Jesus/Samaritan Woman!

November 13, 2023 Monday Message:

John 4:7 NLT: “Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.”

John Ch. 4 begins with an account of Jesus’ encounter with the Woman at the Well. Those 26 verses teach about non-Jews accepting Christ. So this week, let’s look at what happened that day and how it applies to us.

Jesus hometown was in Galilee, in the northern part of Israel. But the Temple was in Jerusalem, in Judea, far to the south. In between the two was Samaria, and most Jews had no time for Samaritans. The Jews were a prejudiced lot, dismissing outsiders, and in fact outright avoiding them. Jews were God’s ‘chosen people,’ and no one else mattered.

Galilee is straight north of Jerusalem. But if a Jew had to travel from Jerusalem to Galilee, they typically wouldn’t head north. They would go west a considerable distance to the Mediterranean Sea, then north up the coastline, and finally east to Galilee, adding about a third to the distance traveled, but avoiding Samaria.

Jesus and his disciples, on the other hand, took the short route straight through the middle of Samaria, arriving at the village of Sychar. Jesus settled beside Jacob’s well while the disciples searched for food. A Samaritan woman approached, and Jesus asked if she could ladle him something to drink.

There are several lessons here. First, if more people are to learn about Jesus, learn about salvation, we might find ourselves speaking to people we’d normally avoid. It’s the right thing to do. It’s what Jesus did! The fact that the woman was from Samaria didn’t prevent Jesus from spreading the Good News. Next thing – she was a woman and Jesus was a man, and it wasn’t customary for people of the opposite sex to strike up a conversation, to dialog with one another. It wasn’t considered ‘proper.’ Again this custom didn’t inhibit Jesus or the woman.

The last thing is that she in fact gave Jesus the water. Her life was a mess, but she had a heart of gold. She chose to do the next right thing, traditions and laws be damned! She got Jesus the water he needed. They probably shared the same ladle!

Jesus told believers to take the Good News to all nations, so don’t be surprised if you find yourself with people who don’t look like you, dress like you or speak like you. Accept the mission on which God sent you. Don’t let bad rules or outdated traditions slow the spread of the Gospel. And when in doubt, be helpful. Do the next right thing. That’s what Jesus and the woman did.

More tomorrow! Blessings!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship