"Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over." (Ezekiel 47:5)

In Scripture, water is used in a two fold way to describe spiritual blessing. Water that is flowing such as a FOUNTAIN or a RIVER is a type of the Holy Spirit of God. "He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)" (John 7:38-39).

WATER FOR WASHING is a type of the Word of God. "That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word." (Ephesians 5:26)

Here is in Ezekiel we see the blessing that will flow out to men by the Holy Spirit during the Millennial reign of our Lord Jesus Christ. In this swimming lesson, we learn about how God would have us to be filled with the Holy Spirit in our walk, in our worship and in our work. As Ezekiel walked through the water it became deeper and deeper until he could swim in it. Here we have a lesson in spiritual progress.

"And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles." (Ezekiel 47:3)

The ankles speak of our walk and water up to the ankles reminds us that now as believers our walk is controlled by the Spirit of God when before sin controlled our lives – "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Romans 8:1)

This is not an admonition for us to walk in the Spirit but a fact that is true of all believers. Every believer has the Holy Spirit dwelling in them since the moment of conversion (Ephesians 1:13). Once sin ruled in our lives but now the Holy Spirit rules and empowers us to live a holy life. What a glorious salvation we have! What a difference there should be in the life of a Christian compared to unbelievers who walk in the flesh.

"Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees."

(Ezekiel 47:4a)

The knees in the Scriptures are mentioned in relation to prayer and worship – "For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 3:14). Our prayer and worship should therefore be in the power of the Holy Spirit – "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints." (Ephesians 6:18)

The word worship in the Greek means literally "to bow before." This means that we are overcome with a sense of our own absolute worthlessness before God and we bows before Him filled with awe at His majesty and for what He has done for us (Revelation 4:11; 5:9). Worship is then an attitude of heart we have towards God. It is expressed by the sacrifice of praise, the giving to those in need (Heb. 13:15-16) and a holy life that is not just an outward show (Matthew 15:8-9).

Real worship will result from the reading of the Word of God and the Holy Spirit convicting us of the glories of our God so that we bow in worship before God and seek to glorify Him. This is worship in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Sadly today worship has become just a time of entertainment. There will be much music and happy singing but the focus is on the good music and not upon the Lord. When the believer goes home there is little thought of his or her own unworthiness and little reverence for God. We need to have worship in the Spirit.

"Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins." (Ezekiel 47:4b)

The loins in Scripture speak of work for a man girded up his loins so that his clothing would not hinder him. The Lord Jesus said, "Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning." (Luke 12:35)

Waters up to the loins then speak of our work and service that should be in the power of the Spirit.

If there is little blessing in the work we do it is sometimes because the Lord is testing us so that we learn to trust Him but often it is due to a lack of being filled with the Spirit. This happens when little time is spent in the Word of God and prayer. Unconfessed sin and malice harboured against another believer robs the Christians of power and usefulness.

Finally we read that the waters were so deep that they could only be crossed by swimming. "Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over." (Ezekiel 47:5)

What a picture we have here of the tremendous power of the Holy Spirit of God, a power that was manifested at Pentecost and during all the great revivals of history. Here the river proceeding from the throne of God becomes deeper and deeper. So deep that a man has to swim in it. Such is the fullness of the Spirit of God and this power is available to every believer to live the Christian life and to serve the Lord.

A group of ministers from various churches met together to discuss a city wide gospel campaign. Most of them wanted D. L. Moody the great evangelist to conduct it. One man stood up and complained why everyone wants D. L. Moody all the time and not someone else. He asked "Does he have a monopoly on the Holy Spirit?" A wise brother stood up and said, "We do not wish to convey that impression but we are sure that the Holy Spirit has a monopoly on D. L. Moody!"

How much of a monopoly has the Holy Spirit on our lives? In the matter of spiritual swimming, we must ask ourselves how much progress have we made since we were saved?

To be continued...