John 4:5-7 NLT
[5] Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field 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.”
Have you ever considered the impact Jesus’ words had on this Samaritan woman?
Let’s follow the thread of their conversation.
John 4:7 NLT
[7] “Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”
Jesus asked for ordinary water to quench His thirst…
John 4:9 NLT
[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?”
The woman objects, on the basis of longstanding animosity between Jew and Samaritan as well as on cultural grounds, a man and a woman, strangers, don’t talk.
John 4:10 NLT
[10] “Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”
Jesus introduces a contrast. Well water versus living water…which one does the job? The woman is inquisitive. What does He mean?
John 4:13-14 NLT
[13] “Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. [14] But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
The woman is surprised, confused…
John 4:11 NLT
[11] “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water?”
Jesus’ answer is even more puzzling. She is interested.
John 4:13-14 NLT
[13] Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. [14] But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
“My water doesn’t need a bucket.” A bold claim! “My water does much more than your water!” What kind of water is this? It’s still about water but a shift from literal to spiritual. She wants this water but she is confused. Can His water relieve her of the drudgery of lugging water from the well every day?
John 4:15 NLT
[15] “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.”
Jesus goes for the throat.
John 4:16 NLT
[16] “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her.”
His instruction catches her by surprise. She instinctively dodges the implication. If Jesus is about to disclose an important truth, she must respond under her submission to her husband BUT, she doesn’t have a husband, only a “partner”! She blurts out,
John 4:17 NLT
[17] “I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied.
Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband—… “
Jesus responds with “a word of knowledge”, a truth about the woman that He could never know without divine revelation.
John 4:18 NLT
[18]… “for you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!”
For the woman, this disclosure was the turning point, hit her between the eyes, and moved her in a new direction. She tried to dodge the issue by becoming “religious”. She shifts her ficus from “a man” to “a prophet”.
John 4:19-20 NLT
[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?”
Jesus pulls her back to His intention…it’s about God and her!
John 4:21-24 NLT
[21] Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. [22] You Samaritans know very 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—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. [24] For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”
She continues her religious pose…
John 4:25 NLT
[25] “The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
… until…
John 4:26 NLT
[26]” Then Jesus told her, “I Am the Messiah!”
Was she convinced? Watch her response.
John 4:28-29 NLT
[28]”The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, [29] “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?”
A radical transformation! She is no ashamed, afraid, longer avoiding the people, drawing water at midday when she didn’t have to face the silent accusations of her fellow-villagers. What was it that convinced her, changed her, set her free ….instantaneously?
“I know you!” What a relief! No accusation, judgement, condemnation…only reassurance. Jesus knew her but she was comfortable with that!
What did this conversation reveal?
“You crave real love but you are drinking at the wrong fountain!” Five husbands didn’t satisfy her. “Shacking up” with another man was equally disappointing. There is only one source of real, infallible, satisfying love that quenches thirst and never ends, the Spirit of God who is love.
Romans 5:5 NLT
[5] “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”
John 7:37-38 NLT
[37] On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! [38] Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”
How many in this world seek this love but try to find it by drinking at the wrong fountain.
Jeremiah 2:13 NLT
[13] “For my people have done two evil things: They have abandoned me— the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!”
Jesus called her, calls us, back to Himself as the only one who can quench our thirst for real, lasting, and satisfying love.