On the day of Pentecost the Lord poured Himself out in the Holy Spirit. Notice the word "poured" in Acts 2:33. He poured out the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit became the flowing stream of the divine water. For almost two thousand years since that time, the Holy Spirit has been flowing in this world. This flowing has never stopped and will flow to eternity. God the Father is the very source. Christ the Son is the reservoir, the Rock smitten that the divine water stored within may be released. What is this living water that flows from Him? It is the very Spirit of the life of God. The Holy Spirit is the flowing Spirit of the divine life. "This Jesus did God raise up, whereof we all are witnesses. Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he hath poured forth this..." (Acts 2:32-33). He has poured out the Holy Spirit, flowing with the divine life. From that time there is a flowing of the divine life, and this flowing is the Holy Spirit Himself.

We must consider the source of this stream. On the highest peak of the universe there is a throne, one throne, and on this throne the Lamb is sitting. I would ask, Who is the Lamb? The Lamb is the crucified, buried, resurrected and exalted Christ. Christ is the Lamb. And who is Christ? This Christ is Someone most wonderful. This Christ is the divine nature mingled with the human nature. He is God incarnated, Who died on the Cross, Who was buried in the tomb, Who went down to Hades, Who was raised up from Hades and from death, and Who was exalted to the heaven of heavens, to the right hand of God. He is the very God in human nature. He is the One Who died to redeem us from our sins and Who has been exalted to the highest place in the universe. Please notice that He is the Lamb, and yet He is on the throne. A lamb is a very humble thing, and a throne is full of authority. As the Lamb slain, the crucified Jesus has now been exalted to the throne to have the full authority of the universe. Do you realize this? How meaningful it is! Within the Lamb is God Himself. How can we know that God is within Him? We are told that God is the light and the Lamb is the lamp. Just as the light is within the lamp, so God is within the Lamb on the throne. Oh, how I wish that this picture would impress you! This is the highest point of the whole universe. Christ, the Lamb, with God within Him is sitting on the throne, and from this very throne flows out the river of divine life.

I would ask you to notice what is included in this stream of water. Since it flows out from such a place, then all that Christ has obtained and attained, all that He has and all that He is, must be included in it. How I wish I had here a cup of all-inclusive water as an illustration, a cup of water with everything included in it! Then, if we could make an opening in this cup so that its contents could flow out, I would ask you to tell me what would be included in such a flow. You would have to answer that everything would be included. Obviously, everything would be included. From the throne where Christ is sitting, there flows out a stream of water, the contents of which can never be exhausted. The all-inclusiveness of the Triune God is here; humanity is here; the element of the crucifixion and of the burial is here; the resurrection, the ascension, the authority, the Lordship, the Headship, and everything is included here in this stream. How rich! How all-inclusive! This is the stream which is flowing within you today.

The Scripture tells us that within this stream grows the tree of life. What is the tree of life? It is simply Christ as the life. Think of the many times the Scripture refers to a tree as a figure of Christ. The fact that this tree grows in the living water shows us that Christ as life is in the flowing of the Holy Spirit. Where the Holy Spirit flows, there Christ is found as the life. The Holy Spirit brings Christ to us as our life just as the stream of living water brings to the whole city the tree of life as the supply of life. Look once more at the picture. Here is a stream of living water, and within the stream, growing all the way, is the tree of life. Thus the stream brings the supply of life to the entire city. The Holy Spirit brings Christ to us as food, as the life supply.

Since this is such a vital matter, I wish to press it by asking, Do you have this stream flowing within you? Is it flowing within you at this very moment? Unbelievers do not have it; but alas, there are some believers who, although they have had this stream flowing into them, have not kept themselves within its flow. They have the life of the Triune God within them, but they are not keeping themselves in the flowing of this life. Many times you are conscious that you are out of the flowing of this stream. Then, sometimes you know that you are in its flowing. What have you to do then? It is really quite simple. You just have to keep yourself in the flowing of the stream. Whenever you feel that the flowing of the stream within you is cut off, you must turn to the Lord immediately to seek the reason. Why has the stream within you stopped flowing? You must discover the reason and deal with the Lord about it until the flowing is recovered. Wherever you are going and whatever you are about to do, if there is the sense that the flowing of the stream will be stopped by proceeding in that matter, then you must stop. Stop in order to maintain the flowing. To maintain the flowing you must refrain from all those activities which are not of the Lord, that is, which are not of the flowing of the stream within you.