The Woman at the Well
Pastor Jim May
The Feast of Passover had come to an end, and it was time to get back to the daily work of ministry and teaching so Jesus stepped out onto the dusty road leading from Jerusalem to Galilee, followed closely by his 12 disciples. This was to be one of many journeys that he would make along that road. Jesus spent at least 30 years of his life around Galilee. Bethlehem and Nazareth were a part of that region of the country and not only was Jesus raised there as a child, but that is where he ministered more than any other place in Israel.
The country of Jordan lies directly north of Judea and Jerusalem where the Passover was held and there is only about 35 miles, as the crow flies, from Jerusalem to the capital city of Samaria, but though they were very close together, and both the Samaritans and the Jews were all from the 12 tribes of Israel, there was a great division between the Northern and Southern Kingdoms and it resulted in open warfare.
The rift between the Jews and the Samaritan began during the reign of King Rehoboam. During his reign, Israel became a divided nation, with the 10 tribes in the North seceding from the two tribes in the South. Israel went through its own time of civil war, North against South, brother against brother, fighting for their own rights. Jeroboam was chosen as the King of the North and the fight was on. The war was the opposite of our own Civil War in that it was the Southern King, Rehoboam, that was fighting to restore the union of Israel, and it was Jeroboam, King of the North, who was fighting to establish a new nation, free of Southern influence.
As with every civil war within a nation, hard feelings, distrust and hatred become a part of the conflict, and even after the fighting comes to an end, these things still remain for a very long time. It takes generations for that kind of hatred to pass because it is passed on from father to son, and to grandchildren. We know that this can be true for even today there remains a remnant of the division from the Civil War that fought here in America nearly 150 years ago.
There are many whose families have been forever altered through the conflict, and as it is now, we have much discord over the symbolism of that conflict. Many are offended by the displaying of the Confederate battle flag and other monuments, much the same as many of us are offended at the display of the Nazi Swastika or the Russian Hammer and Sickle flag on our American Buildings.
During this time of division, Jeroboam, King of the Northern tribes, set up idols in Dan and Bethel and the Jews in the north no longer went to Jerusalem to worship at the temple. Later on these rebellious Jews began to intermarry with the Assyrians and then the Jews in the South looked upon them as “dogs” or “half-breeds”.
After the Babylonian Captivity, the Jews in the North were a constant source of opposition to the re-establishment of Jerusalem, discouraging the Jews from rebuilding and sometimes trying to stop them completely.
The Northern tribes eventually claimed that only the books of Genesis through Deuteronomy were part of the Law of Moses. They rejected everything after that. They also claimed that their copy of these books was the only original copy making the Jews in the South angry that much more.
Thus we can understand the animosity that still existed in the days when Jesus walked in that region. The old hurts, hatred and distrust had not gone away and it would be a long time before Israel would reunite as one nation. In fact, it was nearly 1500 years later, in 1948 that Israel was declared a free nation and reunited by the grace of God. Many other nations have fallen and never recovered.
John 4:1-2, "When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John, (Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples)"
The Pharisees, that bunch of whited sepulchers full of dead men’s bones”, and “religious snakes” who were a part of the self-righteous and powerful Sanhedrin Council at Jerusalem, hated Jesus. His popularity among the people and his condemnation of their evil ways threatened to undermine their authority in Israel and they didn’t like being called sinners and hypocrites. Like many in the church who can see the faults of every one else, but who can’t accept the fact that they too have faults, these Pharisees hated Jesus because he wouldn’t let them forget how bad they truly were.
The Pharisees were quick to pick up on anything negative that they could use against Jesus. There designs were to get rid of Jesus any way that they could, but the best way would be to find him guilty of some crime punishable by death and be rid of him for good.
Thus it seems that possibly some of the disciples of John the Baptist had become envious of Jesus and his disciples because the disciples baptized more converts than John did. That was a threat to them and their teacher. Not all of John’s disciples understood that Jesus was the Messiah, in fact few did. So they were quick to tattletale to the Pharisee, who could use that information against Jesus in some way.
But Satan’s plans, formulated in the hearts and minds of evil men, are never a surprise to Jesus. He knew their thoughts, intents and motives. Since it wasn’t time for his arrest and crucifixion, Jesus decided to leave town and let things cool down some.
John 4:3-4, "He left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee. And he must needs go through Samaria."
Jesus was back on the ministry circuit again, in fact the very name Galilee, means “circuit”. Jesus had no place to call home anymore. His place of rest was wherever he could find it when the time came, whether it was a rock by the side of the road, or a bed in the home of a friend. He didn’t have a mansion in Nazareth, a summer home in Bethelehem and a vacation home in Jerusalem. He had no home at all. He didn’t have a Camel, a donkey or a horse to ride. He didn’t have a cart to carry all his worldly goods. In fact, he had no worldly goods other than the clothes on his back, a few coins to buy food and the shoes on his feet. And he let the most untrustworthy disciple in the bunch take care of the money.
But he was prosperous in all that he did. He healed the sick, raised the dead, cleansed the leper, gave sight to the blind, opened deaf ears and had a close relationship with his father in Heaven. He had it all, but he had nothing of worldly value. Jesus’ sights were set on things eternal, not on the things of this world. The only thing that Jesus cared about in this world was the souls and suffering of man and the manner in which the House of God was honored.
Jesus walked out of Jerusalem that day, turned North and headed for Galilee, but to get to Galilee in the shortest route possible, would mean going through the heart of Samaria. As you know, he had another motive, other than convenience for going through Samaria.
There was a woman in Samaria that needed him, and in the mind of God, Jesus knew that her time had come to know about him. He would reveal his true identity to this woman at the well in a way that few other people would receive. It wasn’t until much later that he would even reveal his true identity to his own disciples, and when he did, he told them to keep it quiet. He didn’t do that with this woman of Samaria.
John 4:5-8, "Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat)"
After having walked for hours, Jesus came to Jacob’s well. He had been there before, in fact he had wrestled with Jacob all night long in centuries past, before Jacob finally gave in and started serving the Lord. Jesus stopped to rest and sent the disciples on into the city of Sychar to buy lunch because it was noon, it was hot and they were all getting hungry.
After the disciples left, it wasn’t long before the true purpose of this journey came into view. There came a woman to draw water from the well.
In those days it was women’s work to draw water for their daily use. In fact, if a young man was looking for a wife, the place to hang out was at the watering hole because all of the single young women would show up there eventually.
A lot of our young men and women still hang out at the “watering hole” looking for a mate. The problem is that modern day “watering holes” aren’t the best place to hang out. The best thing to do is hang out in church or at least around people who love the Lord. God will lead people to bring them together when the time is right. You don’t have to force the hand of God by looking in worldly places. If you do, you’ll find worldly people there, and God says that you are not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers in the first place so why look among the unbelievers for a mate, unless you are an unbeliever yourself. If you try to get ahead of God don’t forget that Abraham did the same thing and look at the conflict in the Middle East that has always been the result of trying to do things our way and not God’s way.
Jesus wasn’t there looking for a spouse. He was there looking for a Child to Adopt into the family of God.
This little lady was about to get the shock of her life. Not only was a Jew going to talk to her, asking for water, but she had come face to face with Almighty God. Her moment of salvation had come. She didn’t know that when she left home that day, that she would return as a brand new person. Her whole life was going to be changed by this “chance encounter” with the very Son of God.
John 4:9-10, "Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water."
Lady, Sir, young man, young woman – if you only knew that the very Son of God is standing before you right now, in this very service; if you could just grasp the fact that Jesus came down from Heaven, walked the dusty roads of this world, died on a cross, rose from the dead, and how now come to sit right in front of you; I believe that you would fall at his feet.
But like the woman at the well, you don’t see Jesus for who he is yet. You can only know him as he reveals himself to you. That’s what must happen before a soul can be saved. You can’t just decide to be saved. You can only come to Jesus as the Holy Spirit reveals him to you and calls you to come to him.
2 Corinthians 6:2, "…I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured [helped]thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation)"
Isaiah 55:6-7, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."
The conversation between Jesus and this woman at the well continued on in John 4:11-12, "The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?"
Jesus, are you greater than Jacob, who founded Israel and Samaria? YES – I created the whole world and formed Jacob from the dust of the Earth. I created the water and gave Jacob the wisdom to dig this well to find what I had provided. I gave Jacob his children and created his cattle. I led Abraham to this land and gave it to him, and you as an inheritance for his faithfulness to my call on his life. YES – I’M GREATER THAN JACOB, GREATER THAN ISAAC, GREATER THAN ABRAHAM!
John 4:13-14, "Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."
Nothing of this world can satisfy like Jesus. No matter how much an alcoholic drinks, it’s never enough to drown his troubles for long. No matter how much an addict fills his veins with drugs, they never satisfy for long. No matter how much wealth we get, it’s never enough. No matter what we get, there’s always something else to get that we don’t have. When is enough of anything in this world, ever enough?
Satisfaction doesn’t come from the outside – it comes from within. You can only be satisfied if your heart is satisfied and your heart can only be satisfied if it is full of that Living Water that comes from Jesus living on the inside. I’m convinced that the only people on planet earth, who are truly content, are those who have made peace with God and are born again by the Spirit of God and cleansed by the Blood of the Lamb.
Are you searching for something that you can’t find, and maybe you don’t even know what it is that you’re searching for? Something is driving you, pushing you onward, in a search for happiness, in a search for meaning, in a search for something to satisfy a hunger that you can’t explain.
Let me tell you that you have come to the right place to find your answer. Jesus is waiting for you right here. He came into this place today and just hang out, waiting for you walk in and sit down. He wants to give you that same Living Water that he gave the Woman at the Well. You are that Woman at the well this morning. Today is your day; now is your accepted time to come face to face with Jesus. You can drink of that Living Water today, and never thirst again.
Before you can come though, something has to take place in your heart. Jesus began to lead this woman at the well through the same process that you will have to go through before you can receive that Living Water.
John 4:15-19, "The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet."
What was Jesus doing? He was leading her to a place of repentance by first showing her that he knew of her sin. She had been married and divorced 5 times, probably because of adultery. She lived an immoral life and was now living with a man without being married to him. She didn’t deny her sin, and Jesus didn’t denounce her before the whole world. He had stayed behind, alone, and sent the disciples away because he knew this woman was coming along. It was a one-on-one confrontation between her and God alone.
Jesus doesn’t want to reveal your sin to the whole church. He just wants to wash it away if you will let him. The Holy Ghost is a perfect gentleman and he doesn’t coerce or force you to do anything. He doesn’t embarrass you. He just gently speaks, leads and helps you to see and accept Jesus as your Savior and Lord. The choice is always yours whether to accept or reject.
The Woman at the Well saw Jesus as a Prophet, and that’s what most of the world sees too. She didn’t have a clear picture of who Jesus truly was yet. It’s not until we can truly see who Jesus is that we can choose to make him our Savior. A prophet can’t save a soul. A priest can’t forgive sins. A preacher can’t cleanse your heart and give you a new life. But The Lord Jesus Christ, Savior of the World, the Son of God, can do all these things and more. We just have to see Jesus for who he truly is before it can happen.
John 4:20-26, "Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he."
Now comes the moment that was the most important moment in the life of this woman at the well. This was the moment of truth.
After all of the excuses, all of the sin that was revealed, all of the preparation of her heart to receive the truth, Jesus revealed his true identity to her heart. Her mind was opened, her thinking was clear, her spiritual understanding was opened and she saw Jesus for who he truly was. At that instant her whole life changed and she became a strong witness for what Jesus had done in her life.
A “chance encounter” at the well, in the midst of an ordinary day, resulted in the saving of an eternal soul! I believe the Woman at the Well was saved that day. Her Actions tend to prove it.
But what about you this morning? Have you met Jesus at that well of Living Water? Have you had a one-on-one confrontation with him? Do you see him as the Son of God, the Savior of your Soul?
Jesus came to this place this morning, just to wait and meet you when you arrived. Now he’s calling you by name to accept him as your Savior. Will you hear him and receive him. If you receive Jesus, you will have that Living Water and you’ll never thirst again.
