On June 5, 1965, what is now regarded as one of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll songs of all time was released. That song was titled “(I Can’t Get No} Satisfaction” by the English rock band, The Rolling Stones. It was a song that took the world by storm. It charted at “number one” in a slew of countries and the Stones’ memorable appearance on the Ed Sullivan show (which I myself recall seeing as a child) propelled the then-ongoing British Invasion, started by the Beatles, to new heights. An Internet article about “Satisfaction” had this to say about it:
“In the decades since its release, "Satisfaction" has repeatedly been acclaimed by the music industry. In 1976, Britain's New Musical Express listed "Satisfaction" 7th among the top 100 singles of all time. There was a resurgence of interest in the song after it was prominently featured in the 1979 movie Apocalypse Now. In 1991, Vox listed "Satisfaction" among "100 records that shook the world".[24] In 1999, BMI named "Satisfaction" as the 91st-most performed song of the 20th century. In 2000, VH1 listed "Satisfaction" first among its "Top 100 Greatest Rock Songs";[25] the same year, "Satisfaction" also finished runner-up to "Yesterday" in a list jointly compiled by Rolling Stone and MTV.[26] In 2003, Q placed the song 68th out of its "1001 Best Songs Ever". Newsweek magazine has called the opening riff "five notes that shook the world".
I’ve shared that information in order to illustrate how the thematic and lyrical content of that particular song had resonated within the human heart, and although it is now almost 60 years old, I believe that there is something about that first line in the chorus that speaks to and of the human condition, the emptiness and futility of life outside of a relationship with God that makes it almost universal, whether one is a fan or rock ‘n’ roll or not. This is a song for everybody, because it’s really about everybody! I find especially plaintive the line at the end of the chorus that wails in anguish: “Cause I try…and I try…and I try…and I try…and that ends with what seems to be a final, petulant and frustrated stomp of the foot, “I CAN’T GET NO!!” That, to me, seems to be everyman’s cry. It’s the cry of King Solomon in Ecclesiastes who declares, “Meaningless!” Meaningless!” after he’d tried virtually every human endeavor under the sun, and very, very many of us, who, after what seems a lifetime of experiencing the futility of seeking fulfillment apart from Christ still “can’t get no satisfaction.”
This morning, we are in our 3rd week of Lent, and in keeping with our ongoing series up until Easter- “Heart-To Heart Talks/ Conversations In the Gospels,” this morning, Jesus is having “A Conversation With An Unfulfilled Woman.” My topic is:
“Jesus Satisfies”
In our Lectionary text, verse 5 tells us that Jesus, arrives at a city called Sychar, which was actually a part of the metropolis of Samaria, once the great capital of the northern Israelite nation. Reading that verse in isolation would cause us to think that Jesus just happened to traverse in to Samarian territory, almost by accident, but if we look back at verse 4, the bible lets us know that Jesus was driven to go there, and other versions corroborate this by expressing that need as being one of urgency, of necessity, as if something vital, something precious would surely be lost if he did not go to a place where the average Jew would adamantly and passionately refuse to go. No, no you don’t understand, see, the average Jew would fight you if you told him that he had to go to Samaria. Because to him, everything in Samaria was trash, was rubbish was the littlest, the least, the last, and the lost, but isn’t it just like Jesus, to not only want to go, but need to go, where no one else would dare to go, because Jesus, even when He walked this earth, was never, ever bound by nationalism, or religious preference, or racial hatred, or political rhetoric or any of the stuff, that although it keeps us unsatisfied and unfulfilled, we cling to so tightly, no this was Jesus, of whom the songwriter wrote,
“red and yellow, black and white,
They’re all precious in His sight
Jesus loves the little children of the world…”
…even the ones from Samaria. And that’s important, because there are those among us who know what it’s like to have people not like us just because we’re us. Jesus knows that He must go to Samaria because there is someone there with whom He must have a heart-to-heart talk, and as he shows up at a certain well in Samaria, he encounters a woman, which would be somewhat odd, as women in ancient society did not come outdoors in the middle of the day, so this woman had a reason to be out at that time, and that reason was in direct correlation with the fact that she needed a heart-to-heart with her Creator. She knew that no one else would be out in the noonday heat, so that she was assured that she would more than likely not be seen, as having been characterized as an immoral woman, she could not show herself early in the day, as did other woman, and it’s highly probable that she has very few friends, and so how many of us feel as if, like Mick Jagger, like King Solomon, in our pursuit of satisfaction have tried, and tried and tried and tried, so many different things that we believe that we have so much to be ashamed of that we would really prefer to not be seen in public? You may feel that way on today, and I know that there have been times when I felt that way, but I’ve come to tell you that God almighty Himself wants to see you! The Creator and sustainer of the universe wants to see you! There is no need to hide your face or bow your head in shame, but today you can come boldly to the throne of grace and find mercy and grace to help in the time of need…In Christ, God has provided a way, so that you and I, just like this woman, can expose ourselves to the clear light of day, and, as the old folks would say “have a little talk with Jesus.” What a forgiving, loving and mighty God we serve!
Our text tells us that as Jesus entered Sychar, he sat down upon a well, and that as He did so, He was tired. I’m so glad to be able to say that no matter what our condition, whether it be tired, worn, weary, disappointed, or just plain burned out that Jesus knows all about it! “But we have not an high priest,” the book says, “that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was tempted in all points, like as we are, yet without sin.” Whatever it is we may be going through, we have an Advocate…who knows all about it, not merely because He’s God, and He sees all, but because He was loving enough and kind enough and merciful enough to come down here, and go through every single bit of it…Himself.
As this woman, this every woman, this anywoman whose name the Bible does not give approaches Jesus, we marvel at the fact that the last encounter, the last heart-to-heart that Jesus has had told us that Nicodemus had a name, but this woman does not. Nicodemus was pious and religious, but this woman was immoral. Nicodemus was of the Jewish nation, but this woman was a member of a group of outcasts who had once been Israelites, but had so intermingled their blood with that of the surrounding Gentile nations that it had become minimized and diluted to the point where they were no longer considered worthy to be named among God’s people. I’m so glad that there’s room in the church, not only for the religious elite, the ones who were saved and nurtured in the faith from an early age, and groomed for ecclesiastical greatness, but also for the one who comes staggering in on Sunday morning, reeking of alcohol, perhaps with a needle sticking out of their arms, and for poor Roxanne, who can now come running down to the foot of the cross rejoicing, because she knows that she don’t have to put on the red light anymore. Yes, there is room at the cross, even for the ones who don’t yet know who or what they are, and have been down so far into the darkness of sin that it has stolen their very identities, they, too can come to the Father and receive a brand new name!
And so Jesus begins this discussion by asking “miss no-name,” for a drink. He already knows that she’s really the one who is truly thirsty, all right, but not in the way that she thinks. And so I can see her getting a little bit of an attitude here, and she probably does the neck thing and so she asks Him, “How is it that you are even talking to me? Y’all don’t even like us, and especially not someone like me.”
And I like how we can come to Jesus, and the first thing that he does is get in our business. He says, “listen, girl.” If you knew who I was, and what it is that drove me to Samaria to begin with, you would be asking ME for water. You see, I came here, just for you. You were on my mind, and I wanted to meet you because I know that you have been trying and trying and trying to get some satisfaction, and I know that you’re thirsty, but not for this water, but the water that I have, when you drink some of this water, never again will you dig your own wells, never again will you go “looking for love in all the wrong places.” But this water that I have is eternal. It’ll last forever, and if you drink of it, so will you, and so will the lives of all of those whom you touch.” At first, she didn’t know what to do with that, so she got religious, and tried to get into an argument with God about how and where to worship God. In other words, she was saying, “What do you mean, Jesus?” I go to church, just like You do.” But you’re STILL thirsty. “I pay my tithes just like you do. And you’re STILL thirsty. She needed to know that it was really not about any of that, it really wasn’t about where she went to church, or what tradition she followed, or what she did that she was taught to do that was supposed to somehow make her right with God. We have a tendency to come to God, talking about one thing, declaring that we are in need of one thing, and God already knows what we really need. “If I could only get off of this miserable job,” we think, “I’ll be satisfied.” If I can only divorce this wife, and marry that wife, I’ll be satisfied.” “If I can only get this degree, if I can only get someone to hear my music, I’ll be satisfied.”
“…and I try…and I try…and I try…and I try…BUT I CAN’T GET NO…”
There was a time when I myself thought that if I went to the service and gained some rank and some stature, that somehow, I would feel better about myself, but that didn’t work. Even good soldiers can be thirsty. Stripes on your shoulder, and you get to tell other people what to do, and you get celebrated for being a leader of men and women, but you’re still thirsty. Then you get in the church, and you end up in the pulpit and you get to preach the gospel, and you get your credentials, “surely the apostles and the prophets and the pastors and teachers and the evangelists are satisfied,” and you’re still thirsty. Go to school and get multiple degrees, marry a good woman, and still can’t get no satisfaction. Tried drugs, tried alcohol, been through all of that my own self, only to find out that the only place, the only person in whom we can find fulfillment is in Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. Jesus satisfies. The car won’t satisfy. The job won’t satisfy. The education won’t satisfy, and that’s why this woman was placed so prominently in the Bible. Do you know that this conversation that Jesus has, this “heart-to-heart” that He has with this woman is the longest discourse that He has with any individual, even His own disciples, in the Bible? And that means that this incident is ultra-important in that the thrust of the Gospel is not only to save men’s souls from a burning Hell, but to restore them to their original identities that He had given them before the foundation of the world.
And so still not aware of why she keeps coming and coming day after day, to this well, she cries, “Give me this water!” and because she’s still thinking about H20, Jesus has to go a little bit deeper into this woman’s business. “Go get your husband!” He commands, and verse 4:17 through 18 tells us that the only thing that she could do was break down and tell the truth: “I have no husband!” she wails, and Jesus declares, “You got that right! As a matter of fact, you’ve run through FIVE husbands, and the one you’ve got now isn’t even yours!” And I know that we commonly preach this from a moral standpoint and make it as if this lady was needy in a way that she probably wasn’t, but remember in our text she has no NAME, and so she’s constantly looking for someone to tell her who she is. She was looking for the reason for her existence, and I’ve heard it said that “purpose is only known in the mind of the creator of a thing.” No one else was able to tell her, that’s for sure, and let me remind you before we start looking at her funny, that some of us have had five jobs and some of us have been to five schools and some of us have been in five churches, and some of us have lived in five different cities, and we still “can’t get no satisfaction.” It’s not just her. It was all of us, before we met Jesus, and until we could finally find the one thing that could fill that God-shaped hole that was gaping in our hearts. Look at someone, if you will, and ask them, “What’s your five?”
But I thank God that five is the number of grace. Jesus got in her business, but he was gracious about it. He was gentle about it. The only time that God pulls the covers off of us is when He intends to restore us, to rebuild us, to revive us. I love a God who is not unwilling to tell me about myself, because first He tells me what I’m not, and then He tells me the good news of who I really am, who HE says that I am, not the world, not the flesh, and not the devil, and not the family and not the school, and not even the church, but who He says that I am!
So it’s that mighty number five that launches this “no-name,” unfulfilled, unsatisfied woman into her God-given destiny. It was when this woman had an encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ, that she found out that she wasn’t all that after all. Jesus not only got into her business, but He revealed to her the truth about herself in such a galvanizing and dramatic way that He set her on the road to her true destiny.
She had spent her whole life going from one man’s arms to the next, not knowing that God had ordained, from the foundation of the world that she was going to be one of the first witnesses of the Gospel. And this woman preached, I tell you. She preached until a whole city got saved. You can say what you want to, but I’ll bet you that that old girl was so happy, so ecstatic, so grateful to have found out that she wasn’t what everyone and everything around her had said that she was, when she found out that she was a princess, and a royal priest, and a child of the King, I’ll bet that she preached at the top of her lungs so that everybody could hear her. And it’s very important that we note here that she did not say, “Come to church.” No, she said, “Come see a Man!” She did not say, “come and obey these rules, and learn these regulations.” She said, “Come see a Man!” So don’t you never tell me that “God ain’t called no woman to preach,” because He called that one. And He will use anyone, male or female, young or old, who, when confronted by the Son of God, will accept Him, embrace Him, and allow Him to transform them into His image because it is when Jesus restores to us our true identity and releases us into our destiny and launches us into our God-given purpose that Jesus satisfies.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
