“Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
– John 7:38
One of the marks of Christian character in the New Testament is self-control (Titus 2:12). As we surrender more and more to God, and He takes more control of us, a human (in a holistic sense) is able to have self-management. In other words, as His Kingdom come, more of His reign comes into our lives.
For those that our ministering to others, if one is to help others to understand what it means to live under the rule of God, and experience His kingdom, we ourselves must be ruled.
The point, for example, of the beginning of Matthew 7, “Judge not, that you be not judged…” — it’s not that we should not judge. It’s that we better be judging ourselves a lot before judging others. It’s good to help others with the toothpicks in their eyes, if we are doing the regular work of removing logs from our eyes.
If we are to serve others rightly by leading them to the life that is in Jesus, we must first have had managed to lead ourselves there first. If we have tapped into the well of Jesus daily and often, it is natural that we are to be giving this loving grace to others. In fact, it would be unnatural to have tapped in to the well of Christ and not have that flow out to others.
The Pulpit Commentary has this to say on John 7:38:
From his newly given, divinely imparted life shall proceed, as from the innermost depths of his consciousness, illimitable supplies of refreshment and fertility for others as well. Each soul will be a rock smitten in the thirsty land, from which crystal rivers of life-giving grace shall flow.
It is a primary matter for the Christian, to get themselves tapped into the life-giving well of Christ, to do the natural duty of overflowing that Life to others.
The first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day is to have my soul happy in the Lord.
~ George Müller