John 4:1-42
The woman at the well.
And a stranger there … thirsty and tired.
“May I have a drink of water?”
He’s a Jew and a rabbi – she can hear it in His accent, and see it in his clothing.
She’s a Samaritan.
He’s a man; she’s a woman!
There ought not to be any conversation whatsoever –
Social walls are high –
Religious barriers firm –
Never the twain shall meet.
It’s hot; it’s high-noon, the sun is blazing - she comes to the well alone … she’s too embarrassed to come in the cool of the morning when all the other women are there … she’s tired of the not-so-silent whispers; angry glances and huffy snorts.
She’s tired of everyone’s judgment, so she goes to the well alone … in the heat of the day.
What is Jesus doing there?
The text says that Jesus left Judea because of a mounting threat … word was out; folks were responding; a popularity greater than John’s.
The powerbrokers grow uneasy.
Jesus retreats to Galilee.
“But He had to go through Samaria” says the text.
No He didn’t.
He didn’t have to go through Samaria.
There are alternative routes.
He doesn’t have to go that way, or does He?
Does He know of the woman?
Does He see her in His mind’s eye?
Like he sees Nathaniel,
Sitting under the fig tree,
Before He and Nathaniel ever met?
Does He already know her heart like He knew the heart of Nicodemus?
That’s why Jesus HAD to go through Samaria … there was a lonely woman there in need of grace.
The Great God Almighty knows us through and through, from having watched our bones take shape in the quiet darkness of our mother’s womb … He knows every word before our tongue does … our days are listed and determined even before the first of them occur.
These are strange things … and the Psalmist cries out: “God, how hard it is to grasp these thoughts. How impossible to count them” (Psalm 139:16-18, Jerusalem Bible).
We want to be the measure of our own lives … there is something in us that resists a God who knows us through and through, a God who sees us before we see ourselves, who knows the contours of our soul better than we ever will.
How hard it is to grasp these thoughts!
Jesus sees the woman at the well long before He arrives there.
In the heat of the day … alone … ashamed … confused and frightened … desperate and trapped … no way out, no hope, no peace …
That’s why He had to go … just for her!
It says He was tired.
I like that … the Son of God, tired … tired for the journey.
It’s a lot of work being God;
It’s a lot of work to love this old world, to love us back to life … to find us where we are, because it’s not likely we’ll find God where God is … it’s God who makes the long journey … it’s God who does the heavy lifting …
God’s eye is on the sparrow, and that takes a lot of work … He’s counted the hairs on our head, and that takes a lot of energy (Matthew 10:29-30).
It’s a lot of work being God!
I wouldn’t want the job!
Jesus was alone at the well … the disciples had gone off to buy food – so typical of them.
While the disciples are off and doing, Jesus waits … some things are just between you and God … no one else; just you and God at our well …
We all have a well, don’t we … where we go alone … private memories; silent sorrows … and God is there, waiting for us!
As it comes about, Jesus uncovers her story … she has one version, but Jesus knows the rest … it’s been a hard life for her.
“You’re right,” she says … “I see that you’re a prophet.”
She stands her ground with Him … she doesn’t bolt and run; she doesn’t offer up excuses … she stands her ground.
Does she sense something good in this rabbi?
Something unusual?
Something gentle?
Something reassuring?
She stands her ground …
The disciples return and are surprised to find him talking to a woman … but no one asks “Why?”
They know better by now.
They know how easily Jesus brushes aside convention and tradition … how easily he turns accepted practice on its head … they were beginning to learn that love has no boundaries, and mercy has no rules!
The woman leaves her water jar down … I like that … her first purpose, to draw water, is no longer her first purpose … her first purpose now would only slow her down, weigh her down … it’s time for a new purpose.
She returns to the town that scorns her … to the people who disdain her …
She might have kept it all to herself … she might have picked up the water jar and said, “Thank you” and been on her way, but she sets aside her first purpose; she leaves the water jar – she returns to town with a different water … a water carried not in jars, but carried in her heart … the water of life; the living water called Christ!
The disciples fuss about food … “Here, eat something” they say to Jesus, but He brushes aside their concern.
“I have food you don’t know about – my food is to do the will of Him who sent me to complete His work.”
And then Jesus turns the conversation to the world around them … He always does that to us, you know … we’re fussing about the potluck, and He’s talking about the hungry multitudes … starving for hope and faith … fields ripe for harvest … “Look around you” says Jesus.
But I’d rather not look around me … I’d rather fuss about the potluck, wouldn’t you?
I’d rather devote my time to lesser things … like carpet color and where the chairs are … and who’s bringing the cookies.
Their conversation is interrupted by a large group of townsfolk … because of the woman’s testimony – she spoke up to the folks who wouldn’t take the time of day for her.
When she connected to Jesus, it all changed for her … she went back to that town, no longer ashamed.
Her head wasn’t hanging low this time … no sirree, Bob; not this time – she returned with head held high … and she told them everything.
Her testimony caught them, and they paid attention … this woman who said nothing to anyone for a long time now spoke of a prophet.
And folks believed.
They came to Jesus, and believed all the more when they heard Him!
What we have here is a classic story of God’s interface with human testimony … our words, vital to the work of God.
“Faith comes by hearing” writes Paul the Apostle … words open the door of the heart.
Peter writes to the church: “Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands of you an accounting for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15).
The woman at the well found hope … for the first time in along time; maybe the first time ever, she knew hope … the power of hope to overcome her sad life and find life anew … hope that there was a place for her in the Kingdom of God … hope that sins were really forgiven … hope that she could start all over again … hope that her muddled life wasn’t the last word … hope for tomorrow; hope for something more, something better, something brighter …
Christ ignited hope in her life … she returned to town with a story to tell … and folks believed because of her testimony!
The power of our witness … a few well-chosen words … to give an account of the hope that is in us …
The woman didn’t hit the road to Timbuktu … she didn’t cross seven seas to far away lands … she just went back to town.
We don’t have to go far to find folks who are eager to hear about Christ …
Folks are hungry for the gospel right here in Westchester, down the street and around the corner.
Folks are weary to the bone!
Folks are tired of all the blather, all the false hopes, the counterfeit gospels … the promises that never deliver … the self-help books that never make a difference … the gurus and therapists who offer advice by the ton, take your money, and turn you loose with just another burden to get your act together, a few more laws to obey, and a few more books to read.
People are tired.
I can’t think of a better time for the gospel … the fields are ripe for harvesting … God has done a great work … the Spirit is on the move … hearts are eager to hear about Christ.
Faith comes by hearing!
The woman at the well was startled by words … Jesus penetrated her heart with words.
With words, Jesus revealed the truth … with words, Jesus awakened her spirit to hope … with words, Jesus showed her the Kingdom of God; with words, Jesus pointed her in a new direction; with words, Jesus gave her an unexpected confidence.
With words …
With words, she returned to town … she left the jar behind, and carried words instead.
Faith comes by hearing!
We’ve all been accosted by “born again” types asking if we’re saved.
We’ve all had our doors knocked on; we’ve all had tracts stuffed in our hands.
The sawdust trail and the revival tent are not our cup of tea …
But we’re far too silent … the Evil One has sealed our lips … we’ve been taught a pernicious doctrine - that deeds speak louder than words.
No they don’t.
Deeds don’t speak at all … deeds are mute … a picture isn’t worth a thousand words … actions don’t speak louder than words.
Deeds are important; faith without works is dead, but works without words are meaningless … “faith comes by hearing, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).
If some folks need to shut up … some folks need to speak up.
It’s time for quiet Presbyterians to speak up … to speak the word of Christ … because we have hope, don’t we?
We have salvation, do we not?
We have peace with God, do we not?
We have forgiveness, isn’t it so?
We have Christ within us … Christ we serve … Christ in the morning and Christ at night … Christ in our sorrows and Christ in our joys … Christ at the start of the journey, and Christ at the end of the road.
He’s the Alpha and the Omega.
The beginning and the end.
He is our all in all.
And it all came to us by words, didn’t it?
Preachers who preached.
Teachers who taught.
Books we read.
Parents who opened the Bible for us.
Hymns we sang and prayers recited.
Words …
In the beginning, words.
God said and it was.
Words brought creation into being.
In Samaria that day, it all began when Jesus said, “Give me a drink,” and talked to a woman everyone else shunned!
Pay attention to the world around you … the fields are ripe for harvest … consider the hope you have within you … the Christ of your heart … be ready to say something:
As simple as:
I’m praying for you.
Wanna come to church with me this week? I’ll pick you up at 10:00.
Wanna read a book with me? John Ortberg’s books are a great read for people together.
And one day, you might find yourself being able to say the name of Jesus … stumbling and not too sure, but simply saying, “Jesus is my LORD and my Savior. May I tell you about Him?”
It’s a good thing to do.
It’s a Christian thing to do.
It’s certainly a Presbyterian thing to do.
They believed because of her testimony!
Amen!
