INVITATION TO ABUNDANT LIFE

INVITATION TO ABUNDANT LIFE
John 7:37-39; Isaiah 55:1-2

Jesus said, ‘The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly’ (John 10:10).

Abundant life here is not just sheer display of wealth and material substance, it’s a life of absolute fulfilment, yielding totally to God’s will and purpose. It’s a life that has become a portal (channel) through which God’s blessings are distributed to many people, institutions and nations… (Gen. 12:2; Isaiah 60:15).

This invitation is to all and sundry, but only those who thirst will respond positively to it. Jesus saw that there was a high level of lethargy in the environment. This event was meant to be a moment of divine visitation, and it was the last day of the feast... It was supposed to be a time of refreshing and fellowshipping in God's presence, but what was obtainable in those days was mere fulfilment of tradition. In the midst of all these, He stood and cried out saying, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me...’

In other words, He meant ‘if anyone really desires to see the Father, let Him come to Me’. Jesus probably sensed that some folks genuinely came to Jerusalem to have an encounter with God, but the best they could get was what the religious leaders of those days had to offer them.

Spiritual leadership operating under a closed heaven can never lead people to the presence of God. Neither will their ministrations command the release of the supernatural (or the power of God to heal and to deliver)… Mark 16:20.

Most people will not yield to this invitation, because their 'thirst' is for something entirely different. Our generation has developed an unusual appetite for strange doctrines, quick fix solutions and other options at the expense of the Giver of abundant life...

The Lord says He now stands at the door of your heart, knocking to secure entrance to your heart, would you rather open to Him? (Rev. 3:20).

Thirst - could also be seen as passion, zeal, affection, or interest.

What do you thirst for? I understand that you might have a deep sense of affection, but what do you thirst for?

Everyone has a degree (or dimension) of thirst or the other.

Blessed are they that do hunger and thirst for righteousness... Matt. 5:6.

As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? (Psalm 42:1-2).

Thirst could be provoked by a situation of dryness. For someone who dwells in a dry land, he or she would naturally desire or long for water to quench the thirst. Are you dwelling in a dry land? Do you possess a sense of spiritual dryness that has provoked an unusual thirst for the Word and the Spirit of God in your life? (Isaiah 44:3). 

God works in mysterious ways! He fills the hungry (and the thirsty) with good things, and sends the rich (those who are full of themselves) away empty (Luke 1:53; Rev. 3:17-19).

Many people appear in God's presence, only to mark register. They are not thirsty for His filling. Some are too full... they need to be emptied in order to receive the water of life. The only acceptable trading currency for obtaining (securing) abundant life is thirst!

...And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely (Rev. 22:17).

This open invitation made by the Lord Jesus Christ was the promise of the Holy Spirit to as many as believed. He is the One who brings the kingdom of God into our hearts. Without the Holy Spirit, we cannot experience abundant life...

This abundant life (ushered in by the Holy Spirit) brings you into the ‘heaven on earth’ mode. You eventually become a heavenly ambassador on earth (Matt. 16:19; 18:18).

PASTOR NATHANIEL SADELA
RESIDENT PASTOR

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