The Source, Course And Force Of The River (Ezekiel 47:1-12)

Ezekiel 47:1-12 portrays a vision of the New Jerusalem during the Millennium rule and reign of Christ (that is, the period after Jesus comes back to earth again and Satan is bound for a thousand years). It will be as literal and physical as anything you can see, touch and feel. It will be a glorious city, with streets, trees, river and people.Even though this picture of the New Heaven and New Earth pertains to the future, it has some spiritual parallel and significance for us today. There is a thread that runs through the Word of God and the message is Jesus Christ and Him crucified.The river speaks of the Holy Spirit and His work, or if you like, His force or power within our lives. When we yield and surrender to the Holy Spirit, faith, faithfulness and fruitfulness will be demonstrated and reflected in our heart and life.But before we can be Spirit-filled, we must first be born again. This is the course or channel that we become the children of God. Romans 10:9-10 says: "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."Yet, before we are even saved and Spirit-filled, Jesus Christ died on the cross of Calvary. This is the source of our salvation and every blessing that comes upon our spiritual life, such as healing, deliverance and baptism in the Holy Spirit.Jesus Christ and what He did at the cross is the source. Our belief and confession of His finished work at the cross is the course, in other words, the channel and means (route, path, way, track, direction) by which we are saved. And then, we can be filled with the Holy Spirit, which is the force of our Christian life.