The hot sun scorched the ground she walked. With the water jug held in the crook of her arm, the woman strides forward wishing for a cool breeze. She will endure the heat at midday, for it was far better to undergo the heat than the vicious talk of the others. Avoiding the malicious mouths during the cool of the evening, the Samaritan woman walks along to fetch her water, neither realizing nor imagining her life to change this very day.
“..and Jesus, tired as he was from
the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour. When a Samaritan woman can to draw water,
Jesus said to her, ‘Will you give me a drink?’
The Samaritan woman said to him,
‘You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?’
Jesus answered, ‘If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for
a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.’
‘Sir, you have nothing to draw with
and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater that
our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also
his sons and his flocks and herds?’
Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but
whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in
him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’
The woman said to him, ‘Sir, give
me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and gave to keep coming here to draw
water.’
He told her, ‘Go, call
your husband and come back.’
‘I have no husband,’ she replied.
Jesus said to her, ‘You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and
the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said quite true.’
‘Sir, I can see that you are a
prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the
place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.’
Jesus declared, ‘Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship
the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know,
for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the
true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the
kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God
is spirit and his worshipers must worship in spirit and truth.’
The woman said, ‘I know the Messiah
is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.’
Then Jesus declared, ‘I who speak to you am he.’” (John 4:6-26)
This is one
of my favorite bible passages of Christ and a woman. Although tired from ministering, healing and
preaching Christ sees a woman approach that is in desperate need of a Savior. He can see her heart. Jesus can see her pain of rejection, neglect
and outcast. After five husbands and now
living with a sixth man, she is unapproachable by the more “respectable” women
in her town. This Samaritan woman’s
heart seeks love, understanding, change and life. Unexpectantly, yet purposefully, our God
places his Son at this very spot to save an “in-valid”, an outcast, a broken
hearted woman healed.
When we
live in the “world” and seek after its love, its definition of security,
fulfillment or desires, we remain empty and thirsty. We thirst for someone to understand us. We thirst for someone to love us. We thirst for someone to encourage, support
and unconditionally stand beside us.
Woman, I promise you, the world will never meet those expectations; only
Jesus can fill those voids, heal those wounds and filter those desires and
motives.
When Christ
told this woman he would give us living water which would bring forth a spring
of water welling up to eternal life, there is great joy. This mystery called by the Apostle Paul is
divine power. This water is refreshing
for when Peter stood up on the day of Pentecost, filled with this divine power
he exclaimed, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that you sins may be wiped
out, that times of refreshing may come
from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for
you.” (Acts 3:19)
This Samaritan
woman sought that living water, that love.
After five husbands, the marriage vows must have seemed insignificant,
her reputation tarnished; she walked alone and carried a broken heart. As Jesus sat at this well tired and drained,
his own heart knew the purpose for which he was sent. He could see what she needed, he could see
into the heart of the matter and directly called her out. In world where people try to please, tiptoe
around an issue and misguide others to think everything is fine, our Jesus is
direct and does not care about our delicate, misguided, easily offended sensibilities. If you want healing, if you want living
water, if you want times of refreshment, get to the root and the heart of your
problem.
“Go, call
your husband and come back.” Jesus told her. Unafraid to call her out on her “extra
curricular activities”, Christ spoke to the root of her problems, her heart,
her wounds and her spirit depraved beliefs.
Only he could give her living water, healing and refreshment for her
soul.
The bible says, “Many of the
Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s
testimony. ‘He told me everything I ever
did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them and
he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers.’
They said to the woman, ‘We no
longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves,
and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.’” (John 4:39-42).
“On her testimony, many believed.”(John 4:39). “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet
of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who
proclaim salvation, who say to Zion,
‘Your God reigns!’” (Isaiah 52:7)
What is your testimony? Once coming in
contact with Jesus, once knowing her depravity and what she truly needed, once
accepting him into her heart, the Samaritan woman could not help but proclaim
the Good News. Jesus Christ is the
Savior of the World.
Are you full of living water? Have you brought
the Good News about Jesus to your family, friends or neighbors? Our Lord loves
you and always has time for you. Pray to
him, talk to him as the Samaritan woman; it is a beautiful act of worship to
sit, open your heart to the Messiah and give you the living water for
refreshment. Your time with the Lord is
never by chance, accident or random, but purposeful, encouraging and direct.
Let us pray and
CONFESS the Word of the Living God;
Abba Father,
How
beautiful are the feet that bring Good News! (Isaiah 52:7) How beautiful
is our Savior who never tires, never grows weary, and always delights in
spending time with his children. I know
he seeks the one lost sheep for he is the Good Shepherd (John 10). Father, if I have
strayed from your will, if I have not gone deep enough or have not fully drank
of the living water, fill me this day with your Holy Spirit, for I desire times
of refreshment (Acts 3:19).
I pray to have
those feet that bring the Gospel to those around me. I desire to know Truth within myself and
accept Christ in all areas of my life. I
know Jesus can heal my wounds of neglect, fear, un-love, un-acceptance,
rejection and un-forgiveness. I desire
to be a living, breathing epistle for I know many can believe in your saving
power from my testimony (John 4:39).
Heal the
inner recesses of my heart. Wash me
clean and I will be whiter than snow (Psalm
51:7). I crave meat, not milk as I
memorize and read the Word of God. Forgive
me Lord, for I have sinned. Thank you
for your direct honesty, thank you for the Cross and the precious blood of
Christ. Thank you I can talk and
communicate with you anytime I desire; for my spirit knows you will always make
time for me. In the name of Jesus of
Nazareth I pray, Amen.
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