Chapter 2 – Source of satisfaction
John 8:36, “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.”(NRSV)
We looked in the previous chapter at various things that people are addicted to – drugs, alcohol, smoking, pornography and certain kinds of friendships and relationships that are not beneficial. We also saw that for many speaking lies was an issue and they are not even aware that it is a problem and have become habitual liars.
There are others who are held captive to bitterness, unforgiveness and hurts which they carry as a baggage. Still others are in bondage to their mobile phones, to social media. They either are constantly seeking approval from others or are enslaved to its obscene content. There’s a word of caution in Ecclesiastes1:8 ...”the eye is not satisfied with seeing” and there’s always the desire for more and more. There are some others, who are even addicted to watching news on Television which they do so non-stop. Anger, fear and worry are some of the other things that people are also in bondage to. Many are struggling with tempers that are uncontrollable, while others are in constant fear and worry over every little problem.
Where does this bondage begin?
It most certainly did not begin at birth. No one is born with bondage or addiction but as people grow older, they very often pick up some sort of habit or addiction from someone or sometimes from a particular place they are associated with. It most often (for example drinking or smoking) begins with the desire to experiment something new or with the urge to be part of a peer group. Initially there is a combination of temporary pleasure along with distaste and disgust too but as time goes by the person slowly becomes enslaved to it. Once a person is addicted to a habit they will always find reasons to justify what they are enslaved to. Gradually what seemed to initially be under their control starts to have full control over their lives. At some point many come to the resolve that they can never quit the habit or addiction that they are tethered to.
However, if a person sincerely desires to quit the habit or addiction, they can surely do so by the grace of God. We need to bring every thought under the Lord’s captivity and believe with all our heart the word of God which affirms this, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!” John 8:36 (ISV)
We saw in Luke 4:18,"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and the regaining of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed....” (NET) how the Lord Jesus came down to free us from every sort of bondage and captivity.
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman (John chapter 4)
John 4:7 “There came a woman of Samaria to draw water; Jesus said unto her, give me to drink.” (JUB)
Jesus is passing through Samaria and he sits down by a well as he is really tired. A Samaritan woman from the village comes to draw water from the well and she and Jesus engage in a conversation. When Jesus requested her to give him some water to drink as He was thirsty and tired, the Samaritan woman replied like this, “How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, who am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.”
John 4:9 (KJV)
Usually if someone were to ask us for water we would simply answer yes or no. But if we look at this incident, the woman was overreacting to a simple request by Jesus. Generally a person in bondage will unnerve even in simple matters. They very often do this, so others don’t really get to know who they are and what they are enslaved to. They are usually hiding their issues and want to appear good to others so they won’t be found out.
The next thing she said to Jesus was, “Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?" John 4:12 (NRSV)
She was now distracting Jesus and started to talk about their traditions and her forefathers. She was in a way trying to get her identity from her past. We need to be cautious that we are not satisfied with just the mere traditions of men and neither should we gloat about our antecedents. There are some who are in addiction throughout the year and then they are quite contented with just abstaining for a short period of time, for example a fast of 40 days. We need to bear in mind that traditions can only help give temporary solution, but Jesus alone can bring about permanent change.
And then Jesus said to her, John 4:13 Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,”... (ISV)
Jesus had to admonish her that the water from the well will never quench her thirst for ever. She would have drink this physical water many times a day to be satisfied. This is very similar to a person who is in an addiction. The habit is never satiated. There is a constant desire for more and the person is never fully satisfied. A person who is enslaved to something will never be appeased no matter how much they have of it.
Jesus now comes to the main issue the woman was facing. In John 4:16 -18, “He told her, “Go and call your husband, and come back here. The woman answered him, “I don’t have a husband.” Jesus told her, “You are quite right in saying, ‘I don’t have a husband,’18 because you have had five husbands, and the man you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true.” (ISV)
The Samaritan woman had a moral problem, she had lived with 5 husbands and was now living with a man who was not her husband. Jesus knew exactly what her issue was. There is nothing that can be hidden from the Lord. She appeared good on the outside but Jesus knew her real struggle. God will not judge us on the basis of how well we behave in church or society, but in our personal secret life. In her personal life she was in bondage.
Many things today have become acceptable in society. Divorce and remarriage are no longer frowned upon, but see what the Lord says in Malachi 2:16"I hate divorce," says the LORD God of Israel. (GNB)
Jesus then affirms to her in John 4:14, “But anyone who drinks the water I give will never be thirsty again. The water I give people will be like a spring flowing inside them. It will bring them eternal life.” (ERV)
A man of God explained it this way. A person had no source of water in their home, but kept going to various other houses nearby to get water. But a friend who had come to their house told them of a stream right in their compound and when they dug a well, they had water in abundance and all their needs were met without having to get out of their house. What a joy!
That’s what Jesus promises to us if we receive the Lord in our life and receive the abundant life he gives. Out of our life will flow rivers of living water. We will be a great blessing to others.
In Isaiah 55:2 we are admonished, “Why spend your money on what is not bread, and your labour on what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in rich food. (ISV)
Jesus alone can give us peace and real satisfaction. None of our bondages can ever do that. Jesus is the only one who can truly set us free us from every bondage, and help us overcome every form of addiction. It is certainly not God’s will that we should live under bondage. As long as we live in bondage, we can never fulfil the purposes of God in our life. We need to lead a life that is pleasing to the Lord. He is the only one who can make everything new and enable us to lead the abundant life He has designed for us.
Pastor F. Andrew Dixon
www.goodnewsfriends.net
Transcribed by : Ms. Esther Collins
