Nehemiah

Nehemiah– Part 10 

Fountain Gate 

When the garbage goes, the water flows (Holy Spirit). The Valley Gate brings us to the Refuse Gate. God sometimes takes us into the Valley to remove something in us and bring us blessing. The Valley should humble us and help us see our true condition. At the Refuse Gate, we allow the Holy Spirit to remove those things that hinder our walk with the Lord.

Shallun will rebuild the Fountain Gate. Shallun, meaning “retribution,” was the son of Col-Hozeh.  Col-Hozeh means “all seeing one.” The son of the all-seeing one who made retribution rebuilt the Fountain Gate. He put a covering over it also and put its doors, bolts and bars in place. This is a foreshadowing of Jesus who made retribution for our garbage (sin) and covered us with His atoning blood. Jesus is also rebuilding us into new creations in Him and will put us in order so we can accomplish His kingdom purpose. The bars and bolts were on the inside and could only be opened by those inside God’s holy, earthly city.  Jesus opens doors that no one can shut and closes doors that no one can open!

The Fountain Gate represents the living water of the Holy Spirit. At the Feast of Tabernacles, there was a water pouring ceremony. The high priest would go to the pool of Siloam with a golden pitcher and fill it with the fresh water of the pool of Siloam. Then the high priest would return to the Temple and pour the water out along with the blood of the sacrificial animals over the altar. Gold symbolizes the Divine. Jesus, who is the Divine tabernacle of God and our Great High Priest, poured out the water and blood of His body on the cross to atone for the sin of the world and birth His Body on earth. He fulfilled the water pouring ceremony once-for-all.  His blood atones for our sin and protects us. The water of the Holy Spirit and Word feeds, teaches and matures us so we will be a Bride without spot or blemish.

It was at this ceremony that Jesus announced that He is not only the Tabernacle of God with mankind, but also the One who will provide the living water of His Holy Spirit. In John 7:37-39, Jesus stood at the Fountain Gate on the last day (7^thday) of the Feast of Tabernacles and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. Up to that time, the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles and the pouring out of the living water. Jesus, the Perfect Passover Lamb, had to shed His sinless blood to atone for the sin of the world and make us righteous so He could pour out His Holy Spirit upon us. Jesus had to return to His place of glory with the Father before He could do this. Jesus took the water pouring ceremony of the Feast of Tabernacles from the “natural” to the “spiritual.” The water from the pool of Siloam was earthly water although provided by God.  Jesus gives us the living, spiritual water of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus invites all to come and drink of His Living Water. Isaiah 55:1 gives an invitation to those who are thirsty to come to the waters that are without cost. The Holy Spirit cannot be purchased or bought. He must be received. And in Revelation 22:17, the Spirit and the Bride invite those who are thirsty to come to the pure river of life freely.  Jesus is the fountain of spiritual life who poured out the pure waters of His Holy Spirit and Word for all who come to Him.

Shallun also repaired the doors and crossbars that kept the right people in and the wrong people out. The bars were crossbeams that held the doors in place. It is the cross of Jesus that upholds us. Jesus is the Door and the Fountain of salvation and spiritual life.

Shallun then repaired the wall of the pool of Siloam, by the King's Garden, as far as the steps going down from the city of David (Zion).Neh. 3:15 These stairs ascended and descended from the dwelling place of the King (Zion) and connected to the other parts of Jerusalem. Jesus, a descendant of David and the spiritual King of the whole earth, is the bridge between the heavenly New Jerusalem and earth just as these stairs joined the king's dwelling place to the rest of the city of Jerusalem.

Siloam means “sent.” Jesus, the Sent One of God, is the bridge between heaven and earth. The pool of Siloam was made by the waters of the tunnel made by Hezekiah. (see 2 Kings 20:20)  This tunnel brought the fresh, spring water of Gihon into the city of Jerusalem. The waters flowed through the king's tunnel and gathered at the pool of Siloam. King Jesus pours out the Living Water of His Holy Spirit and Word into His followers and it becomes a pool of fresh water for others. Jesus wants us to become a pool immersed in His Holy Spirit and Word working together as one.

In John 9:6-7, Jesus healed a blind man and then told him to go to the pool of Siloam and wash. First Jesus spit on the ground and made some mud with His saliva (water of His mouth) mixed with the dust of the earth and put it on the blind man's eyes. The dirt in our lives spiritually blinds us. Jesus wants to remove it so we see with spiritual eyes and hear with spiritual ears. The “water” of Jesus' mouth is the Anointed Word of God in the spiritual. When we mix our flesh and its ways with the water of the Anointed Word, we gain spiritual sight and spiritual life. We are no longer blinded to the Truth. Then Jesus told the blind man to “Go wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing. V7 The Sent One of God sent this man to the pool of Siloam to wash in fresh water. When the man obeyed the Word of Jesus, and cleansed himself in this pool, he came home seeing – both in the natural and spiritually. This healed blind man's friends didn't recognize him because he had changed so much and could now see. He told his friends that Jesus had restored his sight. In the Law, blindness or any blemish disqualified a person from serving in the Temple. But Jesus takes the lame, the sick, the blind and the deaf, cleanses them and uses them in His Kingdom. Jesus includes what the Law excludes. The Pharisees—teachers of the law—would not have bothered with this blind man, but Jesus did. To the Pharisees this blind man would be useless.

The clay that Jesus made with the water of His mouth and dirt also sealed the man as belonging to Jesus. In biblical times, they would seal documents with seven seals made of clay. If the clay was cracked or broken it would mean that someone had tampered with it. Jesus put His seal on this man as belonging to Him and no one was to tamper with him. This blind man that was given sight at first didn't know who the “Man” (Jesus) was, but after cleansing himself in the pool of Siloam, he knew Jesus by Name. He pointed others to Jesus. The Holy Spirit and Word change us. We go from the fleshly to the spiritual.

The words that Jesus spoke and His actions were often double-edged. Jesus may have used this blind man to show the Pharisees (legalists) that they were spiritually blind leaders of the blind. Jesus used the “natural” to speak and illustrate spiritual truths. This healed man was brought to the Pharisees who quickly accused Jesus of not being from God because He healed this man on the Sabbath. But others said how can He not be from God since He does such miraculous things. Some believed and some didn't. This also happens in today's world—some will believe and some will not.  It is God’s will that all will come to His saving grace through His chosen and precious Son Jesus.  But as in the days when Jesus walked the earth in His flesh body, some will believe and some will not.

Jesus is a fountain of life to those who believe in Him. (see Psalm 36:9) He and His Holy Spirit give us spiritual sight. Jesus gives us fresh water and fresh bread daily to feed our spiritual hunger and thirst. Cleansing, healing, wisdom, righteousness and spiritual life come through this Fountain Gate. Isaiah 44:3: For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, and My blessing on your descendants. And Zechariah 13:1 says, “on that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity.” Jesus, the Sent One and the Anointed (Holy Spirit) Word, does this for all. These two work together as One. The Holy Spirit works according to the Word of God and the Word of God shows how the Holy Spirit works. Jesus said in John 7:38, “He who believes in Me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” Believers cannot understand or do the Word of God without the power of the Holy Spirit. We cannot live in the Spirit without the teaching of the Word of God. In Christ, we drink the fresh water of the King's pool in the King's Garden to open our spiritual eyes and give us eternal life.

There is no measure mentioned of the wall between the Refuse Gate and the Fountain Gate. This clearing out of the garbage in our lives is an ongoing process. The Fountain of the Holy Spirit and the Truth/Jesus will continually clear out the garbage in us and empower us to walk as Christ walked. “He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who lives in you.” Romans 8:11   In so doing, the mortal will take on immortality. 

At the Fountain Gate we are going higher. As Jesus was the walking Spirit and Word/Truth on earth, we who follow Him are to be the walking Word and Spirit also.

The next gate is the Water Gate.