The Restorative Power of the River

Scripture: Ezekiel 47:6-8, 12

He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?” Then he brought me back to the bank of the river. Now when I had returned, behold, on the bank of the river there were very many trees on the one side and on the other. Then he said to me, “These waters go out toward the eastern region and go down into the Arabah; then they go toward the sea, being made to flow into the sea, and the waters of the sea become fresh….By the river on its bank, on one side and on the other, will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail. They will bear every month because their water flows from the sanctuary, and their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.”

Insights: Third aspect of the river is broken up into two parts.  Today we will look at the first part which is the restorative power of the river.  Notice in today’s verses that the river is made fresh.  This is not a picture of our salt water fish verse fresh water fish.  This is a picture of the Dead Sea becoming fresh and alive.  Presently, that sea is not able to sustain life, not even salt fish life because the content of salt is too high.  So, for all practical purposes the Dead Sea is properly named because it is dead.  Yet, the Lord is going to send His living water into that sea and it is going to be made fresh.  In other words, God’s river has restorative power to transform something that was dead and make it alive.  This principle is exactly what Jesus Christ has done for us on the cross of Calvary.  He took our dead existence and gave to us new life.  It is for this reason we use language like born again.  We are literally reborn in Jesus and we are new creations.  The old dead existence is no longer.  We are alive, full and experiencing abundance in Jesus.  Beloved, considering our lives have so radically been altered, we ought to be zealous to tell others about God’s amazing grace.  We ought to desire to see everyone we meet to come to this saving relationship found in Jesus.  Maybe you are one who has never received Jesus, then will you today?  All you have to do is accept Him by confessing with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you will be saved.

Questions:

1.  Have you been made alive in Christ Jesus?

2.  In what ways have you personally experienced God’s restorative power in your life?

Prayer: Father, thank You for restoring me and making me whole in Christ Jesus.  I once was lost and dead.  I was desperate for life and You came and restored to me the life I had lost.  Thank You for Your grace.  Amen.