Turning Religious Reluctance-7

TURNING RELIGIOUS RELUCTANCE-VII—John 4:1-26+

Turning the Religious Lost

Attention:

Think Twice Before Continuing down the path you’re on!

?The new tools in Weight Watchers’ weight loss arsenal(not really) are a knife & fork with wooden handles made of the thorny part of rose bush stems!

The Church exists to turn the world away from it’s errant way!

Everybody lives by a ‘religion’—a set of spiritual & secular values that they hold to. These may be right or wrong.

Everybody has a belief system to which they subscribe—right or wrong.

Even atheists have a religion & are religious people.

These may be ‘reluctant’ to turn, But by the power of God, they are turnable nonetheless!

*We are all called to serve God in spirit & in truth, AND to...“Go therefore & make disciples of ALL the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit, teaching THEM to observe all things that I have commanded you; & lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”!(Matthew 28:19-20)...

God’s people(the Church) are to actively reach, invite, & urge(without the confines of fleshly prejudice) others, to become disciples of Jesus.

Thru the symbolism of baptism, God’s people are to publicly declare a person’s belief & allegiance to the body of Christ in the name of the Trinitarian God(Father, Son, & Holy Spirit).

God’s people are to continually teach themselves & others all that God has done, is doing, & will do thru Christ.

God’s people are to encourage each other thru Christ’s eternal presence.

Jesus divulged/bore witness of/ His Messianic identity to a reluctant/hesitant but religious woman.

God’s people bear witness of Messiah’s/Jesus’ identity to reluctant religious people.

How/When will God’s people turn the reluctancy of the religious?

OR--What does it take to turn that religious reluctancy around?

Some insights toward turning religious reluctance to God.

The last time we looked in these verses we found that,

Turning religious reluctance to God requires...

1. SERVICE Insight(:1-3)

2. CONSEQUENTIAL Insight(:4-6)

3. COMPASSIONED Insight(:7-8)

4. BLIND/UNHINDERED Insight(:9)

5. POSSESSIVE Insight(:10)

6. TRUTHFUL Insight(:11-14)

7—Turning religious reluctance to God requires...

LIFESTYLE Insight(:15-18)

Explanation:(:15-18)

:15—“The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”

The woman saw that she needed the “water” which Jesus offered her. If she would accept it, she would never “thirst” again. She would never have to make the trek or expend the energy to seek out “water” ever again.

‘Indoor plumbing’ would be a blessing to those who have to plan their lives around the collection of water. Jesus’ ‘water’ is indeed indoor plumbing...indoor spiritual plumbing!

In Jesus’ day the Romans had made personal indoor plumbing a possibility but only for the very affluent Roman citizens. Israel was not Roman but they were occupied by the Romans. Springs were known, aqueducts were known, fountains were known, plumbing was known but only rarely had.

Jesus’ promise(:14-15) is minimally intriguing & yet entirely realistic & practical. The fact that she had to “come here to draw” was distasteful because it required effort/work. Her mind still seems to be locked in on the physical need for “water” & the work surrounding it’s acquisition. Thus she demands that Jesus “give” her “this water” of which He speaks(:14)...

Yet at the same time, she is making her demand in direct(?) response to Jesus’ statement that ‘His water’ would “become in her a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life”(:14).

She grasps the significance of the labor expended in order to obtain physical “water”, however she does not grasp the spiritual application that Jesus has portrayed/painted/pictured surrounding “water.”

“Woman”(See :7, 9, 11, 17, 19, 21, 25)—gunh—

“Sir”—kuriov—

“Give”(See :14)—didwmi—2Aorist Active Imperative 2nd Sing.—

“Water”3X(See :10, 11, 13, 14)—udwr; or genitive case, udatov—

“Not”(See :14; :2, 18, 22—ou, ouk, ouc)—mh—Particle—1) No, not lest. Strong—a primary particle of qualified negation(whereas ou, ouk, ouc expresses an absolute denial); adverbially--Not, conjunctionally--Lest; also(as an interrogative implying a negative answer[whereas ou expects an affirmative one])--Whether.

“Thirst”(See :13, 14)—diqaw—Verb—1) To suffer thirst, suffer from thirst—1a) figuratively--Those who are said to thirst who painfully feel their want of, & eagerly long for, those things by which the soul is refreshed, supported, strengthened. Strong—To thirst for(literally or figuratively). Used 16X.

“Nor”—mhde—Particle—1) And not, but not, nor, not. Strong—But not, not even; in a continued negation--Nor.?From—mh—a primary particle of qualified negation (whereas ou, ouk, ouc express an absolute denial); adverbially--Not, conjunctionally--Lest; also(as an interrogative implying a negative answer [whereas ou, ouk, ouc expect an affirmative one])--Whether—&—de—1) But, moreover, and, etc..

“Come”(See :7)—ercomai—Verb—1) To come—1a) of persons—1a1) To come from one place to another, & used both of persons arriving & of those returning, 1a2) To appear, make one's appearance, come before the public; 2) metaph.—2a) To come into being, arise, come forth, show itself, find place or influence, 2b) Be established, become known, to come(fall) into or unto; 3) To go, to follow one. Ercomai denotes motion or progress generally, & of any sort, hence to “come” & arrive at, as well as “to go.” Strong—middle voice of a primary verb(used only in the present & imperfect tenses, the others being supplied by a kindred [middle voice]eleuyomai; or [active]elyw; which do not otherwise occur); To come or go(in a great variety of applications, literally & figuratively).