"Living Water"

December 16, 2010

“Living Water”

Blessings Folk,

We continue with John 4.

Jesus was weary and was resting by the well.
His disciples had gone into town for victuals...vittles...food.

It was high noon.

A woman came to the well to procure water...not the normal time.

She was alone.

Not the norm.

The other women in town likely did not want to have anything to do with her...too many husbands. Who knows how many men she had “stolen.”

The men would have nothing to do with her...she knew where all the skeletons were.

So, she retrieves water alone in the heat of the day.

She encounters a man who request her to draw a drink for Him.

John 4

7 There came a woman of Samaria 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 Therefore the Samaritan woman said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan 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."

 11 She said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water?

 12 "You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?"

 13 Jesus answered and said to her, "
Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again;

 14
but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life."

 15 The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw."

The woman was stunned.

She boldly, aggressively inquired as to how/why a Jew would ask her for a drink.

Jews had nothing to do with Samaritans.
Much less a Jewish man and Samaritan woman.

Normally no conversation would have taken place.

Note what Jesus said… “If you knew the gift of God…”

The Gift of God?
What is that?

Is it the Lord? Yes.
Is it Living Water? Yes.
Jesus tells her - a well of water springing up to eternal life.
A Gift before her.

We should do likewise.

Jesus used the physical need and environment of the moment...thirsty by a well… to open the door to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus was not distracted nor disturbed by her blustery response.

He simply guided her toward The Gift.

Jesus presented her with something which she had never considered - Living Water.

Sure, she did as we would have. She thought He was speaking of the water in the well.

She was a “spiritual” person...she knew of father Jacob (and some things we will see later)...but she was looking and living in the natural.

Folk are the same today.

They really do know there is “something more.” Romans 1 gives us some insight.

Yet, all too often, rather than give them Living Water as Jesus did, we give them that which they already know and have encountered - religion. Jesus did not deal with “Jacob”. Later we will see that she brings up more religion. We must do as Jesus did. He was not distracted by question or argument. He dealt with the real issues behind the questions.

He did not give religion.
He did not give denominational stance.
He did not “invite her to temple.”

Living Water. Plain. Simple.
She was fetching water.
He was giving Water.

We will see later that Jesus moves the conversation in a different direction...though not really different...

As for today…

  • give Living Water
  • determine to give not “church”, “religion”, etc. etc.

We know the what? Living Water
We know Who? Jesus
The Lord Jesus - the Gift of God - Living Water.

Seize every encounter to tell...to the praise of the glory of His grace…

Blessings!