Water for the thirsty

Isaiah 35

I read Isaiah 35 this morning. It has a prophecy in it that Jesus fulfilled.

“And when he comes, he will open the eyes of the blind and unplug the ears of the deaf.

The lame will leap like a deer, and those who cannot speak will sing for joy! Springs will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams will water the wasteland. The parched ground will become a pool, and springs of water will satisfy the thirsty land. Marsh grass and reeds and rushes will flourish where desert jackals once lived. And a great road will go through that once deserted land. It will be named the Highway of Holiness. Evil-minded people will never travel on it. It will be only for those who walk in God’s ways; fools will never walk there.”

Isaiah 35:5 – 8 – NLT

Jesus healed the blind, the deaf, the lame, he also healed the mute, healed lepers, healed internal bleeding, and he raised the dead. This he did literally.

The second half of the prophecy seems to be more metaphorical.

It may have seemed that the entire prophecy was metaphorical to the original readers, even up to the time Jesus began his ministry. It was impossible for a human to heal the maladies listed here. Even today it is difficult, I have friend who has a birth defect in his right eye and even with modern science his eye cannot be restored. Most people with spinal chord injuries are doomed to a wheel chair because there is no cure. But with Jesus, blind men were given sight, lame men were healed and walked for the first time, deaf could hear, mute people were given speech.

Jesus did not bring water to the desert, nor did he build a Hiway,…or did he? Certainly not literally but metaphorically Jesus brought (and continues to bring) water to thirsty souls. In John 4, while talking to a woman with a dubious past He described himself as a spring of water.

“Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food. The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?” Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?” Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.” “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her. “I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied. Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband— for you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!” “Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?” Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!”

John 4:7-26 – NLT

Jesus brings to every dry desert place, a well that bubbles up giving eternal life.

In John 14 Jesus declared himself the way. He is the hiway to Heaven.

“Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

John 14:6 – NLT

In Jesus this prophecy is fulfilled.

I believe that Jesus is the promised messiah. He is the one who gives us the righteousness, the holiness, required to travel on the Hiway of holiness and to join our Father in heaven and our spiritual family.