Planted by the Waters

Today’s Passages -Jeremiah 14 – 17; Proverbs 18

(Second Milers also read – Acts 12 – 14; Memorize John 15:7)

“Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” – (Jeremiah 17:7-8)

Do these verses sound familiar? They bear a striking resemblance to the 1st Psalm:

“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” – (Psalm 1:1-6)

These two passages should be studied together, much like the way we would compare an account from the life of Jesus from two different gospel accounts. By comparing Scripture with Scripture and looking at both of them together we can get a more complete picture. The first parallel that I would like to point out is that we cant see that if a person trusts the Lord he will not be influenced by the ungodly, but rather will be soaking up the Word of God. The tree that is spoken about here has deep roots that tap into a source of water; and even during the dry seasons this tree is nourished because it has a continuous source of water. This is a wonderful picture of a Christian who is continuously abiding in the Word of God. When life presents its droughts and trials, this man still flourishes because he has the Bible as his source of spiritual nutrition and strength. Oh how important it is for us to spend time with Lord tapped into His Word, which will refresh our souls and give us the wisdom and strength we need to survive this barren world that we live in.

Notice also how both of these passages make reference to being fruitful. The passage from Jeremiah especially assures us that the fruitfulness will continue even during a drought. People often say that there is not much that a child of God can do in this post-Christian culture that we are living in. They say that we are living in the end times, and that nobody wants to hear the Truth anymore. They encourage us to just wait out the return of the Lord. This passage teaches us that we can be fruitful even during the spiritual droughts. I will agree that the times that we are living in are certainly difficult, but I believe with all of my heart that if we will abide in Christ, He will produce fruit in our lives. People will be saved as a result of the Word of God flowing from our mouths and lives.

Are you like the tree pictured above? Is the Word of God a continuous source of refreshment and nourishment to your life? Why don’t we decide that we will henceforth spend a little less time in the ungodly sources of counsel that come from our televisions and computers, and tap into the Source of strength and wisdom: The Word of God.