This morning I am going to talk about appetite. Now I know that some of you are already thinking about lunch, but my theme this morning is not food. Often times we speak about being hungry or thirsty for the Lord because they are terms that everyone can understand. Do you long for God like a cold drink on a hot day? Do you seek after God like you run to your refrigerator after a long days work? Well we are going to look at a story this morning where a woman was thirsty literally, but there was a thirst in her soul that was not being quenched. She had an appetite that she was looking to satisfy, but the things she tried always left her empty.
The same old watering hole (vs.4-7)
It is interesting that John begins this story off by making it sound as if it were almost coincidental. For a regular, unsatisfied Samaritan woman it was another normal day. Because of the lifestyle that she had chosen she had to come and get water when she could be sure that there was nobody else there. A branded adulterer, she would have been an outcast and during the hottest part of the day she was going to retrieve water from the same watering hole she had been going to for years. Water was needed for survival in this arid climate and this routine would have been a daily one. Little did she know that by the wonderful design of God she was about to have an encounter with the King of kings. She comes up the hill lost in thought and staring at the ground, thinking no one would be there and she is startled by the voice of a man asking her for a drink.
Jesus comes intersects her life in the midst of ordinary. She, like many of us, was doing what she needed to survive and make it by from day to day. It’s not exciting, but that’s life right. It is hard to have an appetite for something more when you have never tasted anything better. We only ever have an appetite for what we feed ourselves and Jesus comes to challenge that. He comes to meet us where we are. Imagine Jesus leaning against the frozen vegetables at Coles while you are racing through the store because your kids are driving you mad. Well you are here this morning going through whatever it is you’re going through and Jesus is here and he has a challenge for you this morning.
The emptiness (vs.8-14)
One of the things that Jesus was so very good at was pin pointing issues in a person’s life and confronting them on those issues. This woman would have had some self worth problems, not only as a woman, but as a Samaritan. It was not racially correct to speak with a Samaritan when you were a Jew; they were half breeds. Yet Jesus opens a conversation with this woman which would have broken down any racial or gender tensions that might have existed. He asked her for water, but really wanted to give her living water; water that would fill the emptiness in her life. He was offering her something that would completely satisfy her appetite, today and forever.
This is something we struggle with in this culture because there are so many things that claim to satisfy. We often find ourselves filling up on things that do not last and we are left wanting more. Like MacDonald’s, they have food that tastes good to millions of people, but the satisfaction is momentary and its long term effects are destructive. Same goes with trying to find satisfaction in sex, sports, alcohol, T.V., or whatever else you feed on. Jesus is clearly offering something better, but are we hungry for it? Believers can loose your appetite for the things of God when they get hungry for other things instead. Ever been full, absolutely busting? Imagine you are full from eating 25 Big Macs and you go to someone’s house and they have a beautiful meal set out on the table; there’s turkey, potatoes, pumpkin, gravy, fresh bread, and all the trimmings. Now even though this food is clearly superior, both in taste and balance, you have no appetite for it because you have filled yourself with junk.
Many people come to God like this. He clearly has something superior for us to partake in, but because we have filled up on other things we have no appetite for the things of God.
The Source (vs.15-26)
This woman had certainly filled herself with things in this life that were fleeting. We find out that she had had many husbands and was living with some other guy. She was ashamed enough to have to get water when nobody else was there. Thank God he came to us while we were still sinners. Jesus was telling this woman that not only could he give her something that would truly satisfy, but that she would be able to enjoy this satisfaction no matter where she was. She didn’t have to go to Jerusalem or even to the temple. She could find Him wherever and whenever she chose to worship. All of this seemed too much for her, but she knew that when Christ would come he would make all things clear.
“I am the Messiah!” He revealed himself to her because today was her day for salvation!
Some of you may be sitting here this morning thinking, “I haven’t really had an appetite for God for quite some time,” maybe you never have. We live in a culture that gorges on things that leave us wanting, but we keep falling prey to the lie. “You know church is good, but this is where I have my real fun.” “Yeah I love God and everything, but I am busy working so that I can be rich.” It’s easy to see how you can lose your appetite for God. You will have an appetite for what you feed on most! Jesus is declaring that only he can satisfy and that you can be satisfied anytime and anywhere. It is a wonderful promise, but how many of us grab hold of it everyday and live fulfilled lives?
Conclusion
When people are sick they lose their appetite. If you have ever known someone who has struggled with cancer you know that eventually they just lose their appetite, which is where the phrase ‘healthy appetite’ comes from. If you are healthy then you will have an appetite. If you have lost your appetite for God then you are not healthy. Have you lost your appetite for God? What are you hungry for this morning? Is Jesus’ offer to you this morning even appealing because you are so used to feeding off of junk? Do you want to be satisfied this morning? I am so very happy to declare that today could be your day of salvation, but you have to make a move towards the Messiah and believe. You have to give up all the things that never satisfy and come to the fountain that will NEVER run dry. The Samaritan woman found what her heart was searching for that day and so can you.
You gave it all for me
My soul desire, my everything
And all I am is devoted to You
How could I fail to see
You are the love that rescued me
And all I am is devoted to You
And oh, how could I not be moved, Lord here with You
So have Your way in me cause Lord, there is just one thing that I will seek
This is my cry, My one desire
Is to be where You are, Lord
Now and forever, Its more than a song
My one desire, Is to be with You, Is to be with You, Jesus
