Praise at a Well

[Bible Verses]

Numbers 21:16-18

From there they continued on to Beer, the well where the LORD said to Moses, "Gather the people together and I will give them water."

Then Israel sang this song:
"Spring up, O well!
Sing about it, about the well that the princes dug,
that the nobles of the people sank —
the nobles with scepters and staffs."
Then they went from the desert to Mattanah...

[My reflections]

A few years ago, there was a worship service at the Crystal Cathedral in Orange County, California, commemorating the 100th anniversary of Christianity in Korea. A huge choir with members from various Korean churches in southern California sang Mozart's Hallelujah. Even when a choir of a few hundred people sing, the sound is magnificent. Can you imagine what it would have been like when the whole nation of Israel, with its 600,000 men capable of battle fighting, sang in unison to praise the Lord, who gave them water after days in the wilderness? How much gratitude and how much thankfulness would the praise have contained! When Israel moved on from the desert, they named the next area "Mattanah", meaning "Gift of Jehovah". indeed a gift in the wilderness.

The living water that we received as a gift signifies the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39). This living water is given to all who believe in Jesus and flows out of the holy temple, which is the body of Christ (Ezekiel 47:1). This water gives life, wherever it flows, so that there will be a lot of fish -- which stands for the people to whom the good news of salvation is preached. This water also allows the trees to bear fruit (Ezekiel 49:12, Psalm 1:3). We the believers of Jesus Christ have received the very best gift from God (Luke 11:13) -- the gift of the Holy Spirit, who is the source of life in us and makes us bear fruit.

If the Israelites raised their voices in praise for getting water in the desert, how much more should we be thankful and praise the Lord for giving us the living water, the Holy Spirit? Water in the desert is certainly Mattanah, a gift of Jehovah, but for a thirsty soul to receive the Holy Spirit and to be liberated for ever from spiritual thirst is a supreme expression of God's love for us (Romans 5:5). Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!