The summer temperature in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, can approach 50 degrees Centigrade, though fortunately the heat is dry and therefore more tolerable than heat combined with high humidity. Nonetheless, whenever I needed to go outside during the day, I carried a small spray bottle with water. Squirting just a few drops in the form of water mist on my face and neck was very refreshing and made the extreme heat bearable. A cool drink of water on a hot day can similarly revive a wilted spirit as can a dip in a pool, river or the sea.
This precious resource is all around us. Water is such a part of our lives that we may take it for granted – till we experience a lack of it, or till it gets out of control. It covers two thirds of the earth as oceans. It flows through streams and rivers, and gathers in ponds, lakes and seas. It is in the atmosphere, falls from the sky as rain, snow or hail, and condenses on the ground as dew. We drink it, wash in it, and swim in it. Without it we will die within a few days. Droughts bring crop failures and famines. Floods cause destruction, disease and death.
After hydrogen, water is the most common molecule in the universe. Outside the Earth, it exists as widely dispersed gaseous molecules and as formless, microscopic grains of ice. It also comprises a significant part of asteroids, comets, and planets. However, to exist as a life giving liquid, it needs the precise conditions which as far as it is known exist only on our planet. This seemingly ordinary colourless, odourless and tasteless fluid is the simplest compound of the two most reactive elements in the universe, consisting of just two hydrogen atoms attached to a single oxygen atom. Despite its small size and simplicity, water is an extraordinary substance.
Liquid water is an absolute requirement and indispensable nutrient for life. We cannot live without it for more than about 100 hours, whereas other nutrients may be neglected for weeks or months. No other nutrient is needed in as great amounts and no substance constitutes a greater part of our bodies. The body water content varies among individuals, dropping with age, but averages about 90% of total weight for a foetus, 74% for an infant, 60% for a child, 57% for a teenager, 55% for an adult, and 52% for a senior citizen. Male bodies contain a little more water than those of females due to a difference in the amount of fat. A balance needs to be maintained between water intake and loss.
Without water life cannot start or continue. Water plays vital roles within the body. It acts as a medium for and a contributor to, molecular interactions, and as a reactant in many metabolic processes. No enzymes can work in the absence of water molecules. The polarity and small size of the molecules make water an excellent solvent. As such, it carries and distributes nutrients, hormones, and other materials around the body and within cells. It assists in waste removal, mainly via the urine and faeces. It is a lubricant between bodily structures, such as joints. It also acts as a shock absorber, for example for the brain or for the unborn child.
It is water’s unique properties and its ability to change to suit the circumstances that so perfectly meet the requirements for life. Intriguingly, liquid water acts in subtly different ways as conditions change, responding to variations in the physical and molecular environments, and occasionally acting as though it was present in more than one liquid phase. In other words, sometimes liquid water is free flowing while at other times, in other places, or under subtly different circumstances, it acts more like a weak gel. No other liquid can replace water as no other molecule comes close to having its remarkable properties.
The large heat capacity and high thermal conductivity of water, together with the high water content in organisms, contribute to thermal regulation and small temperature fluctuations. As a result, living organisms can successfully maintain their body temperature. The high latent heat of evaporation gives resistance to dehydration and provides cooling.
At four degrees Centigrade, water expands on both heating and cooling. This means that ice has lower density than water, and freezing cannot occur before the temperature of the whole water body is close to four degrees Centigrade. As a result rivers, lakes and seas freeze from the top down. This permits survival of life at the bottom, insulates the water from further freezing, and allows rapid thawing.
The large heat capacity of the oceans and seas allows them to act as heat reservoirs. Hence sea temperatures vary only a third as much as land temperatures and moderate the global climate. For example, the Gulf Stream carries tropical warmth to north-western Europe.
The compressibility of water reduces the sea level by about 40 metres, allowing for five percent more land. Water’s high surface tension, together with its expansion on freezing, encourages rock erosion which provides soil for agriculture.
The unique properties of water required for life giving processes result from the specific strength of the hydrogen bonds in the molecules and molecule clusters. If the hydrogen bonds were stronger, water would behave like glass. Weaker bonds would cause water to exist as a gas and only become a liquid at sub-zero temperatures. Even very slight strengthening or weakening of the hydrogen bonds would significantly change the metabolism of living organisms. For example, DNA would not form helices that are able to zip and unzip, and enzymes would not possess a three dimensional structure or retain the controlled flexibility required for their biological action.
Holy Spirit – the Living Water
The New Testament uses water as a symbol of the Holy Spirit, metaphorically referred to as living water.{75} Indeed, water has many properties that can somewhat help us understand the qualities of the all-pervasive divine power and energy.
No other substance is commonly found in all three states – as solid, liquid and gas. This three-in-one existence can give us a glimpse into the nature of the Trinity comprising God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. We can to a small degree imagine how there is one God, but three entities in the Godhead.{76}
Physicists believe that water molecules can be found throughout the universe. However, as far as we know, only the Earth has enough life supporting liquid water. In a similar manner, the biblical psalmist affirms that the Holy Spirit is omnipresent – there is nowhere in the cosmos that one can escape from the Divine.{77} However, as water appears to play a unique life giving role on our planet, the Scriptures suggest that it is on Earth, in human beings, that the Spirit is working in a special way in the drama of salvation.{78}
Water is an indispensable agent in starting and maintaining the processes of life, fulfilling hundreds of functions. Without water, seeds will not germinate and seedlings will not grow. Life soon comes to an end. In a similar way, all that exists would cease to do so if not sustained by spirit energy. According to the Genesis account (which although not intended to offer a scientific explanation of origins contains inspired truth), the Holy Spirit was present at creation and instrumental in the origin of life. The Bible indicates that the Spirit also maintains the innumerable life processes and physical laws, so that they continue functioning.{79}
Besides sustaining the brief physical life, the Holy Spirit also imparts eternal life or ultimate immortality to humans. Without it, death and decomposition occur in just a few short decades, without hope for any hereafter. The inspired Word documents several instances of where the physical life of people was prolonged through a resurrection from the dead. However, only Jesus Christ permanently conquered death by passing from physical death onto eternal life. At his return to the earth, those who have the Holy Spirit working in them are promised the same type of resurrection to eternal life.{80}
Water enlivens what appears dead. Seemingly lifeless desert landscapes miraculously spring to life with just a little rain. Likewise, the Holy Spirit enlivens those who are spiritually dead, enabling them to respond to the divine calling and other spiritual realities. When our ancestors disobeyed God’s instructions, the offer of eternal life was withdrawn and they died spiritually. Their nature changed, and they and their descendants were from then on to experience only a temporary physical life and physical realities. God, however, continues to reach out to humanity with special grace. Those who are able to respond become “born from above” through the “spirit of life”. When that happens, a new spiritual life springs forth, working a transformation of mind and heart.{81}
Nothing can substitute for water in the life sustaining processes – it is a unique and irreplaceable substance. Similarly, the Holy Spirit is the only way to eternal life and salvation – this special gift provides a guarantee of a future resurrection.{82}
As water performs multiple functions in the physical body, enabling it to grow and develop, so the Holy Spirit plays many roles in the spiritual body of Christ, the church, and is instrumental in its growth. One of its functions appears to be that of an executor. Through a virgin conception, the Spirit merged divinity (the Son of God) with humanity (the Son of Man). At Pentecost, the Spirit empowered the disciples to do even greater works than the Godman Jesus did while on earth. The Spirit draws individuals to God the Father, convicts them of sin and the need for a Saviour, and upon their response, brings them to conversion. He guides the operation of the church, equipping members with special gifts for the edification of all. The Spirit is a unifying power, leading people to the one body, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father. He also places individuals in the body as it pleases him.{83}
Water transports nutrients, removes waste, and improves appearance. It lubricates joints for smooth, painless functioning, and serves as a reactant and catalyst. It also structures molecules to enable them to carry out their roles. The Spirit brings people into contact with the gospel and opens their hearts and minds, enabling them to understand the truth of salvation and respond to God. He cleanses the mind and heart from impure thoughts and motives and renews lives. The results are seen in expressions of love, patience, kindness, joy and peace. Furthermore, the Spirit lubricates relationships, smoothing over differences and producing unity and harmony. In addition, he is a sovereign and active participant in world events. Like a reactant and catalyst, having determined the timing and outcomes beforehand, he brings about events, or speeds them along as necessary, to fulfil God’s purposes.{84}
Few places exist where water cannot penetrate. As it runs over rocks and seeps into their crevices, it erodes them, smoothes them, and breaks them up, creating soil in the process. The Holy Spirit penetrates the crevices of the heart, breaks up the stony heart, and erodes the rough edges of the marred image of God. Depending on a person’s responsiveness, the Spirit can create a fertile soil for the seed of God’s Word and help bring about a spiritual harvest of the fruits of righteousness. As liquid water can modify its state depending on the environment and circumstances, so the Spirit works differently at various times, in diverse cultures, and in the lives of individuals.{85}
Water quenches thirst, cools, refreshes and revives, especially in the heat of the day. Comprising a large part of our bodies, it permeates cells and molecules, guiding their functions. The Spirit, as a personal helper, quenches spiritual thirst for the things of God, and assists believers in life’s trials as a comforter, assuring them of God’s love and adoption. He fills the hearts of believers, and as a guide, imparts thoughts according to God’s will and plan for our lives to shape our decisions and behaviour.{86}
Water stabilizes body temperature and moderates global climate. The Holy Spirit is a spirit of moderation and self-control in individual lives. Through those who exemplify the fruit of the Spirit and are lights of the world, the Spirit counteracts the spiritual darkness and evil that would otherwise be even more rampant.{87}
Water reflects what is above it, even at a distance. The Holy Spirit can be seen as reflecting the spiritual realities of heaven. He interprets for us the things of God so that we can better understand them and so leads us into a deeper appreciation of Jesus Christ and the plan of salvation. The Spirit opens to us biblical revelation as well as prompting inspiration and insights from nature and day-to-day experiences. He has also inspired writers and editors down through the centuries to record what we need to know for a life leading to eternity in glory.{88}
So the next time we walk through a meadow wet with dew, get caught in a rain shower, stroll along the seashore, swim in a lake, or drink a cool glass of water, let’s reflect on the amazing properties of both the physical and spiritual “water of life”. Both are a marvellous gift and blessing from God.{89}
