“Woman at the Well”

John 4:1-42

(sermon note: 02-01 sermon note)

¹Jesus knew the Pharisees had heard that he was baptizing and making more disciples than John ² (though Jesus himself didn’t baptize them—his disciples did). ³ So he left Judea and returned to Galilee.

⁴ He had to go through Samaria on the way. 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.” ⁸ He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food.

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?”

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.”

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? ¹² And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?”

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.”

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.”

¹⁶ “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her.

¹⁷ “I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied.

Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband— 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!”

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?”

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.”

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.”

²⁶ Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!”

²⁷ Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked to find him talking to a woman, but none of them had the nerve to ask, “What do you want with her?” or “Why are you talking to her?” 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?” ³⁰ So the people came streaming from the village to see him.

³¹ Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus, “Rabbi, eat something.”

³² But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.”

³³ “Did someone bring him food while we were gone?” the disciples asked each other.

³⁴ Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. ³⁵ You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. ³⁶ The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! ³⁷ You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. ³⁸ I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”

³⁹ Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” ⁴⁰ When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, ⁴¹ long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. ⁴² Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.”

This morning’s reading reminds me of the one about a fleeing criminal who was desperate to escape the police, so he ran into the desert with hardly any water. Very soon, he ran out of drinking water, and hours later, he was already plodding under the merciless desert sun. He was close to desperation when suddenly, he saw something far off in the distance. Hoping against hope that it was water, he started running towards what he thought was an oasis, only to find a little old man with a little stand, full of ties.  “Hey you, do you have any water?” panted the criminal. The old man replied, “I have already finished my water, but would you like to buy a tie? They are only $5.” The frustrated criminal shouted, “You moron! Do I look like I need a tie?! I should kill you right here, but I have to find some water first!” “There’s no need for threats,” said the old tie seller. “Even though you don’t want to buy one of my ties and you treat me like this, I’ll help you. If you continue over that hill for about 3 miles, you’ll find a restaurant with great food and all the ice cold water you can drink. Good luck!” Muttering in disgust, the criminal staggered away over the hill. Several hours later the tie seller saw him crawling on the dune back towards him. When the criminal finally arrived, he laid on his back, panting. “Everything ok?” asked the tie salesman as he bent over to hear the raspy whisper of the criminal. “They won’t let me in without a tie…”

Silly criminal! If only he took a moment to wonder why a man would be selling ties in the desert, then perhaps he could have avoided a little unnecessary suffering. God rarely sends people into our lives who serve no purpose. Everyone we meet along the way serves some type of purpose in our lives. Some serve to teach us something about ourselves and our world. Some serve to provide companionship. Some serve to protect us. Some serve to challenge us and help us grow. Some serve as obstacles in our lives. Some people serve to entertain us while others are nothing more than background noise. Regardless of the role they play in our lives, everyone serves A purpose if not multiple purposes in our lives. I suppose we have to give that criminal a little credit since he was wrapped up in escaping the law. He wasn’t able to wonder why a man would be selling ties in the middle of the desert. But we should all be mindful of why God sends certain people into our lives. Believe it or not, they aren’t a coincidence…

And it wasn’t a coincidence that Jesus, a faithful Jew, was walking through Samaria and happened up that woman at the well in the midday sun. Jesus is the true light of the world, and his light seeks out the darkest of places. The situation of a foreign woman shunned by her community presumably for having multiple husbands drawing water in the hottest part of the day was most definitely a dark place. The patriarchy and fear of strangers and overall shame kept that poor woman in a pretty dark place. But Jesus boldly shone his light into her dark world! He simply spoke to her and asked her to give him some water, something no one in her community would have dared to do. For a brief moment, he gave her a distraction from her own self-pity as well as a purpose to help him in his thirst. It was an ever-so small gesture of kindness but just think of the profound effect it had on that woman who was burdened with great guilt and shame! Jesus shone his light and gave her hope and life again! It kinda makes you wonder who was giving the life-sustaining water in that interaction. All that she was asked to give was mere water. Jesus, on the other hand, was asked to give so much more…hope and life and purpose!

Friends, these are no small gifts. Truth be told, we aren’t all that dissimilar from that criminal plodding through the desert. We live in a harsh world of sin and suffering and death. We can forget it by tending to our families or careers or homes or any number of distractions. But it is only by God’s grace that we are given such wonderful distractions. It is only by God’s grace that we don’t have to live in fear and uncertainty. It is only by God’s grace that we are given the light, his Son. Without him and the wonderful distractions of our lives, this world can be a cold, unforgiving world. We need him and our distractions! We need his hope and love and life and purpose! Just as our bodies need water to survive, our souls need his “living water” to survive in this world. And one would think that such an essential need for survival would come with a steep price but no, God in his gracious abundance provides it for the low, low price of faith and belief. All we have to do is place our trust in him to receive his living water. Jesus says,

“Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” (John 7:38) What a gift! Simply trust in him and you will receive it! The prophet Isaiah says, “With joy you will drink deeply from the fountain of salvation!” (12:3) Our joy and salvation are found in the living water that Jesus so graciously provides!

Our God is a God of abundance. Our God gives us each other to share the living water. It is no coincidence that God gives us each other. We are called to share in his abundance. Again, the prophet Isaiah gives us the hope and life of the living water. He writes, “When the poor and needy search for water and there is none, and their tongues are parched from thirst, then I, the Lord, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them. I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus. I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. I will fill the desert with pools of water. Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground.” (41:17-18) Let us rejoice in his abundance and give thanks for his living water. Thanks be to God!

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.