DATE: June 24, 2001
TEXT: Jeremiah 2:13
THEME: “The Fountain of Living Water”
INTRODUCTION
BODY
I. WHAT THE PEOPLE FORSOOK – The Spring/Fountain of Living Water
A. Is Free
B. Is Forever Flowing
C. Is Full of Beauty
D. Is Fresh & Satisfying
E. Only Requires Receipt
II. WHAT THE PEOPLE CHOSE- Broken Cisterns
1. Had to be constructed – required hard work
2. Had to be cleaned & maintained
3. Had to depend on the rain to be filled
4. Had the capacity to become a prison
5. Could never satisfy - Because they were broken they were really empty
6. Examples of Broken Cisterns
a. Religion
b. Good works
c. The world’s pleasures – sex, drugs , parties, travel, etc
CONCLUSION
NOW WE MUST CHOOSE…
Forsaken - bze ‘ azab aw-zab’
1a2) to leave, abandon, forsake, neglect, apostatise
Fountain
(Heb. ‘ain; i.e., "eye" of the water desert), a natural source of living water. Palestine was a "land of brooks of water, of fountains, and depths that spring out of valleys and hills" #De 8:7 11:11 These fountains, bright sparkling "eyes" of the desert, are remarkable for their abundance and their beauty, especially on the west of Jordan. All the perennial rivers and streams of the country are supplied from fountains, and depend comparatively little on surface water. "Palestine is a country of mountains and hills, and it abounds in fountains of water. The murmur of these waters is heard in every dell, and the luxuriant foliage which surrounds them is seen in every plain."
Cistern
The rendering of a Hebrew word _bor_, which means a receptacle for water conveyed to it; distinguished from _beer_, which denotes a place where water rises on the spot #Jer 2:13 Pr 5:15 Isa 36:16 a fountain. Cisterns are frequently mentioned in Scripture. The scarcity of springs in Palestine made it necessary to collect rain-water in reservoirs and cisterns #Nu 21:22. Empty cisterns were sometimes used as prisons #Jer 38:6 La 3:53 #Ps 40:2 69:15 The "pit" into which Joseph was cast #Ge 37:24 was a _beer_ or dry well. There are numerous remains of ancient cisterns in all parts of Palestine.
