Kerwin Baptist Church Daily Broadcast

Welcome to the Kerwin Baptist Church broadcast today. Our desire is for the Word of God to be spread throughout the world so that all may know Christ. We're going through in 2020, and at this time of our country and all the things that are happening, if you'll just hold on till the end, I promise you, you'll understand why this is so important, not just what it teaches about the church, not just about what it shares about the gospel, but what it means to you and me as believers in this day and time. Let's read verse 37 and 38, and then I'm gonna pray this morning. In the last day, that great day of the feast, again, the Feast of the Tabernacles, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

Let's pray. And I want to dig into that this morning. And I asked, really, for about 20 minutes of your time. And it's more important for me, I think, to get God's word into you and the truth of it, then to entertain you, then to keep your attention. So we're gonna get right to the truth this morning. I hope that you'll listen, despite all the distractions that can go on.

I certainly understand that. Lord, I love you. I pray that you'd bless our people.

Thank you for them. And, Lord, for everyone that's watching, I pray, Lord, I think of Brother Ray Coddle having to bury his dad this week. Lord, I pray that you'd be with him, his family. I know it's been a rough week, Lord. It's been rough for a number of our families. I pray for the Maxes.

Lord, I think of the Newsoms. I just think of all that some of our families are going through right now. And, Lord, I pray that you'd bless them. And, Lord, everyone that's listening, visitors, just people tuning in, friends of the ministry, even members of this church. God, I pray that you would help us to understand what it is to live life with living water. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. As we look at these two short verses, I want you to notice first the gospel preached in verse 37. The gospel preached.

This is what makes it wonderful. Jesus is the one that preached it. Now, I want you to look at verse 37, if you would.

It says this. In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying. Number one, I want you to see a public proclamation. Before getting ready to share the principles of the gospel, the Bible said that Jesus stood. That means that he made sure that everybody could see him.

He got everybody's attention. And may I say this, that you and I need to understand that when it comes to the gospel, as we're going to build the church that God has given us stewardship of, may I challenge you that there needs to be public proclamation. I understand we live in a day and time that we don't want to offend people, and we don't want to just make people angry. And I am all for that. And I think when it comes to evangelism and personal evangelism, yes, there needs to be the confrontation of the truth.

But there does not need to be the confrontation of anger and resentment and literally belittlement. I am here to tell you that still in this year, 2020, there needs to be a public proclamation. There needs to be some people somewhere that are believers that are willing to stand for the truth, that are willing to stand and speak the truth, that are willing to make a public proclamation of the truth of God's word. We see a public proclamation. Notice, secondly, we see a passionate plea. The Bible says that as Jesus stood, notice this verse in verse 37, he stood and cried. Now the Bible uses that word, and in the Greek, it has an interesting meaning.

It means a passionate plea. It means that literally this was so important that Jesus stood because he didn't mind them looking. He stood because he wasn't embarrassed. He wasn't ashamed. He absolutely was proclaiming a truth that would change lives if they would listen. And dear friend, may I remind you that we have a truth that changes lives if we'll be bold enough and willing enough to stand and proclaim.

And when we do, that there would be a passionate plea. Jesus cried. He didn't get up and berate. He didn't get up and condescend. He gave a passionate plea.

He cried out. And may I say this in 2020, there needs to be some passionate pleas. You know, you and I need to get away from this thing of thinking we're above anyone else and looking down when giving the gospel. May I say this, that our area and our friends and our family and our neighbors need to see a passionate plea. They need to see that we really do care, that we really do love. And we really do believe that what we have, the truth we have can change their lives. We see a public proclamation. Jesus stood. We see a passionate plea.

He cried. But notice, thirdly, we see a powerful proposition. Now we're getting into the nitty gritty as Jesus begins to speak. And if you have a Bible that what we call a red letter edition, you'll notice that this begins the actual words of Jesus. Notice first what he says. He says this. If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. What is the proposition that Jesus gives here as he preaches the gospel?

Notice first. He says this. If any man, that means whoever he may be, he is invited to Christ, whether high or low, rich or poor, young or old, bond or free, Jew or Gentile, whatever DNA, whatever genealogy, whatever nationality, whatever side of the tracks we're on, born, live, it doesn't matter. Jesus said this. Any man, and I am here to tell you this morning that the gospel is not just to a certain view. It's not just to a certain nationality.

It's not just a good, clean church people. The Bible says that Jesus said, If any man thirst, let him come. If any man, any man. Dear friend, I want you to know that means you. It means me. And it means exactly what it says. Any man. Notice second part of this proposition.

First, we see this. He says if any man. Secondly, he says thirst.

If any man thirst. What is Jesus saying here? Jesus uses an illustration of an outward condition to describe an inward condition.

Jesus uses the physical to describe the spiritual thirst describes the physical condition of needing water. It means that something is lacking. It means the person is in need of something that he does not have.

And such is the case of you and me without Christ. You and I, what does he mean thirst? It means that you know that you're lacking.

You know you have need. But may I say this also about this word thirst? A man cannot create his own water.

You say, Preacher, what do you mean? He can go to the store and he can go to the faucet. He can go to the water fountain. He can grab his cup.

Dear friend, I understand all that. He can get to where the water is, but a man cannot create his own water. If a man is laying in the desert and he's parched and all of his spit is gone and all of his hydration has been dehydrated.

May I say this? A man cannot create his own water. And that means this. A man that is thirsty either has to get his water from another source because he does not have that source within himself. But either that or it must be given to him from someone else.

And that describes the gospel of Jesus Christ. You and I cannot save ourselves. We have need of something that we don't have. And we have need of something that we can't create.

And we have need of something that we can't accomplish. And Jesus said, if any man thirst, let him come. It must be given to us from a different source. It must be brought to us from another person.

Oh, what a teaching about the gospel. May I say this? He says, if any man thirst.

Now listen to this. Let him come. Let him come. Can I read you a verse this morning? John chapter 6 verse 37 says this. All that the father giveth me shall come to me. This is what Jesus said. In him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out.

Oh, the truth of the gospel. Let him come. Him who? Any man.

Let him come. Dear friend, I want you to know that Jesus said this. If you're thirsty, if you have need in your life that you know you can't fill. And by the way, I've met a lot of people that have tried a lot of things that to fill that void, to fill that need, to fill that something inside that's missing. I've known people that have had everything when it comes to physical things. I know people that have everything when it comes to material things. They have every desire. They've had every toy.

They've had everything, every fun, every trip. But dear friend, I'm here to say that there is a thirst inside of us that only Jesus can fulfill. And Jesus said this, that if you are that person and if you are thirsty, any man can come. Let him come. I'm ready for him to come to me. If any man thirst, let him come. May I say this this morning? He did not say make him come.

He said let him come. You cannot make the decision for another person. And you cannot manipulate or pressure for someone to come to this water.

It is a personal decision that every person must make. We are to do everything we can to tell them about this water. To help them to understand this water.

And to show them how to get to this water. But they have to drink it themselves. And that reminds me this morning that you are not saved just because your mom and dad were saved. And you are not okay with God because you have some friends or family that are okay with God.

And just because you are religious and just because you were raised in religion or raised in the church. Dear friend, you don't get to drink because mom or dad got a drink. You have to come to it yourself. Let him come. Not his family, not his representative, not his wife, not his husband or children or any of that nature. Let him come.

Whoever that may be. Dear friend, you have to make the decision. And dear friend, you cannot make the decision for someone else. Can I tell you next what Jesus says about the gospel here as he's preaching the gospel? He says, if any man thirst, let him come, notice this, unto me. Let him come unto me. Let him not go to ceremonial law which could not pacify his conscience or even purify his conscience. No, don't let him go to heathen philosophy which only beguiles men and deceives men and leads them into basically the woods and leaves them there. Let him not go to religion which can make more of tradition than truth. Let him not go to his own self and his own good deeds which may impress others but still come short of the glory of God. Jesus did not say, let him change and then come. Jesus did not say, hey, get cleaned up and then come.

No restrictions, no respecter of persons, no facade, no preconceived requirements. Jesus said, if you're thirsty, come unto me. And that's the only place you can go. You see, dear friend, you might go a lot of places but Jesus is the only one that can give you what you need. I want you to notice this, what he says. He says, if any man thirst, let him come unto me. And notice this last little bit of this verse that Jesus preached. He says this, and drink. Can I read you a verse, Revelation chapter 21 verse 6, and he said unto me, it is done. I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.

I don't know if you realize who we're talking about here. I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life. Notice this last word, freely. When Jesus said, if any man thirst, let him come, that means any man's welcome. If you're thirsty and you realize that there's something lacking, come.

But when you come, guess what, you can drink. It's free. There's no requirement. There's no cost.

There's no payment. He didn't say, let him come unto me. Pay the fee and then get a drink. He didn't say, let him come unto me. Do what I ask and then he can drink. He said, let him come unto me and drink.

Dear friend, may I challenge you today? Salvation is free, the gospel. That's the very root of the gospel. You can't earn it.

You can't pay for it. It's a gift for God's soul of the world that he gave his only begotten son. It's the gift of salvation.

Dear friend, if you had to do anything for it or pay anything for it, it wouldn't be free. Jesus said, let him come and drink. Wow. The gospel preached and dear friend, that is the gospel. The gospel is available to all and the gospel is the only thing that can fill the void in your life. And Jesus has made the gospel available. Jesus wants you to come, but it has to be your decision. And when you come, you can drink freely. And the Bible says that you can drink as much as you need. When you and I get saved, we have all the blessings of Christ, all the riches of his blessings and spiritual places.

We get it all when we get Christ. Number two, you say a preacher. Okay.

Okay. But but you still said if I'm saved preacher and I and I've given my heart to Christ now. Now, why does this apply to me? Well, I want you to notice that Jesus is not just stop with the gospel. He also gives you promises concerning the gospel. You see, we see the gospel preached, but then he talks about the gospel promised. What are some promises that come along here with the gospel? What is the result of coming to Jesus and drinking? What is the result of that?

Notice if you would. Verse 38. As Jesus continues, he says, He that believeth on me as the scripture hath said out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

Number one, we see the prerequisite of the promise. He said he that believeth on me. That is the prerequisite before the promises given before salvation is brought into a person's life. They must believe on Jesus. He didn't just say believe.

He said he must believe on me. Dear friend, just believing that there is a God is not enough. You and I need to believe that Jesus came, that he died for our sins, that he rose again from the grave. And all of our faith and trust must be put in Jesus Christ because there's no other name given among men whereby we must be saved. There is a prerequisite.

There is no requirement, but there is a prerequisite for that promise. You've got to believe on Jesus. Notice, secondly, we see the prophecy of the promise. The gospel promised the prerequisite of the promise. He that believeth on me and notice here the prophecy of the promise. What does Jesus say? He says, as the scripture hath said. Now, Jesus brings up prophecy. In other words, what I'm getting ready to tell you, Jesus says, has already been given to you before. That's what we call prophecy as the scripture hath said. A little interesting for you today. So that seems to refer to apparently some promises given in the Old Testament to this statement.

And by the way, may I say this? There are many promises, not just about Jesus coming, but about specifically about he being the living water. It's amazing that as God would pour out his spirit, which is a metaphor that was borrowed from Joel Chapter two, Isaiah in the book and Zechariah. Also, all three of these books talk about this.

But let me get a little more specific if I can. We find in the Old Testament that the dry land should become springs of living water. Isaiah Chapter forty one.

We find that there should be rivers and streams in the desert. Isaiah forty three. We find that gracious souls should be like a spring of water in Isaiah fifty eight. We find that the church is a well of living water in Song of Solomon.

Chapter four. There's even an allusion to waters issuing out of Ezekiel's temple and Ezekiel Chapter forty seven. By the way, what the scriptures has said, the savior fulfills. Jesus is saying this, that I am the living water and the living water that I'm offering has been promised and I'm the fulfillment of it. The gospel promised. You see, Jesus is saying, before I make you future promises, I want you to know that I have now fulfilled past promises. The prerequisite of the promise, the prophecy of the promise. But notice, thirdly, as we close the provision of the promise.

Now he continues. He that believeth on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. So let's look at this part of the sermon and let's find out what is literally the provision of the gospel.

Notice number one, he says this out of his belly. He's talking about the individual that drinks the water that Jesus has offered. He's talking about an individual that was thirsty, realizes that he had a need, realized that he couldn't fulfill his own need, realized he couldn't create a scenario that produced that need to be filled. So he is describing a person that realizes all that, comes to Jesus like Jesus asked, and drinks of that water and believes on Jesus.

So what does he say? He said out of his belly. That means this, that what flows out of us now, it means the source is inside of us.

Now think about this statement, out of his belly, talking about us. That means it doesn't flow to us and then to everyone else. It flows out of us. We now have the source of living water within us.

We have everything we need within. We need not go anywhere else for living water. We need not rely upon anyone else for living water.

We don't need to rely on circumstances, on friends, on accomplishment, on talent or ability. Dear friend, if you're saved and have been saved by the grace of God, you don't need all these things. You don't need outside sources to bring contentment to your life. God said, and Jesus said, while he was here on earth, out of his own lips, that out of his belly shall flow rivers of water.

Dear friend, if you've been saved by the grace of God, you have the source of living water inside of you. I know so many Christians that are looking to so many things to fill that need. I know people can't stand to be at home by themselves. They've got to go hang around with people, got to buddy up, link on to people.

They just can't handle it. They've got to find outside influences to fill an inward need. I know people that have to do things, buy things, get things, go in debt for things. I know people that have to try to impress people and try to create their own reality and all these things. We go through life and we're trying everything to fulfill. We're trying everything to bring that contentment.

Then we wonder why it doesn't work. Dear friend, I'm here to tell you, you don't have to go to another source. The source of living water comes out of you, the Holy Spirit of God. In verse 39 of this passage, he says that literally tells us he was speaking about the Spirit of God.

When you got saved, the Holy Spirit came in. Now, out of your belly, out of your heart, out of your life, you and I have the source of living water. We don't have to watch the news for contentment. Literally, our country and our culture doesn't have to change for us to find peace in our life.

It's in us, not out of us. Out of his belly. He's dealing with our heart. Can I read you a verse this morning? Proverbs 4 23.

Keep thy heart with all diligence, notice this this morning, for out of it, out of it are the issues of life. It doesn't mean that literally I gotta go somewhere, find peace once I get it, now I help people. It doesn't mean that literally for encouragement to flow through me, I've gotta go find encouragement somewhere, get that encouragement, and then it'll flow through me and I'll help others. No, listen, Jesus said when you have tasted and drunk of the living water, it now comes out of you.

Dear friend, may I say with the Holy Spirit of God living inside of us, every one of us should be a source of flowing, living water for others to see and others to share. He's talking about the heart. Everything flows out of the heart. When he said out of his belly, he means out of his heart, out of the inside. You see, that's where the issues are, this verse says.

That's where the source is. Our heart dictates everything. That's why we must love from our heart. That's why we must serve from our heart. That's why sincerity has to come from our heart. Out of the heart are the issues. And when there is no peace in our heart, then there is no peace coming out. And when there is no contentment in our heart, then there is no contentment coming out.

That's where the source is. Out of it are the issues of life. Dear friend, I challenge you. How's your heart today? Is your heart literally a well, a source of living water, or does it feel dry and parched and empty? Are you searching elsewhere for what only Jesus can bring? He says this out of his belly. And then he says this, shall flow rivers. Can I read you another verse this morning?

John chapter 4 verse 13. Jesus answered and said unto her, whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst. But the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. It means literally that if you drink of the water of the spirit, if you put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, it's not just in you, but now it will flow out.

It shall flow rivers. Proverbs 10 11 says this, the mouth of a righteous man is a well of life. The mouth is literally the spout where what's inside comes out. Dear friend, what's inside will come out. I don't care how long you hold it in, how hard you hold it in, and all the ways you've tried to keep it in.

What's inside will come out. Jesus said this, that if you're thirsty, you can come to me. And if you come to me, you can drink.

And if you drink and you believe on me, then now that source is transferred to you. And now the very spirit of God lives inside of your life. Now it's out of your own belly and rivers shall flow. But dear friend, not only just rivers, and as I close, I want you to notice the last thing he says. He said rivers of living water.

Living water. Jeremiah chapter two verse 13. This wasn't written to us in 2020, but it was written for us for application in God's word, obviously. Jeremiah chapter two verse 13.

Listen to this. This is what God says for my people have committed to evils. They have forsaken me the fountain of living water. And who them out cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

This is what people do. They reject the living water. And then they make containers in their life trying to hold water from other sources. The Bible says they're broken water goes right through it.

That's why they try everything there is to try. And there is no contentment. Dear friend, may I say how this is applied to your life in 2020.

The Bible says that when you drink of the water of the word of God, Jesus Christ, that out of your belly now flows living water. Dear friend, if you have living water flowing out of your heart, why would we be defeated? Why would we be down? Why would we be discouraged in 2020?

Why would we fret? Why would we worry? We're looking as if the country is supposed to provide our source of peace. And as if that America is supposed to provide our source of peace. And we look as if our government and our leaders are supposed to provide our source of contentment. Our source of comfort. And dear friend, I'm here to tell you, if you've been saved by the grace of God, you don't have to look to the country, you don't have to look to America, you don't have to look to our leaders, you don't even have to look to Kernersville. We have living water coming out of us.

The source now resides within us. And it's living water. Now can I give you a little bit of application before I go this morning? Can I say a little bit of something about rivers of living water? Number one, rivers of living water means they continue. It means they continue. It means living water doesn't die. It means it continues to flow. That means even when things are bad, that water's still flowing. It means even when things in your life have happened unexpected, that living water is still flowing. Dear friend, circumstances don't change your water source.

It's out of your belly, it's inside. And all the things that happen to you don't stop living water. Notice secondly, rivers of living water, they don't just continue, but they cool. I can't tell you how many times you get hot, you get parched, you get tired, you're thirsty.

And boy, cold water really makes a difference. May I say that this river of living water flowing out of your life now as a believer, it refreshes your soul. Thank you for listening today. We hope you received a blessing from our broadcast. The Kerwin Baptist Church is located at 4520 Old Hollow Road in Kernersville, North Carolina. You may also contact us by phone at 336-993-5192 or via the web at kerwinbaptistchurch.com. Enjoy our services live and all our media on our website and church app. Thank you for listening to the Kerwin broadcast today. God bless you.