Living Water

Jann Martin February 24, 2008

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John 4: 5-42

Gospel Lesson

⁵ Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. ⁶ Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. ⁷ Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Please give me a drink." ⁸ He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food.

⁹ The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, "You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?"

¹⁰ Jesus replied, "If you only knew the gift God has for you and who I am, you would ask me, and I would give you living water."

¹¹ "But sir, you don't have a rope or a bucket," she said, "and this is a very deep well. Where would you get this living water? ¹² And besides, are you greater than our ancestor Jacob who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his cattle enjoyed?"

¹³ Jesus replied, "People soon become thirsty again after drinking this water. ¹⁴ But the water I give them takes away thirst altogether. It becomes a perpetual spring within them, giving them eternal life."

¹⁵ "Please, sir," the woman said, "give me some of that water! Then I'll never be thirsty again, and I won't have to come here to haul water."

¹⁶ "Go and get your husband," Jesus told her.

¹⁷ "I don't have a husband," the woman replied.

Jesus said, "You're right! You don't have a husband - ¹⁸ for you have had five husbands, and you aren't even married to the man you're living with now."

¹⁹ "Sir," the woman said, "you must be a prophet. ²⁰ So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?"

²¹ Jesus replied, "Believe me, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father here or in Jerusalem. ²² You Samaritans know so little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. ²³ But the time is coming and is already here when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for anyone who will worship him that way. ²⁴ For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth."

²⁵ The woman said, "I know the Messiah will come - the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us."

²⁶ Then Jesus told her, "I am the Messiah!"

²⁷ Just then his disciples arrived. They were astonished to find him talking to a woman, but none of them asked him why he was doing it or what they had been discussing. ²⁸ The woman left her water jar beside the well and went back to the village and told everyone, ²⁹ "Come and meet a man who told me everything I ever did! Can this be the Messiah?" ³⁰ So the people came streaming from the village to see him.

³¹ Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus to eat. ³² "No," he said, "I have food you don't know about."

³³ "Who brought it to him?" the disciples asked each other.

³⁴ Then Jesus explained: "My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. ³⁵ Do you think the work of harvesting will not begin until the summer ends four months from now? Look around you! Vast fields are ripening all around us and are ready now for the harvest. ³⁶ The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! ³⁷ You know the saying, 'One person plants and someone else harvests.' And it's true. ³⁸ I sent you to harvest where you didn't plant; others had already done the work, and you will gather the harvest."

Many Samaritans Believe

³⁹ Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, "He told me everything I ever did!" ⁴⁰ When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay at their village. So he stayed for two days, ⁴¹ long enough for many of them to hear his message and believe. ⁴² Then they said to the woman, "Now we believe because we have heard him ourselves, not just because of what you told us. He is indeed the Savior of the world."(1)

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, O Christ.

Are you searching for God? Actually Jesus is on a search for you. He is looking for you at many surprising times in your life and not always in the way you would think you would find Him. He shows up in ordinary places and even in some strange places. He comes to each of us to save us.

Last Sunday's sermon was the story about Jesus' encounter with Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a leader of the Jews and a teacher in Israel. Nicodemus would be considered an "insider" in religion. He would have been very knowledgeable in the faith and should have understood Jesus and His message, yet he came away questioning their conversation.

Today in our Gospel we meet a Samaritan woman. Their stories are completely different. Nicodemus came to Jesus in the quiet of the night, while Jesus came to the Samaritan woman at noon. While Nicodemus was considered an "insider" in the faith, the Samaritan woman would have been considered an "outsider" to the faith. Jews and Samaritans did not even associate with one another. Another point that would also make her even more of an outsider was the fact that she was a woman.

Nicodemus came to Jesus; he was curious and wanted to try to understand better what Jesus ministry was all about. In a sharp contrast to this story Jesus came to the Samaritan woman and began the conversation with her. They carried on a lively give and take conversation. Nicodemus left confused while the woman ran to tell her friends about meeting Jesus.

Jesus told her that He could give her "living water". She mistakenly thinks He is talking about getting water from the well. He goes on to tell her in verses 13 and 14: "People soon become thirsty again after drinking this water. But the water I give them takes away thirst altogether. It becomes a perpetual spring within them, giving them eternal life."

The water we receive from Jesus doesn't quench our physical thirst. It satisfies our spiritual thirst. We need to read the Bible, do Bible studies, worship and fellowship with other Christians in order to keep our thirst satisfied.

The conversation with the Samaritan woman and Jesus continues with Jesus talking about her marital status and her proclaiming Him to be a prophet. At the end of their conversation in versus 28 and 29 we read, "The woman left her water jar beside the well and went back to the village and told everyone, 'Come and meet a man who told me everything I ever did! Can this be the Messiah?'"

Jesus seems to have had a bigger impact on His conversation with the woman than with Nicodemus. People, who are on the so called outside seem to be more open to and listen more intently to Him. Sometimes those on the inside think they already know the information and don't listen as well. They try to figure things out with their own knowledge and information instead of putting that aside and really hearing the words of Jesus. As an outsider people come to Jesus with no preconceived knowledge and are more open to what He has to say and offer to them.

Jesus tended to hang out with the outsiders and usually was in trouble for doing so. But His reply to those who were questioning Him as to who He hung out with, was "The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost"

Did you grow up in the church, or are you new to the faith? I can't remember a time when I wasn't regularly attending a church. It wasn't an option for me growing up. Sunday morning was a time to go to church and Sunday school. At an early age I began to volunteer to help the teachers at Vacation Bible School. Sunday just didn't seem right if I didn't go to church. I thank my parents for encouraging me to attend regularly and with their involvement in the church, they were examples of how I should continue to grow in my faith and service to those around me.

Our churches can be judged by how they receive those who come to worship. Some churches are made up of "insiders" and are not open and welcoming to "outsiders;" others are willing to reach out and welcome "outsiders." Jesus welcomes us all and wants to talk to each of us. He knows where each of us is in our walk with Him. He challenges us to try new experiences and to look at things from a different perspective. We are all, both "insiders" and "outsiders" on a journey with Him. He welcomes each of us, wants to talk with us, encourages each of us to grow, and welcomes us into His loving embrace.

I believe our congregation is a welcoming congregation. I have seen many of you seek out our visitors and make them welcome. There are signs to welcome our visitors in a couple of places. I hope all of our visitors feel welcome and interested in finding out more about Faith Community.

Jesus came to break down the barriers between the "insiders" and the "outsiders". We are no longer different nationalities and genders in His eyes. He came to bring salvation to all. He came to bring each and everyone of us His "Living Water".

Amen.

©Jann Martin 2008