A mighty flowing-out is God

V. ISSUING IN BLOOD AND WATER

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John 19:34 says, “But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water. ”Two substances came out of the Lord’s pierced side: blood and water. Blood is for redemption, dealing with sins (John 1:29 ; Heb. 9:22) for the purchase of the church (Acts 20:28), and water is for imparting life, dealing with death (John 12:24 ; 3:14-15) for the producing of the church (Eph. 5:29-31). On the negative side, the Lord’s death takes away our sins; on the positive side, it imparts life into us. Hence, it has two aspects: the redemptive aspect and the life-imparting aspect. The redemptive aspect is for the life-imparting aspect. The record of the three other Gospels is only for the redemptive aspect of the Lord’s death, but John’s record is not only for the redemptive aspect but also for the life-imparting aspect. In Matthew 27:45 , 51 ; Mark 15:33 ; and Luke 23:44-45 , “darkness, ” as a symbol of sin, appeared, and “the veil of the temple, ” which separated man from God, “was rent. ” Those were signs related to the Lord’s redemptive death. Furthermore, the words spoken by the Lord on the cross in Luke 23:34 , “Father, forgive them, ” and in Matthew 27:46 , “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? ” (because He bore our sin at that time), also depict the Lord’s redemptive death. But the flowing water and the unbroken bone mentioned by John in verses 34 and 36 are signs of the Lord’s life-imparting death. This life-imparting death releases the Lord’s divine life from within Him for producing the church, composed of all His believers into whom His divine life has been imparted. This life-imparting death of the Lord was typified by Adam’s sleep that produced Eve (Gen. 2:21-23), and is signified by the death of the one grain of wheat falling into the ground for the bringing forth of many grains (John 12:24) for the making of the loaf—the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 10:17). Hence, it is also the life-propagating, life-multiplying, regenerating, and reproducing death.

As we shall see, the Lord’s pierced side was prefigured by Adam’s opened side, out of which Eve was produced (Gen. 2:21-23). The blood was typified by the blood of the Passover lamb (Exo. 12:7 , 22 ; Rev. 12:11), and the water by the water that flowed out of the smitten rock (Exo. 17:6 ; 1 Cor. 10:4). The blood formed “a fountain” for the washing of sin (Zech. 13:1), and the water became “the fountain of life” (Psa. 36:9 ; Rev. 21:6)

God is flowing he never stops. With his blood all our sins are cleansed. The water signifying the resurrection. Sealed us into the united bond with him in life. We can only grow in this life. Such a mingling we can experience only in our Spirit with God flowing into it constantly. We Praise you our Father keep flowing in us today.

"... and God just keeps on flowing!!"

The Lord flowed himself into life for us, as pure salvation, as regeneration, flowing forever and ever!

God just keeps on flowing! Our God is a flowing God and no matter what circumstances are happening in our sphere, there is one certainty…. Our God is still flowing. From the moment Christ was crucified blood and water flowed from His side. Blood for redemption to bring us into a proper position to have fellowship with God and water for regeneration and life imparting. This blood and water is still flowing today. This flow is just the Triune God, the Life Giving Spirit making himself available to all of mankind. Our humbling ourselves to tell the Lord that we need him and receive his sacrifice and open to this flow is all that is needed for this flow to reach us. Thank you Lord Jesus for continuing to flow yourself to us and for imparting this flow into our being. We give ourselves to receive this flow into us today.

This hymn unfolds Gods plan and what He went through to join himself to man spiritually. I don’t think I truly appreciate what God Accomplished in His incarnation. He certainly did condescend! During his life as a man, he suffered so that his humanity could be perfected by his obedience to the Father. Through death and resurrection he then became the Life giving Spirit. This was huge and impossible to comprehend. God died at the hands of His own creation! Now Christ the man has resurrected and is glorified in heaven. He has poured Himself out as the compound Spirit. The Holy Spirit is now the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Now the Spirit is mingled with Christ’s perfected humanity for us to enjoy and live. God has flowed through many stages so He could get into man. It was truly love that motivated Him to go through these things. I am at awe of what he went through. Now God can be expressed through man by flowing His Life into and out of us little men. This is marvelous because we are now participating in his marvelous plan.

Hallelujah for the flow of life in our mingled spirit

Martin Luther was born in Eisleben, in Saxony November 10, 1483. He was educated at the University of Erfurth, and became an Augustinian monk and Professor of Philosophy and Divinity at the University of Wittenburg. In 1517 he composed his 95 thesis condemning certain practices of the Roman Catholic Church and three years later the Pope published a bull excommunicating him, which he burnt openly before a sympathetic crowd in Wittenburg. His life was a stormy one, and he was more than once in mortal danger because of his antagonistic attitude to the papal authority, but he found powerful patrons, and lived to see the Reformation an organized fact. He died in his birth place, Eisleben, February 18, 1546.

The translation of the hymn in part, is by Reverend Friedrich Henry Hedge, Dr. of Divinity born in Cambridge, March 1805, a graduate of Harvard, and formerly minister of the Unitarian Church in Bangor, Maine. He died, 1890.

Luther wrote 36 hymns, some of which he fitted his own music. He was a musician and singer as well as an eloquent preacher. The tune for this hymn, sung in the hymnals was composed by himself. The hymn has also a noble rendering in the music of Johan Sebastian Bach 8-4 time, found in “Hymns Ancient and Modern. ”

Though Satan did his best. To put God's flow in rest He had him crucified and cruelly pierced his side but out came blood and water!!

And now Christ flows in us!!