The Truth Process Session V, Post 3

“It doesn’t hold water.”


"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. (Jeremiah 2:13)
These words were written about 2600 years ago, and they were written in reference to the nation of Israel. These same words could apply to our nation as well.
In this passage of scripture, the Lord refers to Himself as a “spring of living water.” I found this definition of “spring”: a source of supply; especially : a source of water issuing from the ground; an ultimate source, especially of action or motion. How interesting. “A source of supply.” Not the supply, but the source – the ultimate source.
The people of Israel turned away from this “living water” and instead dug their own “cisterns”. A cistern is an artificial reservoir (like an underground tank) for storing liquids and especially water (like rainwater). Cisterns were not a source of water, but a means of holding a supply of water.
Metaphorically, the Lord was pointing out the foolishness of the people of Israel. They forsook (to renounce or turn away from entirely) God – the ultimate source, and instead chose to rely upon their own strengths by digging their own cisterns. Cisterns were often lined with a plaster coating. These cisterns, dug as an alternative to God (the ultimate source), were faulty. They could not hold water.
You have probably heard the phrase “it doesn’t hold water”. We often hear it used to describe an idea or argument that just doesn’t make sense. Imagine two people having a conversation regarding global warming. One person argues that drastic measures must be taken immediately before global warming causes the ice caps to melt, flooding all our coastal cities. The other person might respond, “The data shows that temperatures have actually decreased over the last decade. Your argument doesn’t hold water.”
As I pondered Jeremiah 2:13, it is obvious to me how closely the condition of America today parallels the nation of Israel in the 6th century B.C. Like the Israelites, much of America has renounced or turned away from God, and chosen to rely upon what we, as a people, can do in our own strength and abilities. Like the cisterns of Jeremiah 2:13, this approach just “doesn’t hold water.”
Our culture is replete with “faulty cisterns”. To name a few:
Our military strength.
Our “can do” spirit.
The belief that man is “basically good”.
Thinking that man is the arbiter of what is good or evil.
The belief that “self-actualization” is the ultimate goal.
The belief that the State is sovereign over all other social spheres.
The foolishness of all this is obvious to those of us who are “of the faith”. But to a culture engaged in the worship of man rather than God, it seems perfectly natural even though it just “doesn’t hold water.” Scripture warns us that what seems right isn’t always the best way to live (Proverbs 14:12).
I am reminded by these words from Jeremiah that I must be very careful that I do not engage in the same foolishness. When I examine my own life, I sometimes find evidence that convicts me of turning from God – the ultimate source of all I need – to my own cisterns. When the Spirit, who guides me into all truth (John 16:13), reveals this to me, I must then turn back to the spring of living water.
There are times in my life when I am taken captive by the “hollow and deceptive philosophies” of this world (Colossians 2:8). When this happens, I begin operating according to a faulty belief system that is focused on me, not on God. This often happens in a very subtle manner. The results are not so subtle.
The end result is something I used to picture in this way: I am lying on my back, on the ground, having taken a very hard fall. I am somewhat stunned, and covered with dust and dirt, and I am wondering “what happened?” That’s the way I used to picture it…
Now, I picture it this way: I am lying on my back, on the ground, having taken a very hard fall. I am somewhat stunned, and covered with dust and dirt, and I say to myself “You did it again!” Then, my Father reaches down, takes me by the hand, and He helps me stand again. He washes all the dirt and dust away, and I begin again, determined to never forsake my Lord again.
May it be so…



In Christ -



John