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The Living Water and the Samaritan Woman 0:10 Good morning. Welcome to stand on the word. Today, we turn to John chapter 4. Are you looking for the fountain of life? Well, it's right here. Verse 14. Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him0:22 will never thirst, but the water I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. Now we have 2 encounters here in John chapter 4 that are unique0:34 to John. Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well, which, by the way, I I think is hugely instructive for us today, and I encourage you to read this chapter very carefully. Then we0:45 have the healing of the noble son, which, John identifies as the second sign that Jesus did. Verse 1. Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made0:57 and baptized more disciples than John, though Jesus himself did not baptize, but his disciples, he left Judea and departed again to Galilee. So here's what was happening. Jesus was now on1:09 the radar screen of the establishment. The words of John the Baptist were being fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. Jesus knew that there was more work to be done before1:21 his final showdown with the Pharisees, with the religious crowd. And I think he also knew that his disciples were nowhere close to being ready for the confrontation and the hardships that were1:33 going to accompany being a disciple of Christ. So he left Judea, and he headed north to Galilee. Now just let me put this in context from what Jesus told his disciples in1:44 Matthew chapter 10. He said this, when they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For surely, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the son of man comes.1:56 Here's what I I I believe our mission as followers of Christ is not to be martyrs or militants. Alright? Though we may be perceived as either 1, our calling is to be missionaries of the2:08 truth, the truth that sets people free. So I I don't think we should have the mentality of a martyr. I don't think we should have the mentality of militant. We should have the mentality of a missionary taking truth2:21 that will set people free. Now we we're not to seek conflict. Alright? And I and I believe actually we're to avoid it if possible. That said, I don't believe we should ever capitulate2:32 and surrender the truth to a lie. And sometimes we just have to stand and and fight. We see this with Jesus. We had he had to stand for truth. But here's here's the key. Jesus said this. We2:44 need to be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves. How do we do this in in a in a world that's filled with with conflict because there's such a departure from truth2:56 today. Number 1, we need to know what truth is. We need to be in the word of God, but then we need the discernment of the Holy Spirit to know when when do we just move on, and when do we have to3:08 have that confrontation? So, anyway, he leaves. He goes back to Galilee. Verse 4. But he needed to go through Samaria. Now a little refresher, I think, would be in line, when we talk3:20 about Samaritans and why there was, so much animosity between the Jews and the Samaritans. Okay? We have to go back to the old testament when the3:32 Assyrians took Israel captive, the northern tribes. When they took them captive, they had a a resettlement plan, alright, that involved moving 1 captured people into the land of another subjugated3:44 people. And the people would then take up the local gods. And, interestingly, deities were seen as tied to regions, which is the case for demonic powers, which3:56 underscores the demonic nature of idol worship. Well, the Israelites left behind from the captivity. Alright? Those that were carried, there were some left behind, the poor, and others,4:08 they intermarried with the people that the Assyrians brought in. Now there was, you might recall they had these issues, wild animals, and they said, you know, we need help. We don't know the local deities. Well,4:20 the Assyrians, again, thinking that, you know, territorial gods, they sent a Jewish priest back, to show the new occupants how to worship the God of Israel. And4:31 so they did, but they incorporated it into their own religious practices, and they created this syncretic faith, which we read about, we read about in second Kings chapter 17.4:43 All that to say that the that the Jews avoided going through Samaria. They despise these people. So why did Jesus say he needed to go through Samaria? Now4:55 differing opinions, some scholars say that was to avoid the long arm of Herod. He did not have jurisdiction in the area of Samaria. Another view, which5:07 I subscribe to, is that he went solely to have an encounter with this Samaritan woman. Now it was the most direct course to get to where he was going, but I think it was more than that. I think it was5:19 that he went to intentionally have an an encounter with the Samaritan woman and through her, the entire community. Verse 4. So he came to the city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near5:31 the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son, Joseph. Now I've actually looked down upon this location from Mount Ebal, the Mount of Blessing, that overlooks the ancient city of5:42 Shechem where Jacob's well is located. And by the way, this is what the international community calls the West Bank, and it's under the control of the Palestinian authorities. Jews5:54 and others cannot go in there. I've never been to the well. I can only look down on it. I can't go into it because it's under the jurisdiction Palestinian authority. Alright. Moving on to verse 7. A woman of Samaria came6:05 to draw water. Jesus said to her, give me a drink. Now let me give some context here to why I think this passage is so important. A number of years ago when I was kind of this has been a long6:17 quite a long time ago, maybe 15 years ago. And I was this was really in the height of the debate of, the marriage, of same sex marriage. It was before the court had ruled. This was,6:30 probably 15 years ago. And, the the but what was happening is that the culture was becoming increasingly hostile to biblical truth. And I and I was asking the lord, how can6:42 I reach people with the gospel if I'm angering them and and turning them off by taking a public position on marriage, the sanctity of of sanctity of life and, of human6:54 sexuality? Well, I was in prayer 1 morning after returning from New York where I'd had a lunch meeting with, the staff of a program on CNN. That that was back when I used to be on7:06 CNN when they even had when they used to have debates. Well, they don't do that anymore. We've become so polarized. But, anyway, the Holy Spirit led me to this chapter, and and I read it every morning. For 67:18 months, I read this chapter. And and I wanna share with you the 7 aspects that the Holy Spirit showed me from this passage of how we are to engage. Jesus shows us yet. This is why this is such an important7:29 passage, and it's so relevant to us today. Number 1 is communication. Jesus went through Samaria, a place where the Jews avoided because of this unholy people. Now Jesus7:41 didn't take up residence in Samaria, but he went there to interact with the people of Samaria. To communicate to the lost, you have to go where they are. And then there was a connection. Verse 7, a Samaria7:53 woman came to him a Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus said to her, give me a drink. Now for his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. The woman of Samaria said to him, how is it that you being8:05 a Jew ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman, for Jews have no dealings with Samaritans? Now Jesus did not hide his his humanity and his needs. He connected with the8:16 Samaritan woman by making himself vulnerable through asking for her help. He interacted with her. Oftentimes, we connect with people when we rely on them. We ask them8:28 to help. People want to help. People, you know, they're it often breaks down barriers. Next, we see compassion. Verse 10. Jesus answered and said, if you knew the gift of God and who8:40 it is who says you give me a drink, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water. Now this passage does not, provide the full color of this encounter8:52 as there was great in enmity between the Jews and the Samaritans. A Jew would never ask a Samaritan for help or for a drink of water. So there's9:04 some sarcasm, if not hostility, in the woman's response to Jesus. Okay? Why would you ask for me ask me for a drink? Jesus, however, did not go down that path and take9:16 insult from her jab. Alright? He knew and understood the rejection issues with which she and the Samaritans lived. Alright? He understood that. He he he went beyond9:28 his feeling. It wasn't about him. It's about reaching her. He then turned his request to meet his physical need around to begin discussing her spiritual need. He took a9:39 natural object and turned it into a spiritual 1. But then there was a confrontation. Alright? Verse 17. Well, if you say, well, you know, you should never bring up controversial things. Verse 17. Then the woman9:51 answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said to her, you have well said, I have no husband, for you have had 5 husbands, and the 1 whom you now have is not your husband. In this, you have10:03 spoke truly. Now realizing 1 has need of a savior begins with the realization that we're sinners. Alright? We're we're not Jesus didn't10:15 come to confirm our sin or to, make us feel comfortable in our sin. He came to save us10:27 from our sin. Jesus knew her vulnerability, and he asked her to bring her husband, to be a part of the conversation about living water. It's obvious it was a conversation she10:39 did not want to have because she quickly reply replied, I have no husband, period. And Jesus did not drop the conversation at that point. Now he knew all things,10:50 and so he pressed in. And he said he he, he did not rationalize our situation nor did he excuse it. He said this, you have well said, I have no husband.11:02 For you have had 5 husbands, and the 1 whom you have now is not your husband, and that you have truly spoken. Jesus confronts the woman with her sin. Okay? But look what happens. It brings conviction.11:15 Right? So we have we have confrontation, which brings conviction, not condemnation. Okay? Verse 19. The woman said to him, sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this11:27 mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where 1 ought to worship. Now from this passage of scripture, we can we, we cannot see the body language of Jesus in the woman,11:40 nor can we hear the tones of their voices, but it would seem obvious that Jesus spoke the truth in love as Ephesians 5 14 says. And as a result, his words did not bring11:51 condemnation and anger, but rather conviction and sorrow. Look at verse 39. We see this conversion. And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in him because12:03 of the words of the woman who testified. He told me all things I had ever did. And and it this conversation then led to captivation. Verse 40. So when the12:15 Samaritans had come to him, they urged him to stay with him, and he stayed there 2 days. And many more believed because of his own words. Then they said to the woman, now we believe not because of what you12:27 said, for we ourselves have heard him, and we know that this indeed is the Christ, the savior of the world. See, they wanted to hear more. What a contrast12:39 from the first encounter at the well with the woman when it was evident that she would rather not be in conversation with Jesus to the conclusion of this passage where the people were compelling12:50 him to stay with him. The woman's testimony got their attention, but it was Jesus who captured their hearts and they believed. See, there is an invitation to salvation, living water.13:03 But just as the offer is made, Jesus introduces the topic of the husbands, which confronts her with her sin. She was eager for the13:14 running water so that she would could take care of her physical needs and, would not have to carry these pots of water. By the way, that well was pretty deep. It was about, according to archaeologists, that well is about13:26 a hundred and 35 feet deep. But for her to have her real needs met, she had to be confronted with her real need, and that was the need for forgiveness, the being13:38 reconciled with God. When the woman tried to brush the subject off, Jesus pressed in. As he did, she immediately went to a discussion of religion. How many times have13:50 you seen that? And and but Jesus didn't stop there. We go to this we go to church on this mountain, she said. Jesus then takes her beyond the discussion of religion to a focus14:02 on a relationship with God. This woman was so captivated by the encounter with Jesus that she abandoned or forgot her mission, which14:14 she was on. That was the water pot. She left it at the well. We see that in verse 27. Was she convinced that he was the Christ? Verse 29. In the Greek, it's more like she's asking14:26 a question, but in such a way that it could be heard that I think he is the Christ. You come and determine for yourselves. Obviously, she was impacted14:37 by this encounter to the point that a woman who probably had a reputation. I mean, 5 husbands, she had a reputation. That she would actually go and tell men that I just talked14:49 to a man who told me everything I had ever done wrong. That had to get their attention. Her testimony had an impact on others that that this conversion in verse15:01 39 again, and many of the Samaritans of remarkable15:13 passage of scripture as we see Jesus encountering. He intentionally went to have a conversation with someone who needed to know the truth, and he did it in such a way that it didn't bring condemnation, but it15:25 brought conviction because of the compassion from which his conversation took place. Led to her conversion, and it captivated the entire community.15:37 May the Holy Spirit lead us to have similar conversations that the truth might go out captivating the hearts of people as they're compelled by the spirit to come to Jesus15:49 Christ. Father, we thank you for your word. What a remarkable story. A remarkable story. And and may we learn from this and how to have these conversations, to be16:01 intentional about having conversations and to do so, lord, from a place of compassion, lord, but not in any way compromising the truth. But, lord, may the truth bring16:13 conviction that, Lord, would bring the conversion from those who are lost in the darkness of this world into the light of Jesus Christ. Use us, father,16:25 through the power of your Holy Spirit, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Alright. Thanks for joining me this morning. And until next time, keep standing on the word.16:37 Today's study comes from the stand on the word bible reading plan available for free at frc dot org slash bible. By following along in just a few minutes a day,16:49 you can read through the entire Bible in just 2 years. Learn more and request the free reading guide at frc dot org slash bible.In this video 0:00 The Living Water and the Samaritan Woman
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