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Of God's Glory and  

Quenching our "Thirsty"

Desire for Him

This material on this page is important because it gives you a stronger basis for faith to keep on receiving God's presence—24 hours-a-day.

Long but worth it...

God's glory is why we can "drink" from Him! It helps greatly to understand how this works.

On a practical level it is the glory of earthly sources that we try to drink (John 5:44). If we don’t believe the glory of our earthly sources we don’t get anything out of it. The same is true with God. 

You have to believe the glory of your God or you won’t ever be able to quench your thirst with His presence when you draw near. It makes repentance easier to know that the glory of God is far greater than earthly glories. Knowing the glory you are turning toward—and your ability to be close to God—makes repentance a highly desirable option.

Everything boils down to this: We need greater revelation of God’s glory and grace. Our God is always willing to lavish His presence upon those willing to trust His grace, draw near, and receive. The problem is our disbelief. He is waiting for us. Our theology, and our application of scripture, must align with the Holy Spirit flowing through us. Otherwise, like a hose disconnected from a faucet that is always turned on, we will keep God from being able to do what He wants with us. Each one of us need a better understanding the scriptures because out of that understanding will come the freedom we need to trust God, believe, and receive what He longs to pour out upon us. Being able to "drink" requires that you take advantage of God’s provision and draw near to the Lord by entering the throne room of God and standing before Him—in all His glory. The next step is vital. You have to both understand and believe the extent to which the Father has exalted our Lord Jesus. 

We should value accurate application of the scripture just as much as having right doctrine.

Over and over the Bible tells us to look at the Lord and to keep our eyes on Jesus. But, sometimes the mental pictures we use to apply the scriptures can seriously limit our relationship with God. Some prefer to think of Jesus as sitting on the edge of their bed at night, like a loving parent or friend. Others might picture themselves as a tree that drinks through their roots. These pictures might seem to help some people, but they are incomplete—at best. Even worse, is the dangerous possibility that we could make the picture itself our "god."

We need to apply the scriptures based on the directions given to us in the Bible. "Picturing" Jesus sitting on the edge of your bed might make you feel better, but it has little to do with "abiding" in Christ all during the rest of the day. Pretending you are a tree does little to help you keep your eyes on Jesus and have Him perfect your faith as a result (Heb. 12:1,2). The truth is you are not a tree. When the scripture talks about being planted before the Lord it is a way of trying to communicate the importance of staying in the throne room (Psa. 92:12-14).

You should want your application of scripture to be as accurate as possible. Proper application of God’s word is like a puzzle with many pieces. Each piece of scripture represents an important part of the picture. The goal of Christian our growth should reflect the whole of scripture rather than applying just one or two principles. If we leave something out, or if we focus our application on just one piece of the puzzle our application of scripture will be incomplete. You might believe that any time we come to God in prayer we are entering the throne room. Yet, if your believing lacks conviction about your access to God, then you won’t be able draw near to Him and He won’t be able to draw near to you. You might even trust that you are taking refuge in the "shadow of His wing," but if your faith doesn’t include His being a fountain, then your application of scripture won’t allow you to ‘drink’ and receive the river of the Holy Spirit promised to you.

Let me emphasize again that accurate application of scripture is every bit as important as right doctrine. We should search the scriptures and then we should adjust our application accordingly. Just as our doctrine should accurately reflect the whole council of the Bible, our application should too.

Entering the throne room, actually drawing near to the fountain, then trusting that we are looking at Jesus and staying before the Lord allows us to apply many scriptures, all at the same time, that would not be otherwise be practical or possible. 

When you enter the throne room of God you are one step closer to being able to experience a river of the Holy Spirit flowing through you. Next, we must consider the conditions for being able to experience God as He promises in the verses below.

Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’’ But this He spoke of the Spirit (John 7:37-39a).

The conditions for experiencing a river of the Holy Spirit are that we have to come to Him; we have to drink; we also have to believe in Jesus "as the scriptures said." It is our believing that makes receiving possible. We have to believe because the Bible says that, "Christ redeemed us...so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Gal. 3:13,14). In other words, when you "come to Him" by entering the throne room, you are able to "drink" because of your faith in Jesus concerning His exalted state. You are able to drink because of whom you believe you are drawing near.

Brother Lawrence practiced the presence of God by applying this principle. In his book it says, "...we nourish our souls by seeing God in His exaltation..." To him, "...the foundation of his spiritual life was the faith which revealed to him the exalted position of God." We have to believe in Jesus as the scriptures describe Him. Otherwise, it is entirely possible to enter the throne room, draw near to God, and still not receive a "flow" of the Holy Spirit through us. 

Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before Him (Hebrews 12:2). But, what was the reason for joy? The Bible tells us, "for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:2b). It made dying easier to know that He would soon be sitting next to the Father. The Bible explains even more of the reason for joy in Acts chapter two. Jesus endured the cross "with joy" because of a promise the Father had made to Him that couldn’t be fulfilled until after He ascended and went to be with the Father. Even though it was a promise between the Father and Son it was regarding the Holy Spirit and us.

This Jesus God raised up again...Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear (Acts 2:32,33).

The promise was that Father would give the Holy Spirit to Jesus in a way that would allow Jesus to then "pour" out the Holy Spirit upon us. The events in the book of Acts are a record of the result. Jesus told His disciples, "And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high." (Luke 24:49). It is no wonder that Jesus looked forward to being able to give the Holy Spirit to us.

Jesus endured the cross so that we could find much-needed forgiveness, but that wasn’t the only reason. The Bible says of our Lord Jesus that the Father highly exalted Him. That Jesus has been so highly exalted is much to our benefit.

who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men...He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name," (Phil. 2:6-9).

That Jesus was raised up and was "highly exalted" means He was glorified by the Father. His present state of having been glorified is of vital importance to why you and I can quench our thirst with the Holy Spirit. Right after Jesus command us to come to Him and drink the Bible explains why we would be able to quench our thirst with the Holy Spirit, "Come to Me and drink...But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (John 7:37,39). We can drink because the Father has fulfilled His promise to glorify Jesus.

Speaking about Jesus’ present glorified state the Bible says, "His Son...is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature...He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high" (Heb. 1:2,3a). Please note that "radiance" and "representation" are two completely different things. Our Lord Jesus is both. Concerning right now, Jesus is both a reflection of the Father’s nature and by the Father’s doing, Jesus is also radiating the Father’s glory. The word "radiates" is completely different from being a reflection. The original language reveals that the word "radiance" means that Jesus is shining out the light of the Fathers glory much like the sun radiates light. Elsewhere, the Bible tells us, "His radiance is like the sunlight" (Hab. 3:4).

The Bible explains that "God is Light" (1 John 1:5b), and also that "God is spirit" (John 4:24). It also calls the Holy Spirit, the "Spirit of glory" (1 Pet. 4:14), and also, "the Spirit who is from God" (1 Cor. 2:12). The radiance that shines from our Lord is the Holy Spirit. We are to come to Him and drink so that—by the radiance around Him—a river of the Holy Spirit can flow out from inside us (John 7:37-39).

Consider yet another reference to the promise the Father had made to Jesus, "When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father...the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me" (John 15:26). That Jesus sends to us the Holy Spirit that "proceeds" from the Father, means that the Father is continuing to give the Holy Spirit to our Lord. Even today, Jesus is still radiating the Father’s glory because the Father has never stopped giving the Holy Spirit to our Lord.

Let me remind you again of those important words in Acts chapter two, "having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear (Acts 2:33). In other words, Jesus died so that after a progression of events, He could radiate the Father’s glory and freely pour fourth what would quench our thirst. It is no wonder that He said, "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away...if I go, I will send Him to you" (John 16:7). Our Lord sends the Holy Spirit to us by the radiance that shines upon us from the fountain of God. 

It will be helpful at this point to clear possible confusion concerning the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.

After Jesus died and rose again, He had a resurrection body that was both physical and spiritual. His body was physical because He was able to eat fish (John 21:9). But, His body was also spiritual because right before Thomas touched Him Jesus was able to come into the room without even opening a door (John 20:26-28)! The significance of this point is that it is that same resurrected physical-spiritual body that ascended and went into heaven. Even now, in heaven, Jesus has that same physical-spiritual form.

When Steven saw "into heaven" he saw Jesus, but he did not see the Father in physical form, "But being full of the Holy Spirit, he [Steven] gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God" (Acts 7:55). Steven saw Jesus and he saw the glory of the Father. When Steven saw Jesus He was standing—other times He sits down. Concerning Jesus, the Bible also says, "He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high." (Hebrews 1:3b). Here again, that Jesus sat down beside the "Majesty" doesn’t mean the Father has physical form.

Concerning the Father, it was Jesus who said, "true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:23,24). Because Jesus said the Father is Spirit, we should not think of Him as having a body with physical form.

Ezekiel wrote concerning a vision he saw of heaven, "On that which resembled a throne, high up, was a figure with the appearance of a man." (Ezek. 1:26b). It was Jesus that Ezekiel saw on the throne. How could it have been Jesus that Ezekiel saw on the throne During Old Testament times? We are bound by time, but God is not. He always lives in the now. Jesus told His disciples, "I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning" (Luke 10:18b). Even though Jesus was watching Satan fall from heaven, we know that according to our time-table, Satan fell from heaven a long time before that (verse reference?).

It is important to think of both Jesus and the Father as God. Of Jesus it says, "I...overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne" (Rev 3:21b). The throne Jesus sits on belongs to the Father. The Bible also talks about, "the Lamb in the center of the throne" (Rev 7:17). The "Lamb" in the center of the throne is our Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:29,36). It is right to think of both Jesus and the Father as God because "God sits on His holy throne." (Psalm 47:8). Our Lord didn’t correct Thomas when he said to Jesus, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28b). Even though Jesus is God, you should also think of the Father as God too. Jesus told Mary to tell the disciples, "I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God’" (John 20:17b). When you enter the throne of God you are drawing near to both the Father and the Son.

Even though I have tried, I haven’t found clear evidence in the scriptures of two thrones—one for the Father and one the Son. Sometimes Jesus stands (Acts 7:55). Sometimes the Bible says Jesus sits on the Father’s throne—with the Father on the throne at the same time (Rev. 3:21). Other scriptures talk about Jesus sitting at the right hand of God (Heb. 12:2). If there aren’t two thrones, one would have to conclude that the throne is wide enough for Jesus to sit in the center of the throne or to the side. Let’s go back now to scriptures that are more clear.

While the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit are separate beings, they are One. Jesus told us, "I and the Father are one" (John 10:30). Even though Jesus is sitting with the Father on the Father’s throne, the Bible talks about, "One sitting on the throne" (Rev 4:2b). The reason the Father and Son are One because of the Holy Spirit. The Bible says the Holy Spirit is, "the Spirit of Jesus" (Acts 16:7b). The reason you should think of the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Jesus is because it is the Holy Spirit that Jesus is radiating. The Bible takes it a step further when it says of the Holy Spirit that "the Lord is the Spirit" (2 Cor. 3:17b). At the same time however, you should also think of the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of the Father because the Holy Spirit "proceeds" from the Father to our Lord Jesus and then on to us (John 15:26). Speaking of the Father, Jesus told us that "God is Spirit" (John 4:24a). It is because the Father is Spirit that Jesus could pray for us saying, "that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us" (John 17:21a). It is because of these roles and relationships that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are One. In the same way, it is because of the Holy Spirit that we too can, "abide in the Son and in the Father" at the same time (1 John 2:24).

Just as Jesus has joined Himself to the Father and became One with Him by the Holy Spirit, the same can be true for you and I, "But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him" (1 Cor. 6:17). Certainly, being "joined" to the Lord happens at salvation, but it needs to happen on a practical level also. David said, "My soul clings to You" (Psa. 63:8a). By directing your affections away from earthly sources you can stop cling to "other gods" and cling to the Lord. By drawing near to the Lord and making Him your first love, your very soul will be "joined" to the Lord because you will cling to Him—even while you sleep.

The Reason You Can Receive the Presence of the Holy Spirit

The promise that you can quench your thirst with the Holy Spirit is something you have strong reason to believe. The Bible is clear on this point. Was the "promise" of the Holy Spirit "being poured fourth", only for the Christians in the early church? It was not: "the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself." (Acts 2:39). The Bible also tells us, "we...receive the promise of the Spirit through faith." (Gal. 3:14b). It also says that "it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all" (Romans 4:16b). The promise includes you. Let your heart rest into believing. It is because of your access into the throne room of God and because Jesus has been glorified by the Father that you can drink. You only have to draw near to God while believing in Jesus as the scriptures describe Him (John 7:38).

How much of the Holy Spirit is Jesus shining forth? Even though it may be difficult for you to think of it this way, the Bible says the reason we can drink is because Jesus is a fountain: "You give them to drink...For with You is the fountain of life" (Ps. 36:7-9). Jesus is radiating so much of the Father’s glory that the Bible calls Him a "fountain." In the words of my wife, "Jesus is radiating what He wants you to have."

God does not hold back! Far more than the waves of the sea that never seem to stop rolling in, Jesus is an eternal fountain who never stops gushing out the Holy Spirit. That is why you can "drink," anywhere and anytime, by simply drawing near to God and being open to what Jesus is radiating. The Bible says, "We have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus...draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean and our bodies washed with pure water" (Heb. 10:19 and 22). That our Lord is a fountain is the reason why you can be "sprinkled clean" and "washed" inside and out. If you walk into the spray of a fountain in a city park, you would get wet. The same is true with God: "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8). Thank the Lord that you don’t have to be afraid to enter and draw near.

It was our Lord who said, "I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost" (Rev. 21:6). Even though this verse occurs toward the end of the Bible, the promise of our drinking "without cost" was always available—even during Old Testament times. The prophet Isaiah said,

Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk Without money and without cost. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And delight yourself in abundance (Isaiah 55:1,2).

That we can drink freely is just as available right now as it was during Old Testament times and will be in the future too. The problem is that if we don’t enter and draw near to God, the Bible says we shut ourselves off from the kingdom of God: "...woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in." (Matt. 23:13). This passage has application to both unbelievers and Christians. It is entirely possible for us to squelch the activity of the Holy Spirit (1 Thess. 5:19). In other words, He can’t flow or work through us to full extent possible, if we don’t enter and drink.

We need a biblical basis for believing that God comes to us. Let me say again that "...we...receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Gal. 3:14). The Bible tells us clearly that "...he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him" (Heb. 11:6). When you draw near to God you have to believe that He is also draw near to you (James 4:8).

The scriptures are our foundation for the faith to receive God’s presence. The Bible says we should, "..let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream" (Amo. 5:24). The Bible also tells us, "So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord. His going forth is as certain as the dawn; And He will come to us like the rain, Like the spring rain watering the earth" (Hos. 6:3). According to these verses you should be "certain" that the Lord comes to you like rain or like a river that "rolls down." That is what the Bible says. Trusting that God is coming to you like rain or like a river will help you to receive His presence—in abundance.

You "let justice roll down like waters" by trusting that God is coming to you like an "ever-flowing stream." But, just because the radiance of God is spoken of as being like water it doesn’t mean that "water" should be your primary focus. Your focus should be that God is coming to you. You should trust that His justice, righteousness, love, power, kindness, all the attributes of God are coming to you. It is just that when you trust that God is drawing near, He is coming to you like rain or like a river would come down onto you. But don’t think about it as just being radiance! It is the holiness and the love and the power of Almighty God! The radiance around Him is God. The radiance is the Holy Spirit.

The reason you can "drink" is because God is a fountain and He comes to you like rain or like a waterfall coming down from above. It is because of the radiance around Him that you can receive His presence so freely and in abundance. 

Jesus told us, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." (John 14:6). This verse is often applied to salvation. It is also important to note that Jesus said "through Me." When you come to the Father, you cannot draw near except to walk through the radiance of the Holy Spirit pouring out from our Lord Jesus. Because the Holy Spirit is "the Spirit of Jesus" (Acts 16:7), no one comes to the Father except through the Holy Spirit that radiates from our Lord. The Bible says that we, "have our access in one Spirit to the Father." (Ephesians 2:18). By our drawing near to God through the Holy Spirit radiating from Him, Jesus is the only way we can come to the Father.

Since our access is through the Holy Spirit, the quality of our fellowship with God is dependent on our trust in Jesus to give you the Spirit abundantly. Let your heart believe that you have access to the Father through your attachment to Him. By your being grafted to the fountain of God you can, "have boldness and confident access through faith in Him" (Ephesians 3:12b). We have to draw near trusting in God to let us draw near, "let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith" (Hebrews 10:22b). You can "drink" because of your freedom of access to God and by your attachment to Him. 

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I am praying for the Lord's abundant blessing on your efforts to direct your heart toward Him.

Barry.

      Come and Drink — Continued...

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(C) Barry Hall 1999

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