up to the knees. And they measured another thousand. It was up to the loins. And soon it was out there so deep that it was waters to swim in. I love that picture of the increase of the kingdom of God and of the increase of the Spirit of God flowing in and through the hearts of vessels that are sanctified, set apart unto God for His service. My dear brothers this morning, ye young men, oh quick ye like men, be strong in the Lord, cast aside all of these things that are just for a moment, and give yourself a vessel sanctified neat from the Master's use, and let your life be a channel that rivers of living water can flow out, not only up to the ankles, but not only up to the knees, but all that we can swim in it, giving ourselves totally. You know, when you swim, you give yourself over to the water. You're not able to touch bottom. You're in it. You're flowing with it. And you're in the water. And you're up to your neck. And you're totally swimming in the water. And oh, I like that picture of a life that is totally consecrated to Christ, done with self, all my own ambitions, my own will getting in the way, but a crucified, sanctified life. And we're swimming in the river of water. And everything that that river touches, it says, that brings healing. And along the sides of that river are the trees that bring forth fruit in their season. And they don't wither, because they're connected to the source of the water of life. And I can say in my life, before I gave myself completely, entirely consecrated to Jesus, I saw people whose life was like a river. And I wanted to be in their presence, because there was something about them that gave life. And it made me hungry and thirsty to want to be like them. I wanted what they had. I wanted the river. Oh, but Jesus said, it's going to cost you everything. You need to sell out. You need to give yourself completely over to me. Let go of all your rights, of all your own ways, all your own doings, and give yourself wholly consecrated to me. And that's what God is asking from each one of us this morning. Give yourself wholly consecrated to me. Just an empty earthen vessel. And let me fill you. And flow through you. And your life can be a sweet fragrance of Christ. And everywhere you go, the lives that you touch, if you're a humble broken vessel, there'll be life. There'll be living waters flowing out of your innermost being to the glory of God, not to ourselves. Yes. The prophecy foretold. Ah, there were many prophecies foretold. And in Joel, it says, And it shall come to pass that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions, and also upon my servants and my handmaids in those days will I pour out my Spirit. That's in the book of Joel, chapter 2, verse 28 and 29. And when do we see that Scripture referenced again? Pentecost. The book of Acts. When the Holy Ghost fell on them, they said, This is not anything strange. This has been prophesied for hundreds of years. And this is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel, that the Holy Ghost is poured out, and therefore, these men are speaking forth the wonderful works of God. Oh, I love it. And it came forth in power and demonstration of the Spirit, and it cut quick to the heart, and men's hearts were pricked by the Holy Ghost. Oh, Lord, grant us, grant us such a refreshing from Your presence. Oh, Lord, open the wells of salvation and of the grace of God and the fullness of the Spirit that our lives may be so lost in Jesus that it's not us, but it's Christ who lives in me, and the river flows freely, unhindered, unchoked, unquenched by my own fears, my own inabilities, my own sins, my own unbeliefs, or my own pride, or whatever it would be. Oh, yes, it was prophesied in Isaiah again, I will pour water upon him that is thirsty and floods upon the dry grounds. I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed and my blessing upon thine offspring. Oh, hallelujah. Are you thirsty? Mmm, Lord Jesus. Oh, Lord. They looked forward to that day, the Old Testament prophets, when God would in fullness put His Spirit upon men. Yes, they had a measure, but they looked forward to the prophecies. How glorious that day! And my brothers and sisters, we live in that day. Jesus said in John chapter 4 as He read the book of Isaiah there, He said, this day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears. Yes, rivers of living water. Are you satisfied this morning? Are you satisfied? Or are you longing, thirsting? Oh, God, open the wells. Yes, I have evidence in my life that I'm Your child. I've received the Spirit of God. I've been born of the Spirit. But oh, Lord, open the wells. I'm thirsty, Lord. Amen? Are you thirsty and hungry for God? He says, the promise, I will pour water upon him that is thirsty. Yes, He promised it. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his belly might flow rivers of living water. He didn't say that they might. He said out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. So we have to just come to grips with it. The reason the living waters aren't flowing in my life, the only thing I can conclude is that somehow I'm not connected to the fountainhead because Jesus is the fountainhead. He that drinketh of Me out of His innermost being shall come forth. Those rivers of living water. Oh, God. There's the promise. The water that I give Him shall be in Him a well of water springing up. Oh, it's a beautiful picture. The promise. The prophecy. Oh, your sons and your daughters shall prophesy after those days when the Holy Spirit comes upon them. They shall spring up among the grasses, willows, by the water chorus. One shall say, I am the Lord's and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob. Another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord and surname himself by the name of Israel. I belong to Jesus. I am the Lord's. Oh, I love that testimony. Two people walking together. I don't know if they were young men. And the one suggested to the other, why don't we go in here and do this? The other said, I can't do that. I belong to Jesus. I will not go with you there. Because there's a river. There's a fountainhead of the Lord Jesus Christ that I'm connected to. I don't want to jeopardize my relationship with my Jesus. You know, that will dry up the fountainhead. That will dry up the river so quick when we walk in our own way and we walk in our own pride and in our own self- will and in our own confidence. Instead of resting entirely upon Jesus and walking sin, the river just chokes right up. Is your life dry today? Are you wondering where the blessedness is that you once had with the Lord? I say, check out your life. Examine yourself whether you be in the faith. I can never take this river for granted. I can never take this source of blessing for granted. I am always only one step away from departing from it. I dare not trust my own. Oh, I like that hymn. I wrote it down. We sung it this morning. 185. Where it says in the last verse, plenteous grace with me is found, grace to pardon all my sin. Let the healing streams abound. Make and keep me pure within. Yes. Make me and keep me pure within. God desires truth in the inward parts. Not what man sees on the outward. No hypocrisy. No, no, no. But truth in the inward parts. Oh, yes. And then when He shall wash me thoroughly with hyssop in the inward parts, deeply. Oh, then. Then I shall know the joy and gladness and the blessing and the Spirit of God flowing through my life. Thou of life the fountain art. Yes. Jesus. Thou of life the fountain art. Freely let me take of Thee. Spring Thou up within my heart. Rise to all eternity. Hallelujah. Are you thirsty? Oh, thank you, Jesus. If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. I will pour water upon him that is thirsty. We can go back to Acts chapter 8. And I need to be very careful here. Oh, Lord, help me. Acts chapter. I'm sorry, not 8. Chapter 1. Go to Acts chapter 1 first. And then we'll speak a little about this. This man, Peter brother. Brother Dwight. In Acts chapter 1. Verse 4. Through 8. I think we'll take time to read that. And for you who can, conveniently stand. Stand with me as we read those scriptures. Acts 1 verse 4 through 8. And being assembled together with them. Speaking of Jesus, He commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which He say, if ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. Not many days hence. When they, therefore, were come together, they asked of his name of him saying, Lord, without this time, restore again the kingdom to Israel. And he said unto them, it is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the father has put in his own power. But ye shall receive power. After that, the Holy Ghost is come upon you. And ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and in Samaria and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Now, let's pray, please. Can we stay standing? Father in heaven, you know, Lord, you know, who's thirsty. Lord, you know, whose heart is crying out to you, Lord, longing, earnestly, longing for deeper communion. For a greater flow of the Spirit of God. Lord, you know the prayers that have been prayed by the mothers in this room. You know the prayers that have been prayed by the fathers in this room. Lord, I'm not satisfied where I'm at. Oh God, please, help me Lord. I need you Lord. Oh Father, Lord, you know the prayers that have been prayed by young men in this room, Lord. I don't want to throw my life away in business. I don't want to throw my life away in just the American dream. But oh God, I want the fullness of your Spirit. Oh, I want to lose myself in you Jesus and your kingdom. Lord, you know the young sisters that are in this room and how they've cried out to you Lord and how they're praying Lord. Oh Father, would you open up our eyes. Would you open up heaven over us God and help us Lord. Father, that today our hearts may lay hold on the promises Lord of the Word of God and we may, we may cast off any hindrances and besetting sins and press in and with violence enter in and take it by force. Oh God, I'm tired of just living in this haphazard state. But oh Lord, Father, that we would be able to apprehend that for which Christ has apprehended us Lord. Oh Lord Jesus, that which you have purchased on Calvary's cross. Oh Lord, a life that is abundant, that is overflowing, that is reaching out and touching others and bringing life and health and salvation to those who are lost and sit in darkness. Oh God, would you raise us up Lord here today. Even today Lord, may our hearts burn within us Lord as you would speak to us God and that we would be encouraged Lord. Oh Father, please help me Lord that no one would feel any condemnation from this vessel or God any self Lord. But Father, that you could just flow a channel of your grace and Father, make us all fit channels of your blessing to those around us. This we ask in Jesus name. Amen. You may be seated. The power. The promises. The prophecies foretold and we could have read many. And the power. Ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. And you know when the well of water is springing up, we don't have to try to pump it up. Amen. When the well of water is within you and bubbling up and springing up, I don't have to try to pump it up. And there is a danger there for us that when the well of water isn't flowing as it ought, rather than get back before God and say Lord, what have I done? Or what are you taking me through in my life that the water isn't flowing like I know it once flowed? There is a temptation to pump it up and just keep that thing going. But oh, I'll tell you, when you can have the real thing, the pumped up thing is pretty uninviting. It's pretty unsatisfying because we know deep down in the depth of our heart there is something lacking. And oh Lord, I need you. You are the source. You are the fountainhead of living waters. Oh Jesus. Yes. He shall baptize you with fire. This is going to cost you everything. He shall thoroughly purge the granary. And He shall burn up the chaff. Ah, but the wheat, He'll gather into His granary, into His garden. There He'll keep it. So we need to be ready for burnings and purgings and the chaff being burned out of our lives. Oh, He shall sit as a purifier of the sons of Levi. And He shall purify them that they may offer unto Him an offering in righteousness and holiness. And He shall purify them and purify them and purge off the dross until His own image is reflected in the purity of that silver and that gold. My brother, my sister, it's going to cost us everything. But it's worth everything. It's a priceless treasure. It's the most glorious life there is to live. The abundant life in Christ Jesus. Not I, but Christ. And you know, it's not just for somebody special. It's not for some great man. I have been amazed to see the vessels, the redeemed vessels that you would think, you know, if you look at it from an outward way of looking at it, you'd say they can hardly count to three. But I'll tell you, if they're sold out to God and they love Jesus, the Lord will take what we have and what we are, and He will glorify Himself and He'll receive much praise through His name out of weak, broken nobodies. Yes, He will. He will. Ye shall receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you. The promise, the prophecy, the power, and the purpose. Oh yeah, I've got the power of the Holy Ghost. Because I speak in tongues. Are you a witness? Does your life flow out appraised to Jesus and the testimony of Jesus and the life of Jesus? We need to examine that experience with the reality of a life that is poured out. The life of Christ flowing out. The river of living water. Yes, the purpose. Ye shall be witnesses unto Jesus. Not unto the power. We're not promoting the power. We're promoting and we're exalting and magnifying Christ. The Holy Ghost, when He has come, He shall teach you all things that I have spoken unto you, said Jesus, and He shall testify of Jesus. He shall testify of me. He shall not testify of Himself. There's a good test for you, brethren. When they're promoting this being filled with the Spirit. Hallelujah, the Bible's full of it. Be filled with the Spirit. But when they're promoting an experience as evidence of being filled with the Spirit, are they promoting the experience? Or are they promoting Jesus? And does that experience promote Jesus? Or does it promote the experience? You've got to also have the experience. Come with me over here. He'll lay hands on you and you'll get it. Be careful, my brethren, be careful. He shall testify of me. The Holy Ghost shall testify of Jesus. And He shall magnify Christ. Not Himself. Ah, but without the power. Peter was powerless. Oh yes, Lord. I won't deny You. I'll go die with You. But he was powerless. Within myself, I have the will to do it. But I lack the power. I lack the strength. I lack the grace. Oh Lord Jesus, I will not fight back. But then here we go again. Fighting back. Arguing. Oh Lord, I know I shouldn't hate that person. Oh, help me to love that individual. But then when the pressure's on, I feel that wicked hatred rising up in my heart. Oh God, forgive me. Be merciful to me, Lord. Thou shalt not look upon a woman to lust after her. Oh God, have mercy on me. I don't want to do that, Lord. I want to be a holy, sanctified vessel. But then you're hit with it again. And you're so sorry. Oh, I didn't want to do that. But you're powerless. Can anybody identify with what I'm saying? We need the power of the spirit of the river of the life of Christ Jesus flowing within us so we can love our enemies. So we can bless them who hate us. So we can turn our head the other way. Not by sheer chaining ourselves fast, but by the power of the Holy Ghost. Because now the word of Christ indwelling, it has now become promise. And all those Old Testament commandments, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, they all now become promises because the law is fulfilled in us who are in Christ Jesus. Because He lives in us. And we don't need the Ten Commandments. We don't need the law. Because the law of Christ Jesus made me free from that law. And the law of Jesus working in me now causes me to fulfill the very heart of God. And this is fulfilled all the law. And the prophet said, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. Oh, it's beautiful. It's a wonderful, glorious life in Jesus when the well of Jesus is flowing in my life. So rather than try to pump it up, my brother, let's get back to the fountainhead. And tap into the vine of life in Christ Jesus. Then our branches will bear fruit. Ye shall be witnesses unto me. Oh, yes. We could go so many places with this message. But just look at the disciples. Running scared at the crucifixion. Hiding. Fearful. Denying the Lord. But after the resurrection, I appreciated that, brother Dwight. Something at the crucifixion of Christ, the death of Christ, something just began to work in their hearts. And I believe all of that self-will of me first, me greatest, was put to death. They saw their Lord die. They saw how He lived. They saw Him give His life. And they were shattered. No greatness. No Lord. We are weak men. Oh, help us. And then Jesus appears. And He says, He upbraided them with their hardness of heart and their unbelief. But after the day of Pentecost and the Holy Ghost coming, everything changed. And now they went forth preaching the Word of God. Everywhere they went, ye shall be witness after the Holy Ghost is come upon you. Before that, they weren't much witness. But after the Holy Ghost came upon them and they were full of the Holy Ghost, then they spake the Word of God boldly and without fear. Oh, how I need You, Lord. How I need the Holy Ghost in my life of fullness of the Spirit of God or I clam up and I shrink back. So we just try to shore ourselves up. Come on. We can do it. Open your mouth. Well, there is a sense of truth that when we will humbly, earnestly entreat the Lord for His grace to open up our mouth to witness and for the power and then we will go and obey what He said and we will open our mouth. Grace does come. Amen? You've experienced that, right? Grace does come. So, there can be a careful line here or we might miss the blessing that God wants by sitting, waiting, tiring for the Holy Ghost when the Lord is saying, I want you to obey Me, my son. And then when you open your mouth in the presence of even rulers and principalities and powers, I'll give you a mouth of wisdom for the Holy Ghost will teach you in that hour what you shall say and it's not ye that speak, but it's Christ and it's the Holy Ghost that speaks within you. Ah, yes. Obey ourselves. Give up our lives as a yielded vessel. Yes. Ye shall be witnesses. Local, right here in Jerusalem. Judea, extra local. Samaria, rather. How did I say that there? I believe I said that wrong. In Jerusalem, Judea and then Samaria and then finally to the uttermost parts of the earth. Hallelujah. Well, the purpose. I'm so happy to be in a fellowship of believers who believes in evangelism and believes in taking the gospel unto the uttermost parts of the earth and believes in taking the gospel to Jerusalem, to our own people groups, to our own peoples whom we love who are yet in darkness and to our own Judea and Jerusalem into our cities, local. Why? The purpose. Ah, Jesus gave a beautiful parable. Turn with me to Luke 14. As we look at the purpose and we could go so many places for this but we'll just look at a few here. Luke chapter 14 and let's begin reading in verse 15. And one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things and said unto him, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God. Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper and bade many. And he sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come, for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. First saying unto him, I have bought a piece of ground. I must need to go see it. I pray thee have me excused. Another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen and I go to prove them. I pray thee have me excused. Another said, I am married a wife. Therefore, I cannot come. So, that servant came and showed his lord all these things. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city and bringing hither the poor and the maimed and the halt and the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded and yet there is room. And the lord said unto that servant, Go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in that my house may be filled. For I say unto you that none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper. Why? Why the preaching of the gospel that the lord's house may be filled? That the beautiful salvation of Jesus may be made manifest to all nations, kindreds, tongues and people. That the lord's house may be filled with the redeemed who have their robes washed and made white in the blood. Oh yes, we can read it in Revelation. God gave it to John. He saw it there. There they are, out of every tongue, out of every kindred, out of every tribe and nation, their robes washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. Oh yes, Go ye therefore and bring them in, compel them to come in. Who shall we bring, Lord? Ah yes, you go get those needy souls. You go get those poor souls. There's another verse we should look at. Just keep it there and let's turn over to John. I believe it's John. Let me see here. No, it is right here in Luke. Just back up to Luke chapter 4. And let's look at this. Luke chapter 4. And when Jesus came into the synagogue in verse 17, there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And he had opened the book. He found the place where it is written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted and to preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind and to set at liberty them that are bruised to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. Yes, the purpose. Ah yes. Preach the gospel to the poor. Those who can't recompense you. Those who can't hire you to come. Those who won't give you a big offering because you came. Go preach the gospel to the poor. Those poor lost souls who have never heard. Go preach the gospel to the poor. Yes. And heal the brokenhearted. Now we don't have to go very far for that, do we? Heal the brokenhearted. Bind up the wounds of the brokenhearted. Preach deliverance to the captives. Those that are bound in sin. They're held captive by their sin. Preach deliverance to them. Tell them that Jesus Christ, the mighty Deliverer, has come out of Zion and He has come to break every yoke and to set the captives free. Preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind. Those whose eyes are blinded. The God of this world has blinded their eyes and they're walking in sin and darkness and they don't know what they stumble over. But they're stumbling around, groping. And some are groping and reaching out for something that satisfies, but they don't know where to find it. Go! Go, my brother, my sister, and tell them that Jesus, the Master, has come and He can open up blinded eyes. He can cause those that are blind to see. Yes. Set at liberty them that are bruised. Many bruised, hurting souls. Ah, we're getting back to the river, aren't we? The true nature of the river, of Christ in dwelling, is that we will walk as He walked. We will be burdened about the things that Christ is burdened about. We will behave ourselves in the way that Christ behaved Himself. And like I shared the other evening, there's a little story I read the other day. And you may have read it too. Where the blind woman sitting, selling her fruits at a busy market corner street next to some train station. And you know, everybody's in a hurry and they come running in through there to catch their train and they knock over her baskets of fruits and nobody stops to help pick them up. And this poor blind lady is groping about trying to find her fruits and gathering them up. And she's trying to gather her fruits and one person turns back and gathers up the fruit and very carefully examines it and the fruit that is bruised and broken, he puts in a separate little pile and he pays for all that fruit and gives her the money and has all her fruits nicely put back in the basket. And when he's leaving again, having probably missed the train now on this important place that he needed to go to, she hollers after him as he's going, Sir, are you Jesus? Oh, I love that. But it's also so very convicting. As I go about life's way, is there room in my heart? Is there room in my thoughts? Am I conscious of the presence of Jesus and the ministry of Jesus that He wants to flow like a river? No, not somebody special. Not somebody important. But just a servant. He that will be greatest among you. He that will be chief. Let Him be your servant. Let Him be your servant. What a blessing to be mistaken for Jesus. Oh, that dear blind lady. Somebody told her about the love of Jesus. That day she saw it in action. That day there was a heart connection. Oh, thank you, Lord. Yes, the river flows out and is manifest in the burden and the care for the heartbroken, the lost, the blind, the wounded, those that are in bondage. Yes, the river. Why? Why this great commissioning call to go and this power vested in believers, the Holy Ghost anointing. Why? Oh, so that Jesus would be magnified. So that He would receive the glory that is due to His name. For we are created by Him and for Him and for His purpose, not for ourselves. We who are born again, we are not our own. Therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are God's. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Go out quickly. The king's business requires haste. Go out quickly into the lanes and the streets and the byways and the highways and bring them in that my house may be filled. Oh, the Lord Jesus delights in those trophies of grace. The harder the case, the more glory He gets. Yes, I remember hearing different testimonies. I believe it was Dwight Moody, the murderer, coming to his door after service late at night and Dwight's wondering, shall I let him in? The people warned me about him. He is a wicked man. He's cruel and hard as nails. Shall I let him in? He wants to talk to me and he wants to talk to me alone. And he carries his weapon. But God said, let him in. And that night, He just gave him the simple one verse. The man said, can I be forgiven? I have killed, I don't know how many people with this gun. Waved it in front of his face. Can I be forgiven? And all Dwight would say is to just quote the scripture. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. And then he'd talk about more of his wicked evil deeds. The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son cleanses us from all sin. And after I don't know how long of repeating and repeating that verse. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. That man fell under the conviction of the Holy Ghost and he repented of his sin. And he was washed in the blood that night. Hallelujah. Because I'm just a channel. I'm nobody special. Yes. Oh, I have to share with you a little story. I can find it here now. Can one person make a difference? One little lowly nobody. Can they make a difference? This is out of the book Whose Child is This? Written by someone who the Lord touched and they got a burden for the nobodies. The throwaways. You know. The children who don't know who their daddy is. You know, they live in all of our cities. The man who got burden for this ministry. His mother left him sit on a culvert. Sonny, you just sit here. I'll be back. She drove away. Never saw her again. Some dear kind Christian man stopped and picked me up. This is the man who has this ministry now. And got me some food and he shared with me the gospel. He sent me off to a Christian youth camp where they taught the Bible and I got saved. Can one person make a difference? That one did. That one made a difference. And after I got saved, the Lord laid on my heart all these thousands of nobodies. Throwaways. Children. In the cities. Across America. Europe. Every major civilized nation. Uncivilized nation may I say. That they would treat human kind in such a manner. Can one person make a difference? A woman came to his ministry. She couldn't speak English. She could speak a bit of Spanish. She was quite illiterate. She didn't have much to offer. But she got saved. And she said, I want to minister to these children. Do you have a place for me in your ministry? Well, you can ride the bus and love the children. You can do that. You just reach out to the children and you love them. Just love them. Well, she got with one of the other workers in the ministry and begged them which is, well, she could communicate, teach me these words in English. I love you and Jesus loves you. So, they would go over and over and over. You know, just a nobody. Ah! But a cleansed nobody. With a burning desire for the water to flow out of the innermost being to touch others lives. I love you and Jesus loves you. I love you and Jesus loves you. She finally got it together. Kept on working on it. So, she'd get on the bus and she'd look for the most forlorn, sad, heartbroken child all by themselves on the bus. No brothers and sisters. Sit next to that one. Take that little child up on her lap and say, I love you and Jesus loves you. Well, after about maybe two, three months. No, I'm sorry. Probably only two months or six weeks of that. She found the one that God was, that heart was just, you know, going out to that one. Said, here's your ministry. So, she said, I'm not going to ride any other buses. I found my child. This little child was thin, always dirty, never had any friends and never talked. So abused, so broken, so unloved that he couldn't even communicate. Ah, but this woman, there he is. She took him on her lap every week as they picked him up on that dirty old sidewalk by those run down slum buildings and take him out there to the church. Tuesday church, if you will. I don't know which day of the week it was. And she'd tell him the whole way to the church. Comfort him, hold him. I love you and Jesus loves you. Then they'd have a little lesson at the church. And on the way back again, there she is holding him on her lap. I love you and Jesus loves you. And something began to happen in the heart. Because, see, it wasn't just words. It was heart level. It wasn't just this woman's heart. It was God's heart. For Jesus loves the little children. Oh, yes. She was connected to the vine and the sap was flowing into her branch. Just a nobody. I love you. Jesus loves you. This went on for months every week faithfully. This little child would not speak. This child was so broken and bruised and battered and wrecked by Satan and sin and neglect and abuse and who knows what all. But here's this dear woman. I don't have much to offer. But Lord, what I have, I give you. I can't speak much English. But I can say I love you and Jesus loves you and she did that for about a half a year. Just the same old routine. Ah! But if we grow not weary in well-doing, we shall reap. If we faint not, brethren, faithfully sowing the Word. One time the routine did change. This woman took the young boy in her arms. She put him on her lap. She said, I love you and Jesus loves you. And when the bus came to the stop at the front of his little dingy apartment, as he turned to get off, he stopped. Turned back to the woman, ran back to her, put his arms around her, said, I love you and Jesus loves you. That was Sunday afternoon at 2.30. That evening the boy's mother in a rage murdered him, killed him, threw him out, disposable, underneath the fire escape. But that little soul learned from a nobody that God is love. Will you be a channel? Just a channel to communicate God's love to the broken hearted, to the sin sick, to the nobodies. You know, you don't have to be very smart. You don't have to be anybody great. All you need to be is a humble broken vessel saying, Lord Jesus, here I am. Send me. Use even me. Flow through me. You know what that day? There was a river flowing. Did you see it? There's a river of God's love and God's heart flowing. No. No great degrees. No theology classes. Ah, but a love for Jesus and a love for God's people that He created. And it's not God's will that any soul should perish. Yes, there was a river flowing. Well, we won't look at the broken cisterns. May this be a message of encouragement to our hearts today. Jesus flow like a river. It may be in Africa. It may be in Indonesia. It may be right at home to my neighbor. It may be right in my town. It may be right in my city. It may be right in my church. It may be right in my own family. Oh, Jesus flow like a river. Spring up a well within my soul. Spring up a well. We close with a promise. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that it's a father, will he give him a stone? If he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If he ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him? Are you thirsty today? Are you earnestly longing for the river to flow and you know it's at an ebb? And God has so much more. Oh, Jesus, I encourage you today, my dear brothers and sisters, ask of your heavenly Father how much more shall He give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him? The Spirit and the Bride say, come, let Him that heareth say, come, and let Him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, let Him take of the water of life freely. Rivers of living water. God bless you. I love you. And I just count it such a privilege and a joy to be here with my dear home church family and with you CBI students. May Jesus flow like a river and everywhere you go, that river touches broken lives and brings the healing balm of the Lord Jesus. Amen. Let's stand and sing together number 837. Lord, I am fondly, earnestly longing. 837. Because that's the truth in your heart today. No soul. Lord, I am fondly, earnestly longing into Thy holy likeness to grow, thirsting for more and deeper communion, yearning Thy love more fully to know. Open the wells of grace and salvation for the rich streams seep into my heart, cleanse and refund, heal me and make me pure as silver. Dead to the world would I be your Father, dead unto sin, alive unto Thee, crucified all the earthly within me, emptied of sin and self may I be. Open the wells of grace and salvation for the rich streams seep into my heart, cleanse and refund my fallen affection, seal me and make me pure as silver. I would be Thine and serve Thee forever, filled with Thy Spirit, lost in Thy love. Come to my heart, Lord, come with anointing. Father, we thank you for today. When we cry out, cleanse us, Lord, cleanse me, seal me, Lord, make me pure as Thou art, all to be like You. Thank you, Father. Lord, help us to live in such a way that we can be sons of God with rivers of living water flowing. We thank God for His Word. Thank you, Brother Aaron, for bringing it to us. We have time for a few testimonies if anyone wants to share. I'm on the sister's side over here. I was very blessed being here today and just hearing the Word of God being brought out. My thoughts went to quite a few different scriptures as I was listening here to the message. I had to think of the words of John the Baptist. He said that smoking flax he will not quench. Something that's not even in flame yet. He's not just going to stump it out. He's actually going to fan it, bring a flame out of it. I think that's what that verse is talking about. I had to think of another verse that says that we are not to mind high things, but condescend to men of low estate. And I had to think, John was saying this smoking flax. He was talking about what Jesus is going to do. He's not going to quench that. And when Jesus was here, He said that the Pharisees devour orphans and widow houses. And I had to think, maybe we are in that shape. Devouring the ones that we should be. Encouraging or fanning a flame. A river of water doesn't start with a big river. It might start with a little trickle. As Brother Aaron brought out in Ezekiel, where the water was just ankle deep to start with and then it got deeper and deeper. So, if you think, well, I'm not a river of water. It might be just a trickle. Don't despair. Don't mind high things. Condescend to men of low estate. Thank you, Brother. Thank you, Brother Aaron. I was deeply convicted that I need to be that nobody. Telling my children and my husband that I love them and that Jesus loves them. Coming from my background, it looks like a scary thing to do. So, I just appreciate anybody that would be willing to pray for me and keep me accountable in that. Thank you. Amen. We have a sister who will pick that one up later on. Yes, my name is Dwight Waldner. Most of you probably know me. I wish to bring you greetings from afar. I was over in Namibia for seven weeks and the brothers there do send their greetings. I was very challenged with how much we are on their hearts. Those two brothers that were here during Leadership Seminar this last year, their names are Llewellyn and his father, Jaco. And they're very much pressing on. It was a very precious time to see what God is doing there. He's building himself a church, and I was very blessed to be there. I also wanted to thank Brother Aaron for the message. That's the greatest longing of my heart, is to have streams of living water flow through my soul. I am a nobody. I come from that pile of nobodies, and I want to praise God this morning that He takes those and uses us for His glory. So, praise God this morning for His Word. Amen. Thank you, Dwight, for those greetings from Namibia. Where's the other mic at? I have a praise report to bring today. Most of you know about Melvin and Savilla Fisher and how they were killed. We have our phone service over the Internet, so we could trace how many times he had called in from August 2 until when he was killed, or when they died. And he had called in over 37 times. And I had never met the man, but I was very inspired by him. And when we went to that viewing, I had never met him before, so I never met him personally. But I will remember the evening that we got the news that he and one of his sons had been killed in an accident. And I just really went through something. I just wondered, you know, what is going on? Soon later, that was about an hour after the accident, and soon later we got another call saying that his wife had died too. Soon later, two more of the children. I had to wonder what this was all about. Then last night, I received a phone call. And I noticed right away that it was Arthur, Illinois, area code. And I missed the call, so I called back. And here it was a man by the name of Joe Yoder. He is a member of the Old Order Church there. And he had some questions for me. I never met the man. I didn't know the man before. And we talked, and we soon got to talking. And after a bit, a half an hour passed by, and after a bit, an hour. And after a while, he asked me, did you know Melvin Fisher? And I said, yes, I did. He said Melvin was very much of an inspiration to him. They had started homeschooling there in Arthur, Illinois, and Melvin had just inspired him on and had encouraged him. And the Thursday morning before Melvin died, he said to Joe, he said, Joe, I do believe. And I'm starting to see that God has much bigger things in mind that I have ever imagined. By Sunday afternoon, he had gone home with his wife and three of his children. And I guess what just really touched me is they had been asked to see if the Allen County Church could have that funeral service, and that was denied. Then they asked, well, could we have a service out by the graveyard? And that was granted. And this young man, Joe Yoder, and his minister were in that funeral, and they were out in the graveyard. And he said, after most of the people had left, and the Allen County Church and some of us from here in Lancaster started singing, he said he was so touched. He said he and his minister got a vision for their life through that. I just wanted to share that with the church. I just knew as soon as he shared it with me, this is something that I need to share. Amen. So we just need to remember that our faithful witness has a place, a very efficient, effective place. And we may never know until many years later those things, but we know that we need to be pure and holy and live that way all the days of our life. And many shall be the testimonies in the day of the rewards of Christ. So be it. Thank you, brother. Okay, I have another one down here. I'm just very thankful for the message this morning. I needed it, and I confess it is the desire of my heart. And so often, like the brother mentioned, it feels like smoking flaxseed in my heart. And I just pray that God would fan that in me that rivers of living water would not be hindered in any way. Thank you for that. ======================================================================== Audio: https://sermonindex1.b-cdn.net/18/SID18673.mp3 Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/aaron-hurst/rivers-of-living-water/ ========================================================================