Drink

Jesus has told us that if we are thirsty, we should come to Him to drink.  What does it mean to come to Christ to drink?

Spirit and Life

The most basic thing to know about coming to Christ to drink is that you need to hear His words.  Jesus put a huge emphasis on the words that He spoke.  In John 6:63 He tells us that the words He has spoken to us are spirit and life.  That's a bold statement.  So bold, in fact, that in verse 64 many of His disciples leave Him.  Jesus says here that only the Spirit can give a person life, the flesh does you no good.  Think back to the previous post on what it means to be thirsty.  When you are thirsty, you want something to give you life.  When you feel that desire in you to live free, live strong, live loud, to really live, where do you go?  Jesus says that when we feel that desire, we need to go to Him, because the words that He speaks are the only thing that can give us that life.  Do you feel that way when you read the Bible?  Do you feel like by reading His words, you're learning to live a more vibrant life?

For many of us, we don't feel like that.  Here's why:  we're often taught to see the Bible as an instruction book for our life.  Who ever got spirit and life by reading an owner's manual?  Jesus tells the Pharisees in John 5:39-40 that their problem when the read the Scriptures is that they aren't reading it right, and we fall into that same problem.  We search the Scriptures because someone tells us that we should, and if we do, we can have life.  Jesus tells the Parisees and us that the Scriptures bear witness about Him.  That is, the point of the Bible is to help us see who Jesus is and believe that He really can do what He says He will do.  

Drink Him

When Jesus said in John 6:63 that His words were spirit and life, it was just after He told His disciples that they would need to eat His body and drink His blood, because His body is true food and His blood is true drink (John 6:55).  When He said this, He was referencing how He would become a sacrifice for them.  (In the Jewish culture, when a sacrifice was made, the priests and the person bringing the sacrifice would cook the sacrifice and then eat parts of it.)  This wasn't just weird because Jesus sounds like He wants us to be vampires, this was weird because Jesus made himself sound like a sacrifice.  This, He did on purpose, because this is what you need to understand if you are going to come to Him to drink:

We failed at everything God expected of us, and worse, refused to admit our failure and told God He has no right to tell us how to live our lives.  We sinned and rebelled.  If, at this point, we realize that we need to come back to God, it's too late, because God has too strong a sense of justice, and we owed Him too much.  But Jesus came to settle things between us and the Father.  We only deserved to die, but instead Jesus died for us.  If we partake in that sacrifice, we are brought back to God.  If you look at at the Bible, at God's words, and look to learn more about this truth of how Jesus has fixed our relationship with the Father (even allowing Him to really be our Father), then the Bible will be like water to you that brings spirit and life.  This is the purpose of Jesus' words, and this is how they bring spirit and life.

Hearts on Fire

At Navigators last week, the message was from Luke 8, and it was about how to read the word in the way Jesus wants us to.  You can listen to it for yourself here:

Receive the Word

The thing to keep in mind is this:  the Bible was written to bear witness about Jesus.  Read it with that in mind, looking for how it helps you better undertans the gospel, and Jesus will use it to bring spirit and life to you.  Reading it as a rulebook just doesn't cut it.

Jesus will help you understand His words.  Pray Luke 24:32 for yourself, that Jesus would walk with you and explain His word to you in a way that sets your heart on fire with His Spirit and His life.