Hosea, Son of Beeri: Fountain of Life

Q: What does the Bible say about salvation?

The Bible teaches that salvation is found in Jesus Christ, the son of God, who is the fountain of life. According to scripture, the word 'Hosea,' like 'Jesus,' means salvation. This emphasizes that salvation is rooted in God's plan, which is fulfilled through Jesus Christ. In Isaiah 12:2-3, we see God as our salvation, and Christ embodies this salvation for His people. The New Testament reaffirms this by declaring that Jesus is the fulfillment of this promise, serving as the mediator and source of spiritual life.

Q: How do we know Jesus is the fountain of living water?

Scripture repeatedly identifies Jesus as the source of living water, particularly in John 4:14. Jesus describes Himself as the fountain of living water, promising that those who drink from Him shall never thirst again. This metaphor illustrates the spiritual sustenance He offers. In John 4:10-14, He tells the Samaritan woman about the eternal life-giving water He provides, which satisfies the deepest spiritual longings. Furthermore, in Revelation 22:1, we see the imagery of water flowing from God’s throne, establishing Jesus as both the source and Savior of spiritual life.

Q: Why is understanding the Trinity important for Christians?

The Trinity demonstrates the unity and diversity within God, reinforcing His nature and your relationship with Him. Understanding the Trinity is crucial as it reveals the nature of God as three persons in one essence: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This relationship is not indicative of separate individualities but rather showcases unity in purpose and action. Scripture emphasizes that all persons of the Trinity are involved in the work of salvation, thus helping believers comprehend God’s love and redemptive purpose. The unity of the Godhead, demonstrated in John 14:6 and 14:26, reassures us of God's active presence in our lives as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Q: What is the role of the Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life?

The Holy Spirit empowers believers, guiding them towards truth and helping them to live according to God’s will. The Holy Spirit plays a vital role in the life of every believer by being the active presence of God within us. He is described as our Comforter, guiding us into all truth and reminding us of Christ’s teachings (John 14:26). Furthermore, the Spirit empowers us to live a life that honors God, producing fruit reflective of Christ’s character. In John 7:37-39, the outpouring of the Spirit is likened to rivers of living water flowing from within, illustrating how the Spirit sustains our spiritual life and enables us to fulfill God's purposes.

When we all may say Hosea, I don't know. I say Hosea. Hosea. Chapter one. Now at some point, I hope to actually go through the book of Hosea. I've not ever preached through the book of Hosea, and I've rarely even preached from the book of Hosea. I did as an Arminian one time, I recall, but I haven't preached through Hosea. I've preached many messages from it, but this first verse here has really kind of jumped out at me this week. and I thought I would look at it. I mentioned it last week to the brethren out at Kentucky, and one of the messages that I preached out there, and I've mentioned it here on many, many, many occasions, that in the volume of the book, it speaks of Christ, right?

And while Hosea is a book of a prophet, And it is also a book of real life instances that happened to this prophet and things that this prophet was given to prophesy to the people. And the things that he prophesied did come to a reality in some instances, came to reality. Again, those were also just types and foreshadows though of a more higher and spiritual matter as we often talk about here, is that we always wanna see past the physical and look to that which is spiritual. And this is one of those things.

We see that in verse one of chapter one, it says, the word of the Lord that came to Hosea, the son of Beri, or Beri, however you say that, In the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel. Now, I actually, even in that, just want to deal with the very first phrase, the word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beri. That's what I would like to look at today.

The word Hosea comes from and is akin to Joshua. It comes from and is akin to Jesus, the word Jesus, where we get the English word Jesus, the Greek word behind that. If you look at that Greek word in the Hebrew subdugent and everything you'll find that we see that it comes down as Joshua, it comes down as Yeshua, you know all these words that we hear that all kind of have that same same sound in it, but all of those words whether it be Joshua, Jesus, whether it be Hosea, they all have the same meaning. The meaning of the word is salvation.

So Hosea, the word Hosea here, or this man's name, this prophet's name is Hosea. Just a side note, by the way, I watched something this week that really kind of convicted me a little bit. We call Isaiah and Jeremiah and Daniel, we call all these guys the major prophets, right? Then we get down here to the other prophets and we call them the what? The minor prophets. Kind of like you got the big leagues and you got the little leagues, right? I didn't know this until this week. I found out that it was Martin Luther or John Calvin. I can't remember one of those two. Oh, no, I'm sorry. I take that back.

It was Augustine who had made those divisions and called the major prophets and the minor prophets. He didn't mean that in the fact that these were more important than these guys. but it was just that the writings that these other, the minor prophets did were a lot shorter and smaller than those of Isaiah and Jeremiah. And so he called that minor prophets. Well, that kind of stuck and has stuck. And as a matter of fact, there's some Bibles that I've had in the past where whenever it gets to the minor prophets, it says minor prophets on there, but yeah, There's nothing minor about them. They're just as profitable prophets as the other prophets, okay? So don't think of Hosea as someone lesser or greater or whatever, that they were chosen of the Lord. But anyway, side note over.

Hosea, the word means salvation here. And then this word here, he's the son of Bari. I'm just gonna say Bari. Is that all right? If y'all know, somebody else knows how to say it, you can correct me in the comments, whatever. But I'm going to say beery because I see B-E-E-R and I'm very familiar with beer and I know I and that's I so beer I or beery. I'm going to say beery. So the word beery here though in Hebrew, it means a well or a fountain. So here we see the word of the Lord that came unto salvation, the son of the well or the fountain.

Now, you guys have known and have heard and listened to my thoughts and position on the Godhead and how I believe that the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit are all one God that one God has manifested himself in the person of Jesus Christ. I don't see in Scripture anywhere where it has three distinct individual persons that relate amongst each other as separate entities, okay? Matter of fact, I also don't believe that God the Father made a covenant with God the Son and God the Son covenanted with God the Father. I believe it was a unilateral covenant that God made and said, I will do this.

And he did that in his threefold character of persons. Not individual person, but in that threefold character through the man, Jesus Christ, he relates to his people as father, as the word and as the Holy Spirit. Christ is the Word, Christ is also, the Bible says, the Father, and is also the Holy Spirit Comforter that he sends to us. And we'll probably see some of that also this morning as we continue to look on further into these things. But here, I believe that this is speaking of one person, the word of the Lord. Notice that the word Lord is all in capitals. That means that's talking about that word there in Hebrew. Behind that is Jehovah, Yahweh. It's speaking of God in his fullest divine person. Okay? And the word of the Lord is Christ who manifests that fullness of God bodily, vocally. Okay?

The word of the Lord, whenever we speak, and you guys have heard me say this before, the word of the Lord, whenever God speaks, he is speaking the mind, the thoughts, the wisdom, all the desires, the heart of God comes forth through the mouth. Whenever a man speaks, What's in the heart comes out through the mouth, right? Whatever is our thoughts, our words, I mean, our desires, our will or whatever, we express that through words, okay?

Well, Jesus Christ is the word of the Lord. If anywhere where God's word is being shared, is being given, manifested, that word is Christ delivering it. That is the thoughts of God being conveyed, and those thoughts are being conveyed by Christ himself. All through the Old Testament, whenever someone came to one of the people of God or somebody in the Old Testament, How did they come to him? The angel of the Lord, the messenger of God, whoever it was, that was Christ.

Christ is the vocal piece for God. He is also the body or the manifestation of God. You have seen me, you have seen the Father, right? I and the Father are one. We're the same person. He's invisible, you can't see him, but he's fully divine. All God, no man can approach unto Him. He is holy. Well, I am He in body form. So that you might be able to come and approach unto God. No man can approach unto God except through what? Christ, right? So Christ is God manifested in the flesh.

And the spirit that he sends to all of his people that he died for is his spirit. That is him coming to us in spirit form. So I don't believe that we're seeing different persons here being related, but one person. And we see him in manifold ways Okay, as the word of Yahweh, as the son of the fountain.

Well, where does all spiritual life come from? It comes from God. Well, who is the one who gives or has been given power over all flesh to give that eternal life? It's been Christ, right? So God has the power, he is the fountain of that, but yet we're gonna see this morning that Jesus Christ is that fountainhead himself. So Yahweh has all life in him, and he is given that life to be distributed by the Son. And that life is the Spirit of God. How are we born from above? By the Spirit of God. When do we become born from above? When the Spirit of God comes within us.

So you see how all that's tied together? The word, the father, the spirit are all working together in their characters or in their works for his people. Okay? We have the father who is the fountainhead of all things, the creator of all things, in whom is all the divineness of God.

The word of God is the thoughts and the heart and the intent and the will of God being told to his people. And then the spirit of God is the very life of God coming within the person and giving that person quickening, refreshing. We just spoke about it or sung about it in this last song. Whenever the spirit was running to the side of Jesus, what came out? Blood and water, right? Blood for atoning, water for cleansing. They all came out together, right?

So the Holy Spirit is the one who brings the cleansing, the refreshing. It imparts to us the works of God, the works that God has ordained for us from the foundation of the world. The Holy Spirit is the one that comes inside of us and works those works. He said that we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. But the Bible also says that it is he who works in us, both to will and to do his good pleasure.

So those works are imparted in us through that life that is given to us, which is the Holy Spirit. And we know in John chapter 14, that the Holy Spirit or the comforter that is given to us, that spirit of truth is none other than Jesus Christ himself.

Because he said, I will go away to you and I will come back to you. I will be your comforter." So whenever we see this first phrase here, the word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Berei in the days of Uzziah, we see that this is speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ, not just the prophet here. Again, hopefully I'll get to preach through this at some point in time, and we'll actually talk about the prophet, and we'll talk about what happened to the prophet, and the things that he experienced, and the things that he had to relay to Israel, and to Judah, and we'll see all the things that went on with him, and we'll tie those also back to Jesus. But this morning, I want us to look at the words here, Hosea and Beri, or Beri, The word salvation and the word well or fountain.

I want to show that scripture from Old Testament clear until New Testament. It's not just a New Testament teaching that Jesus is the fountain of living water. That it was also in the Old Testament as well and that there is congruency between Old and New Testament that tells us of Christ as the fountain water or the fountain of life the fountain of the Spirit of God in which the Spirit of God is poured out upon us into us and equipping us and giving us everything that Christ has died for so first if you would turn with me to Isaiah chapter 12 and let's look at verses 2 through 3 I want you to see here that the Old Testament talks about Christ being the will of salvation. Look at Isaiah chapter 12.

Look down with me at verse two. It says, behold, God is my salvation. I will trust and not be afraid. For the Lord Jehovah, Yahweh Jehovah, is my strength and my song. He also is become my salvation. You see that? Whenever God manifested himself in man or in flesh, he did so to become the salvation of his people. It was through the mediatorial work of Christ that he becomes our salvation. See, God could have sit out there outside of time and eternity and continued to be the invisible spirit that he is and could have devised some way to save his people without doing what he did.

But in his wisdom, that's how he chose to do it. He did it through Christ Jesus. And Christ, the Bible says, was set up from of old. Before the mountains was laid, before anything was created, he was brought forth, the Bible says. Christ was brought forth to be the mediator between that holy God and his sinful people that he had subjected to vanity and Adam. He says, behold, God is my salvation. But also look, he says that he's talking about the Lord Jehovah. Who is the Lord Jehovah equated to at the end of that phrase?

The one who becomes our salvation. Well, we know all throughout the scriptures that it is Christ who became our salvation. He is our salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ. So here we see an Old Testament reference to Jesus Christ being our salvation, but also an Old Testament place where God has revealed himself in Christ Jesus.

So whenever the Jehovah's Witnesses or the Mormons or whoever comes up and knocks on your door and wants to say, you know, well, you know, Jesus never did claim to be God. And we like what all the Old Testament says about God and everything like that. We'll take them to this verse and say, well, right here, God, who is Lord Jehovah, Yahweh Jehovah, says he is the salvation of his people. And then ask him, well, who in the New Testament is the salvation of his people?

It's Christ. Christ is God, Jehovah. You can't separate them. They're not two different people, they're the same person. But look what it says here, it says, behold, God is my salvation. I will trust and not be afraid for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song.

So there is something that comes from God to the child of God that encourages, that comforts, that lifts up, that gives hope And he also has become my salvation. Who is our hope? Who is the one who encourages us? Who's the one that comforts us? It's Christ Jesus. How does he do that? How does Christ Jesus comfort us? Well, he tells us in John 14, he's gonna send another comforter. When he walked here on earth, he comforted us in his personage. When he goes away, he comforts his people how? By sending his spirit to them. and in sending his spirit, he gives them inwardly the things that comfort them in what he is and what he has done.

Let's look forward here in verse three. Therefore with joy, here it is, shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. So here we see the connection between Christ Jesus and the well of salvation. Remember, the word Hosea Back in our passages back here, the word Hosea meant salvation, and he was the son of the well, or the son of the fountainhead, okay? So Christ has become our well of salvation. Now, look with me if you would, John chapter four. John chapter four. I'm gonna start reading that verse six. John chapter four, verse six.

It says, now Jacob's well was there. Now let me just stop there. because this didn't hit me until just about two minutes ago. It's called Jacob's will. Are we not throughout scripture in type and foreshadow compared to Jacob, the children of God? We as God's people are typed as Jacob. Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated, right? And here Jesus comes to this well that is called Jacob's well. Well, who's our well? Christ Jesus.

And you remember whenever he went to this woman in Samaria, you remember right before that? Him and the disciples were coming and Jesus said, you guys go on in. I have to come over here. I need to come over here for a reason. I must need to go through Samaria. He had a purpose. There was a purpose that he went through Samaria because Jesus, the well of Jacob, had to go to Jacob's well because one of his children was there who he needed to quench their thirst. He had needs to go to Samaria.

You guys following what I'm laying down? Okay, sweet. All right, now Jacob's well was there. Jesus, therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well, and it was about the sixth hour. You remember what time Jesus died? Was it the sixth hour or the ninth hour? went on with the cross at the sixth hour though right okay so we have the the sixth hour the time that the lord went upon the cross to become the well of our salvation the sixth hour here he sits down at the well as the well for his child who was to be there.

There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus saith unto her, give me to drink, for his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy me. Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, how is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.

Now look at here in verse 10. Jesus answered and said unto her, thou knewest the gift of God and who it is that saith to thee, give me to drink, thou would have asked of him and he would have given thee living water. So here again, we see that Jesus is tied to being a fountain or a well of living water. Continue looking over into verse 14 if you would.

Verse 13, Jesus answered and said unto her, whosoever drinketh of this water, the water that she was going to get, shall thirst again. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I give him shall never thirst. But the water that I shall give him shall be in him. a well of water springing up into everlasting life. So here we see now Jesus saying, not only is he the source of living water, but that he gives this living water to his people and they never thirst.

Now, what does that mean? Because brethren, I know that ever since I've come into this experience of salvation, I get thirsty all the time. Matter of fact, last night we were sitting here and I told Laura, I said, man, I am thirsty. And I'm tired of drinking everything that's out there that you can get to drink. I'm ready for something else to drink. And I ended up just getting a big old glass of ice water, but I was thirsty.

Is that what Jesus is talking about? Is Jesus here talking about actual dusty throat, liquid from a well? That's not what he's talking about, is he? Now, Jesus is talking here about a spiritual thirst. He says, those who drink of the world's water will continually be thirsty. Now, as we condense this down or distill this down, especially as we get into the New Testament, where Jesus is actually out teaching, we find out that this water that we see here that the Bible was talking about of the world is self-righteous religion. Every time man tries to become pleasing to God, tries to be something to stand before God in his own righteousness, in his own self-righteous religion, and everything, it's never going to satisfy. And for the child of grace, now again, I'm specifically bearing out to the child of grace, to one who is truly born again.

I'm not talking about all these people that are filling these buildings that are out here that believe on another Jesus with another gospel. I'm not talking about that. And I believe that there are people that are within those people that are God's people who he will bring out. So I'm not castigating everybody off.

However, what I'm saying is to the true child of God, who has truly been born of God, given the spirit of God, and given the humility of the child of grace, who knows their sinfulness, knows their unrighteousness, and knows their need for Christ alone as their righteousness, That person, whenever he tries to seek acceptance with God by self-righteousness, continues to thirst because it never satisfies.

The more I try to get out and please God by the things that I do, the more I keep coming back and God and the Holy Spirit in my mind convinces me of my sin. You didn't do enough. You did quite a bit today, feller, but guess what? It fell short of the glory of God, as it always will. because your flesh is just flesh and it cannot please God that in you dwells no good thing that you are wretched and vile that all of your righteousnesses are filthy rags before that holy God and so all of the religious activity that I involve myself in will continue to be nothing but idol worship. I think that I can do it.

I'm worshiping at the idol of my own works. And it will never satisfy because in the end of the day, the conscience will always condemn us. The law will always condemn us, brethren. The only thing that will satisfy that thirst is to know that Christ alone is my righteousness. That there is nothing that I have to do. There's nothing that I have to do. Christ has done it all for me.

See, that's where the quench thirst lies. Let's just apply quench thirst as rest. It's the same as rest. It's another analogy for what the Bible uses as rest. Whenever we rest in Christ Jesus, that means we have ceased from our labors. Whenever we are quenched of our thirst, we have quit trying to satisfy our thirst with the things that cannot quench my thirst. Just going back to the illustration of me talking about being thirsty.

You know, I can go out there and I can get me a Coca-Cola. I like Coca-Cola. whenever it's like really cold and you get one of those really strong ones that when I take a drink, it just like burns and you're like, oh yeah, when you get done taking the big old drink of it.

I like that. I love Dr. Pepper. I love Gatorade. I love energy drinks. But you know what? When I drink all those things, I'm still thirsty. You know what usually quenches my thirst more than anything? It's like what I did last night. Get a big old giant glass of ice water and drink ice water. Nothing in there except water. It's pure. It's clean. Nothing in there.

And that usually quenches my thirst better than anything else. I can go down a quick trip that's got 25,000 things to choose from to drink. I can go to Sonic and make up 175,000 things with all the flavorings and things they have to concoct together. But none of that will quench my thirst like regular water can. Well, brethren, the analogy is here. All self-religion will never quench our thirst. It will get us wet, but it won't quench our thirst. Why? Because the child of grace has been given to know no other thirst quenching except through the righteousness of Christ alone.

So we see here, he says, but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. This water is going to be a permanent water. It's going to be something that's always within us, always something available to us. I like how the Lord uses the word river here.

You know, around here in southwest Missouri, we have rivers and we have creeks and we have streams, we have brooks, we have all these little tributaries that flow from the lakes and everything and eventually all makes its way down the Mississippi River. You think it was the Mississippi River here before we settled this country? I believe it was. When Lewis and Clark went out and did their thing, Mississippi River was there, right? Is it still there today? I just went over it One, two, three, four times this week. And guess what? It ain't lacking. It's just as wide as it was. It's just as rolling as it ever was.

The Lord used the word river and not creek or stream. You can go out around the town here you can see you know like such and such creek and you look down in there and it's like nothing but rocks there ain't no water in there well it's all dried up it don't create a creek until it rains well creeks and streams and things like that they eventually run low and run dry but rivers they continue on brethren i remember i don't mean to get off in too many illustrations but It reminded me of this whenever I went over to Paducah this week. There's a place over in Van Buren, Missouri, right on Highway 60, right off of the Current River. Current River is one of the major rivers in Missouri, beautiful river. Anyway, there's a place off there, it's called Big Spring. Me and Lori went there last August.

We was driving back and we went by there. there is in the ground not coming out of a cave or up out of a river that's already there. Now there is a hole at the edge of a cave. There's some caves back here but the hole is out in front of the cave and there is water that comes straight up out of this hole in the ground and it produces like three to five million gallons of water every day. I mean, it just is gushing. I was telling Laura, I said, just think, three to five million gallons a day is coming out of this thing. Where's all the water underneath? Can't even see it. But there is something underneath producing all this water that is coming up right here and it's just bubbling out and it continues to produce this river. Well, brethren, there's someone who is the fountainhead. There is someone where the river will not run dry.

He tells us right here, this thirst that you have is only quenched through this life-giving spring, or this water springing up into everlasting life. The spirit that is given to us, brethren, is given to, keep us and to continue to refresh us. Look, if you would, over to Zechariah chapter 13. We see that he's not only the water, he's not only the fountain or the well, he is the fountain head. It all flows from him. It comes from him. The water won't dry up unless he dries up, brethren. or closes it up. But look, if you would, at Zechariah chapter 13, verse one says, in that day, there shall be a fountain open to the house of David.

Again, that's another phrase that alludes to us, type and foreshadow of the spiritual children of God, the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. We found out a few weeks ago in Hebrews 12, that we are the new Jerusalem. Right, we are the new Jerusalem that's come down out of heaven that God has prepared, not with hands. We make up that tabernacle and that city. We are the inhabitants of Jerusalem. It says, in that day, there shall be a fountain open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. Now we just read, we're fixing to read here again, We just read, matter of fact, let's just read. It says there shall be a fountain open. Now, let's look at John chapter 19. John chapter 19 and verse 34. I'll start reading in verse 32.

Then came the soldiers, this is when Jesus was, had been hanging on the cross. It was nearing the ninth hour. Of course, at the ninth hour, the sun was about to set. It was about to become Passover. The Jews were getting a little restless because, according to their law, nothing could be hanging on the cross during Passover. So they were trying to hurry the soldiers up to go make sure everyone was dead so they could get them down off the cross. Verse 32, then came the soldiers and break the legs of the first and of the other, which was crucified with him.

But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was dead already, they break not his legs. I'm gonna stop right there just so you know, that is a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy that said that not one of my bones would be broken. It is also a fulfillment of prophecy that said that none would take his life. Nobody killed Jesus, they crucified Jesus.

They nailed him to a cross, they beat him, they tortured him. They did all kinds of horrific things to him, but they did not kill him. The Bible says that before he died, that he said that, father into thy hands, I commend my spirit. And he gave up the ghost and he died. He gave his life willingly. He took his own life by giving up the spirit, and he gives the spirit back to God. No man took his life.

Then look at verse 44, it says, but one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side. He's going to check to make sure that he actually was dead. So he took a spear and he shoved it into the side of Jesus to see if he would react, right? That's what he was doing. He was trying to see if he would react. And if he did react, surely the shoving the spear through his side would finish him off. One of the soldiers with the spear pierced his side and forthwith came there out blood and water.

Now brethren I've heard as an Arminian preachers all over the place talking about the scientific evidence that this is called has a name and I can't off the top of my head remember what it's called but whenever the blood and the water of the heart separates and this shows that he was dead and blah blah blah all this kind of stuff I don't know about all that whatever that might be true the Bible isn't using that to prove scientific things necessarily although it does but the fact is is there was blood and water As I mentioned a while ago, and as we sang in that hymn just a while ago, the blood was for atonement, the water was for the cleansing.

He is the fountainhead of not only the blood that cleanses us of our sin, but the water, or excuse me, that forgives us of our sin, but the water also that cleanses us. It cleanses our conscious from dead works. I believe that's in, is that in Peter? I can't remember where that's at. Anyway, the cleansing or the water is for the cleansing. We have been forgiven. We stand before God without sin, but yet we have to be cleansed. The Bible says that everything needs to be cleansed. We have to be cleansed when we come to God.

But we also have to be cleansed in our own conscience because our conscience, as Paul alluded to in Romans 7, our conscience continually tries to condemn us. The things that I would, I don't do. The things that I don't want to do, those things I do. And there is with me always lurking over me, my evil, Because every time I go to do good, evil is constantly with me always. And we need to be cleansed of that conscience.

What does the cleansing of the conscience tell us? The cleansing of the conscience tells us Romans 8.1. Therefore, there is now no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus. So brethren, Christ is the fountainhead of that cleansing.

The spirit of God comes within us and cleanses us, not only of the guilt that we have because of our sins, but it also cleanses our consciences that continually tells us work, work, work, work, work. It cleanses our consciences when we are not out there working to tell us That's okay that you're not out there working because there is nothing that out there that you can be doing that is going to be acceptable to God or to make you any closer to Him.

It's all of what Christ has done and is doing for His people in them. He's bringing me to love Him more, bringing me to trust Him more, bringing me to Long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, goodness, temperance, faith. Those gifts of the Spirit are all the works of God in me. He's working in me to will and to do His good pleasure. I don't have to think about what, am I doing enough? I don't need to think about that. Why?

Because Christ has promised that He would work in me to do all His good pleasure. That I shall walk in all the works that He has ordained for me. He is the fountainhead of all of my life. Paul said, I am crucified in Christ. I no longer live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the son of God who gave himself for me. It all goes back to what Christ has done. The fountain of living water came from Christ on the cross.

Look with me if you would. at John chapter seven, verse 37. In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried saying, if any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture sayeth, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. So if we come to Jesus, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink."

So we go to Jesus to drink, but yet he said, that out of your belly shall flow rivers of living water. That's where you drink from. You said, come to me to get your drink, but yet it's gonna be in you where the drink comes from. What is that telling us, brethren? Once again, it's telling us Christ is the fountainhead, Christ is the well, the water, comes from him. The living, the living spirit of God comes from him. It is his spirit. And he sends that to us. So Christ is in us. We do go to Christ for the drink, but Christ is in you. Ain't that what the Bible tells us? That Christ is in you, the hope of what? Glory. That's what the thirstiness goes away with. Whenever we're given to see the hope of glory by the indwelling Christ, we are no longer thirsty. Why?

Because we've been given to see that we are His. The Spirit is given to you that ye might know that ye are His. It's all tied together, brethren. this Christ being the living water and this living water being inside of us and is the life flow of us. Look back if you would at Psalms 36. Look at verse nine. We see that he is not just the fountain of water, but as we've been alluding to getting to, trying to get to, at least. He is the fountain of life. John, or excuse me, Psalms 36, nine. For with thee is the fountain of life. In thy light shall we see light. My brethren, we don't see light, right? Until Christ shines within our heart.

Is that not what the scriptures say? These things are revealed unto babes. These things are revealed. They're spiritually discerned. They don't come until the Spirit of God is in us. Preached on that last week in Kentucky. The natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God, nor can he because they're spiritually discerned.

But it says that these things has been given to us. The Spirit has been given to us that we might know the things that are freely given to us. See, the Spirit of God becomes the fountain of life for us. That's that life that Paul was talking about, and the life that I now live.

I live by the faith of the Son of God. What was the faith of the Son of God? The faith that He'd give you to muster up all this energy to do whatever you need to do? No, the faith of the Son of God was actually the faith of the Son of God in doing all that the Father had sent Him to do.

It was His active obedience that became the faith of us. He trusted and did all the things required of Him And that was laid to our account as if we have now 100% kept the law. Jesus fulfilled all the law, but he did so on our behalf. We are credited with full obedience because Christ did his full obedience. That full obedience is stamped to your account if you're a child of grace.

Therefore, we have light because of what he has freely done, and what he has freely done gives us life. You'll see that all through scripture, life and light is always tied together. Look again back in John, if you would, and look in John chapter 14, I alluded to these verses earlier. Look at what verse 6, 16 said, and I will pray, excuse me, verse six.

Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life. He's the fountainhead of life. He's the only way to the father. He's the only truth about the father. and he is the life of the father. Remember, we would go all the way back to Hosea. Hosea, salvation, is the son of the well. The well has the life. He is the son of the well that has life. I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the father, but by me.

And then in verse 16, and I will pray the father and he shall give you another comforter that he may abide with you forever and you shall dwell up spring of living water that shall never run dry. Even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it seeth him not neither knoweth him, but ye know him for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless, I will come to you. Brethren, that was an eye-opening verse for me whenever I seen that Jesus said that the Spirit was gonna come to us, but then he turned around and said it was him that was coming to us. Verse 26, but the comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I've said to you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. Not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Ye have heard how I've said unto you, I go away and come again unto you.

Man, I'm running long, brethren, but I'd like to show you something here in Exodus. chapter 17. Some more pictures of Christ as this water. Exodus chapter 17, and look at verse 6. It says, Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb. Now remember, this is Christ talking to Moses. Verse five, and the Lord said unto Moses, well, who's the one who's the word of God? Well, it's Christ. Christ is the one who told Moses this.

Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Oreb, and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, and the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders. of Israel. So here we see that Christ said that he was going to stand before him upon the rock in Horeb where the water would flow out to give his people to drink.

But if we look in the New Testament, brethren, in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 4, I'll start reading verse one. I would not that ye should be ignorant how that all our fathers were under the cloud and all passed through the sea and were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea and did eat the same spiritual meat. And here it is verse four. And did all drink the same spiritual drink for they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them and that rock was Christ.

See, we look past the physical. Did Moses strike a rock? Absolutely. Did that rock open up in water, come out of a rock? Absolutely. Did the people of Israel drink it and get their thirst quenched? Absolutely. But brethren, that was just a type and foreshadow to point forth to Christ, who is our spiritual life, who quenches our spiritual thirst. Now, Here's one of the greatest pictures of this I think is in the scripture. Revelation 22. One of the visions that John saw in the revelation of Jesus Christ was this. Revelation 22 in verse 1.

And he showed me a pure river of water of life. clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. It proceeded out of the throne of God and out of the Lamb. Brethren, this isn't a physical river that's running down a physical spot in a physical place. This is talking about the spiritual reality of Christ and his spiritual kingdom as the spiritual king on that spiritual throne right now, where life proceeds. It comes from him. But notice if you would, it says it proceeds out of the throne of God. What does that mean? Well, what is the throne a symbol of? Throne is a symbol of what? Authority. It's a symbol of being a king, a symbol of sovereignty.

Thou has given him power over all flesh to give eternal life to as many as thou has given him. Jesus said, all power is given to me in heaven, and in earth. Brethren, where does eternal life come from? It flows from the sovereign hand of Jesus Christ. That's what this picture in Revelation is telling us. That the life flow to all of his people comes from his sovereign hand.

You didn't choose it. You didn't work hard enough for it. You weren't good enough for it. You didn't hold out long enough for it. It was given to you freely by his sovereign choice, by his sovereign action, by his works, not your works. See, he is the one who has accomplished it all and has the authority to give it all. And it only flows to, as we've seen this morning, to the house of David, to Jacob, to his children, to those who are a thirst, right? Christ is the one who is on the throne and the river of life flows sovereignly from him. That is Hosea, the son of Barai. All right, anybody got any questions, comments, things you'd like to add, corrections, reviews? You know, brother's got anything you want to share. I got any questions. You have a hand up for a question. Fear. It can mean fear. It can.

But all throughout the scriptures, the Bible says that because we're his children, we don't have to fear. Not in that kind of fear, in the scared fear. Now we come to God with a reverential fear, meaning that we reverence him, but not because we feel like we're gonna be punished from him. We never have to fear that, because there is never any punishment to God's children, only chastisement. Love casteth out fear. There you go. There you go. Perfect love cast out all fear. All right, anybody else got a question? It's a good question though.

And there's a lot of people that look at God in that way, Andrew. They look at God as someone that, you know, now truly until God comes and the Holy Spirit reveals in us the gospel, teaches us the gospel, and gives us some sort of hope in that gospel, we surely do have fear.

God's gonna smite me for all of what I've done, you know. There is that fear that comes upon us, but that's the good news of the gospel. The good news of the gospel is that God has not appointed us unto wrath, that he is not going to smite us. Now, that doesn't mean he doesn't chasten us. The Bible says that he chastens those that he loves, but he never does that out of punishment.

You know, Job in the Old Testament, whenever Job had all that stuff happen to him, that wasn't God's punishment because Job was a bad guy or did anything wrong, but he did that to prove the faithfulness of God in Job. that Job would not cast off God because the faith given to God's elect will continue to persevere no matter what will happen. That's why I'm assured, brethren, that whenever anything might go on in this world, whether it be, you know, apocalypse or whether it be just Donald Trump going nuts, whatever, and beginning to persecute Christians or whatever we're doing. If I'm a child of God, and the faith of God has been given to me, that faith will persevere. We always look at those, the Fox's Book of Martyrs, I would direct people to look at the Martyr's Mirror instead of the Fox's Book of Martyrs, but the Martyr's Mirror, and we see all these people that are being put to death for the faith, and we think to ourselves, man, how in the world could somebody stand there being burnt up at the stake and still proclaiming God, saying that they love Christ, praying for the people.

How could Stephen, whenever he was there, and they were stoning Stephen to death, that Stephen looked up to heaven, said, don't put this to their account. I mean, how could he have done that? Because of the faith of Christ. Stephen couldn't have done that, but the faith of God in Stephen caused him to do that. So our hope in persevering to the end and not denying the faith is because of the faithfulness of Christ, not in ourselves.

Michael, Larry, and Mike, and Brother Mark, or anybody else here, we don't have what it takes to do that. I mean, if it wasn't for the faith of God in us, as soon as the guys start coming on the lawn and starting pulling out their guns, we're going, okay, I give. Don't hurt me. Curse God, okay. That's what we would do. The faith of God in us will keep us from that, will keep us to the end. We don't have to worry about punishment, though. He has not appointed us under wrath. All right, anybody else got anything? All right, that's great. Father, we thank you once again for all that you've done.

We thank you for the picture of Christ Jesus that we have before us in the book of Hosea. Father, I pray that as we have went through all that that has been exalting unto Christ, been comforting to your people, Lord, I pray it's been of the truth. And Lord, I just thank you so much for all that you do for us in this life. Being the mediator between God and man, you have given us all things that we have need of so that we might approach unto God, but you have also shown us all things that you have to reveal to us of God. that you desire for us to know of who you are, and that without Christ Jesus, we would have neither one. And so we thank you again for all that you have done through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

And then I pray, Lord, that you'd be with us now in this time of fellowship. I pray that you would bless the food that has been prepared for us to the nourishment of our bodies. Bless the fellowship together. Lord, I pray that you'd be with each and every one of these brethren as they leave this place today. that you give them safety on their way home and throughout this week until you gather us together by your name. For it's in Christ's name that we pray, amen.

Hosea, Son of Beeri: Fountain of Life

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about salvation?

How do we know Jesus is the fountain of living water?

Why is understanding the Trinity important for Christians?

What is the role of the Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life?

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Hosea, Son of Beeri: Fountain of Life

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about salvation?

How do we know Jesus is the fountain of living water?

Why is understanding the Trinity important for Christians?

What is the role of the Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life?

Sermon Transcript

Comments

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