This group is the latest of several groups of men who have performed as the Palmetto State Quartet, and since at least one hails from my area, I've known them and their music for quite some time. I hope you will enjoy this video, presented with warmth and humor -- the title of the song is appropriate, considering our study yesterday . . . "Watch what my God can do!"
Watch what my God can do,
Watch what my God can do for you.
You may face some situation
Some trials or tribulation
But watch what my God can do.
Moses stood along the Red Sea shore
The people cried, "We can't go on, no more!"
He took his faith and trust in God
Moses lifted up his rod, and said
"Watch what my God can do."
David ran up to the babbling brook
In his heart he knew just what it took
With a stone and just a sling
That ole giant heard David sing
"Watch what my God can do!"
So when your back is up against the wall
And troubles come and feel like ten feet tall,
Well there's no need to whine and pout
God will surely help you out
Watch what my God can do.
Friday, January 31, 2014
Thursday, January 30, 2014
John 4:27-42, Conclusion
27 Just
then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a
woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking
with her?”
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 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.”
This is our final look at this passage, and I feel we can learn two more things from this Samaritan woman . . . let's dig in!
We've been talking about how to tell our story, and we see here that it's important to talk like ourselves. What do we mean?
Well, after a talk with a Samaritan (shocking in itself) who happened to be female (even more scandalous for Jesus to speak to her) we see that the disciples return from their food run. They have backpacks and coolers full of food, and the woman leaves to go back to her town and its people. The disciples just have time to be told of the fields that are white and ready for the harvest, and then she's back! And she brings a boatload of people with her!
Please excuse my tongue-in-cheek text, but I'm trying to establish something here: there is a huge contrast. The disciples could be seen as the "pros" in this situation. They came back with food, and really missed the point of what Jesus was saying. He had to lecture them a little.
Now, the woman was an "amateur" but she had really different results from her encounter -- she came right back to Jesus with an army of seekers!
I wonder why her results were so different? Could it be that she talked plainly, and not like a religious professional? That her speech and what she had to say were both so plain and so engaging that others wanted to see what she was talking about?
Yep, I think so!
You see, we don't have to use five and ten-dollar words, and we don't need to sound like we have studied this stuff for years and years . . . telling our own stories in our own words is enough!
The last thing we can notice from when the Samaritan woman told her story was that the unexpected happened . . . and we, too, can hope for the unexpected. Look at the passage again -- Jesus didn't perform a miracle for these people. There was no amazing event, just a woman who told it "like it is." And on top of that, these people were Samaritans, and this preacher she met was a Jew. Remember when we talked about how these two groups disliked each other? But here they are, placing their faith in Jesus! This is unexpected. But God can work in totally, completely unexpected ways.
Here's the truth of this passage in a very tiny nutshell: if God could use the story of the woman at the well to draw her entire town to the well to meet Christ, then God can use your story to bring folks to know Him. If God could use that band of twelve "diamonds in the rough" to transform the world, then He can use us, too!
When we are considering God and His power, all bets are off! Just tell your story and hang on -- God may be up to something!
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 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.”
This is our final look at this passage, and I feel we can learn two more things from this Samaritan woman . . . let's dig in!
We've been talking about how to tell our story, and we see here that it's important to talk like ourselves. What do we mean?
Well, after a talk with a Samaritan (shocking in itself) who happened to be female (even more scandalous for Jesus to speak to her) we see that the disciples return from their food run. They have backpacks and coolers full of food, and the woman leaves to go back to her town and its people. The disciples just have time to be told of the fields that are white and ready for the harvest, and then she's back! And she brings a boatload of people with her!
Please excuse my tongue-in-cheek text, but I'm trying to establish something here: there is a huge contrast. The disciples could be seen as the "pros" in this situation. They came back with food, and really missed the point of what Jesus was saying. He had to lecture them a little.
Now, the woman was an "amateur" but she had really different results from her encounter -- she came right back to Jesus with an army of seekers!
I wonder why her results were so different? Could it be that she talked plainly, and not like a religious professional? That her speech and what she had to say were both so plain and so engaging that others wanted to see what she was talking about?
Yep, I think so!
You see, we don't have to use five and ten-dollar words, and we don't need to sound like we have studied this stuff for years and years . . . telling our own stories in our own words is enough!
The last thing we can notice from when the Samaritan woman told her story was that the unexpected happened . . . and we, too, can hope for the unexpected. Look at the passage again -- Jesus didn't perform a miracle for these people. There was no amazing event, just a woman who told it "like it is." And on top of that, these people were Samaritans, and this preacher she met was a Jew. Remember when we talked about how these two groups disliked each other? But here they are, placing their faith in Jesus! This is unexpected. But God can work in totally, completely unexpected ways.
Here's the truth of this passage in a very tiny nutshell: if God could use the story of the woman at the well to draw her entire town to the well to meet Christ, then God can use your story to bring folks to know Him. If God could use that band of twelve "diamonds in the rough" to transform the world, then He can use us, too!
When we are considering God and His power, all bets are off! Just tell your story and hang on -- God may be up to something!
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
John 4:27-42, Part II
27 Just
then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a
woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking
with her?”
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 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.”
On Monday we shared that we need to be able to tell our story to others. How we came to know Christ, and how He has impacted our lives.
We also need to know that we can rely on God to prepare the hearts of those we will tell. We touched on this long ago in the midst of our study on Proverbs. Let's dig in!
In verses 35-38, it's as if Jesus is telling His disciples that they don't have to convert people -- the job of working on and with hearts is taken care of by God. We don't have to be slick. We don't have to be flashy or have a gimmick.
And we are not even required to have an answer for every question. You see, we don't need to convince anybody -- God does that! We don't have to resort to tricks or hope that we'll be able to pull an answer out of our hat for every question that we may hear from the ones we are telling our story.
The only thing that we need to do, is to grow in our relationship with God. Then we will be better able to tell others about Him, and our lives will be appealing to them -- they will want to know what is different. God will work in the hearts of those we meet, and we will help. Just as Paul said in Corinthians:
Have you said this before?
"I don't know the Bible well enough to share my faith with someone."
Or have you said this?
"I know they will ask good, thoughtful questions, and I don't know how to answer them. The pastor knows. He should talk to them."
You know what? That's perfectly OK. The "I don't know" part, that is. When someone confronts you with a tough question, you can honestly say, "I don't know." You can tell the person that the two of you can study on it together, or you can go together to an older, wiser Christian. Just don't let it stop you from telling your story!
The Samaritan woman didn't. She went back to the town and asked the others, "Could this be the Messiah?" You see, the Samaritans only acknowledged the first five books of the Old Testament, so their perception of the coming Messiah came only from Deuteronomy 18. They were simply expecting a prophet similar to Moses; they thought he would be a powerful intercessor between God and His people. So, she didn't understand everything about Jesus yet. But she knew that He had confronted her with her sin, and then offered to take it away -- she understood enough to be able to tell her story.
There is an important caveat here . . . that is we need to keep growing in our understanding. See verses 39-42? The people believed what the woman said, and then after staying with Jesus for two days (doesn't that simple phrase make you jealous? it does me!) they came to understand that the Messiah was not just a prophet, but the Savior of the world. So we need to keep studying, keep praying, keep growing in our relationship and our knowledge of Jesus.
When we've met Christ and He has transformed our lives, we can tell our story!
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 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.”
On Monday we shared that we need to be able to tell our story to others. How we came to know Christ, and how He has impacted our lives.
We also need to know that we can rely on God to prepare the hearts of those we will tell. We touched on this long ago in the midst of our study on Proverbs. Let's dig in!
In verses 35-38, it's as if Jesus is telling His disciples that they don't have to convert people -- the job of working on and with hearts is taken care of by God. We don't have to be slick. We don't have to be flashy or have a gimmick.
And we are not even required to have an answer for every question. You see, we don't need to convince anybody -- God does that! We don't have to resort to tricks or hope that we'll be able to pull an answer out of our hat for every question that we may hear from the ones we are telling our story.
The only thing that we need to do, is to grow in our relationship with God. Then we will be better able to tell others about Him, and our lives will be appealing to them -- they will want to know what is different. God will work in the hearts of those we meet, and we will help. Just as Paul said in Corinthians:
"Who then is Paul and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase." I Cor. 3:5-6How joyful it will be in heaven, to realize that we had a part in someone receiving eternal life in Christ!
Have you said this before?
"I don't know the Bible well enough to share my faith with someone."
Or have you said this?
"I know they will ask good, thoughtful questions, and I don't know how to answer them. The pastor knows. He should talk to them."
You know what? That's perfectly OK. The "I don't know" part, that is. When someone confronts you with a tough question, you can honestly say, "I don't know." You can tell the person that the two of you can study on it together, or you can go together to an older, wiser Christian. Just don't let it stop you from telling your story!
The Samaritan woman didn't. She went back to the town and asked the others, "Could this be the Messiah?" You see, the Samaritans only acknowledged the first five books of the Old Testament, so their perception of the coming Messiah came only from Deuteronomy 18. They were simply expecting a prophet similar to Moses; they thought he would be a powerful intercessor between God and His people. So, she didn't understand everything about Jesus yet. But she knew that He had confronted her with her sin, and then offered to take it away -- she understood enough to be able to tell her story.
There is an important caveat here . . . that is we need to keep growing in our understanding. See verses 39-42? The people believed what the woman said, and then after staying with Jesus for two days (doesn't that simple phrase make you jealous? it does me!) they came to understand that the Messiah was not just a prophet, but the Savior of the world. So we need to keep studying, keep praying, keep growing in our relationship and our knowledge of Jesus.
When we've met Christ and He has transformed our lives, we can tell our story!
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Prayer requests
Every two weeks it's our privilege to join together and pray for requests that we've been told about, here on the study blog.
We have a page for requests and also we encourage everyone to leave a comment to alert us to a need for prayer. You can share details if you like, but if it is something more personal, or a deep longing that is difficult to express, just tell us to remember your "unspoken" request, and we will bear it up to our Savior, who knows all about it.
He knows, He hears, and He responds. Many times we've learned of incredible answers to prayers here, and other requests are still on our hearts -- He will answer, and He will move on our behalf.
Let us know today if we may be honored to join with you in prayer.
I Chronicles 16:11
Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.
Luke 18:1
Then Jesus told His disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.
Monday, January 27, 2014
John 4:27-42 Are we afraid to be "extreme"?
27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 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.”
This week we will be studying John 4:27-42 . . . it's a famous passage that many have preached on, using it as a text for evangelism.
Evangelism.
What do you "see" when you think of that word?
Some of our Christian brothers and sisters use what we might think of as "extreme" methods of reaching others for Christ.
Are we uncomfortable when someone hands us a tract or pamphlet detailing the Gospel message? Do we wince when we see a preacher shouting God's Word on a street corner? Do we avoid the eager college students witnessing for Christ at the beach?
Do we consider these methods extreme? Are they? These are examples of people who are bold about the message of Christ as Savior. But many of us are uncomfortable with sharing the message. Perhaps we fear that we have to be as extreme as some of these more vocal examples! But our passage this week offers us encouragement -- we have encountered the risen Savior and have been transformed, and we don't have to be timid in our sharing.
Let's use the Samaritan woman as an example . . .
After she met Jesus and talked with Him, she left immediately for the city, to tell her story. And she began to tell it to everyone; she told it to the people that she saw everyday.
What did she say? Did she ask them if she could explain the four important spiritual laws? Did she point to a passage in the Torah and discuss it with them?
Nope.
She simply told them that she'd met a man who knew everything she'd done. That He still talked kindly to her, and He offered her cleansing from her sins. Then she asked if they wanted to come and see Him, too.
Wow!
Is it that simple?
Yes, it is. What is our story? We don't have to have a story like Paul . . . a blinding light on the roadway. We don't have to have a story like some celebrities, or reformed criminals do. Yes, some people do have stories of miracles and transformation, but part of the wonder of our loving Father is that He meets each of us in the midst of our own situation. Every story is different, but every story of Christ at work is significant!
And don't forget: every story is ongoing -- it doesn't end with our conversion; it begins with it!
So when our friend or co-worker sits down and says, "I'm really struggling with ....." just tell your story. Be honest with them and tell them you've struggled, too. And that your relationship with Christ has affected those struggles.
When someone tells you their feelings of loneliness and depression, tell them how Christ has been a real presence that helps you persevere through loneliness and disappointment. Look for opportunities to share your story.
Just keep one thing in mind, and ask the Spirit to help you know when to tell your story, and when to just listen.
Sometimes people aren't ready to hear your story -- sometimes they are in such pain that they need tender, compassionate care. They need you to love them and be present with them. They need you to quietly help bind up their emotional wounds. The time for sharing stories will come later.
We'll continue our study of this passage next time.
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 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.”
This week we will be studying John 4:27-42 . . . it's a famous passage that many have preached on, using it as a text for evangelism.
Evangelism.
What do you "see" when you think of that word?
Some of our Christian brothers and sisters use what we might think of as "extreme" methods of reaching others for Christ.
Are we uncomfortable when someone hands us a tract or pamphlet detailing the Gospel message? Do we wince when we see a preacher shouting God's Word on a street corner? Do we avoid the eager college students witnessing for Christ at the beach?
Do we consider these methods extreme? Are they? These are examples of people who are bold about the message of Christ as Savior. But many of us are uncomfortable with sharing the message. Perhaps we fear that we have to be as extreme as some of these more vocal examples! But our passage this week offers us encouragement -- we have encountered the risen Savior and have been transformed, and we don't have to be timid in our sharing.
Let's use the Samaritan woman as an example . . .
After she met Jesus and talked with Him, she left immediately for the city, to tell her story. And she began to tell it to everyone; she told it to the people that she saw everyday.
What did she say? Did she ask them if she could explain the four important spiritual laws? Did she point to a passage in the Torah and discuss it with them?
Nope.
She simply told them that she'd met a man who knew everything she'd done. That He still talked kindly to her, and He offered her cleansing from her sins. Then she asked if they wanted to come and see Him, too.
Wow!
Is it that simple?
Yes, it is. What is our story? We don't have to have a story like Paul . . . a blinding light on the roadway. We don't have to have a story like some celebrities, or reformed criminals do. Yes, some people do have stories of miracles and transformation, but part of the wonder of our loving Father is that He meets each of us in the midst of our own situation. Every story is different, but every story of Christ at work is significant!
And don't forget: every story is ongoing -- it doesn't end with our conversion; it begins with it!
So when our friend or co-worker sits down and says, "I'm really struggling with ....." just tell your story. Be honest with them and tell them you've struggled, too. And that your relationship with Christ has affected those struggles.
When someone tells you their feelings of loneliness and depression, tell them how Christ has been a real presence that helps you persevere through loneliness and disappointment. Look for opportunities to share your story.
Just keep one thing in mind, and ask the Spirit to help you know when to tell your story, and when to just listen.
Sometimes people aren't ready to hear your story -- sometimes they are in such pain that they need tender, compassionate care. They need you to love them and be present with them. They need you to quietly help bind up their emotional wounds. The time for sharing stories will come later.
We'll continue our study of this passage next time.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Friday slowdown
I found this on youtube and thought it was so appropriate for our studies this week. Hope you enjoy it, and find His peace and joy as you slow down to meditate on His blessings.
Thirsty for more of you
More of your Spirit and truth
Wash me from all my sin
Fill me with your Spirit again
You're the river of love
Flowing with the grace and mercy
Flooding my soul
Filling my heart with peace
O river of love
Like streams in the desert
Giver of life
Giving your life and love
To set me free
Heal me and I'll be healed
Save me and I will be saved
You've filled me with songs of praise
Forever I will sing of your grace
If anyone is thirsty let him come on in
When you drink the living water
You will never thirst again
You're the river of love
Flowing with the grace and mercy
Flooding my soul
Filling my heart with peace
O river of love
Like streams in the desert
Giver of life
Giving your life and love
To set me free
Thirsty for more of you
More of your Spirit and truth
Wash me from all my sin
Fill me with your Spirit again
You're the river of love
Flowing with the grace and mercy
Flooding my soul
Filling my heart with peace
O river of love
Like streams in the desert
Giver of life
Giving your life and love
To set me free
Heal me and I'll be healed
Save me and I will be saved
You've filled me with songs of praise
Forever I will sing of your grace
If anyone is thirsty let him come on in
When you drink the living water
You will never thirst again
You're the river of love
Flowing with the grace and mercy
Flooding my soul
Filling my heart with peace
O river of love
Like streams in the desert
Giver of life
Giving your life and love
To set me free
Thursday, January 23, 2014
John 4:1-26, Living water, instead of broken wells
We're still looking at this passage, and there is so much here for us to learn! Hang in there through this lengthy post, OK?
Let's dig in again!
The very first thing that we should recognize is that in these verses, Jesus is thirsty, too. He knows how we feel, remember?
Now, to "top it all off" He does something pretty scandalous. Did you see it? He asks a question of the Samaritan woman!
The woman is shocked -- see in verse 9? "Jews do not associate with Samaritans." Here's a little history: Samaritans were cousins of the Jews; they used to be a part of Israel, but when the two kingdoms split, they began to intermarry with other nations. A strict no-no according to scripture. So the Jewish people regarded them as "half-breeds" and really looked down their noses at them. Another problem was that their religion had become a hashed up mixture of Judaism and other things that were brought in, when they mingled with other nations. Well, any "upstanding" Jew would tell you that this woman is the wrong race, and the wrong religion -- but WAIT!!! She's also a WOMAN!! It was absolutely scandalous for Jesus to speak to her in public! She is NOT the right kind of person for the Savior to meet and talk to at the well.
Think about this: she has three strikes against her: wrong race, wrong religion, and wrong gender . . .what does Jesus do? He offers her Living Water:
What does Jesus do? He cuts through all of the mess and exposes her need:
Sigh.
You know what she does next?
Yep, you do.
Whenever you start having a gospel conversation with some people, what do they do? You start talking about Jesus, people start really thinking about what you are saying, and then . . . they switch the topic of conversation. They start talking about religion. Because everyone knows that you can have a rip-roaring good argument about religion, and that distracts from the truth that you were getting close to, in your conversation!
So, she asks Jesus:
Well, Jesus steers the conversation back where it needs to be:
You see, there is another time that Jesus is described as thirsty. It's when He was on the cross. Psalm 22 tells about Him being parched, and His tongue sticking to the roof of His mouth. Jesus, the source of living water, is parched. You remember that on the cross, Jesus takes our place. He steps into our guilty place and takes what is coming -- to us. We are the ones who ignore the Father and dig wells, but instead, He is thirsty.
You remember the story we looked at, about Moses, right? Well, look at what happened when Jesus died on the cross. One of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and a sudden flow of blood and water came forth. John is making sure that we "get it." The Rock is struck and water comes out.
The only thing He asks is that we come to Him. To drop to our knees, figuratively or literally, and confess that we've ignored Him and searched everywhere for water. To confess that we've been digging our own wells, broken wells, instead of accepting the Living Water He offers. And if we've come before, but it's been a while, He stands ready to refresh us again . . . if we will just come to Him.
Are we too busy to come to Him? We all get busy; there's so much for us to do. But do we have an unsettled spirit, a soul that won't pause long enough to look hard at what we're doing? Never able to stop and think? Are we shoring up broken wells, and not willing to admit that we need Him? Are we saying, instead, "If I just had _____, I'd be alright." What we need to say is, "I know You will satisfy my life," to Him.
Are we sad, depressed? Maybe we are so busy digging out that broken well, but it's run dry. Now we have to face the fact that this particular well just isn't going to work out. And we may not feel like standing back up and laying the shovel down. If we will give it up, though, He will refresh us with His joy and peace.
Wherever we are right now, whatever we are struggling with, Jesus says to us:
Let's dig in again!
The very first thing that we should recognize is that in these verses, Jesus is thirsty, too. He knows how we feel, remember?
4 Now Jesus had to go through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?”This is the Lord of Jeremiah, chapter 2. He's tired. He sits down to rest. And He's thirsty. He is the Creator of the universe, and He has taken on flesh. Now He gets tired and thirsty.
Now, to "top it all off" He does something pretty scandalous. Did you see it? He asks a question of the Samaritan woman!
The woman is shocked -- see in verse 9? "Jews do not associate with Samaritans." Here's a little history: Samaritans were cousins of the Jews; they used to be a part of Israel, but when the two kingdoms split, they began to intermarry with other nations. A strict no-no according to scripture. So the Jewish people regarded them as "half-breeds" and really looked down their noses at them. Another problem was that their religion had become a hashed up mixture of Judaism and other things that were brought in, when they mingled with other nations. Well, any "upstanding" Jew would tell you that this woman is the wrong race, and the wrong religion -- but WAIT!!! She's also a WOMAN!! It was absolutely scandalous for Jesus to speak to her in public! She is NOT the right kind of person for the Savior to meet and talk to at the well.
Think about this: she has three strikes against her: wrong race, wrong religion, and wrong gender . . .what does Jesus do? He offers her Living Water:
“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.”But the woman misunderstands, and she says:
“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?It’s really kind of comical – Jesus speaks of living water, she can only think of running water. But our Lord tries again. He says, v13:
“Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 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.”Here is Jesus, offering her a relationship of such deep satisfaction and complete security that is would surpass anything that she has ever known before. Hey, she has been looking for a man that she can depend on . . . and here is the Bridegroom from heaven, offering her more than she can want or need. But she still doesn't quite "get it." She asks Him to give her that water, so she won't have to keep coming back to draw water. The light is beginning to dawn on her, but she still is thinking in physical terms.
What does Jesus do? He cuts through all of the mess and exposes her need:
“Go, call your husband and come back.” “I have no husband” she replied.This is a calculated command. He tells her this, to force her to "come clean" about her broken life, and the wells that she keeps on digging. Jesus grabs onto the one honest and personal truth which the woman has offered.
“You are right in saying 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 is quite true.”Aha! We are finally getting somewhere! We have cut through all of the baggage and the social issues and brought her need into the daylight. He's telling her that He knows: You have been married five times, and the guy you are living with now, will not marry you." Have you noticed how when you say some things out loud, they sound worse? When you can keep things hidden, they are more manageable; they're easier to ignore. But now she is being forced to examine her own reality. That is why she tells the people in town that He "told me everything I ever did." And yet, the Good Shepherd is not doing it to hurt or shame her . . . He is saying, "Isn't your well broken? Aren't you digging around and finding nothing by mud? You can come to me for living water, and pure joy."
Sigh.
You know what she does next?
Yep, you do.
Whenever you start having a gospel conversation with some people, what do they do? You start talking about Jesus, people start really thinking about what you are saying, and then . . . they switch the topic of conversation. They start talking about religion. Because everyone knows that you can have a rip-roaring good argument about religion, and that distracts from the truth that you were getting close to, in your conversation!
So, she asks Jesus:
19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. [So let me get your opinion as a prophet] 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”Enough, already, she says. You're getting too close to me. You know too much, and you have made me uncomfortable. So let's talk about which mountain is the holiest.
Well, Jesus steers the conversation back where it needs to be:
21 Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 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. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”Our God is so giving . . . The Father is seeking us; the Son is offering us living water; the Spirit is quenching our thirst. Our God is a Fountain for us, the thirsty diggers of wells. The ones who keep digging in the same broken wells, expecting to find more than mud. The ones who should turn to God for the truly thirst-quenching water.
You see, there is another time that Jesus is described as thirsty. It's when He was on the cross. Psalm 22 tells about Him being parched, and His tongue sticking to the roof of His mouth. Jesus, the source of living water, is parched. You remember that on the cross, Jesus takes our place. He steps into our guilty place and takes what is coming -- to us. We are the ones who ignore the Father and dig wells, but instead, He is thirsty.
You remember the story we looked at, about Moses, right? Well, look at what happened when Jesus died on the cross. One of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and a sudden flow of blood and water came forth. John is making sure that we "get it." The Rock is struck and water comes out.
The only thing He asks is that we come to Him. To drop to our knees, figuratively or literally, and confess that we've ignored Him and searched everywhere for water. To confess that we've been digging our own wells, broken wells, instead of accepting the Living Water He offers. And if we've come before, but it's been a while, He stands ready to refresh us again . . . if we will just come to Him.
Are we too busy to come to Him? We all get busy; there's so much for us to do. But do we have an unsettled spirit, a soul that won't pause long enough to look hard at what we're doing? Never able to stop and think? Are we shoring up broken wells, and not willing to admit that we need Him? Are we saying, instead, "If I just had _____, I'd be alright." What we need to say is, "I know You will satisfy my life," to Him.
Are we sad, depressed? Maybe we are so busy digging out that broken well, but it's run dry. Now we have to face the fact that this particular well just isn't going to work out. And we may not feel like standing back up and laying the shovel down. If we will give it up, though, He will refresh us with His joy and peace.
Wherever we are right now, whatever we are struggling with, Jesus says to us:
“Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14
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