Bringing Them To Jesus Series

Bringing Them To Jesus

Text: John 4:27-42

Introduction

1. Illustration: There is a legend, which recounts the return of Jesus to glory after His time on earth. Even in heaven He bore the marks of His earthly pilgrimage with its cruel cross and shameful death. The angel Gabriel approached Him and said, "Master, you must have suffered terribly for men down there."

"I did," He said.

"And," continued Gabriel, "do they know all about how you loved them and what you did for them?"

"Oh, no," said Jesus, "not yet. Right now only a handful of people in Palestine know."

Gabriel was perplexed. "Then what have you done," he asked, "to let everyone know about your love for them?"

Jesus said, "I’ve asked Peter, James, John, and a few more friends to tell other people about me. Those who are told will in turn tell other people about me, and my story will be spread to the farthest reaches of the globe. Ultimately, all of mankind will have heard about my life and what I have done."

Gabriel frowned and looked rather skeptical. He knew well what poor stuff men were made of. "Yes," he said, "but what if Peter and James and John grow weary? What if the people who come after them forget? What if way down through the centuries people just don’t tell others about you? Haven’t you made any other plans?"

And Jesus answered, "I haven’t made any other plans. I’m counting on them."

Twenty-one centuries later He still has no other plan. He’s counting on you and me to continue His work of reconciling the world to Himself, to continue the work so many have faithfully carried out before us. Will we do so well?

2. You are God's plan!

A. You are God's plan for this neighborhood.

B. You are God's plan for this community.

C. You are God's plan for this State.

D. You are God's plan for America.

E. You are God's plan for this world.

3. Now that might intimidate some and frighten others. But don't be frightened or intimidated because God has equipped you with a very powerful tool...your story.

4. Do you want to be a part of God's plan?

A. Tell Them Your Story

B. Let God Use Your Story

C. Let Them See Jesus

5. Let's stand together as we read John 4:27-42

Proposition: Your story and God's power are a dynamic force.

Transition: First you...

I. Tell Them Your Story (27-30).

A. Come And See

1. Last Sunday we looked at how Jesus witnessed to the woman at the well. Today we are going to look at not only the impact it had on her, but also on her friends and family.

2. John begins this section with, "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?”

A. Just as Jesus made his declaration to the woman that he was the Messiah, Jesus disciples come back from town.

B. They are absolutely dumbfounded to find him speaking to a woman especially since he was a rabbi.

C. One of their sayings ran, "A man shall not be alone with a woman in an inn, not even with his sister or his daughter, on account of what men may think. A man shall not talk with a woman in the street, not even with his own wife, and especially not with another woman, on account of what men may say."

D. However, they did not question either Jesus or the woman.

E. They had been with Jesus long enough to know that while he did not always follow the norm he always had a good reason" (Morris, The New International Commentary on the New Testament – The Gospel According to John, 242-243).

F. "She abandoned the bringing of water for the bringing of men" (Burge, NIV Application Commentary, The – John: From biblical text...to contemporary life, 148).

3. Now we come to the really amazing part of this story. Look at what John tells us next, "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. Jesus obviously made quite an impact on the woman. First, she left her water pot right there at the well.

B. This is amazing because, if you will remember, water was the reason she was there in the first place.

C. Second, she ran to town to tell everyone about Jesus. She told them that Jesus knew all about her and told her everything she'd ever done.