Jesus had a divine encounter with a shunned Samaritan woman at a well outside of Samaria. He offered her living water that would change her life forever.
The Despised Samaritans
When Jesus heard that John the Baptist was in prison, the Holy Spirit told him that it was time for Him to go back to Galilee. Although the news about the wonderful and miraculous things Jesus was doing was spreading rapidly, He knew that if He stayed in Judaea any longer, the Rabbis or King Herod would try to stop him from leaving.
If anyone wanted to travel from Judaea to Galilee, the shortest route would be through Samaria. The Jewish people did not like to go that way because they did not like the Samaritans. Very often, they go out of their way, crossing the River Jordan twice to get into Galilee, bypassing Samaria altogether.
Jesus loved both the Jews and the Samaritan’s. On his way to Galilee, He decided to pass through Samaria with his disciples. It was a long, rough journey, between hills, over stones, and up long rocky stairs where stinging scorpions are found. Along the way, they arrived at a well called Jacob’s Well. Jesus was too tired to go any further, sitting down to rest by the side of the well while his disciples went on into Samaria to buy food. The disciples did not mind eating Samaritan food. Jesus had taught them to shun any form of prejudgments.
The Encounter
It was the middle of the day. Jesus was very hot, tired, and hungry. But He was not too hot, tired, and hungry to do the will of his Heavenly Father. While Jesus was sitting by the side of the well, a Samaritan woman came there to draw water from the well. Usually, the women in the East generally drew water early in the morning and in the evening. This woman lived a very sinful life, and it’s very likely she came in the middle of the day because she was ashamed of herself and did not want people to look at her with shame. The woman was on a mission to satisfy her thirst, get what she needed, and leave.
Jesus spoke to the woman directly, knowing everything about her. He asked her to do something kind for him, “Give me to drink.”
The woman brought a water pot with her to let down into the water, but Jesus had nothing to use to draw water from the deep well. The woman was quite surprised that Jesus asked her for water, saying to him,
“How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.” (John 4:9)
Why would she trust him? The woman was thirsty, rejected, and came from failed and broken relationships and marriages. Her journey to the well was a path down a broken road of shame where Jesus was waiting to meet her in her brokenness, put her back together, and bring her life. He was waiting to equip her for a special calling. When others saw little worth in the woman, Jesus saw her for who she was.
Living Water That Will Quench A Thirst Forever
Jesus said, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” (John 4:10)
Jesus was talking about the Holy Spirit that is given to anyone who will ask and seek for it. The Holy Spirit is like water, “living water.” It’s the Spirit of God that makes us clean, rested, and refreshed. It brings life to the spiritually dead. The Holy Spirit is better than water because after we drink water, we soon get thirsty again, but the Holy Spirit is ready to stay with us as long as we live. It will quench our thirst forever.
We struggle with unconfessed sin, failure, and unfulfilled dreams of success. We tend to run away from the very God who sees and understands our struggles. Whatever you are going through and whatever state He may find you, He wants to build a relationship with you. He wants to spend time with you, despite your failures. You must spend time communing with God. An encounter with him will bring you hope and above all things, eternal life
The woman came to the well to quench a thirst, craving, and emptiness that would never be filled. There would be another time when the longing would return. Jesus offered her more than the temporary quench the well provided.
“Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:13-14)
The World Cannot Quench A Thirsty Soul
Any pleasure that the world offers cannot quench our thirsty souls. Our souls long for a satisfying quenching that comes through our worship and study of his Word. Although the Samaritan woman tried to make Jesus talk about something else, Jesus spoke to her about the bad things she had done. The woman soon realized that although Jesus was a Jew, He was different from other men she had come across in her life. She could not resist his soul-saving words.
“The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.” (John 4:15)
The disciples came back to the well, very much astonished to see Jesus talking to the Samaritan woman. They didn’t ask him any questions about why He was having a conversation with the woman. After offering him some of the food, he told them that doing God’s work was the food He liked best.
“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” (John 4:34)
There Must Be A Compelling
Jesus intervened in the Samaritan woman’s life when no one else wanted anything to do with her. He had talked to her, given her something she needed spiritually, and she could not be silent. She was in such a hurry to tell everyone about Jesus that she left her waterpot at the well. When she got into town, she said to the people:
“Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?” (John4:29)
An encounter with God produces a compelling to talk about it. After the Samaritan woman’s encounter with Jesus, she left her waterpot, an item of value she needed to get water to survive. She wasn’t concerned about whether the waterpot would be there when she returned. She was willing to sacrifice something of value to tell others about Jesus, even those who shunned her. In one meeting with Jesus, the Samaritan woman experienced a transformation. She gained such a strong passion for Jesus that she was compelled to see others feel the same passion.
What waterpot’s will you sacrifice when God calls you to do his work? Family, friends, job, etc.? How willing are you to face ridicule and persecution because you decided to follow Christ and preach the gospel. Whenever we have an encounter with God, we must leave our agendas and purpose to do God’s will, according to his will.
Our sinful nature often leads us into a broken, dark, and dead place. When God transforms us by his Spirit or life-giving living water, we can’t be silent about it. We must talk to everyone we possibly can about every encounter we have with God. Men, women, boys, and girls need to get to know God and his love. A meeting with God is worth leaving our waterpot.