Sheryl Brady - Gotta Go For The River

Ezekiel chapter 47, and I’m going to read. I’m not exactly sure where I’ll stop, but just bear with me for a moment. The Bible says, «Now he brought me back.» This is Ezekiel talking about the vision of a river that he had. He said, «Now he brought me back to the entrance of the temple. I saw water pouring out from under the temple porch to the east. The temple faced east; the water poured from the south side of the temple, south of the altar.» He then took me through the north gate and led me around the outside of the gate complex on the east. The water was gushing from under the south front of the temple. He walked to the east with a measuring tape and measured off 1,500 feet, leading me through water that was ankle-deep. He measured off another 1,500 feet, leading me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another 1,500 feet, and by now it was a river that was over my head—water to swim in, water that no one could possibly walk through. He said, «Son of man, have you had a good look?» Then he took me to the riverbank, and while sitting on the bank, I noticed a lot of trees on both sides of the river. He told me, «This water flows east, descends to the Arava, and then into the sea, the sea of stagnant water.» So the river is flowing, and it’s flowing into the sea that has stagnant waters. Whenever your waters are stagnant, you only need to be touched by a river because whatever is in the river will cause whatever is stagnant in you to come alive. Look at somebody and tell them, «I need a river!» I didn’t come just for church; I came for a river today. I’ve got some stagnant things inside of me, some stinky things, some dead things that I need to get out of me, so I have to have a river. You told me that the water flows from the Eze and then to the sea, the sea of stagnant waters. When it empties into those waters, the sea will become fresh. Where the river flows, life will flourish—great schools of fish—because the river is turning the salt sea into fresh water. Where the river flows, life abounds. Where the river flows, life abounds. Where the river flows, life abounds. And if life is what is abounding, then death has got to be defeated. So where the river is flowing, life will abound. Somebody say that with me: «Where the river flows, life abounds.» Fishermen will stand shoulder-to-shoulder along the shore from En Gedi all the way north to whatever you want to call that place, casting their nets. The sea will teem with fish of all kinds, like the fish of the great Mediterranean. The swamps and the marshes won’t become fresh; they’ll stay salty. But the river itself, on both banks, will grow fruit trees of all kinds. Their leaves won’t wither, and the fruit will not fail. The fruit will not fail! Why? Because it’s been touched by the river. Every month—whoa—every month, they’ll bear fresh fruit because the river from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves will be for healing. I don’t even know how to really begin, but there’s so much in that passage of Scripture right there. For the next few moments, I’m just going to talk from this text, but I want you to look to your neighbor on the right and say, «Neighbor, we’ve got to go for the river.» Turn to your other neighbor and say, «Neighbor, we’ve got to go for the river!» Spirit of God, I thank you for what you’ve shown me, and I thank you for what I feel in this place as we’ve read your text in this room. Whatever you’re saying, God, just say it clearly. Take all of my inabilities and use them; just hide them behind the cross of Calvary. I ask God that you would allow the river to flow in this room today. Touch those who need to be touched—those who came expecting, those who are broken, those who are wounded. Whatever it is, God, something made people get up out of bed and press their way to this spot. I pray, Father, that you would just send your word and find us, and we’ll give you glory for it. In Jesus' name, somebody shout, «Amen!» On your way down, just touch somebody and tell them, «I gotta go for the river! I gotta go! Gotta go for the river!» My experience was something I went through. I’m going to say, «Lord, I’m probably in the early 90s.» I haven’t talked about it very much because I didn’t really know how to articulate it. I didn’t know how to talk about the visitation from the Lord that I had, so I didn’t talk about it too much because back in that day, there weren’t a whole lot of people in my circle talking about the river of God. Today, it’s everywhere. A lot of people talk about the river, and it has become very popular to talk about the river. But I remember one place that the Bishop and I were ministering, and we had gone to a church somewhere in New Jersey. I was sitting at a keyboard playing. That’s how far back that was; I didn’t even have Chris there. I didn’t have any musicians at that time, and I was the musician. But I wasn’t great, but I knew how to get myself into the presence of God, and I sat down.