The book of John is rich in references concerning the annual feasts which were observed by the Jews. Basically, every male in Israel was required to appear before the Lord during the Feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles in which a total of seven annual feasts were observed. Rituals formed through the years were observed during the Feast of Tabernacles.
One such ritual required that everyone gather with horns and tambourines at the Temple in the outer portico. There the priests took water from the reservoir built by Solomon (called the Pool of Siloam). When the water was poured, everyone was keeping this observance, as prophesied in Isaiah 12:3: Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.
This happened on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles and was named the Feast of Rejoicing. The Feast of Rejoicing, according to the Jewish calendar, is commemorated on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
For several days before, those involved revert to a somewhat pioneer spirit. From branches they build lean-tos on housetops, or wherever possible, and live in them for seven days.
They reenact days of wandering in the wilderness in which the lean-to served as a habitat. To this day, it is built as it was built in the wilderness. Then it faced the center of the camp, where in the night the glow of the pillar of fire hovered over the Tabernacle, and in the daytime the cloud. Today they recall days when their forefathers walked with God through the wilderness led by the pillar of fire and trusting God to sustain them.
It would be good for us to remember our origins and return to the pioneer spirit. Imagine what that would be like. For seven days we would camp out, living off the land exactly as our forefathers had done in the beginning of American history.
John 7:37 begins this account of Jesus’ speaking to the multitude during the Feast of Rejoicing: Now on the last day, the great day of the feast… This was the great day, the day of rejoicing in the Lord.
After the water was poured there was shouting and rejoicing. In the midst of the din and clamor related to all this was the voice of the Lord.
Some consider Jesus as being meek and mild, but the Word says He stood and cried out (and I believe He had the voice for it). In the midst of all that was happening, He had something to say to them, and so He stood crying out impellingly:
“If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being’ ” (the margin reads, “from his belly,” which is the seat of the emotions and the fullness) “ ‘shall flow rivers of living water.’ ” 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 are being brought to a desperation, a deep hunger and thirst after the Lord. Even though we have received and are satisfied with the Lord, we are not satisfied with the measure we have appropriated from Him. We are happy He has spoken, happy with the fulfillment of prophecies; but we are not content with the extent of those fulfillments. We want more—much more.
A deep thirst after the Lord is coming to our spirits. It is one of the basic principles of the Kingdom. It is a part of the Sermon on the Mount, one of the Beatitudes which voice the basic underlying principles. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Matthew 5:6.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness… Matthew 6:33. This is not an intellectual pursuit, wondering what righteousness is; nor is it a philosophical debate. It is deeper than that-you hunger for it, you thirst for it—you are seeking the way to walk in righteousness before God. You must find His righteousness, abandoning every other pursuit and seeking first His Kingdom. There is probably no other passage in the Bible as helpful as this in showing someone that is hungry for the Holy Spirit how to walk in the fullness of the Spirit.
Believing in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour, and having received the Holy Spirit in some measure, we are able to worship and have a revelation of a walk with God in the Spirit. However, our experiences and blessings in the Lord, though valid and wonderful, are not deep enough. Neither are they as extensive as they should be. We must contend for a double portion and never be satisfied, thinking we have enough of the Lord to get by. We must have so much of the Lord that we will sing continually of how our cup runneth over, like David (Psalm 23:5). We do not want to look in the well, satisfied because we see a little water there; we want to run for the hills because the dam is broken. It is not enough to praise the Lord for the wonderful things He has done for us, thinking we have it all. It is the overflow that is important, the bubbling up and the awareness of having too much of God.
Prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it. Malachi 3:10b. We sometimes think it impossible to hold all God is pouring upon us, yet most of us are walking in less from the Lord than we should. We pray for the Lord to do a certain thing, and then we are thankful to receive part of it instead of pursuing the complete answer. Do you feel that someone has been pilfering the answers you are receiving from God, that you are not getting the full benefit?
I believe God is dishonored when we accept the attack of Satan against an answer. God does not deal in fractions of blessings; He deals in blessings so great they cannot be contained. Be filled with all the fulness of God. Ephesians 3:19b. If we come to Him and drink, out of our bellies will flow rivers of living water. Joyful completeness, satisfaction, unbelievable joy, and happiness will issue forth from us in the flow of the Holy Spirit.
I John 3:17 speaks about our seeing a brother in need and shutting up our bowels of compassion against him. What does this phrase, “bowels of compassion” mean? In Bible terminology, the belly was the seat of emotions. We speak of the heart and how we love God with all our heart. The heart and the belly both have emotional significance. In this passage Jesus is saying it is from the very core of our lives, the center of our emotions, that we react to the environment around us. Therefore, as we become a fountain of the Holy Spirit, our victory and blessing is so complete that nothing can oppress us.
Ulcers are caused by a focus of emotions and nerves on the stomach. They are not caused by what we eat; they are caused by what is eating on us. The Lord says, “Do it differently. Reach out. Come to Me and drink. Be filled.” If we are not happy, it is our own fault. He has provided everything necessary for our happiness. We can have it.
Jesus stood crying, “If any man thirst let him come to Me and drink” (the margin reads, “Let him keep coming to Me and let him keep drinking”). Not just one sip, we drink and keep on drinking. We must have a persistent action of thirst which will not stop until it is thoroughly quenched. It must be more than quenched because we in turn must become fountains of blessing.
Children, not wanting to go to sleep, suddenly become very thirsty, and they ask for a drink. When someone brings it to them, they take a little sip and set it down. Some of us do the same when we drink of the Lord.
Are we truly thirsty? Do we actually want to be more than conquerors, or do we just want the Lord to meet us enough to help with our problems, and salve things over so they will not hurt as much? If we want the overflow, we must become thirsty. We must desire to come to the Lord with all our hearts and keep drinking.
How do we drink? In order to drink we must be thirsty. If any man thirst let him come to Me and drink. No one has to give a drinking lesson to a hungry baby; it is an unconscious process. It comes naturally. The same is true of our drinking of the Lord; it is an unconscious process which our spirits know how to do when we truly have a hunger and thirst after the Lord. We do not have to worry about the mechanics. We stand before the Lord like a crying baby in his hunger. When we are blessed and told to drink of the Holy Spirit, we unconsciously drink. If we are thirsty, soon the fountain starts flowing, and the praise and blessing of the Lord comes forth.
He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, “From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.” “He who believes” is the cue. It must be done with faith. We must believe the Lord is able to fill us.
Are you thirsty? If you have only a little blessing, come and drink until you overflow. You are not honoring the Lord or yourself if you are content to arrive at a service needing to be filled. We should be ready. Everyone should have a time of preparation before arriving at the service.
To come and stand in the presence of the Lord, we should enter His courts with praise and thanksgiving (Psalm 100:4). We should come rejoicing in the Lord, having conditioned and prepared ourselves.
Our walk with God will be blessed from the overflow. The fullness of God within us will create a counter pressure to everything that comes against us. Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. I John 4:4. He is manifesting Himself in total victory over any circumstance, or relationship that might bring confusion. His victory is greater than any unsolved problem or any unfulfilled need, because His counter flow is flowing out from us.
When we keep drinking of the Lord, it is like forgetting to turn the water off in the bathtub. The water overflows and everyone becomes excited. In our walk with God, no one becomes excited when everything is working properly; it is the overflow that counts. We are too content with too little. The quality of what we have is excellent, but we could have more. Those who believe on Him will receive. It will happen because of their faith. We may worship the Lord and believe to drink, prophesying and singing psalms to edify one another; however, we are not always thirsty enough to appropriate. Christians everywhere are starved for the Lord, yet with all their hunger, they do not know what to do. They have not been taught. They do not realize they are able to merely drink and be filled.
Many times we come to the Lord with prayers full of unbelief, begging for gifts He has already given. That is like saying we need the Holy Spirit without believing He really sent the Holy Spirit. A greater force is within us than we realize—God is dwelling within us. All His promises and blessings are ours. If we focus on that and start drinking, it will not be long before the overflow starts.
One story tells of a family who saved their money for years in order to come by boat from the old country to the United States. During the trip, because they had so little money, they stayed in their room at mealtime eating cheese and hard crackers. The last day’s journey arrived, and they could not bear to go without good food any longer. They had to have dinner, no matter what the cost. They asked the steward what they would have to pay for one meal. He pointed out on their tickets the fact that all meals were provided. The family, unaware of that, unknowingly deprived themselves. They could have had much more.
Many of us are on a bare subsistence diet when the Lord has told us He will fill us to overflowing. All we need to do is hunger after Him, listen to Him, and believe. Then we shall receive. If we do not believe, we will not have—if we do not have, it is only because we are not thirsty enough, nor are we believing enough. Let us prepare to touch heaven by being thirsty and hungry enough to seek God wholeheartedly. As we stand before the Lord worshiping Him and drawing from Him, He will bless and fill us to overflowing.
The Scriptures explain that a person prays and prophesies when he is being filled with the Holy Spirit. Acts 19 tells how the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking with other tongues and prophesying. Some people have reservations about speaking in tongues. However, at a later time it will become important to them and they will speak in tongues. Tongues is not the only sign of the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Actually, fullness is the sign of fullness. Tongues, joy, prophecies, and psalms are all evidences of the moving of the Spirit; however, we must first allow the Holy Spirit to fill us overflowingly.
Believe it is for you, and the Lord will fill you until you overflow. Claim the Lord’s provision for yourself. Believe to have a hungry heart. Believe to be thirsty. As you drink of the Spirit, believe for a blessed release.
But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort. He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; I Corinthians 14:3–4. When you prophesy, it has to pass through the channels of your understanding, but not when you speak in tongues. To lose your self-consciousness, be filled with the Spirit and sing. Then as you sing in the Spirit, sing in tongues. You may feel you do not know how, but it is not something you learn. You believe, then you start speaking and singing forth. For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries. I Corinthians 14:2. You can speak with the tongues of men and angels (I Corinthians 13:1). You can bless God to a thousand listening angels, unaware of what you are saying, yet in the Spirit, you will be speaking mysteries.
Tongues come on an inflow; prophecies come on an outflow. Some of us need to concentrate on the inflow, not on prophecies that flow out. Let tongues come without fear of going astray. We have not stressed tongues as something required or essential. The Scriptures reveal them to be a way of worshiping the Lord and a way for the fullness of the Holy Spirit to come on the inflow.
If we are thirsty, we will be able to receive by singing in tongues. However, for some it is only an effective way of release from tension and pressure. It may be a beautiful experience, but the overflow is still missing. It then becomes necessary to draw fullness from the prophecy which comes. Prophecy flows out from one member of the Body, but it is also to he the occasion of reception for another member. He that prophesieth speaketh unto men… I Corinthians 14:3. Whoever prophesies is speaking to you. You are to hear it with faith. To be filled you may either speak in tongues or listen to the prophetic word; both will be equally effective.
When someone prophesies under the anointing of the Lord, they prophesy fullness, release, blessing, and joy. They prophesy the fruit of the Spirit to us. They prophesy the great reality of His presence; we listen, sensing the Lord is close to us and that in His presence is fullness of joy (Psalms 16:11). When we hear prophecies there will come a joy as we believe and draw.
Learn to listen to the word of the Lord, believing something to be created in you when a prophecy comes. There not only need be the anointing upon the one who speaks, but also a focus of faith in the one who hears. Joy will come as you draw. As you listen to prophesying, and are blessed by it, do not be content with the measure you have possessed, thus robbing yourself. Keep coming and keep drinking until the overflow comes.
Experience is not enough, we must go on until we receive the fullness, the overflow. We work toward that, rather than building a monument simply because we have spoken in tongues, prophesied, and sung psalms. Those are experiences and manifestations of the Holy Spirit, but none of them are an end in themselves. We are contending for a walk with God in which we will bless the world with the overflow, believing to be a vehicle, a channel, a vessel of the Lord. We believe and we receive. Because we are thirsty we keep coming and we keep drinking.
If we stop feeding upon everything else and look only to the Lord, it is possible to create and generate a thirst after the Lord. The more we feed upon the Lord, the more hungry we become. “If any man thirst, let him keep coming to Me, and let him keep drinking” (two things: keep coming; keep drinking). Soon that thirst will take hold of us. It will become the most wonderful satisfaction ever to dissatisfy us-that glorious fulfillment of satisfaction, for our dissatisfaction. It works both ways. When we are being filled we are aware we must have more. We must learn to partake of the Lord and let Him bless us. God will help us when we are thirsty and keep coming to Him and drinking. Everyone will see the overflow-rivers of living water. We will not only be satisfied ourselves, but we will become fountains.
This must become a way of life. It must not merely open the door to one experience, but to a new life-style of continually overflowing with joy in the Spirit. We want more than the mechanics and experiences; we want to keep coming to the Lord with such a thirst and to keep drinking. We are believers, believing to be filled to overflowing.
Do not allow this to become routine, but seek to keep the freshness of joy, living and ministering out of the overflow. Your prayer life and life in the Word are like a barometer. When you have to force yourself to read the Word and pray, there is something wrong. Seek the Lord until those times are free and blessed. If walking with God is a labor, there is something wrong in your spirit. When there is a lessening of joy, and your walk with God sinks to a routine way of living, you are walking with Him on too low a level. Then you must find what is causing you to walk on that level.
Perversity enters into the human spirit on a low level of walking with God. If anyone dares to constructively criticize, a perversity takes over, and you do not want to listen. Some have a sense of satisfaction in feeling sorry for themselves. There are people who have enjoyed poor health for years. If the Lord asks, “Wilt thou be made whole?” they will have to think about it, because they actually do not want to get well.
If you have a bad habit in your life, do you want to give it up? Do you want to be on top spiritually, or do you enjoy feeling sorry for yourself? Do you enjoy being tired from working for the Lord, hoping everyone appreciates it. You do not have to be perverse; you do not have to feel sorry for yourself or be appreciated. Rise to a level where everything is done for His glory and you cannot help being happy, a level where you cannot give Him enough or praise Him enough. That is where you are going to live. You are going to refuse anything less: no self-pity, no satisfaction in limping along. If you do not know much about a walk in the Spirit, listen to the tapes and read that which is printed of these messages.
The only way you can change is if you want to change. The Lord said, If any man thirst… You thirst not only to change the mechanics of your life, but to be so totally involved with God that out of your belly will flow rivers of living water. That is what you are looking for, that fullness, that overflow.
Take dominion over the perversity, the self-pity, and the withdrawal that causes you to pull back when someone pushes you into God; refuse that mule-like spirit. Prepare for the release that will come when joy floods your heart. Be filled with the new wine of the Spirit, overflowing with the Spirit of the Lord. Determine to be a hungry, thirsty believer. Keep coming to the Lord and keep drinking, believing to receive and flow out. Overflow!