LEARNING DAILY

John 4:15, The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water”.

The Pastor of Community Bible Church continued his series about Jesus walking through Samaria in order to meet a woman at a well. The discussion centered on the need for this woman to drink from the well of “living water” that Jesus offered to her. He was speaking to the woman to come to Him, believe in Him, to believe in the only One who could give her eternal life.

Dr. Newton mentioned both last week and this week that every individual seeks a WELL to find satisfaction” (also found on this week’s Listener Guide). Some might find “satisfaction” in their work, their vocation; keeping busy with their chosen vocation might help them be distracted with the real needs within their family. Some try to drown their trials and problems with alcohol or drugs of some type. You get the picture, so I do not need to go on. The person knows that “something is missing” and tries to fill what is lacking with a variety of wells that the world has to offer.

Jesus tells the woman that the well He offers is filled with “living water”. He is telling her to receive Him as the only One who can change her condition; her response is, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water”. I wonder if at this point in the conversation the woman is being a little sarcastic. Does she really understand what Jesus is saying. Perhaps, that is why Jesus tells her to go get her husband. The discussion continues that she has no husband and Jesus tells hers she has had five husbands and the one she has now is not her husband. It is at this point that Jesus has gotten her attention.

Pastor Newton pointed out that Jesus did not condemn the woman; He did not condone her life either. Pastor Newton continued by saying Jesus confronted her sin and offered her a solution. The offer Jesus gives her is the “living water” He offers which will change her. There is a point written on the Listener Guide that every believer will remember. “You will never know a need for a Savior without first recognizing your own sinful nature.” Not one person will go to the “well of living water” without recognizing the need to be saved and cleansed by the One who offers it. Think back to when you asked Jesus Christ into your heart (not a head knowledge). You had to recognize you could not save yourself by being a good person; you recognized and asked for Jesus Christ to save and change you. When you asked, He cleansed you of all unrighteousness (sin) and set you on a narrow way leading into His eternal kingdom. That “living water” continues to purify and cleanse us to be who He wants us to be.

We know little about this woman and her five husbands. “This woman’s greatest thirst seems to have been for acceptance. This is why she stumbled from one bad relationship to the next. The kind of relationship she seeks can only be truly found in God, and only through Jesus Christ. Jesus explains to her that “true worship” of God does not require one to be Jewish, or Samaritan, or in the temple, or on a mountain. Rather, true worship requires spirit and truth, and God is seeking those who want Him in this way” (BibleRef.com). Dr. Newton said, “Worship is not about location. It is not connected to emotion because that can lead to chaos. Believers worship ‘in spirit and truth’ because when spirit and truth come together, we see the revelation of who Jesus Christ is”.

When the Lord was talking to the Samaritan woman, He did not offer to pray for her. His offer of “living water” was an offer to change her ((Dr. Newton). His offer of salvation and change still is being offered to all who would place their faith and trust in Him. It is offered through the “well of living water” that only Jesus Christ gives. Not one person trying to live their life as a good person will enter heaven. Heaven only comes through Jesus and walking a narrow way in faith and by being obedient to Him and His Word!