1 J. H. Jowett. 2 W. Eobertson Nicoll, The Lamp of Sacrifice, 247.
' James Drummond, Johannine Thouglds, 42.
ST. JOHN — 15
!o More Thirst.
LITERATURE
Banks (L. A.), Christ and His Friends^ 154.
Bardsley (J. W.), Illustrative Texts and Texts Illustrated^ 05.
Hodges (G.), The Human Nature of the Saints, 2.30.
Hopkins (E. H.), TJie Law of Liberty in the Spiritual Life, 55.
Ingram (A. F. W.), The Gospel in Action^ 261.
Jay (W.), Short DiscourseSj ii. 447.
Jowett (J. H.), Thirsting for the Springs, 18, 137.
Liddon (H. P.), Passiontide Sermons, 244.
Maclaren (A.), Expositions : John i.-viii., 214.
Matheson (G.), Leaves for Quiet Hours, 75.
Parker (J.), Studies in Texts, v. 154.
Spurgeon (C. H.), Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, xv. (1869) No. 864 ;
XX. (1874) No. 1202. Tyndall (C. H.), Object Lessons for Children, 26. Wells (J.), Bible Echoes, 169. Christian World Pulpit, ixxix. 232 (Evans).
No MORE Thirst.
Jesus answered and said unto her, Every one that drinketh of this water shall thirst ag-ain : but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst ; but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water springing up unto eternal life. — John iv. 13, 14.
1. Those who have read with care the addresses of Christ must be struck, not only with their illustrative character, but, which is very important in the use of illustrations, with their perfect adaptation to the case in point. The force of His imagery is heightened by the fact that the emblems and figures used were taken from objects which the audience had in view at the time He addressed them, and from external things with which their minds were thoroughly familiar, and in which they had a special interest. When the multitudes sought Him at Capernaum for " the meat which perisheth," He began to speak of " the meat which endureth unto everlasting life." In the case before us. He gi'adually leads the mind of the woman of Samaria from the material water which she was drawing from the well of Jacob, to the " living water " that He could give, and which would be in her " a well of living water springing up unto eternal life."
2. There are two kinds of wells, one a simple reservoir, another containing the waters of a spring. It is the latter kind that is spoken about here, as is clear not only from the meaning of the word in the Greek, but also from the description of it as " spring- ing up." That suggests at once the activity of a fountain. A fountain is the emblem of motion, not of rest. Its motion is derived from itself, not imparted to it from without. Its " silvery column " rises ever heavenward, though gravitation is too strong for it, and drags it back again. So Christ promised to this ignorant, sinful Samaritan woman that if she chose He would
.^30 NO MORE THIRSTv^
plant in her soul a gift which would thus well up, by its own inherent energy, and fill her spirit with music, and refreshment, and satisfaction,
I.
The Thirst of the Soul.
"Every one that drinketh of this water shall thirst again." It is not difficult to discern traces of this thirst in the faces of those whom we meet in the common way. If we take our stand at the corner of tlie street and scan the faces of the passing crowd, it is only now and again that we gaze upon a countenance which is significant of peace. How rarely the face suggests the joy and the serenity of a healthy satisfaction. We are confronted by an abounding unrest. The majority of people seem to be afflicted with the pain of unsatisfied want. The very faces are suggestive of a disquieting thirst. We have a varied vocabulary in which we describe this prevailing condition : — " restless/^ " dis- contented," " dissatisfied," " not right with himself."
^ Water is an essential of animal and vegetable life. With a constantly recurring appetite we seek it. To have no thirst is a symptom of disease or death. But the soul also, not having life in itself, needs to be sustained from without ; and when in a healthy state it seeks by a natural appetite that which will sustain it. And as most of our mental acts are spoken of in terms of the body, as we speak of seeing truth and grasping it, as if the mind had hands and eyes, so David naturally exclaims, "My soul thirsts for the living God." In the living soul there is a craving for that which maintains and revives its life, which is analogous to the thirst of the body for water. The dead alone feel no thirst for God. The soul that is alive sees for a moment the glory and liberty and joy of the life to which God calls us ; it feels the attraction of a life of love, purity, and righteousness, but it seems continually to sink from this and to tend to become dull and feeble, and to have no joy in goodness. Just as the healthy body delights in work, but wearies and cannot go on exerting itself for many hours together, but must repair its strength, so the soul soon wearies and sinks back from what is difficult, and needs to be revived by its appropriate refreshment.^