Living Water

by Meaghan Troup

Original - Sold

Price

$500

Dimensions

20.000 x 16.000 x 0.500 inches

Title

Living Water

Artist

Meaghan Troup

Medium

Painting - Oil On Canvas

Description

This piece is inspired by a stream near my maternal grandparents home in Hume, NY and the following verse:

"Jesus answered and said to her, 'Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.' " John 4: 13-14

Water is an amazing substance. About 70% of the Earth's surface is covered in water and no life can exist without it. Interestingly enough, about 70% of the human body is made up of water and 70% of the human brain is water. Deprived of water, a human being can live only about 3-5 days depending on their physical stamina and environment. Every organ in the body requires water to survive. Water is vital to transporting nutrients within the body, and waste out of the body. Water keeps impurities out of the blood. Without water the body cannot absorb or digest food, bones become brittle, and the body becomes prone to infection. There is no substitute for water!

The verse that is paired with this piece comes from a section of scripture that relates the story of a Samaritan woman who encounters Jesus at a well. Many are familiar with the story of the woman at the well, but the proverbial nature of this account may cause us to be desensitized to its significance.

The Samaritans occupied an area that formerly belonged the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh (part of the tribes of Israel and the House of Joseph). When the 10 tribes of Israel were overtaken by Assyria, foreigners were relocated into Samaria and intermarried with the Israelite people. These foreigners brought with them the idols of their own nations. As a result, the Samaritans embraced a religion that was a mixture of Judaism and idolatry. Thus, Jews considered the Samaritans to be "Half-breeds" and despised them as the worst of the human race.

With this in mind, we can recognize that Jesus' conversation with the woman at the well was remarkable because, being a Jew, He should not be speaking to a Samaritan woman. However, this conversation is even more extraordinary because this woman was an outcast in her own society. This is evidenced by the fact that she came alone to the well. At this time, the daily walk to the well would have been done with a group of women, and was a social highlight of a woman's day (similar to shopping or meeting up with friends). This woman, we find, was ostracized and marked as immoral because she was an unmarried woman living openly with the 5th in a series of men. According to Jewish law, accepting water from this woman would have made Jesus unclean.

Christ draws His metaphor for "Living Water" in this account from His circumstances and the needs of this woman, illustrating that God unveils His grace to us in different ways. This woman knew that she was a sinner and needed to see herself as a person of worth and value. This woman, like all of us, needed love, forgiveness, and acceptance. She needed a Savior- she needed Jesus!

This narrative provides us with one of the most powerful lessons in scripture. In spite of our bankrupt lives, God finds us worthy of His love. Like the woman at the well, God values us enough to actively seek us, welcome us into a close relationship with him, and rejoice in our worship. No one is outside of God's grace! Even when we can find no value in ourselves we are treasured by God. What a gift this is!

So what is "Living Water"? Living Water refers to both salvation and the Holy Spirit. When we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and receive God's gift of salvation and eternal life, the Holy Spirit resides in our souls- always with us. Living Water, or salvation, comes only to those who recognize their desperate need for a spiritual life with God, confess their sin, and seek forgiveness. In order to embrace the Savior, the woman at the well had to concede the full burden of her sin.

In the time and area that Christ lived, water (especially clean water) was scarce and valuable. Life depended on it and civilizations grew around water sources. Similarly, Living Water (salvation and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives) is necessary for our spiritual redemption and abundant living in this world. Like the woman at the well we should be eager to share our source of life! This living spring of nourishment (The Holy Spirit within us) produces a change in our character and we seek to live as Christ did.

Not unlike our physical body and earthly water, if we are deprived of Living Water our soul dies. Our souls are thirsty. Often we attempt to quench this thirst with things that satisfy temporarily. God offers us a gift that will eternally fulfill us. Prayer and the study of God's word help to nourish the soul, and when we are spiritually nourished we are able to nourish others. There is no substitute for Living Water! What water does for a dry, parched mouth, Living Water does for a dry, parched soul!

1st Place in "Spiritual Religious Experience", March 2013; 3rd Place "Spring Tonic" Feb. 2013; 1st Place in "Artwork Not Viewed", January 2013; 2nd Place in "Spiritual Art" January 2013

Uploaded

January 10th, 2013

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