The Pharisees had heard that Jesus was now baptizing more people than John the Baptist, but it was Jesus' disciples who were baptizing. Jesus found out that the Pharisees knew and he left Judea and went back to Galilee. As he traveled through Samaria, he came to a town called Sychar - near where Jacob had given Joseph a plot of land. Jacob's well was still there and Jesus sat down by the well. There was a Samaritan woman who had arrived to get water from the well and Jesus asks here if she would give him a drink. She said, "but you are a Jew and I am a Samaritan. How can you ask me for a drink"? This is when Jesus told her about the gift of God and who it is that asks her for a drink. "You would have asked him and he would have given you living water." The woman was understandably confused and she says to Jesus, "You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep". Then she asks Jesus where she could get this "living water" and asks him if he is greater than Jacob who built the well. Jesus then explains to the woman that whoever drinks of this water will become thirsty again, but "whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." Then the woman asks for the water he speaks of that she may not be thirsty.
Jesus then tells the woman to go and get her husband and come back, but the woman says she does not have a husband. Then Jesus tells her that she is correct in saying that because she actually has five husbands and that the man she is with now is not her husband. This impresses the woman and she calls Jesus a prophet, then she says her people worship on the mountain here in Samaria, but the Jews say the place to worship is in Jerusalem. Jesus then tells the woman that Samaritans worship what they do not know and that a time will come when you shall worship the Father, not on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." The woman doesn't sound like she believes Jesus when he says this and she tells him that the Messiah is coming and he will explain everything to them. Then Jesus tells her, "I who speak to you am he."
The problems I see in this passage is that, even though Jesus Christ - the Messiah - is talking face to face with someone and revealing God's plan for them, they still do not see that he is actually the one on whom they are waiting. She was still skeptical even after Jesus told her of the living water. This just seems typical of the people of that time. They thought they knew God, but were not listening to Him. Of course this isn't any different than it is today. The problem is that many people who say they are Christians, believers, and followers still do not have that relationship with Him that would let them know when He is actually speaking to them. They do not know God's voice.
Parallels:
Genesis 33:19; Joshua24:32; Isaiah 2:3; 44:3; Malachi 1:11; 1 timothy 2:8; 2 Kings 17:28-41; Romans 9:4,5; Philippians 3:3
Perils:
The perils I find in this passage are that, even though people will say they believe, they do not have a relationship with God. They do not know His voice and will be easily led astray by false prophets or even soothsayers for that matter. They might believe in "spiritualism" but not in the true God; creator of the universe. To me, these are "lukewarm" Christians who do not really know what to believe until someone tells them. I know because I used to be one of these people.
Commands in this text, to me, say to have a relationship with the Father and be able to know His voice. When God speaks to someone, there should be no doubt who it is. Our Pastor at church on Sunday said that when the second coming of Christ happens - we will know about it. There won't be any doubt as to who it is and what is taking place. We won't need to hear about it second hand from someone else. This should be the way we know God's voice and the only way to do this is to have that relationship with Him.
Applications:
I can apply this message in my life today by building on my relationship with the Lord and knowing what it is that He says to me. I will remain faithful to the only true living God and have comfort in knowing that when I seek Him with all my heart in an effort to draw closer to Him, He in turn draws closer to me. Thank you JESUS!
No comments:
Post a Comment