2 Mar. Rivers of living water flowing from the heart
"On the last and most important day of the Feast [of Shelters] Jesus stood up and said in a loud voice, 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. If anyone believes in me, rivers of living water will flow out from that person's heart, as the Scripture says.'"
"Jesus was talking about the Holy Spirit. The Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been raised to glory. But later, those who believed in Jesus would receive the Spirit."
"When the people heard Jesus's words, some of them said. 'This man really is the Prophet'. Others said, 'He is the Christ'. Still others said, 'The Christ will not come from Galilee. The Scripture says that the Christ will come from David's family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived.'"
"So the people did not agree with each other about Jesus. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one was able to touch him."
(John 7:37-44)
On the last day of the Festival of Shelters (or 'Tabernacles'), Jesus talked about the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit that believers would receive after his death and resurrection. “If anyone believes in me, rivers of living water will flow out from that person’s heart, as the Scripture says” (John 7:38).
Jesus, as he often did, was quoting from the Jewish scriptures, but applying the teaching in a new context.
Isaiah 44:3 states that the LORD says: "I will pour out water from the thirsty land and make streams flow on dry land. I will pour out my Spirit into your children and my blessing on your descendants."
In a dry and dusty land like Israel in Jesus's day, a god who promised to water the land was a life-giving god. But the God of Israel went one step further. He promised to pour out his life-giving Spirit on his people too.
Quoting this scripture where GOD promised his life-giving Spirit, Jesus added, “If anyone believes in ME, rivers of living water will flow out from that person’s heart, as the Scripture says.” The meaning was clear to the Jews of his day (even if it isn't quite as clear to us). Jesus was saying that GOD'S Holy Spirit will pour out of the heart of anyone who believes in JESUS!
How can that make sense? It doesn't make sense unless the HOLY SPIRIT of GOD is also the HOLY SPIRIT of JESUS, and by deduction, JESUS is GOD.
Anyone who claims that the 'Trinity' was only invented in the 4th century AD should try reading the Bible more closely! The specific Latin word 'Trinitas' or 'trinity' (meaning 'three-in-one') may not have been coined until later, but the IDEA of the Trinity appears many times in the New Testament.
If you'd like to read a longer explanation of what Jesus meant by 'living water', you'll find it in Jesus's words to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well, in John 4:9-15.
The photo shows water flowing over the Gullfoss waterfall in South West Iceland.
You can read more about Jesus's teachings @ https://www.thebiblejourney.org/…/jesus-pays-the-temple-tax/