Transformative Encounters: The Samaritan Woman's Journey

The story which will be familiar I'm sure to many of you took place in Samaria we're told in verse three that Jesus left Judea which was in the south of the country that he was going to Galilee which was in the north and that he therefore verse four had to pass through Samaria that was the direct route if you were going from south to North uh in Israel and uh the disciples verse 8 had gone to buy food and so Jesus was alone when he came to this well in a little town called or outside a little town called uh Saar. [00:24:08]

The point of this story of course is that this is a woman who is about as far from faith in Jesus as it is possible to be there were multiple barriers between between her and Jesus and at the beginning of the day she must have seemed like a very unlikely candidate to become a disciple of Jesus let me uh focus on just three of the barriers that Jesus wonderfully overcame the first of these was the barrier of race. [00:37:28]

The history of uh tension and at times hatred between the Jews and the Samaritans was well well known in the ancient world and will be familiar to many of you today uh 700 years before the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ the Assyrians who were the ruling power of the day uh invaded this northern part of Israel Samaria and took uh the vast majority of the people off into Exile only a few were left and it was like a kind of ghost town. [00:57:36]

I think therefore it is of huge significance that Jesus went to Samaria that he went into this very very mixed kind of environment with people who had adopted uh religious Traditions from all over why does he go there because he is drawing to himself people from every tribe and every nation and every language and no culture and no people group is beyond the reach of the love and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. [01:34:36]

This lady was familiar with worship um she had grown up with a certain tradition and she did have a certain amount of knowledge of the truth I mean she says in verse 25 I know that Messiah is coming but but here's the question what had her religion done for her I mean she didn't know God she had not asked of God she had not received from God. [01:56:12]

Jesus Christ is so interested in her that he overcomes every barrier that would distance her from him the barrier of race the barrier of her formal religious tradition that had done nothing for her the barrier of her own life's story that had just been filled with sadness and wreckage and Brokenness he overcomes every barrier in order to bring transformation into the life life of this woman. [01:49:03]

Hope verse 14 whoever drinks of the water I will give him will never be thirsty again the water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water water welling up to eternal life I want you to notice where Jesus begins this this person who's a long way off and he begins with the great thirsts in her soul there are great thirsts in every human soul. [02:01:11]

Jesus speaks to This Woman's thirst before she he addresses her sins Jesus speaks to This Woman's thirsts before he addresses her sins now I know that Jesus dealt with different people and spoke to different people in very different ways but I think it is significant that with this woman who is so far from the truth with so many barriers to overcome he does not begin with her sins he begins with her thirst. [02:15:55]

Change Always begins with hope giving up your sin becomes possible when you know the grace that God has in store for you that's and this woman didn't know it she didn't know the gift of God and that's why Jesus starts with this Grace what God can give you that's where he begins when you know that Grace awaits you you will be freed to confess sins that you have concealed. [02:27:52]

Jesus is leading this woman to a place where she can come to a greater cander with him and not just speak about things in general terms um she's already said in verse 15 sir give me this water so that I will not be thirsty or have come or have to come here uh to draw water I I you see I don't think she's yet understood what Jesus is talking about but at least her interest is now engaged. [02:41:24]

Worship he said is the submission of all our nature to God it is the quickening of conscience by his Holiness it is the nourishment of Mind by his truth it is the purifying of imagination by his Beauty it is the opening of the Heart by his love and it is the surrender of the will to his purpose that's what Worship in spirit and in truth actually looks like and that's why it's transforming changing you from the inside out. [03:31:13]

Jesus Christ can do more for you than any prophet he can do more than tell you what God requires of you and then leave you to go work it out he's able to produce within you a love he's able to purify your heart Jesus Christ says this is the very reason I've come into the world I'm the one who can do it listen Jesus Christ is the one who can Quicken your conscience by his Holiness. [03:54:44]