1. The Issue: Depending on People Instead of God

• Many believers live sermon to sermon instead of presence to presence
• Preachers are vessels, not the source
• Spiritual dryness comes when we replace intimacy with dependency

Key Scriptures

• Jeremiah 17:5 – Trusting in man brings weakness
• 1 Corinthians 3:5–7 – God gives the growth
• Psalm 146:3 – Do not put trust in princes (people)

Key Statement

A preacher can pour into you, but they cannot sustain you.

2. Jesus Identifies the True Thirst

• Everyone is thirsty for meaning, peace, and life
• Temporary sources always require another visit

Key Scripture

• John 4:13–14 – Earthly water vs. living water

Truth

If it cannot satisfy forever, it was never meant to.

3. The Invitation: Come to the Source

• Jesus calls people directly to Himself
• Relationship over religion
• Access is personal, daily, and available

Key Scriptures

• John 7:37 – “Come to Me and drink”
• Psalm 36:9 – God is the fountain of life
• Isaiah 55:1 – Invitation to the thirsty

4. The Danger of Broken Cisterns

• Cisterns = man-made systems to replace God
• Examples:
  • Sermons without prayer
  • Church attendance without devotion
  • Christian activity without intimacy

Key Scripture

• Jeremiah 2:13 – Broken cisterns that hold no water

Warning

Anything you depend on more than God will eventually fail you.

5. Growth Requires Personal Hunger

• God never intended believers to remain dependent
• Maturity requires personal pursuit

Key Scriptures

• Matthew 5:6 – Hunger leads to filling
• 1 Peter 2:2 – Crave spiritual milk
• Hebrews 5:12 – Danger of staying immature

6. Questions to Challenge Believers

• Would my faith survive without sermons?
• Do I seek God daily or weekly?
• Am I growing or just being inspired?
• Is my walk private or only public?

7. Questions to Challenge Unbelievers

• What have I been depending on for fulfillment?
• Why do I keep returning to empty wells?
• Could my thirst be pointing me to God?
• What if Jesus truly satisfies?

Key Scripture

• Isaiah 55:2 – Laboring for what doesn’t satisfy

8. The Call: From Dependency to Intimacy

• God desires direct relationship
• Preachers point the way—they are not the way

Key Scriptures

• Jeremiah 29:13 – Seeking God wholeheartedly
• John 15:4 – Abide in Christ

Key Statement

You don’t need another cup—you need the fountain.

9. Closing Reflection

What wells am I drinking from?

• Where has my dependence shifted?
• Am I living on yesterday’s water?

Key Scripture

• Matthew 5:6 – Those who hunger will be filled

10. Encouragement

• The source is still available
• The invitation is still open
• The water is still flowing

Key Scriptures

• Isaiah 55:1 – Come to the waters
• John 7:38 – Rivers of living water will flow

Final Truth

When you drink from the Source, you don’t just get filled—you become a well for others.