Some men are born with twisted minds, just as some are born with crooked teeth.”
–Louis L’Amour (We Shaped the Land With Our Guns)
“The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.”
–Galatians 5:17 (NLT)
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I was reading one of my favorite Christian authors, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and he made me do some pondering. He is good at that. I remember that Pappy was always concerned about his well. They were going to run out of water. Well, one day he quit wondering and was forced to dig a deeper well.
Water is vital for life. When a person is looking for a place to build a house he would look at the water supply or if it was feasible for a well. He wanted good water. Today, that is taken away with the modern water companies who do the work, but still water is vital for our well-being.
Perhaps you have heard a sermon on Isaac redigging the wells of Abraham. There is much to say about the story and I’ll leave a few thoughts.
“So Isaac left there, camped in the Valley of Gerar, and lived there. Isaac reopened the water wells that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham and that the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died. He gave them the same names his father had given them.”
–Genesis 26:17-18 (HCSB)
Isaac was forced to move. Now he camped, but found the wells were plugged up. These wells had been dug earlier by his father, Abraham. Isaac then proceeded to reopen the wells so he could have fresh water for his needs.
We know about Abraham. Abraham walked with God; he was called God’s “friend.” He had that personal relationship with God that we say we want today. Today, the word is “relationship.” The cool, refreshing, vitalizing “water” of the Holy Spirit was flowing with Abraham.
Isaac settles and sees that the wells need to be revived. He begins the work. He must redo his father’s work. He cannot live on the work that was once done by someone else; he needs to find the water for himself. He needs a “personal relationship”.
Each person must experience their own revival. They cannot depend upon the experience of their parents or those who have gone before. Each must dig their own wells and experience the life-giving water of the Holy Spirit.
Lloyd-Jones mentioned that Isaac wasn’t looking for entertainment or luxuries. He was looking for the essentials for life. There is too much nonsensical “stuff” happening within churches today and not much of the Holy Spirit. Put aside entertainment for the refreshing, life-giving water of the Holy Spirit.
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Ponder This: We run all over the place trying to get our “needs” met. Who will satisfy your needs at death?