The View from the Bridge!

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.

Revelation 22:1-2

If you ever have the opportunity to walk across a bridge over a big river, stop in the middle and look down at the water. A river is not like a lake. In a lake you see the same water for hours, days, even years. In a river you see the water for only a few minutes until it passes on downstream and more water from the source arrives to take its place.

If a lake is polluted, the job of cleaning it may be difficult, but it is not impossible. When a river is polluted the source of the pollution may be miles away upstream.

Every man has a river running right down the middle of his life. Without water no man can live. If the river in your life is from the throne of God, then it is clean and pure and clear as crystal! If the river in your life is from the Devil and his world system, then it is dark and polluted and unfit for drinking!

When I was a Boy Scout we learned how to make a small amount of polluted water “safe” to drink. If you boil water for twenty minutes it usually can be consumed safely. That is, if the pollutant is a live bacteria that you are trying to kill. Boiling water that contains poison won’t do any good.

But most men go through life trying to purify enough of the world’s polluted water to keep them alive. It is a difficult and wearisome task. When a man comes to Jesus he is given an unending supply of the water of life which will keep him alive forever!

As a follower of Jesus you stand on a bridge over the River of Life which comes from the throne of God. Like all men, you will at some point sin and pollute the River. But, take heart and shout Hallelujah, because the River of Life is moving and the Blood of Jesus washes away the sin that falls into its water!