I must have been munching on some chips earlier that day, or perhaps one of my all-time favs, the french fry. Whatever the reason, I was suddenly overcome by thirst. One second I was contentedly walking through my house, the next I was quickly headed for the sink to satiate this powerful need that had unexpectedly engulfed me.
My first thought: “I’m so thirsty!” was immediately followed by a second:
“I thirst.”
These two words from John 19:28 echoed through my mind, resounded in my heart, and stopped me in my tracks.
Jesus said this. Jesus felt this. Jesus was thirsty.
“I thirst.”
The creator of the universe. A perfect Holy one. He who commands all things and has everything under his feet. He who is capable of anything. That he would endure such a human discomfort, such a yearning for satisfaction, such a base need, pierced me like never before. Such a simple need, but so torturous if not met. This one seemingly small part of his anguish hit me with such force that I was compelled to drop to my knees right then and there and simply thank the Lord for his love for me. It was knowing that it was by choice that he thirsted, that he endured this human need, for me, that drove me to my knees and kept me there a while. Jesus thirsted. For me. His suffering was to pay for my sins, to pave the way for me to know God, to make it possible for me to be fulfilled by Him. It was through His thirst that I can draw to Him and from Him. His sacrifice makes possible my relationship with my creator and savior. He bridged the gap that was otherwise uncrossable. He became my satisfier, the one way, truth, and life that can quench the longing in my soul. In that moment, a truth filled my spirit:
Jesus thirsted for me, so that I could thirst for Him.
Thank you, Lord, for creating in me a thirst that only you can satisfy, a thirst that you satisfy with yourself.
On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” John 7:37-38
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Well-said. How blessed you are to have received the grace to be impacted by that thought and want to fall on your knees because of it!
I have started loving recently that verse you posted at the end. What an incredible promise! Thank you for the reminder to drink from Him today!
Thanks so much Faith!
Hey, Kerry. Great post! I’ve been looking forward to reading it. We have been studying Luke and John this week in my NT class, and one of the things my professor pointed out in going through Jesus’ birth narrative in Luke 1-2 was that Jesus’ humiliation did not start and end with the cross. The very concept of (she used the word) “compressing” the infinite all-powerful God into a frail, dirty, needy human body is mind-blowing. You capture that really well!
Also something you might be interested in…
As I’m sure you know, the Middle East has areas that are very dry and arid, and also areas that are lush and fertile. The difference is, of course, all about water. In some places, there are abundant rains in certain seasons and NONE the rest of the year. This means that you have a desert, then a deluge, then a desert again. So, in Jesus’ day, water that was standing water in those areas was dirty, stagnant, and “dead”. “Living water” referred to water fed from rivers or underground streams. It flowed *through* (in and out), so didn’t become stagnant and filled with impurities. This was the water they tried to channel and capture for irrigation, store in cisterns and wells, etc. It was also the only water that could be used for ritual purification.
In other words, when Jesus talked about “living water”, everyone immediately understood that from their daily experience. (Example, the Smaritan woman at the well in John 4). And countless metaphors could be drawn from it.
Anyway, I’ve always loved the term “living water”, and was excited to learn a little more about it the other day. Thought you might be too. 🙂
Thanks, Jeff, for the feedback and info!