The Big Question

Steve Bowyer

Words & Works of Jesus • Sermon • Submitted a month ago • Presented a month ago

John 7:37–52

Jesus teaches about living water

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True Happiness

How many of you remember this TV show? It’s making a comeback.

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

Ty Pennington.

“Move that bus!”

They helped a lot of people w/ special needs and special situations get customized homes that made their lives much easier.

They got a bit of a bad rap for the few ppl who sold their homes or lost their homes after they were gifted the home.

In fact, one article said only about 10 families sold out. A couple saw the opportunity to take out a second mortgage to start a business, the business failed and they lost their home.

The houses came with trust funds for property taxes and repairs. But, sometimes these expensed proved to be too much for the family and their trust fund. Or the temptation of having so much money available in the house was too much and they sold out.

In some cases, the HOA fees and rules were too much.

In other cases, the stress of living in and maintaining a home that the entire community was involved in and made great sacrifices for, was too much.

“We did this for you. You better not mess it up.”

There were a couple of divorces and in one case, adopted kids sued their adoptive parents for a share of the value of the house. Things got ugly.

But, these were the exceptions. 209 episodes. 209 houses. And only about 10 big problems.

For the rest, 95% of them, the new bigger, better equipped house solved a lot of their practical problems.

The TV show addressed a felt need that so many of us have. Yes, there’s the want to help people out who have special needs. But, there is also the strong felt need that if only we had a nice big house, then I’d truly be happy.

If only I had that cabin in MP all my problems would go away. But, then you realize it snows in April, your power goes out, and your house get awfully cold.

And, of course, the power outage caused problems for us here at the church. Sorry we couldn’t upload last weekend’s services to our website!

The idea that something will deeply satisfy, make me completely content in life, truly happy, is a dream that many are intoxicated by. We want the right house. A big house. In the right place. I wouldn’t need anything else. Except maybe a snow blower and a 4-wheel drive vehicle. But then, then I’d be totally satisfied. Well, okay, a generator to keep my power on. Then I would. And a garage to keep my 4-wheel drive in and out of the snow. A new pellet stove, or wood stove, and all the fuel for the winter. Then, I’d be ready and completely contented. And, maybe an air conditioner, okay, a split unit for impossibly hot few weeks in the summer before the monsoons. Then I’d be happy.

There’s always more. Before too long, the outdated house needs to be remodeled and we won’t be happy until it is. We think we need the perfect house. In reality, we want what we want thinking that will make us happy.

You know the statistics of lottery winners. More than 70% of all big winners end up bankrupt w/in 5 years. The reasons why are simple to understand.

Living paycheck to paycheck, deep in debt; is an entirely different way of life than living as millionaire.

I have several friends who are wealthy, and I’ve asked them in general terms, how do you live like a millionaire? That’s a foreign concept to the rest of us. All of them answered it the same way, if not using the same terms.

If you’re a millionaire, you must live like you’re poor. Otherwise, you won’t be a millionaire long and you will be poor.

Your lifestyle cannot change dramatically. If it does, too much, you will end up spending all you have and back in debt again, even deeper than before.

The problem is, there’s always more that we think we need t/b happy instead of learning to be happy w/ what we have.

But, we want millions thinking that would make us truly happy.

Our looks are important to us. All of us. Men and women.

The avg American spends $1754/yr on beauty products. Women, more than men. And maybe some of us men should up what we spend.

Over $483 B was spent on cosmetics and personal care items in 2020.

71% of this total is spent on hair products. Men and women.

Our hair is important to us. How it looks. That we have it. And we want it too look good.

It thins, we lose it, it turns gray, so we dye it, we can plug it, extend it, and wig it.

Here’s an interesting little tidbit.

We have a friend who was a brand manager for P&G back in the oughts. He was responsible for their shampoo brands.

One irony, he is bald. He went bald in his late 20s.

Anyway, among other things, he would visit retail stores making sure the right brands were on the right shelves. Eye level is prime location for the best brands. P&G were among the best.

Who wants to get down on all fours in the aisle at Walmart looking for your shampoo on the bottom shelf?

P&G has shampoo brands like, Head and Shoulders, Herbal Essence, Pantene, Aussie. And each of these brands have sub-brands. For instance, there are 8 brands in the Head and Shoulders line.

P&G had a total of over 20 different brands of shampoos. For dandruff, a dry scalp, an oily scalp, curly hair, gray hair, dyed hair, thinning hair, for long hair, scent free, and more.

Here’s the deal. Our friend told us that for all these brands of shampoo, they had only 2 formulas.

You think you’re buying the only shampoo that will make your hair do what you want it to do, more body, right shape, right way?

Guess what. Just about every other brand would do the exact same thing.

Over $483 B spent annually on beauty products trying to preserve this.

We spend so much time and money on products, assets, things that we think will make us happy that we miss the point that each of these things leaves something more to be desired.

These are all good things. A nice, big house; in MP. Beautiful. The safety and security.

Financial security. A nice nest egg. Savings and investments. All good.

And, please, keep using your beauty products. For the love of all that’s right w/ the world, if the barn needs paint, then paint it.

But, that house, at some point in your life you’re going to have to move. Your lungs won’t be able to handle the altitude. Your legs won’t be strong enough for all the steps. You’ll need someone to assist you.

Your net worth will be spent on care at the end of your life and your heirs will fight over what’s left.

And that beautiful body of yours, your hair will continue to turn gray, fall out, your skin will wrinkle and things won’t be as nice as they once were.

If these were the things brought you true happiness, then what happens to your happiness when they are gone?

One of the biggest questions you will ever ask and hope to have answered is “How can I find true happiness?”

Is there a way to be truly happy, deeply satisfied, contented in the deepest levels?

True happiness in your life has nothing to do with getting all you want and everything to do with getting everything Jesus offers.

The rest is just gravy. Sometimes it even gets a little lumpy.

Jesus made this point w/ just a few words just about 6 months before he was to be crux’d.

The story comes from John 7. It’s the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles and He stepped up and made a much deeper point that it appears on the surface.

The Big Finish

John 7:37 NIV

On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.

If you remember, before Easter I taught the passage prior where Jesus secretly went to Jerusalem for the Festival of Tabernacles.

He had been on the DL b/c He knew there was a plot being hatched to arrest Him and execute Him.

This festival is a big deal. It’s one of the 3 biggest, most important festivals they celebrated. The other 2 are Passover and Pentecost.

For Jews, this was to commemorate God redeeming them out of slavery, saving them from the plague that killed all the firstborns in Egypt, providing for them in the wilderness, and delivering them into their PL.

This festival celebrated specifically God’s provision of life-saving water miraculously, as the wandered for 40 years toward the PL. And, pouring out the HS on them in the last days when they were in the ultimate PL, Heaven. There also was an element of thanking God for adequate rainfall for the harvest that year. This festival occured in October just after their fall harvest.

Water was found regularly as they wandered. But it was a wilderness. A wasteland. But they always seemed to find enough water for all 2 million ppl and their livestock.

There were 2 instances when they could find no water but God made water flow out of a rock. Proving He could provide in the direst circumstances if they would trust Him.

Then, in c.1, part of the big celebration worship service that last day, the chief priest would collect a jar of water from the pool of Siloam, carry it to the temple, and pour it out as an offering to God, remembering how He provided for them during that difficult period.

That’s how the sacrifices were carried out. They would pour out grain, kill a calf or lamb, pour out water and wine. It was a portion of what God provided demonstrating their trust in God to provide all that needed even if they were to pour out and burn 10% of what they received. They would be fine.

When they got insecure, fearful, lost faith, they would not pour out or burn part of what they rec’d. The thought was they needed to take care of themselves b/c they didn’t trust God to do it. What resulted was God changed the climate, limited their harvest, so they ended up w/ less than what they would have had they offered the right amount to God.

But that’s another story of another time.

They had everything they needed to survive. God provided it. Maybe they didn’t have all that they wanted, but the point was God would see to it they had even less if they tried to go after all they wanted on their own.

They needed to appreciate everything they had that God provided. He gave them all the nutrition they needed. Their bodies would be completely satisfied, contented, stomachs full and healthy and they’d be happy by trusting in God to do this for them.

Jesus stood up publicly and loudly to address the crowd. He had an important message for them to get at that time. Remember, He’s 6 mo from His crux. So, it was time for Him to get to what was going to happen after He was gone.

A Big Message

John 7:38 NIV

Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

Just after the chief priest poured out the water in the temple, looking back to God’s life-giving and life-saving provision in the wilderness and looking ahead to when God pours out the HS in the last days, Jesus used this water illustration to teach them what He would do for them if they would believe in Him.

God had provided all the nutrition they needed for physical health in the past, now and in the future He will provide all the nutrition they need for spiritual health. Jesus is the One who will do it.

Shortly before this, Jesus had taught them that He had come from God and soon would be returning. So the message He brought them was important for them to get b/c it was from God. This is what got Him trouble w/ the Jewish leadership. If this is not true and He taught it anyway, He was guilty of blasphemy which is punishable by death.

And, they could not believe it was true.

For the disciples He has also taught them that He would only be with them for a short time longer. They didn’t get it at the time. But, you’d have to wonder what His plan was for after He was gone. The work wasn’t finished. There was still a lot to do to build this new org.

Jesus stood up and His intent was clear.

Jesus said, believe in me. Come to me. I’m the guy. And I will give you living water.

Remember back to when He first went public 2.5 years earlier w/ the Sam woman at the well. Drink His water and she’ll never be thirsty ever again. She was confused. She knew she got thirsty for the water all the time.

She did not make the connection till later that she was also thirsty all the time for someone to love her for who she was and never desert her. She’d been married 5 times and then was living w/ a guy she was not married to.

Jesus was addressing her deeper need, even her deeper want. And what He told her, and what He is telling the ppl in the temple at the Festival, if they will believe in Him, He will make them happier, more contented, more satisfied than they have ever been before. They don’t need a spouse, don’t need a house. Don’t need a bank account. Don’t need the right shampoo.

But their deepest needs and wants will be met. They will feel it and know it. They will feel alive. More alive than the right family or appearance can make them feel.

Simple but significant. Believe in Jesus and He will fill you w/ life and it will flow from you.

How? How will He do that? Acts 1:8.

The Big Resident

John 7:39 NIV

By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

God is life. Wherever God is, is living. Wherever God lives, lives, too. The HS now lives inside believers.

It’s not that the HS had not been active in the past. He was involved in creation. The spirit moved as Jesus spoke on His Father’s behalf creating everything.

The HS also filled ppl for jobs, service opportunities. But He would vacate them once the job was done. It lasted for the length of the job. It could have been an afternoon, or like in David’s case, it lasted for years while he was king of Israel.

But, what happened later, described in Acts 2, had never happened before. In Acts 1:8 Jesus said that once He was gone the believers would receive power to be His witnesses all over the world.

What was different this time is the HS moved in permanently and He brought gifts, abilities, and a basket of fruit w/ Him that would serve the ppl as they continued the work Jesus started.

Fruit like peace, joy, patience, kindness, self-control, courage, strength. And gifts like abilities to teach, lead ppl, manage organizations, provide comfort to grieving ppl, and making ppl feel comfortable in your presence. He gives advice, counsel to make wise decisions in tough situations.

This is regardless of the size of your house and bank acct. Regardless of the appearance of your hair. And satisfies us on our deepest levels when we can manage our own lives better and help others do the same.

This is what the HS does for each of us. And just like Israel had to learn to appreciate what God did for them in the wilderness, we must learn to appreciate what God does for us as we travel thru our wilderness on the way to our PL, heaven.

It may include a nice house, a comfortable retirement, and good hair; or it may not. Regardless, the deep sense of contentment and happiness will change our outlook on life.

This does not happen until after Jesus is crux’d, buried, and resurrected. His resurrection is His big moment of glorification. After that, the discs and every believer will receive the gift of the permanent indwelling of the HS w/ all his gifts and resources.

You would think this would be what everyone wanted. But that’s just not true. PPL who don’t want to believe in Jesus don’t want this to be true. They want to go after what they want on their own. Their desires for these things drive them. They think they cannot be content if they don’t get them.

So, rather than change what they believe or Who they believe in, they change the definition of who they believe Jesus is. If He’s not who He says He is and can do what He says He can do, then we have to go get it on our own.

There was confusion and conflict about who they believed Jesus is.

The Big Confusion

John 7:40–44 NIV

On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.” Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?” Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.

Partial truth. Yes He is the Prophet, but He is much more.

He is the Messiah. Got it. Some believe in the right things.

For others, in their reluctance to believe in Jesus, they don’t do their homework. They stop short of the whole story that is Jesus.

Yes, recently He was from Galilee. After his family returned from Egypt, where they went to avoid Herod the Great’s attempt to kill Him, they settled in Joseph and Mary’s hometown of Nazareth in Galilee.

Micah had prophecied that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem. And, we just came thru the Xmas season and know that how Mary and Joseph got there to give birth to Jesus in the right place. Bethlehem was the city where David was from and the Messiah was predicted to be from his family line.

If you don’t want to believe in Jesus you can easily find 1000 bad reasons not to. But, with a little effort, doing all your homework, you find the one good reason to believe. It’s all true. Every prediction about Jesus in the OT has either come true, or will. None have missed the mark.

No archeological dig or find has contradicted anything in the bible. Every single find confirms the accuracy of the bible.

The only confusion is w/ those who refuse to believe and look for the truth to find God.

Jesus confused ppl and divided them along historical and factual lines.

He did it along political lines. Religious lines. And personal selfish lines.

Were these facts true? They wanted a conquering general as a Messiah, not a humble servant. They wanted someone who kept their rules, not someone who openly violated their oral traditions. They wanted someone who would give them what they wanted. Not someone who said they had to give up their life to get His and sacrifice all their desires to take His as their own.

But here’s the deal. If you believe in Jesus. If you have faith in Him to be saved. If you accept Who He is and what He did for you, then you will get the HS and everything He brings w/ Him.

And these things will give you joy. Joy is much better than happiness. You’ll still be happy much of the time. Maybe not w/ your hair, but with your life in general.

Make sure your priority is in the right place. Everything else may or may not happen the way you want it to. But, if you have the most important thing, God living in you, then you’ve got all you need to be deeply and completely satisfied in life.

Applications

Appreciate

Appreciate what you’ve got. Appreciate everything God has given you. Be grateful. Thank Him for it.

Don’t regret what you don’t have.

If God hasn’t provided it for you, then it won’t do for you what you think it will.

Focus on what you have. Be thankful and appreciative. Tell Him regularly.

It’s not What, It’s Who

Of those things you have, the most valuable and most important is the HS.

You may have a nice house. You may have a nice next egg. You may have great hair. But these things do not determine deep contentment, satisfaction, and joy.

Who you have does.

What He brought w/ Him will provide a lot of assistance for you as you wander thru your wilderness that is your life.

You have all the patience you need. All the self-control. All the strength, courage, peace.

You have access to the wisest advice. You have gifts like the ability to teach, manage a ministry or program, lead ppl, make ppl feel comfortable in your presence.

All good. But what you have is all the result Who you have.

Thank God for the HS who lives inside you.

Finish Your Homework

If you are looking for Jesus, then you will find Him. But you must finish the work.

Yes, He came from Galilee. But he went to Galilee after He left Bethlehem.

Yes, He is The Prophet. But He’s more than that.

Yes, He’s your Savior. Faith alone saves you. But the faith that saves is faith that’s willing to give up everything to get Him.

If you’re looking for reasons not to believe, then you find 1000 bad ones.

But if you are looking for Jesus and the reason to believe, there is one. It’s true.

Finish your homework.

True happiness, deep and complete contentment are not about the size of your house, savings acct, or hair. These things are all nice to have and do contribute to a positive outlook on life.