The River of God
February 6, 2014
The River of God
Revelations 22:1-2
And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, [was there] the tree of life, which bare twelve [manner of] fruits, [and] yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree [were] for the healing of the nations.
I believe that through the ages of time there runs a river of life from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It is a river of Truth and Revelation that God is unfolding to mankind as it flows to the consummation of the ages. Christ, the Lamb of God, is the greatest truth this river has brought to mankind. We know that He indeed is the Tree of Life that was there even in the Garden of Eden. This river has ever been a source of blessing and spiritual fruitfulness. Psalms 46:2-5 says, “Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; [Though] the waters thereof roar [and] be troubled, [though] the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. [There is] a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy [place] of the tabernacles of the most High. God [is] in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, [and that] right early.” It is my prayer that you have been baptized and immersed in that river today, that you are, in fact, the wellspring of the life that is in that river. That river is not a natural one, but that of the Spirit of God that flows through humanity in the lives of those who are yielded to Him. When we are in the center of His Life we are in that river. Jesus says in John 7:38, “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers ofliving water.”
It is producing the fruitfulness of the Spirit in your life. There is a divine dispensation of that tree of Life in the midst of the river. It yielded its fruit every month. Through the Word of God and over time we have seen God revealing Himself more and more to man. The greatest revelation has been in the revelation of Himself through the incarnate man Christ Jesus. In Christ we see what God looks like in the flesh, how He acts and the fruit of His life. We caught the vision and experienced the revelation of His grace and salvation through His blood. When all around is shaken and moved we still have a river that makes glad the city of God.
Through the church age we have seen different marked times when God would raise up and an individual or individuals through whom He would reveal a greater truth about Himself. The greatest tragedy we see in this is not that the truths were not real and precious, but men built a doctrine and a religion around that truth, it became a source of exclusiveness where they saw themselves a little more right and perhaps a little more godly than others. So they established churches, denominations and schools around that particular doctrine of truth. Today we see all these denominations and we wonder can they all be right or which one is right? God is not “a” doctrine or “a” truth, He is “the” Truth. The River of Truth that is never stagnant or still, but continues to flow and reveal itself in greater truth. The denominations have become the product of man’s work that have served to often splinter and divide the body of Christ rather that which causes it to function in unity and oneness as God purposed it too. If this is where you see your life today 1 John 2:27 says, “But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye neednot that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.” It is not to say that churches aren’t good and that we can’t learn from other men, but don’t relinquish the teacher you have within you, the anointing that is leading you into truth as you abide in Him. This is your River. We don’t want to find ourselves in the little eddy by the side of the river that just flows round and round but never goes anywhere new. We want to be out in the depths of the river moving and continually growing in the swell of its Truth. As part of that mainstream of the River of God we carry the fruit and fruitfulness of the Tree of Life for the healing of the nations. You are the leaves and the fruit of the Vine. It is through you and me that God is manifesting His Life and Truth to the world today through the Life giving and revealing Spirit of Truth within us. We are not to be a stagnant pond of ‘has beens” who once experienced God and know about God, but are not experiencing Him in power and fullness. If this sounds too much like you then it is time to wade back out into the River and experience the baptism of renewal and refreshing that the Holy Spirit brings. Come alive and be a part of the pure crystal waters and a part of the tree of Life for the healing of the nations. Our God is a dynamic force. He is never stale, stagnant or complacent, but is always moving. Get in His current and let it carry you to the places of Life in Him He wants to take you.