John 4:13-14 “13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 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.”
AN EXTRAORDINARY MEETING: John 4:9 - The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.
The significance of Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well was an extraordinary one for many reasons. Jesus broke down two walls of separation. First, the Jews regarded the Samaritans as religious hypocrites who were more liberal. They were portrayed as sinners who had their own brand of religion, intermarried and also mingled with other pagans in their surroundings. The Jews despise of the Samaritans was so strong that they declined their offer to assist in the rebuilding of Jerusalem
Secondly, men did not associate with women in public. They did not speak with women in the street – not even their mother, wife, sister or daughter.
When you take those two things into context, you can see that the meeting between Jesus and Samaritan woman was not an ordinary meeting and one that changed not only the woman but the disciples and everyone in Samaria
WHO WAS THE SAMARITAN WOMAN?
The Samaritan woman was an outcast. She’s not called by a name in the Bible. She was poor with a reputation. She was divorced five times and currently shacking and living in sin with a man who was not her husband.
HOW WAS HER LIFE TRANSFORMED AFTER ENCOUNTERING JESUS?
V 28 - 30: 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.
The woman went to the well for regular water and returned with “living water”. With this water, she no longer had a need for physical water. The purpose for her trip was not important anymore because she found something lasting. Because of it, while a sinner and an outcast from society, she had the boldness to 1) return to her town and tell people about her awesome encounter and 2) assisted in bringing many other believers to Christ.
WHAT LESSONS CAN WE LEARN FROM THIS ENCOUNTER?
In today’s society, we live in cliques. We treat people of other race, nationality, religious beliefs different and look at them with a prejudiced eye. We put a great deal of emphasis on the outward appearance – Skin color, hair color, hair style, style of clothes, etc… Jesus teaches us to look beyond the “Samaria
In addition, it teaches us that Jesus is not focused on our past transgressions. He’s more interested in having a personal relationship with each of us that steers our course from the past we’ve been accustomed to. He does all this without having to condemn us but gently reminds us of the truth of our situation where we ourselves realize the peril in our bad ways.
FINAL WORD – WHAT CAN WE APPLY IN OUR OWN WALK FROM THIS ENCOUNTER?
In search of love, riches, and happiness we g out to draw from the well of life something that will quench these thirsts. Yet, the harder we work, the worst things get financially. The more we seek to be loved by man, the more he proves how unfaithful man is susceptible to being. An encounter with Jesus changes our perspective on what’s important. As it says in Matthew 6:33, “seek ye first the Kingdom…and everything else will follow”, we should seek to draw from the well that gives “water” to quench our thirst once and for all.
Next Week: Zacheus – Luke 19:1-10
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