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THE WOMAN OF SAMARIA
JOHN 4:1-42
This Gospel story is also found only in the Gospel
according to John. Before you start, just a reminder about the time of
the Jewish people and the time of the Gentiles. It was still the time of
the Jewish people and Jesus was trying to save the lost sheep of the
flock of Israel, which were the Jewish people.
Also, here’s a little information about Samaria. The
Samaritans were considered Gentiles by the Jewish people though their
roots went to Jacob (Israel). There was a great division in the land of
Israel after King Solomon. They kinda divided into two kingdoms. One was
kingdom of Judah (David's bloodline) and the kingdom of Israel. Each
would have it's own king. During the times of the kings, most of the
kings of Israel ruled from Samaria, while the kings of Judah ruled from
Jerusalem. Many of the kings of Israel did evil in the sight of the
Lord, too. There were many times when other gods were worshipped there,
not to mention other atrocities. That is why Samaria became known as a
bad place. The Samaritans are of this land. Sooooo, they are abandoned
Israelites.
When Jesus was on His way from Judæa to Galilee, He
had to pass through Samaria. He came to a city named Sychar, near the
parcel of land that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there
and at around noon, Jesus was tired from His journey and sat at the
well.
Jesus’ disciples had gone into the city to buy food
when a woman of Samaria came to the well to draw water and Jesus said to
her, Give me to drink. The woman said to Him, Why is it that you, being
Jewish, ask me, a woman of Samaria for a drink, when the Jewish have no
dealings with the Samaritans.
Jesus answered her, If you knew the gift of God, and
who it is that asks you for a drink, you’d have asked of Him, and He’d
have given you living water. She said, Sir, you have nothing to draw
with, and the well is deep. Where will you get that living water? Are
you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from
it himself, with his children and his cattle? Jesus replied, Whoever
drinks this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water
that I give him, will never thirst, but the water that I will give him
will be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
The woman of Samaria said, Sir, give me this water, so
I don’t thirst or have to come here to draw. Jesus said, Go, call your
husband and come here. The woman answered, I have no husband. And Jesus
said, You’ve told the truth to say, I have no husband. You’ve had
five husbands, and the one you have now isn’t your husband, so you
answered truthfully. The woman replied, Sir, I can tell that you’re a
prophet. Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, and you say that in
Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
Jesus said, Woman, believe me, the time comes when you
will not worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You
don’t know what you worship, but we know what we worship because
salvation is of the Jews. But the time comes and is now, when the true
worshippers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth, because the
Father seeks for such to worship Him. God is a Spirit, and those who
worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth.
How about a little intermission from the story and
let’s talk about that last thing that Jesus said for a moment. God is a
Spirit. How do you picture God in your own mind? Everyone pictures Him
differently, but do you think of Him as having a human form (because He
created us in His image) or do you think of Him as invisible? Do you
think that Jesus is probably what He looks like? Just something to
ponder on.
Now what about the next part, And those who worship
Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth. Gee, you may be saying to
yourself, I’m kinda new at this, I have no clue how to worship God in
Spirit. Well, you’re not alone! Paul said in
Romans 8:26
that we don’t know what to pray for like we should, but the Spirit
itself makes intercession for us with groanings that can’t be uttered.
And He that searches the hearts understands your thoughts. In other
words, He knows what you want, before you even ask Him. You’re His
child, and He knows you better than any human being knows their child.
If you’re good, bad, happy or sad, He knows. When you feel desperation,
He knows it. When you feel like you can’t cope with something, He’s
hearing the different groanings of your spirit and He’s hoping you’ll
ask Him to help you, according to His will and depend on Him. When
you’re so happy you could bust, He knows that too, and believe that He’s
smiling along with you. Don’t forget to share those times with Him too,
not only the times when you need Him.
Now, back to our study ... The woman of Samaria said
to Jesus, I know that the Messiah is coming who is called Christ. When
He comes, He’ll tell us everything. Jesus said, I who speak to you am
He.
At that time, the disciples came back from the city
and they were surprised that Jesus was talking to the Samaritan woman,
but nobody said a word. The woman left her water pot and went back into
the city and said to the men in her city, Come and see this man that
told me all the things that I ever did. Wouldn’t this be the Christ?
They went out of the city and found Jesus. In the meantime, the
disciples urged Him to eat, but He said to them, I have food to eat that
you don’t know about. They didn’t understand so they asked each other,
Has anyone given Him anything to eat?
Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of Him
who sent me and to finish His work. Don’t say, Aren’t there still four
months before the harvest? I say to you, Open your eyes and look at the
fields, they’re already ripe and ready to harvest. He that reaps
receives wages and gathers fruit unto life eternal so both he who plants
and he who reaps may rejoice together. In this case that saying is true,
One plants and another reaps. I sent you to reap where you didn’t work,
other men worked and you are entered into their labors.
Many of the Samaritans had come to Him and asked Him
to stay with them, so He remained there for two days. Many more believed
because they heard Him speak and they said to the woman, Now we believe,
not because of what you said, but we’ve heard Him ourselves and know
that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.
CONTINUE
TO NEXT STUDY
PASSOVER
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