I am quite fond of water. I grew up in a coastal city in Northeastern Brazil. The beaches were extraordinary. They were filled with poetry. Once you have seen Brazilian beaches it is not hard to imagine composing The Girl from Ipanema. But water is also treacherous. I have seen the destructive power of flooding. Having lived in Florida for the last ten years I have seen tropical storms, hurricanes, and shattered homes. I remember vividly watching the corpses in New Orleans. Water is judgment! Water is blessing! The context always frames the nature of water. To some, water is refreshing, but to others in the world, water is poisonous. There is much wisdom is water, and only a biblical presupposition of water renders an appropriate association and application of water. What was catastrophic in Genesis six is glorious for us in Christ. Those very waters become our baptism; those very waters become our salvation, and those very waters become the judgment that Christ suffered in our place.
