Where is the Source of Living Water?
Do you know the God you worship? Is your God the source of living water and the hope of eternal life. There are many competing world views and many who claim to have knowledge of God. Often we find groups of people who are very zealous for “God,” but their zeal is misguided. Why? Because their knowledge is either incorrect or misguided in its application.
Is Sharia, the Way to Living Water?
But what is the reality according to the biblical narrative? Who is the source of living water? Both Islam and Christianity claim that the bible has authority as a reliable source of divine instruction. They both claim that their God is the true, eternal, all knowing, powerful Creator. But are they the same God? Is Allah the same being as God the Father? Answering these questions will help us discern the reality.
The God of Islam claims that he has no son, and that he is not a Father. The Koran, the holy book of Islam, offers Islamic law, Sharia, as the ‘way to water.’ In a desert land this was both a reality and a metaphor. Water was what gave life. Through obedience to sharia the believer in Allah can earn Allah’s pleasure and be rewarded for his efforts. So the problems in the world can be resolved by filling the knowledge void, with a knowledge of sharia. Sharia, the way to water, offers a way to earn eternal life.
The Promise of the Son
By contrast, Jesus told the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, that he was the only source of living water. It was not through law or sharia, but through the Son of God that one could have eternal life. In fact, the Father, did have a Son, and he sent his Son into the world. Why? So he would reveal the Father and provide the living water, God’s spirit. And the greater reality was that not only did God have one Son, Jesus the Messiah. But ultimately, God the Father will have many sons and daughters. This was the good news that Jesus, the source of living water, brought to the world.
Do You Know the Father?
The problem with knowledge is that the world does not know the Father, and does not have the spirit. Lacking this knowledge, people do not understand their purpose, or their hope for the future. For it is the spirit of God that comes to us from the Father through the Son that makes us children of God. And as children of God we are inheritors of all things. As children of God we have the promise of eternal life. And, as children of God, we have a loving, personal relationship with God as our Father… Abba.
God knows each of his children intimately, even to the point of knowing every hair on their head. His care and love for us, his sons and daughters, helps us conquer every fear and doubt and focus on our future with him. But what is our response once we know we are beloved children of our eternal Father? What should we do, once we have become a part of the divine family? How should we follow in the steps of our elder brother, being led by his spirit. And how will the spirit lead us?
How God’s Spirit Leads
God’s spirit, the living water, has made us God’s children. The spirit is the spirit of truth. It gives us ever greater understanding and knowledge of God and his ways. The Spirit purifies us so we can grow. And as we mature spiritually, we become more and more like God, having his values at the centre of our being. So the spirit imparts knowledge, and then empowers us to live in accordance with God’s directives. The spirit motivates us to obey God’s laws that were created for our good. It is a spirit of wisdom, discernment, and judgment. And in following the spirit, by knowing and obeying our Father, we develop a mind and heart akin to his. The spirit is what makes a daily walk with our Father and his Son possible. God’s spirit, given to us through his Son, the source of living water, empowers the spiritual family relationship.
So is Allah the same as God the Father? It is up to you to judge based on the truth of scripture.
Learn more about God’s Spirit in your life.
https://cogwebcast.com/sermons/fruit-of-the-spirit-sermon-series/