Jesus and Water

The image here is the sea at Moelfre on 18th December 2008 which just happened to be my birthday. The sea surrounds my island of Anglesey. It means we can always find a sheltered beach because on the opposite side of the island the wind blows the opposite way - i.e. off the land or the sea. The wind coupled with the sea becomes a powerful force for the ships that pass Anglesey on their way into and out of Liverpool. Many of them shelter close in as they wait for the pilot to arrive and guide them into the port.

On Sunday the churches will be following the Revised Common Lectionary and so their Gospel reading will be the story in John's Gospel of Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at the well. As in many hot countries, the people depended heavily on water which was a scarce commodity. There were wells all over the land and people came to them for the water they and their families needed for drinking, washing and self purification. The one in question was known as Jacob's Well.

The story began with Jesus asking the woman for a drink. Her reaction to this request was to be "gobsmacked". At this point Jesus had crossed a number of barriers, taking her by surprise. The Jews considered the Samaritans unclean so would never share drinking vessels with them. Jesus was a rabbi and so he broke the rule forbidding rabbis to speak to women in public. He was also speaking to an obvious outcast as she had come to the well at midday which ws the practice. The first action was a request for water requiring Jesus to break an accepted taboo. Looking at the full story from start to finish and knowing what we know about the customs of the time, we can see that Jesus was deliberately going for confrontation at the very start.

There was no beating about the bush as he deliberately asked for a drink of water. The conversation led to Jesus offering the woman "living water" that would never be absent in a follower of his. It would well up in the heart and sustain the disciple at any time of stress. It would be the means of getting through in life. Eventually the conversation had the woman asking Jesus if he were the Messiah and then rushing off to spread the good news she had just heard. This is supposed to be what happens today when a listener hears the "living water" being offered by Jesus.

As I have said, water was a precious thing in those days and at that time. All through the Bible we come across stories that involve water. The very start of the Old Testament speaks of the Spirit of God hovering above the water. In the story of the Exodus, Moses is instructed to strike a particular rock with his staff and it gushed water. This was no miracle, though, because that sort of rock can still be found in that part of the world. It was a natural occurrence. The psalmist in the 23rd Psalm spoke of being led by still water. This is said because a sheep (and the psalmist was a shepherd) drink only from still water. They would not like to drink from a waterfall or other rushing torrent. Jesus went to the River Jordan to be baptised by John. In the book of Reveleation, the final story is a description of the celestial Jerusalem with the River of Life flowing throiugh its centre.

So we can see how many instances of water can crop up in the Christian way of life. We may choose to be baptised by way of going under the water and rising to a fresh start. Even when infants are baptised they recieve a symbolic contact with water. Any human being knows that he or she can continue without food much longer than without water. Water is the vital element we all need. Our bodies consist mainly of water. My island of Anglesey is steeped in history and is therefore home to a good many holy wells that began as sacred to the Celts and became holy under Christianity. Many of these wells are famous and visited by many people. Back in the 80s I visited a well known place known as Madron Well in Cornwall. It was a known place but when I arrived I found it overgrown and not an encouraging place to visit. In prehistoric times the people would throw brand new implements such as axes into waterways, lakes and ponds to placate the gods who ensured plenty of water was available to them.

Today, Christians know that source of life to be God. His water is the best and it is this we seek out in our lifelong pilgrimage. When Jesus spoke of water he used it as an alternative for the Spirit of God. Water and spirit were really one thing in the thinking of Jesus. On one occasion he visited the Pool of Siloam to cure a man there who tried to get into the water on the occasion that an angel disturbed the water. Had he made it he considered it certain he would have a cure for his lifelong infirmity. This was the importance of that water to the people who stayed close by it, waiting for the angel that was said to disturb the water and thereby provide a cure for their illness or infirmity.

Speaking for myself, I love to get into the sea when its temperature allows. Many of us love to go swimming as a means of exercise. It is an Olympic sport. To the creatures who live in it water is their means of survival. Any fish landed by an angler will not survive in air. A neighbour of mine used to be a trawler skipper, going out into a hostile sea searching for fish to put on our tables. This is another importance in that water supports some of the food we eat. As I write this blog I see via another website that the ship, Riverdance, still lies on the sands off Blackpool. It was driven there by a freak wave of water as it sailed across the Irish Sea with its cargo of trailers. If you are old enough to remember the BBC series, "Who Pays the Ferryman" you will remember the reference to Greek mythology and the payment needed for Charon, the ugly ferryman who took the dead across the River Styx. here is another reference to water as an important element of life and death.

Back in the Bible times the disciples were afraid when a great wind was blowing as they sailed on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus was called in to deal with the situation and c almed the storm. This was amazing, that he could command wind and water to save his friends from danger. But this is what Jesus is to us. He is the saviour who is concerned about any danger we might face in life. It is he who will bring us through it all to journey's end. On him we can rely without any worries at all. If he is with us we shall not drown in the dangerous waters of life. It just needs us to see this clearly and then we shall be able to move forward in confidence.

Water stands for refreshment. One Easter Day I was in a Roman Catholic congregation as my son ws confirmed. The priest, Father Mark, suddenly realised a ritual for the day which he had forgotten to perform. This was to walk in the congregation sprinkling the people with holy water. As I felt the water I realised how refreshing it felt. It reminded me of the message of Easter Day with its thoughts of rebirth through resurrection. That rebirth was a refeshing experience and I felt glad to be there.

All this concerns the many attributes of water in the Christian religion. We are reminded of the part water plays in our lives. It flows along and we go with it. Our voyage heads ultimately for that celestial city with its river of life flowing own its centre. This is where we are all heading when we follow Jesus.