“And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.” – Ezekiel 47:9
God gave Ezekiel a vision of His power to restore life to even the deadest of things. He showed him the river of life, flowing from His temple down to what we call the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea lies amidst the devastated ruins of the region that used to be Sodom and Gomorrah. It’s so salty that absolutely nothing can live in it. Nonetheless, God promises Ezekiel that He can bring vibrant new life and flourishing to something as dead and hostile to life as that.
This is what Jesus does to people. When He promises fountains of “living water” springing up in everyone who believes in Him, this is what He accomplishes in them (and in you). Jesus, the Living Water, raises the deadest of souls to new spiritual life through faith in Him. God’s grace brings abundant, vibrant, joyous life to the darkest, deadest, soul. There is no person so far gone that he or she can’t be made new in Christ Jesus! Why? Because their salvation and restoration to life is never based on who they are or what they’ve done. It’s always entirely based on Who Jesus is and what He did on the cross!
Never give up on someone who seems hopelessly hardened against the Lord. Pray, and keep on praying. Show them Christ, tell them about Christ, love them like Christ. Trust that in the Lord’s perfect timing, living water may yet bring healing and life to their soul. #FollowJesus