Digging Deeper Bishop Timothy R.

Carter 4-27-08 (NKJV) Locate with me John 4

Many of the rabbis during the days of Jesus said, It is better that the words of the Law be burned than be delivered to a woman! Today we will see that Jesus did not agree with this. Because the Pharisees were trying to incite competition between Jesus and John t he Baptist (John 3:2530), Jesus left Judea and started north for Galilee. He cou ld have taken one of three possible routes: along the coast, across the Jordan a nd up through Perea, or straight through Samaria. Orthodox Jews avoided Samaria because there was a long-standing, deep-seated hatred between them and the Sama ritans. The Samaritans were a mixed race, part Jew and part Gentile, that grew out of th e Assyrian captivity of the ten northern tribes in 727 B.C. Rejected by the Jews because they could not prove their genealogy, the Samaritans established their own temple and religious services on Mt. Gerizim. This only fanned the fires of prejudice. So intense was their dislike of the Samaritans that some of the Phari sees prayed that no Samaritan would be raised in the resurrection! When His ene mies wanted to call Jesus an insulting name, they called Him a Samaritan (John 8 :48). Because He was on a divinely appointed schedule, it was necessary that Jesus go through Samaria. Why? Because He would meet a woman there and lead her into sa ving faith, the kind of true faith that would affect an entire village. Our Lor d was no respecter of persons. Earlier, He counseled a moral Jewish man (John 3) , and now He would witness to an immoral Samaritan woman! He arrived at Jacobs well at 6 oclock in the evening, the usual time for women to come for water. The disciples went to the nearby town for food while Jesus deli berately waited at the well. He was weary, hungry, and thirsty. John not only p resents Jesus as the Son of God but also as true man. Our Lord entered into all the normal experiences of our lives and is able to identify with us in each of them. As you read our Lords interview with this woman, notice how her knowledge of Jesu s increases until she acknowledges that He is the Christ. There were four stages in this experience. John 4:1-26 1 Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John 2 (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), 3 He left Judea and departed again to Galilee. 4 But He needed t o go through Samaria. 5 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacobs well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. He is a Jew (vv. 710) 7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, Give Me a drink. 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Then the woman of Sama ria said to Him, How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samarita

n woman? For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered and said to her, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, Give Me a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water. In that day, it was not considered proper for any man, especially a rabbi, to sp eak in public to a strange woman (John 4:27). But our Lord set social customs a side because a souls eternal salvation was at stake. It certainly surprised her when He asked for a drink of water. She surmised that He was a Jewish rabbi, an d perhaps she tried to read between the lines to find another meaning to His reque st. What was He really seeking? The information in Johns parenthesis at the end of John 4:9 was for the benefit o f his Gentile readers. Since the disciples had gone into the city to purchase f ood, it is obvious that the Jews did have some dealings with the Samaritans; so Jo hn was not trying to exaggerate. The phrase can be translated ask no favors from the Samaritans or use no vessels in common with the Samaritans. Why would Jesus, a Jew, want to use her polluted vessel to get a drink of water? Of course, our Lords request was simply a way to open the conversation and share with her the truth about living water. Whenever He witnessed to people, Jesus did not use a sales talk that He adapted to meet every situation. To Nicodemus, He s poke about new birth; but to this woman, He spoke about living water. Jesus pointed out to her that she was ignorant of three important facts: Who He was, what He had to offer, and how she could receive it. Here was eternal God speaking to her, offering her eternal life! The Samaritans were as blind as the Jews (John 1:26). But our Lords words had aroused her inte rest, so she pursued the conversation. Greater than Jacob (vv. 1115) 11 The woman said to Him, Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is dee p. Where then do You get that living water? 12 Are You greater than our father J acob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and h is livestock? 13 Jesus answered and said to her, Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will nev er thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. 15 The woman said to Him, Sir, give me t his water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw. Jesus was speaking about spiritual water, but she interpreted His words to mean literal water. Again, we see how easily people confuse the material and the spi ritual. Furthermore, this woman was concerned about how He would obtain this wa ter, instead of simply asking Him to give her a drink of it. Of course Jesus is greater than Jacoband greater than the well itself! To paraph rase His reply: John 4:13-14 13 Jesus answered and said to her, Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again , 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. Bu t the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springi ng up into everlasting life. How true it is that the things of this world never completely satisfy. We have noted before that life is one of Johns key concepts. He uses the word at

least thirty-six times. The womans immediate response was to ask for this gift, but she did not know what she was saying. She had made progress, but she still had a long way to go; so Jesus patiently dealt with her. A prophet (vv. 1624) 16 Jesus said to her, Go, call your husband, and come here. 17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said to her, You have well said, I have no husban d, 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your h usband; in that you spoke truly. 19 The woman said to Him, Sir, I perceive that Yo u are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say tha t in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship. 21 Jesus said to her, Woma n, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we know wha t we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and now i s, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. The only way to prepare the soil of the heart for the seed is to plow it up with conviction. That was why Jesus told her to go get her husband: He forced her t o admit her sin. There can be no conversion without conviction. There must fir st be conviction and repentance, and then there can be saving faith. Jesus had aroused her mind and stirred her emotions, but He also had to touch her conscien ce, and that meant dealing with her sin. I have no husband was the shortest statement she made during the entire conversati on! But this was the best thing that could have happened to her! However, instead of listening to Jesus, she tried to get Him on a detour by discus sing the differences between the Jewish and the Samaritan religions. It is much more comfortable to discuss religion than to face ones sins! However, Jesus once again revealed her spiritual ignorance: she did not know who to worship, where to worship, or how to worship! He made it clear that all religions are not equally acceptable before God, that some worshipers act in ignorance and unbelief. Only those who have the indwelling Holy Spirit, and who obey the truth, can wors hip God acceptably. It was a devastating statement to say that worship would no longer be limited to the Jewish temple. This ties in with John 2:1921 and also Stephens statement in Acts 7:4850. Jews reading this Gospel should realize that God has established in Jesus Christ a whole new economy. The Old Covenant Law has been fulfilled and set aside. The Christ (vv. 2530) 25 The woman said to Him, I know that Messiah is coming (who is called Christ). Whe n He comes, He will tell us all things. 26 Jesus said to her, I who speak to you a m He. In spite of her ignorance, there was one truth this woman did know: the Messiah

was coming and would reveal the secrets of hearts. Where did she learn this tru th? We do not know, but that seed had lain buried in her heart until that very hour, and now it was going to bear fruit. Our Lords response to her statement wa s, literally: I that speak to thee, I am! John 4:39-42 39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word o f the woman who testified, He told me all that I ever did. 40 So when the Samarita ns had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two da ys. 41 And many more believed because of His own word. 42 Then they said to the woman, Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world. At this point, the woman put her faith in Jesus Christ and was converted. Immed iately she wanted to share her faith with others, so she went into the village a nd told the men she had met the Christ. When you consider how little spiritual truth this woman knew, her zeal and witness put us to shame. But God used her s imple testimony, and many of the people came out to the well to meet Jesus. B ut Jesus did not agree with that narrow prejudice. About the Author Bishop Carter is the fifth generation of holiness preachers. He answered the cal l to ministry at a young age and has been preaching in the pulpit now for more t han seventeen years. He has served in ministry in various positions ranging from volunteer church custodian, to Mentor, to Senior Pastor and now, together with his wife, he serves as a Ministry Consultant. They live in Norfolk, Nebraska whe re he serves as Senior Pastor at New Life Church of God. He has been called on t o provide consultation for various ministries: counseling, seminars, womens retre ats, evangelizing, pastoring, fundraising, non-church ministries, conference spe aker, ministry training and more. He also served as a Teachers Assistant to a Pro fessor at Lee University for five years. He is an Ordained Bishop with the Churc h of God, Licensed Level 4 Church Consultant and a Certified Community Service C haplain. He has been recognized by the Consulting Department of the Internationa l Evangelism and Home Missions of the Church of God as a Ministry Expert. Bishop C arter holds a Master of Divinity with a Counseling Concentration from the Church of God Theological Seminary and a Bachelor of Science in Pastoral Ministry from Lee University. They provide specialized training for churches and their variou s ministries, and offer innovative programs that span the field of church health , leadership training and resources. They deal with such critical issues as past oral counseling, church consulting, staff assessments, ministry planning, philos ophy planning, organizational structuring, demographic analysis, and a rededicat ion to the spiritual disciplines. He is a leadership trainer and church health e xpert; he can help propel you to the top! You will be inspired and motivated by his ministry knowledge and commitment to the Great Commission. He is a conferenc e speaker and church trainer. In addition, he has done extensive research and tr aining in the areas of discipleship, church growth, and ministry development. He is the author of several books. These are available for purchase at many locati ons. See Solution Ministries web site: www.SolutionMinistries.org.