A Great Invitation
John 7:37–39
If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. John 7:37
Have you heard it? Have you listened to that great invitation? I wonder if you have noticed that in this verse Jesus does not even detail the nature of the thirst. He was not specific. There were no limitations. Is there a thirst? Then come! You are the one to whom the Lord Jesus Christ is speaking. You say, “I do not know whether I thirst or not.” Well, find out. Turn your eye inward and ask, Is there no thirst within me? Am I not dissatisfied about something? Is there not some area of my life in which I am unfulfilled? If you are such a one, then God has placed that hunger and thirst within you. Rejoice! And come to Jesus! He said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. . . . ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
Here in these words are directions that point you to Jesus. Do not say, “But what am I to believe? What doctrines must I accept?” That will come in time, but it is not the step for you to take now. If you are thirsty, come to Jesus. He said, “Come to me.”
Do not make the mistake of coming to the church as an institution or become preoccupied with its rites and ceremonies. Ceremonies are intended to point you to Christ. If you look to them in themselves, they will deceive you.
Do what Christ’s invitation requires. First, you are to “come.” That is not hard, especially when the One to whom you are to come is so lovely. And it need not be lengthy, for Jesus has already taken the greatest part of the journey in coming to you. “Come” means to believe, to have faith in him, to commit yourself to him. Will you do that? If you come to Jesus, you will be coming to the One who came to this earth to redeem you, who died on the cross for your sin, and who then rose again and was glorified by God, his Father.
Second, you are invited to “drink” from Christ, as you would from a fountain. All that has been said about coming applies to this word too, but drinking involves one further idea. It involves appropriation. That which you drink becomes a part of you. If it is wholesome, it helps you grow. Thus does Christ want to become part of your life and personality.
Will you come? Will you drink? There is no other prescription for the thirst of the human soul. There is no other drink but Jesus. Do not delay in coming. You have not come before, and that was wrong. But you may come now. That is the great invitation.
Taken from Come to the Waters by James Boice ISBN 9798887790954 used with permission from P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg NJ 08865
Scripture quotations are from the ESV (the Holy Bible English Standard Version) copyright 2001 by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.