Rivers

of Living Water

Tears for the Pierced Lord and the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit

Throughout the Scriptures a profound prophetic stream flows from the words of the prophets to the revelation given to John.

This stream reveals a mystery: the Word of God that came to the prophets, the coming of the Lord into the world, the piercing of the Creator by His own creation, the mourning that follows, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon those whose hearts break when they realize what has been done to Him.

At the center of this mystery stands the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Word That the Prophets Heard  

The prophets did not invent their message.  
They spoke because the Word of the Lord came to them.

“The word of the Lord came…”
(Isaiah 38:4)

This expression appears again and again throughout the prophetic writings.

Moses and the prophets heard the Word of the Lord.  
That Word was not merely a message.

It was the voice, will, and action of God Himself.

Centuries later John reveals the hidden identity of that Word:

“In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.”
(John 1:1)

And then John records the astonishing event that changed the history of the world:

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”
(John 1:14)

The Word that Moses and the prophets heard entered the world as a human life.

This Word made flesh is the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Creator Entered His Own Creation  

John writes:

“He was in the world,
and the world was made through Him,
yet the world did not know Him.”
(John 1:10)

The Creator walked among His creation.

The one through whom all things came into existence entered the world He had made.

Yet the world did not recognize Him.

Isaiah had foretold that the one who would come would not merely be a messenger.

“For unto us a child is born…
and His name shall be called
Mighty God, Everlasting Father.”
(Isaiah 9:6)

The child spoken of by Isaiah is the one John later reveals as the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom God Himself appeared among His people.

The Piercing of the Lord  

One of the most astonishing prophecies in Scripture appears in the words of the prophet Zechariah:

“They will look on Me whom they have pierced,
and they shall mourn for Him
as one mourns for an only son.”
(Zechariah 12:10)

The speaker in this prophecy is the Lord Himself.

The words are striking in their clarity:

“They will look on Me whom they have pierced.”

The prophecy reveals that the Creator would be pierced by those He created.

When the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, this prophecy came to fulfillment.

The Mourning That Follows  

But the prophecy does not end with the piercing.

It continues:

“They shall mourn for Him.”
(Zechariah 12:10)

This mourning is not ordinary grief.

It is the moment when the human heart suddenly understands the truth:

the one rejected and crucified was the Lord Himself.

This realization breaks the heart.

The soul begins to weep.

Tears as Water  

Throughout the prophetic writings, tears are often described through the imagery of water.

Water flows from the depths of the earth.  
Tears flow from the depths of the heart.

Isaiah speaks of a promise that joins water and the Spirit together:

“I will pour water upon the thirsty land
and streams upon the dry ground;
I will pour My Spirit.”
(Isaiah 44:3)

Here water and Spirit appear side by side.

The prophecy reveals a profound mystery:

the tears of repentance prepare the ground for the outpouring of the Spirit.

When the heart becomes dry and broken,
God promises to pour both water and Spirit.

The Promise of the Outpouring  

Another prophet speaks even more directly about the moment when God’s Spirit will be poured out upon people.

The prophet Joel declares:

“And it shall come to pass afterward,
that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
your young men shall see visions.

And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out My Spirit.

And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
blood and fire and pillars of smoke.”
(Joel 2:28–30)

This prophecy reveals that the outpouring of the Spirit would reach all people.

Yet the prophetic stream shows that the deepest awakening happens when the heart recognizes the Pierced Lord.

Rivers of Living Water  

The Lord Jesus Christ later revealed the same mystery.

He declared:

“If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
Whoever believes in Me,
out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
(John 7:37–38)

John explains:

“He spoke about the Spirit.”
(John 7:39)

The Spirit flows like living water.

But the spring from which this water flows is a broken heart that has seen the Pierced Lord.

Born of Water and Spirit  

Jesus told Nicodemus:

“Unless one is born of water and Spirit,
he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
(John 3:5)

Water also represents the tears of awakening — the moment when the heart realizes who the Lord Jesus Christ truly is.

The Orphans Who Mourn  

Jesus said:

“I will not leave you as orphans;
I will come to you.”
(John 14:18)

Those who mourn for the Lord are like children who realize they have lost their Father.

But those who do not mourn do not yet feel this loss.

Such hearts do not yet know they are orphans.

The Presence That Comes With the Spirit  

Jesus promised:

“I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper,
that He may be with you forever.”
(John 14:16)

Then He said again:

“I will not leave you as orphans;
I will come to you.”
(John 14:18)

The Spirit is the way the Lord comes to dwell with His people.

God Dwelling in the Broken Heart  

“We will come to him
and make our dwelling with him.”
(John 14:23)

Isaiah had said:

“I dwell… with him who is of a contrite and humble spirit.”
(Isaiah 57:15)

What Was Not Yet Revealed While He Was in the Flesh  

During His earthly life, the Lord Jesus Christ said that He had not yet spoken plainly about the Father.

“I have spoken these things to you in figures of speech;
the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures,
but will tell you plainly about the Father.”
(John 16:25)

Thus, even during His earthly ministry, the full revelation of the Father was still to come.

The Revelation Given to John  

Later, after the resurrection and ascension, John received a vision.

He saw the throne of God and heard the voice of the One who reigns forever:

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,
says the Lord God Almighty.”
(Revelation 1:8)

In this revelation the Lord appears not simply as the teacher who spoke in parables, but as the Lord God Almighty.

The One Seated on the Throne  

John later hears the promise:

“He who sits on the throne will dwell among them.”
(Revelation 7:15)

The One seated on the throne is the same Lord who was pierced.

The same Lord Jesus Christ who walked in the world.

The Prophetic Stream  

When these passages are seen together, a single prophetic movement appears.

God speaks to the prophets.
The Word becomes flesh.
The Creator enters the world.
The Lord Jesus Christ is pierced.
The heart sees and mourns.
Tears begin to flow like water.
The Spirit is poured out.
Living water flows from within.
God Himself comes to dwell in the heart.

And the One seated on the throne remains with them forever.

The Final Mystery

The living water begins with tears.

Tears for the Pierced Lord.

But those tears become a river of life.

Then the heart that mourned is no longer an orphan.

For the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ remains with the one who received His Spirit.

And the promise becomes reality:

The One who sits on the throne dwells among them — and within them — forever. The one and only God.