On their journey, Jesus stops to rest at a well while the disciples leave for town to get food. While He’s there, Jesus asks a Samaritan women for a drink of water and they start talking.
First of all, it amazes me that Jesus spoke to the women. He even asked her for help. How many times do we talk to people? How often do we ask complete strangers for help while doing our every day normal activities?
Secondly, I wonder if Jesus was actually thirsty? Or if He really needed to rest? Or if He even needed to go through Samaria at all? Did He go through Samaria just to talk to this woman? This average, every day woman Jesus came to see. And what was she doing? She wasn’t doing anything spectacular… she was getting water. It would be like us going to the grocery store or getting gas for our car, nothing out of the ordinary…just something that needs to be done.
Another thing that is amazing is that Jesus goes against culture by talking to a woman in public- not to mention a Samaritan woman. Rabbis were not known to talk to women at all. But Jesus goes against what society says and talks to her.
While Jesus is chatting with the woman, He tells her about the truth: from a drink of water to witnessing! Plus, she has no idea what He’s talking about! He’s talking about the living water and she thinks it’s actual water that will quench her thirst forever so she doesn’t have to come to the well everyday. Incredibly, He’s not fazed by this one bit. He doesn’t storm off and walk the other way, shaking His head, “Wow she just does not get it!” He gently continues the conversation.
Jesus has asked for a drink, talked about the living water and then He gets personal. He asks where her husband is. To her credit, she is honest and says she has no husband in which Jesus agrees. He then goes into more detail about how she’s had five husbands and now is with someone who is not her husband. Wow! Way to get to the heart of the matter!
Now wouldn’t Jesus have already known all about this woman before He went to speak to her? Did He not know every hair on her head? Did He not know of her from the beginning of time? Did He not create the universe and everything in it with her in mind? Yet He still went over to talk to her.
Do you realize that God loves you even though He knows everything about you?
Do you know that He knows all our your needs?
Now the woman is starting to clue in a bit. She tells Jesus that He is a prophet and that the Messiah is coming. Jesus once again gets to the heart of the matter and says, “I am the Messiah! You say he’s coming and here I am, standing in front of you- talking with you!” Imagine her surprise! That’s the moment that she gets it!
Then she does something I think is incredible. She goes to her town and tells the people to go check out Jesus. “Come see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” (John 4;39 NIV) And you know what? They did! Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony.
A little side note that I think is funny. At the end of the conversation between Jesus and the woman, the disciples come back and in John it says that no one asks Jesus why He was talking to her. They would know of the cultural and social lines that Jesus was crossing and yet they didn’t say anything. They just let it go. Maybe they were used to Jesus’ strange ways? Maybe they knew that Jesus’ ways were not their ways? Maybe they were touched by the transformation of this woman?
Do I rely on my ways or God’s ways?
Do I trust He knows best?
Jesus and the disciples ended up staying a couple extra days in this town. Many were saved. It all started with a simple question, a simple conversation, a simple woman doing an every day task. I wonder if she viewed going to the well differently after that? I wonder if she was reminded of her conversation with Jesus every time she came to the well? I wonder if it gave her new meaning and purpose knowing that a simple conversation made a difference in her life as well as her whole village? I wonder if she looked at water differently knowing that Jesus was the living water and she would never thirst again? She had all of eternity to spend with Jesus. I wonder if she looked for Jesus when she came back? Hoping that He would return, but knowing that she’d be reunited with Him in heaven one day? I wonder if she knew that her story would be in the Bible? That millions of people would read her story and be touched? Did she know the impact she would make by simply going to the well one day?
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