ARE YOU THIRSTY? John 4: 3-26 & 39-42

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1 ARE YOU THIRSTY? John 4: 3-26 & Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John 2 although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. 3 So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. 4 Now he had to go through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. 7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, Will you give me a drink? 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink? (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans. [a] ) 10 Jesus answered her, If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water. 11 Sir, the woman said, you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock? 13 Jesus answered, Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life. 15 The woman said to him, Sir, give me this water so that I won t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water. 16 He told her, Go, call your husband and come back. 17 I have no husband, she replied. Jesus said to her, You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true. 19 Sir, the woman said, I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem. 21 Woman, Jesus replied, believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth. 25 The woman said, I know that Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us. 26 Then Jesus declared, I, the one speaking to you I am he. 27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, What do you want? or Why are you talking with her?

2 28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah? 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him. Because the Pharisees were trying to incite competition between Jesus and John the Baptist, Jesus left Judea and started north for Galilee. He could have taken one of three possible routes: along the sea cost, across the Jordan and up through Perea or straight through Samaria. Orthodox Jews avoided Samaria because there was a longstanding, deep-seated hatred between them and the Samaritans. The Samaritans were a mixed race, part Jew and part Gentile, which grew out of the Assyria captivity of the ten northern tribes. They were rejected by the Jews and forced to establish their own temple and religious services at Mt. Grizim. So intense was the dislike of the Samaritans that some of the Pharisees prayed that no Samaritan would be raised in the resurrection. They were actually saying "YOU JUST GO TO HELL" When His enemies wanted to call Jesus an insulting name, they called him a Samaritan. But notice in V. 4 the Bible says that he HAD to go through Samaria. Jesus was on a divinely appointed schedule, it was necessary that Jesus go through Samaria. WHY? Because there was a woman there who needed salvation. She was a woman who would receive a faith that would affect an entire village. Our Lord was no RESPECTER of Persons. We see in this story the great length that He takes in seeking out sinners. The Pharisees and other church leaders may have said to this woman and her race, YOU JUST GO TO HELL but Jesus said I came to seek and save those that are Lost. Jesus arrived at Jacob's well at around 12:00 P.M. The disciples went to a nearby town for food while Jesus DELIBERATELY waited at the well. He knew that the woman would be coming and He was willing to wait on her. John tells us that He was TIRED, HUNGRY, and THIRSTY to show us that even though He was the Son of God he still was a true man. He entered into all the normal experiences of our lives and is able to identify with us in each of them. He knows what it is like to be TIRED, HUNGARY and THIRSTY just like we do. However He did not let these things be an EXCUSE to miss the chance to Minister to the woman. If it had been us As we examine these scriptures we need to see this woman and how her knowledge of Jesus increases until she acknowledges that He is the Christ. There are four stages to this experience. FIRST of all she identified Him as a JEW ( v 7-10) As Jesus sat there by the well there came a Samaritan woman. Why she should come to that WELL at that TIME is something of a mystery. For it was more than half-a-mile from Sychar where she lived and there was water there. Also most women came and got water in the cool of the morning or late in the afternoon. For her to come to THIS WELL at this

3 TIME of the day may indicate that she was such a MORAL OUTCAST - that the women of the town had driven her away from her village well and she had to come here to draw water. Maybe she was so ashamed of her lifestyle and tired of hearing the GOSSIP and WHISPERS that she sought solitude when what she really need was a FRIEND and SOMEONE to care for her. In that day, it was not considered proper for any man, especially a rabbi to speak in public to a woman. A Rabbi might not even speak to his own wife or daughter or sister in public. For a rabbi to be seen speaking to a woman in public was the END of his REPUTATION. Here she was with a NOTORIOUS REPUTATION and yet Jesus risked His own reputation to speak to her. Jesus saw this woman's SOUL as MORE IMPORTANT that social customs and He spoke to her despite the fact that she was a SAMARITAN and A WOMAN. He ACCEPTED her without APPROVING of her sin. It surprised her when He asked her for a drink of water. She observed that He was a Jewish rabbi and perhaps she tried to "read between the lines. She knew that He was breaking social and ritual customs. She wondered what He was really after was He just another man trying to TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HER. What was he really after? She asks Jesus why do you a JEW ask me a Samaritan for water. She was saying why would Jesus a PURE Jew as she saw it want to use her POLLUTED vessel to get a drink of water. I am so glad today that Jesus still seeks "POLLUTED" vessels today to use. Aren't you? Of course our Lord's request was simply a way to open the CONVERSATION and share with her the truth about LIVING WATER. Whenever Jesus witnessed to people He did not use a Rehearsed "Sales talk" He met people were THEY WERE and USED simple illustrations around them to get the point across. If he was around farmers, He talked about crops. If he was around fisherman He talked about fish. Page 3

4 Jesus pointed out to her in V. 10 that she was UNINFORMED of three important facts #! WHO HE WAS, # 2 WHAT HE HAD TO OFFER# 3 HOW SHE COULD RECEIVE IT. Here was the ETERNAL GOD speaking to her, offering her eternal life. If only we today could get people to realize WHO HE IS, WHAT HE HAS TO OFFER, and HOW they can RECEIVE it, then we WILL be doing our job as a church!! In v she identified Him as ONE GREATER THAN JACOB. Jesus was speaking about Spiritual water but she interpreted His words to mean LITERAL water. She was concerned with HOW he would get this water instead of asking Him for some of it. People today are more concerned with HOW JESUS CAN SAVE THEM AND HOW HE CAN CHANGE THEIR LIVES that they are with asking Him to do it. She asked was He greater than Jacob who dug the well. Of course Jesus was greater than Jacob and greater than the well itself. Jesus said Whoever CONTINUES to drink of this material water (or ANYTHING that the world has to offer) will thirst again. IT WILL NOT SATISFY YOU! But whoever TAKES ONE DRINK on the water that I give will NEVER thirst again. How true it is that the world never completely satisfies. In HELL today people are crying "I THIRST" The woman's immediate response was to ask for this gift, but she did not know what she was saying. The seed of the WORD fell on SHALLOW soil and the shoots that sprang up had not root. She was just having an emotional experience and Jesus knew that she really didn't quite understand yet. She had made progress, but she still had a long way to go; so Jesus patiently dealt with her. In V she identified Him as A PROPHET. The only way to prepare the soil for the seed is to PLOW it up with CONVICTION. That was why Jesus told her to go get her husband. He forced her to admit her sin. THERE CAN BE NO CONVERSION WITHOUT CONVICTION. There must first 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 CONSCIENCE and that meant dealing with her sin. Many people today want the preacher and the church to be TOUGH on SIN but just not their SIN When the preacher is preaching about sin they look around and say I wonder who he is talking about I just know that he doesn't mean ME. Page 4

5 Share story about RADAR. Jesus wants to deal WITH OUR SIN and BRING us FACE TO FACE WITH IT -SO we can CONFESS it and REPENT of IT. Notice her response "I have no husband" this was the shortest statement she made during the entire conversation. Why because now she was under CONVICTION and her mouth was stopped. It gets real quite when you preach on sin. I know this was uncomfortable for this woman but it was the best thing that could happen to her -to have to face her sin. I know that hearing about your sin is UNCOMFORTABLE but it is the best thing that can happen to you IF it brings you to face your sin and leads you to REPENTANCE of it. In v Jesus shows her that He knows the whole truth about her You have spoken well. Black preacher DR. TONY EVANS said Had 5 and the One you are SHACKING with right now isn't yours. Jesus showed her that he KNEW every BAD thing about her- He knew every one of her sins and HE stilled LOVED her and wanted her to be saved. He was saying to her the FIVE HUSBANDS and the CURRENT LOVER have not satisfied the THIRST in YOUR SOUL. You are still THIRSTY for something else. This morning He knows EVERY BAD THING about you and EVERY one of your SINS and HE still loves you and wants you to be saved. He knows that the things that you have tried HAVE not SATISFIED the THIRST in your soul. Only HE as the LIVING WATER can quench you parched soul that is crying out for the LIVING WATER. Stop drinking from the mud hole and get the pure living water. However instead of listening to Jesus, she tried to get Him on a DETOUR by discussing the differences between the Jewish and Samaritan religions. It is much more COMFORTABLE to discuss RELIGION or CHURCH POLITICS than to face one's SINS. People had rather ARGUE and COMPLAIN about others than Talk about themselves and their spiritual need. 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. The only faith that God will accept is to who worship in SPIRIT and TRUTH and that is through Jesus Christ. was In V the CHRIST is identified to her. In spite of her ignorance their Page 5

6 one truth this woman did know: In v. 25 she says The MESSIAH was coming and would reveal the secrets of the heart. We do not know where she had learned this truth but we do know that this seed had lain BURIED in her heart until that very hour and NOW it was going to bear fruit. The plow of CONVICTION had done ifs job and now the seed would take ROOT and produce FRUIT. Our Lord's response to her statement was "I who speak to you am He " At this point the woman put her FAITH in Jesus and was CONVERTED. She identifies Christ to OTHERS In v. 28 we find that immediately she wanted to share her faith with others. Here was a woman who was coming to the well AWAY from town in the MIDDLE of the Day to avoid EVERYONE and NOW Here she was LEAVING her WATER POT and running to the city to tell everyone to COME and SEE a man who told me ALL things I ever did. That would be quite a story. What she was really saying was" I have found someone who knows ALL the BAD about me and he still LOVES and ACCEPTS me. I have found someone who isn't just trying to USE and ABUSE Me but He really CARES for ME. When you consider how little spiritual truth this woman knew her ZEAL and WITNESS put us to shame. But God used her simple testimony and many of the people came out to the well to meet JESUS. When you meet Jesus and he changes your life you want EVERYONE to know. YOU can't wait to tell others. Why did she leave her WATER POT? She now had the LIVING WATER within her and was now satisfied. Also she intended to come back and bring others and she wanted Jesus and His disciples to be able to use her vessel if they needed it. When Jesus gets a hold of us we want to be used of him for a TESTIMONY but also we freely give our Possessions to be used by Him. In v. 39 we find that many of the Samaritans believed because of the Testimony of the woman and then many more believed when they heard Jesus personally. The unnamed Samaritan woman was a fruitful believer. Nobody knows how many lost sinners have come to the Savior because of the witness of this woman. Even though others saw her and her race as unimportant and her sin had caused her to be an OUTCAST, Jesus saw her value and worth. He DELIBERATELY went her way and sought her out. He DELIBERATELY waited for her at the well. He BROKE the social Page 6

7 customs of the time by speaking to her despite the fact that she was a WOMAN and a SAMARITAN. He knew every bad things and sin about her, yet he still ACCEPTED her and LOVED her. He loved her enough to BRING her FACE TO FACE WITH HER SIN. He showed her HOW to RECEIVE the LIVING WATER to satisfy the thirst in her soul that five husbands and a shack up could not. He didn't CONDEMN her. He allowed the Spirit to CONVICT HER. Jesus wants to do the same for you today. He wants you to receive the LIVING WATER to satisfy the thirst in Your Soul. He will meet you every need. IS anybody THIRST? Won't you come to the WELL and drink? FIELDS WHITE UNTO HARVEST V We need to find the person with the bad reputation and get them saved-then they will start a revival fire in this community ** This sermon contains material from sources other than the original thoughts of Rev. Gary Mimbs. Several preaching and illustration resources were used in the construction of this sermon. Not all authors or contributors are sited or noted as many of them received their information from others and their sources are not noted. May all glory go to God the originator of all thought and blessings.