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Living Water to be Shared, January 11
But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never
thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water
springing up into everlasting life.
John 4:14
.
As the plan of redemption begins and ends with a gift, so it is to be carried
forward. The same spirit of sacrifice which purchased salvation for us will
dwell in the hearts of all who become partakers of the heavenly gift. Says
the apostle Peter: “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister
the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God” (
1
Peter 4:10
). Said Jesus to His disciples as He sent them forth, “Freely ye have
received, freely give” (
Matthew 10:8
). In him who is fully in sympathy with
Christ, there can be nothing selfish or exclusive. He who drinks of the living
water will find that it is “in him a well of water springing up into everlasting
life.” The Spirit of Christ within him is like a spring welling up in the desert,
flowing to refresh all, and making those who are ready to perish eager to
drink of the water of life.
It was the same spirit of love and self-sacrifice which dwelt in Christ that
impelled the apostle Paul to his manifold labors. “I am debtor,” he says, “both
to the Greeks, and to the barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise”
(
Romans 1:14
). “Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this
grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches
of Christ” (
Ephesians 3:8
).
Our Lord designed that His church should reflect to the world the fullness
and sufficiency that we find in Him. We are constantly receiving of God’s
bounty, and by imparting of the same we are to represent to the world the love
and beneficence of Christ. While all heaven is astir, dispatching messengers
to all parts of the earth to carry forward the work of redemption, the church of
the living God are also to be co-laborers with Jesus Christ. We are members
of His mystical body. He is the Head, controlling all the members of the body.
Jesus Himself, in His infinite mercy, is working on human hearts, effecting
spiritual transformations so amazing that angels look on with astonishment
and joy.—
The Review and Herald, December 24, 1908
.
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