Lisa Sheffler, author
The conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman is not the first time in Scripture that living water is used as a metaphor to help people understand the nature of spiritual life. Many centuries before, the prophet Jeremiah proclaimed: “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). People, then and now, are called from cracked wells they dug themselves to the life-giving goodness of God.
Sitting beside a well outside a dusty Samaritan village, Jesus is using the image of fresh, living water to help an outcast see her need for him. As we continue to learn from Jesus, let’s pick up the conversation in verse 15.
Read
John 4:15-30
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?”
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.
Who does Jesus ask the woman to bring to the well? Why can’t she comply?
When she goes into town, what does the woman tell people about Jesus? (See verse 29.)
Reflect
Tired of long, hot trips to the well, the Samaritan woman is definitely interested in the water Jesus is offering her. What she doesn’t understand is that while Jesus cares about our earthly needs, he is even more interested in meeting our eternal ones. This woman needs her spiritual thirst quenched.
This was a woman who had endured a significant amount of suffering and needed the love and acceptance of Jesus. This woman had five husbands in the past, and was living with a man she was not married to. We don’t know why she’d had so many husbands. Could she be a widow many times over? Could she be divorced? In the ancient world, women could not initiate divorce, so if that was the reason, she had been rejected by a string of men. We don’t know the full story, but we do know that tragic circumstances must have led to the life she was living when Jesus chose to speak with her. Jesus mentions her immoral living arrangement, but doesn’t make it the focus of their conversation.
In verse 20, the woman brings up a source of tension between the Samaritans and the Jews, the proper place for worship. It was a long-standing feud, centuries in the making. And if Jesus was a prophet, then perhaps he could settle that dispute. (And not make any more probing observations about her current marital status, thank you very much.) Jesus’ reply in verses 21–24 shows he won’t be distracted by such debates, because knowing the answer to this question will not quench her thirst.
God has never been contained by altars or temples or even “holy” mountains. As Spirit, he transcends geography. And although she does not yet understand it, seated in front of her is God incarnate. After his death, resurrection, and ascension, the Spirit of God would come to dwell in hearts of his people, and only the knowledge of and belief in the gospel is needed to enable true worship.
In verse 25 the woman tries one more tactic. If Jesus won’t take sides in this debate, she wonders if maybe the Messiah will when he comes and settles this religious dispute. He’s already here, Jesus proclaims. “I am he.” This is the first time this admission has been made in John’s Gospel, and it’s the Samaritan woman — not Peter nor John or any of the disciples — who is the first to hear.
Again, we can learn how to have fruitful, spiritual conversations from Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman. He keeps the focus on himself and the life he can give. In talking to non-Christians, many of us can get sidetracked by secondary issues. We can get pulled into arguments about whatever the controversy of the day is, whether it’s the election, abortion, immigration, or the authority of the Bible. Those can be worthwhile conversations, but they aren’t the most important ones, at least until the question of Jesus is answered.
Until the matter of Jesus Christ is settled, everything else is just an abstract debate. Your non-Christian friend can share your opinion on every single hot-button issue, but if they don’t believe the gospel, it won’t matter for eternity. We need to keep the identity of Christ central, because that’s what he did.
About this time, the disciples show up with the food they went to get. They are surprised about who Jesus is talking to, but probably know better than to mention it. I’m sure it wasn’t the first or last time they were challenged by the breadth of their Lord’s reach. From Nicodemus, a respected Jewish leader to a Samaritan woman with a bad reputation, Jesus came to seek and save the lost.
It’s not clear how much the woman really understands about Jesus before she rushes off to town, leaving her jar behind. But she’s excited enough to tell people about him. And they came out to see him. That’s how the gospel always spreads. People telling other people about Jesus.
Respond
- Taking into account what Paul and Peter have said about grace, gentleness and respect in the passages we looked at earlier in the week, how can we help people see that God is offering them living water?
- Now that we’ve studied Jesus’ entire conversation with the Samaritan woman, how do you see Christ listening and responding with love?
Ministry Partner Spotlight
We’re continuing to highlight some of the global workers that Christ Fellowship supports. All over the world, they are sharing the gospel, working to strengthen local churches, and serving communities. You can find out more about all of them on the Christ Fellowship website.
Floyd and Tamra Stanley, Agape Ministries International
Floyd and Tamra are ministering in Cambodia. Agape International Missions (AIM) is a Christ-led, non-denominational, not-for-profit organization that exists to glorify God through our dedicated efforts to love, protect, and care for survivors of trafficking as well as other vulnerable and exploited individuals. Through a holistic approach of rescuing, restoring and reintegrating survivors of trafficking and preventing sexual slavery, AIM seeks to meet survivors’ spiritual, emotional, social, educational and physical needs. Our intention is that they may come to know their worth and value in Christ, develop a dependence on Him, and develop skills for a sustainable life.