Well, there are a number of passages in these two chapters that focus on the living water. I want to just highlight first, just pointing out these passages that we just see recurring over and over. For example, in Revelation 21, after having described this amazing scene of the Lord restoring us to complete, perfect fellowship with the living God in eternity, a heaven that God alone can bring us to through the redeeming work of Jesus, but that reality that we have but a taste of now, but in the age to come, we will experience in fullness and perfection. And we see in verse 5 of Revelation 21, He who was seated on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new. Also He said, Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true. And He said to me, It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, to the thirsty. I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage. and I will be his God, and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death." And so you see there in verse 6, this invitation, and that is the invitation that is currently, and all through this age until Jesus comes and ends the day of salvation, that invitation is put forth. And notice it is, whoever is thirsty, I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. And then we see in Revelation chapter 22, Again, this glorious picture, the perfection of heaven, but a taste of it now. Wherever this river flows and whoever drinks from this river and eats of the trees that line this river has life. We see in chapter 22, verse 1, then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal flowing from the throne of God, and of the land through the middle of the street of the city, also on either side of the river, the tree of life, with its 12 kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And so we'll have perfect healing, complete healing, when Jesus comes again in glory. But between now and that day, we are invited to come and to drink of the river of life and to eat of the produce that God grows to provide for us, a taste of what is in store for us in his glorious heaven. They will see His face and His name will be on their foreheads. Here's this description of the perfection of all that God is going to bring to completion when Jesus comes again in glory. And night will be no more, they will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. And then over in verse 14, Blessed are those who wash their robes so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. When heaven and earth are made one once again and the Lord brings all things to completion, there's not going to be the presence of evil in this universe, but all evildoers will be cast into the lake that burns with fire. That's what we saw at the end of chapter 20 and the beginning of chapter 21. The Lord, he has given us the privilege of entering into the city. You remember we saw in the book of Hebrews, chapter 12, the comparison between coming to the mountain that may be touched and to the mountain that we have come to now. It is the mountain that we enjoy living on and in the city of God by faith in Jesus Christ. We have but a taste of what is in store for us, but notice As we read on in verse 17, the spirit and the bride say, come, and let the one who hears say, come, and let the one who is thirsty come, and let the one who desires take the water of life without price. And so just as we saw at the beginning of Revelation 21, we have this picture of the glories of heaven, and then an application of, well, what is the significance of that precious truth for us today? And it is, we need to heed the trustworthy, true words of God. And we're going to see the same thing again now in Revelation chapter 22. We have this description of heaven perfected. Heaven and earth made one. when the Lord Jesus comes again, and then the application of that is that we have the joy in this day of entering in and having but a taste of that now. And so we have in verse 17, the spirit and the bride say, come. And let the one who hears say, come. And let the one who is thirsty, come. Let the one who desires take the water of life without price. And so you can see this thing of the water of life. You can also see this pattern of heaven in its perfection being described, and then the Lord applying that to us today, saying, if you are clinging to Jesus, you and I are privileged to have a taste of that. The same thing in chapter 22. Here is this description of the perfection of Jesus making all things perfect. And then the application is the Lord saying, you need to be intent on listening, heeding the voice of God Almighty to come to drink of the water of life. and to participate in faith of these things that will someday be brought to completion. The warning that is given at the end of this is a warning given to people who live in history. When we get to heaven, we will be glorified. We won't be in danger of turning and sinning against our God anymore. God will make us completely holy and right with him once again, as Adam was before the fall. But even better, because in the glories of heaven, we will not have the potential of falling. Oh, what a glorious day that will be. But I want you to notice this warning in verse 18. I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book, if anyone adds to them, you see, that's not going to be a danger in heaven. But it is a danger now of people coming and perverting and twisting the word of the living God, which is the tool that God uses to work faith in our hearts and to reveal his glory to us. If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. It is a very real warning. It is a warning that is in effect for this period of time called the day of salvation, the period of time before Jesus comes to make all things new. Verse 19, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. So, I wanted you to see this theme, first of all, of the river of life, and then to see this pattern of heaven being described, and then the application to us today is to revive our hearts to run and cling even tighter to Jesus so that we might enter in to the joy and anticipation of that glorious day. Well, we want to spend the few minutes that we have left together this evening looking at the first five verses of chapter 22, and I want to focus particularly on this theme of the river of the water of life. If you'll turn with me, first of all, to the Gospel of John, chapter 7. The Gospel of John, chapter 7. The Jews had come up with all kinds of religious rituals that they had added to the teaching. And one of the rituals they had associated with the Feast of Booths, the Feast of Tabernacles, which is the context, you can see that at the beginning of John chapter 7 in verse 2, now the Jews' Feast of the Booths was at hand. And so that's the context of this chapter and the things that unfold here. And in verse 37, we read, now, on the last day of the feast, the great day, And one of the traditions of the rabbis was they had come up with a tradition of pouring out a huge laver of water. there at the temple complex that they said was a religious ritual that reminded the people of the river of life that God caused to flow when the children of Israel had been delivered from bondage in Egypt. And somehow these Pharisees disassociated the symbols that God had given in His Word from their true meaning. They had disassociated the river of life from the promised Redeemer who would come. What foolishness. And they taught that the river of life was Judaism and was your own righteousness and that if you trusted in yourself and you followed all of the tenets of the rabbis, that that's what was giving you life. Well, it is striking that on that day of the feast, The Lord Jesus, we read in John 7, on the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, if anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. Out of his heart will flow rivers living water. Now where in the Old Testament do we have this description of God giving a river of living water? And we looked at it, we ended looking at this passage over in the book of Ezekiel, but if you'll turn back there with me, Ezekiel chapter 47, Here we have this prophecy that God gave the prophet Ezekiel, and in verse one and following, then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the temple faced east. The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. And then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east. And behold, the water was trickling out on the south side. Going on eastward with a measuring line in his hand, the man measured 1,000 cubits and then led me through the water and it was ankle deep. And again, he measured 1,000 and led me through the water and it was knee deep. And again he measured a thousand and led me through the water, and it was waste deep. Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen. It was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. And he said to me, Son of man, have you seen this? And then he led me back to the bank of the river. As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, this water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Araba and enters the sea. And so the Araba was the desert land south of Jerusalem, and the sea that is being referred to here is called, as we refer to it, the Dead Sea. And the reason it's called the Dead Sea is it's the lowest point geographically on the face of the earth. It's close to 1,400 feet below sea level. That's a long way down. And it's called the Dead Sea because water flows into it, but no water flows out. And it has become more and more and more concentrated. It is the saltiest water on the face of the earth, and there is very, very, very little, no fish can survive in it. There's some real strange bacteria that can grow there, but that's basically it. And so that's the picture here. But notice what this river does. This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Araba and enters the sea. And when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live. And there will be very many fish, for this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh. So everything will live where the river goes. Fishermen will stand beside the sea from Engadi to Engaleem. It will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the great sea. but its swamps and marshes will not become fresh. They are to be left for salt. And so the presence of this salt water, of this death that is still there, what that's telling us is this is not a picture of heaven. There's not going to be any salt marshes in heaven. But this is a picture of, in history, this river that started from the altar flowing underneath, just a little trickle, and there's no other rivers that join this river. That's how a river gets big normally. You have other tributaries joining it, but that's not what makes this river big. This river just swells on its own power. It just grows deeper and bigger and more powerful. And when it gets to the Dead Sea, it's so powerful that it even transforms this Dead Sea. Whatever it touches, it gives life. Not everything is transformed. There are still salt marshes. Well, that's one of the passages where we see this promise that a river is going to come. And back to John chapter 7 now, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. Now this he said about the Spirit. whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given because Jesus was not yet glorified." And you remember in Acts chapter 1, the Lord Jesus took his disciples aside and he said, you remember John promised that he could baptize with water, but the one who would come after him was mightier, and he would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire. And in Acts chapter 2, the Lord from his throne in glory poured forth his Spirit. and caused his spirit to take up residence in the hearts of his people in such a powerful way that it causes a well of living water to spring up in our hearts. Let's look at another passage of scripture dealing with this theme of the river of life You remember in the book of Genesis that the paradise that God placed Adam and Eve in, that there was a river that flowed from that mountain, and it flowed out in four directions. In Isaiah chapter 35, we see another passage of scripture that is a prophecy. that is referred to over in the New Testament when John the Baptist had been imprisoned. He was languishing, wondering, maybe I was wrong. If Jesus of Nazareth really is Messiah, then why doesn't he come and get me out of Herod's prison? And so John sends several of his disciples to ask Jesus John's pressing question, are you the promised one or should we look for another? And in that context, in Luke chapter seven and Matthew chapter 12, the Lord answers John's question. And in Luke chapter seven, it says that he did mighty miracles in the presence of John's disciples. And then he makes reference to this passage in Isaiah 35 and another passage in Isaiah that we'll look at in just a moment. But in Isaiah 35, The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad. The desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus. Adam and Eve were privileged to be placed in the paradise of God. But when they sinned, what happened to them? The Lord drove them out of the garden and placed an angel with a flaming sword to prevent them or anyone else from coming into the garden of Eden. And where did He drive them? To the wilderness. The Lord Jesus, when He began His earthly ministry, where did He begin? And you can read about this in the Gospels. The Lord began His ministry in the wilderness. He was driven by the Spirit, the Gospels tell us, into the wilderness, and He was hungry, having fasted 40 days and 40 nights. Adam and Eve had the lush provisions of the garden. The Lord Jesus, he was living in the wilderness, barren, desert, Adam and Eve, when they sinned, they were driven into the wilderness. And the Lord Jesus, he does hand-to-hand combat with Satan and vanquishes him at the beginning of his ministry and culminated his earthly ministry by laying down his life on the cross. And the soldier took the spear and pierced his side and out flowed blood and water. The Lord Jesus, He is this river of life who transforms the wilderness back into a lush garden. The desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus. It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy in singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, the majesty of our God. Strengthen the weak hands, make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, be strong, fear not, behold, your God will come with vengeance. with the recompense of God. He will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap like a deer and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. The burning sand shall become a pool and the thirsty ground springs of water, and the haunt of jackals where they lie down. The grass shall become reeds and rushes, and a highway shall be there. It shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way. Even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it. They shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing. Everlasting joy shall be upon their heads, and they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. And so Jesus is that river of life. And you can turn with me in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 7, and you can see how the Lord Jesus now makes reference to this passage. Here's John the Baptist languishing in Herod's prison. He questions, maybe I was wrong, sends his disciples. They come and ask Jesus. In verse 18, the disciples of John reported all these things to him, the miracles. And John, calling two of the disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another? And when the men had come to him, they said, John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another? In that hour, He healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits. And on many who were blind, he restored sight. And he answered them, Go and tell John what you have seen and heard. The blind received their sight. the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have the good news preached to them, and blessed is the one who is not offended by me." One other passage in Isaiah that we'll look at quickly Isaiah chapter 61, and here we have a passage that's quoted over in the Gospel of Luke by the Lord Jesus, and he declared, today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing to the people who were in his hometown when he would read and teach there in the synagogue. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, to grant those who mourn in Zion, to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a spirit of fainting, that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified. They shall build up the ancient ruins. They shall raise up the former devastations. They shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. And so here we have in Revelation 22 this wonderful picture that God reminds us of these passages of the Old Testament. Of this river of life, the Lord Jesus Christ who comes, who purchases redemption, who bursts the bonds of death, and from his throne in heaven now is causing his river of life to flow. Those of us who have, by the grace of God, seen the glory of Jesus, this wonderful river of life, God has made us thirsty, and our thirst is satisfied by drinking of Jesus by faith. There is healing for individuals who drink of Jesus. There is healing for families when the Lord Jesus flows His river of life. There is blessing for God's people. There's healing for congregations, God's people able to live together in the Lord Jesus Christ, being a blessing one to another. No, this side of heaven, none of that perfectly, but the day will come when Jesus will make all things new and perfect. We have a taste of that now. Praise God. And notice that this passage says that the culmination of this is not just individuals, not just families, not just a congregation of God's people, but whole nations are healed when they drink of the water of life. That is what we desperately need in our day, in our land. Oh, may the Lord stir us up to indeed drink of Jesus. These words are trustworthy and true. And on the steps of the United States Supreme Court this past week, there were protesters in their blind rage who were shouting, burn the Bible, burn the Bible. But you see, it is a vain thing that they war against the living God, because the river of life is flowing, and God is drawing men and women all over this globe to drink of Jesus. Praise God. Well, we'll stop there tonight and we'll pick it up and look at some of these other practical applications that the Lord has for us in these closing verses next week. But isn't it a delight to belong to Jesus, to have a taste of heaven? to be seated with Christ in the heavenly places by faith now. And someday we will see him with these eyes. But until that day, we have a taste of these blessings because the river of life has come. and transformed our barren, broken, wasted lives into an oasis of life because Jesus is present there. Jesus is the one that we cling to, and in him we have the joy of worshiping the living God. Someday we will see his face. Someday we will enjoy his very presence. We'll talk more about that sweet blessing and joy the next Lord's Day, but tonight The spirit and the bride say, come. And let the one who hears come, and let the one who is thirsty come. Let the one who desires take the water of life without price. Amen. Let's pray. Father, we ask that you would write upon our hearts these incredible promises that we are yet to experience. Lord, none of us have had the privilege of being in heaven yet, but in you, Lord Jesus, you have given us a taste. And so, Lord, we are thirsty to have our sins washed away. We're thirsty, Lord Jesus, to have you continue to subdue remaining sin in our hearts and lives. We want to be those like we read about at the end of Isaiah 35, walking on the highway of holiness, those who are singing praise to you. Lord God, please revive our hearts by faith in you, Lord Jesus, to experience that closeness with you, even now, more and more. And we pray that you would equip us, Lord, to be showing and telling others of the river of life, and you would cause, Lord, the people of this land to turn from sin and run to you. Oh Lord, thank you, thank you that there is hope in this fallen world for those who repent and turn to Jesus. In Christ the Lord we pray, amen.