God’s River Of Life

God’s River of Life

Revelation 22

I’d like to start our study by going back and taking a look at a remarkable passage found in the book of Job.

“For there is hope for a tree, if it is cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its tender shoots will not cease. Though its root may grow old in the earth, and its stump may die in the ground.” (Job 14:7-8 NKJV)

There are those whose lives are like this tree, especially today in this current climate of disease and violence. They feel as if they’ve been cut down. Their dreams and hopes have been broken and shattered with the pieces being scattered with seemingly no hope of ever be reassembled. Disease, illness, financial set back, violence, or a loss of a loved one has taken its toll and a sort of deadness has settled inside of them.

This tree also isn’t some sapling, but has stood strong for many years. Its weathered the storms and seasons, and its roots go down deep into the soil, but drought and the woodman’s ax has felled it.

Job likens the tree’s present condition to his life. Everything he had hoped for and dreamed about is gone. It’s dead to him. He’s as barren as this tree, and in his mind this tree has a better chance of coming back to life than he does in his present situation.

Many of us can relate. We’ve stood strong for years, but all of life’s disappointments has done their damage and has made us into a dead stump.

But we don’t have to remain in this condition. Now, I know how easy it is to stay in this condition, but we don’t have to. There’s hope for a new beginning, a renewal of our life, ministry and most importantly in our relationship with the Lord. There’s hope for our sprouting up again as a tender shoot. The question is how?

Job goes on to explain.

“Yet at the scent of water it will bud and bring forth branches like a plant.” (Job 14:9 NLKV)

Notice it’s at the scent, the smell of moisture, not the moisture itself, mind you, but just the smell of moisture that will revive what was once thought dead. It’s a deep down knowledge and assurance that the life giving and sustaining properties of water is on its way.

It’s this scent of water that I want to leave us with today. It’s kind of like the smell right before it rains. We sniff the air and we just know that rain is on its way.

What I’d like for us to do in our time together and afterwards is to be able to sniff the air of the spirit and know that the rain of the Holy Spirit is on its way. And like that tree stump, begin to open up our hearts, minds, and spirits and begin to branch out to receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s life giving and sustaining waters.

And when we do we’ll begin to blossom with new life, with new and renewed hopes and dreams.

And so, my desire today is to give to all of us this scent of water, the scent of the Holy Spirit, this scent of hope, to renew, invigorate, and revive our souls and spirits.

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 22:1-5 NKJV)

There are several key elements to this New Jerusalem where the Lord will reign forever with all those who have come to belief in Jesus Christ, and who are written in His, that is, in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Within the courtyard there’s a tree that straddles the river of the waters of life. The tree is the Tree of Life. This is the same tree God planted in the Garden of Eden. But when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and sinned by eating the fruit from the Tree of Good and Evil, God cast them out of the Garden. The reason was because if they ate of the Tree of Life with the sin nature residing within them, they would be forever lost in their sin and thus lost to God, because God cannot condone evil and sin in His presence.