In this message we shall consider what is revealed in the Bible concerning the way to drink the water of life. I can testify that I have spent more than thirty years to find out how to drink the living water. In the foregoing message I pointed out that although I preached a great deal about drinking of the living water, I myself did not know how to drink. Eventually, I had to ask myself, “You preach so much about drinking, but do you know how to drink?” I had to admit that I did not have the way to drink. I came to realize the urgency of finding out the proper way to drink. What would I do if, after a message on drinking the living water, someone were to ask me how to drink? Suppose someone approached you and said, “I believe that Christ is the living water, and I am thirsty for Him. Please tell me how to drink of this living water.” How would you answer such a question?
Not all the divine secrets in the Bible are revealed in a clear and evident way. In His wisdom sometimes God reveals His secrets in a way that is rather hidden. These secrets are recorded in the Bible and revealed in it, but they are not altogether open. For example, the Bible commands us to believe, but it does not tell us how to believe. For years in preaching the gospel I have told people to believe in the Lord. Whenever someone has asked me how to believe, I have been troubled. What would you say if someone asked you how to believe in the Lord Jesus? Would you tell that person in a doctrinal way that faith comes by hearing? If you simply tell him to believe, what will you do if you are asked how to believe? The best answer to this question is that we believe by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus. To the unsaved we should not give complicated answers about how to believe. Do not try to explain that by believing we enter into an organic union with the Lord. Such explanations will only confuse them. Tell those who want to believe in the Lord to simply open their mouths and call, “O Lord Jesus.” The way to believe in the Lord is to call on His name.
Just as the Bible does not tell us how to believe, so it does not tell us how to drink the water of life. The Scripture simply says that if we are thirsty we should come to the Lord and drink. If we go to the Lord and ask Him how to drink, He may say, “If you are thirsty and want to drink, just drink.” We learn to drink by drinking. Thus, the way to drink is somewhat like the way to believe in the Lord. The way to drink is not exactly the same as the way to believe, but it is close. As we consider how to drink, I would like to present in a simple yet practical way what I have learned through more than thirty years of study. This word is given to those who believe in the Lord, not to unbelievers.
As believers, we have been positioned to drink. This is the first aspect of the science of drinking. First Corinthians 12:13 says, “For also in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and were all given to drink one Spirit.” Through baptism we have been positioned to drink. As long as we have been baptized into the Lord, we have the position to drink of the living water. Before we were saved, we were far away from the living water. But now that we have been saved, we have been brought back to the water and positioned to drink of it. For example, there is a drinking fountain in our meeting hall. But in order to drink of this fountain, our mouth must be in the proper position. Likewise, to drink of the living water, we must first be positioned to drink. Baptism gives us this position. Thank the Lord that we all are positioned to drink.
Even though we have been positioned to drink, we shall not drink unless we are thirsty. To drink the water of life there is the need of thirst (Exo. 17:3a; John 7:37; Rev. 21:6). Millions of today’s Christians are not thirsty for the Lord. What a mercy it is to be thirsty! I can testify that day by day I am thirsty for living water. If I do not pray for a certain period of time, I become conscious of my thirst. It is a mercy that we are thirsty for the living water, especially when so many Christians have no thirst. Many of us can testify that during the day we are conscious of the thirst within us. This thirst causes us to pray and to contact the Lord. In a simple way, we may say, “Lord Jesus, I am thirsty for You, and I want to contact You.” If we sense that our thirst is not adequate, we may need to pray, “Lord, increase the thirst within me.” We all need such a thirst for the Lord.