Hello and welcome back to Lighthouse Creative. We have a new devotion. We’re looking at a Bible study this time. So something that we want to do as one of our themes, as one of our topics is looking at, you know, the Bible study in the Bible together. Today we’re going to be focusing on Jesus and the Samaritan woman as well.
So in these first few Bible studies, we really thought it would be great to look at some female characters in the Bible. Here at Lighthouse, we were all for women in leadership So we thought would be a great way to sort of look at these strong female characters, pick out what is so good about them, and then so work out how we can apply that to our lives.
So we’re looking in, John, 4 if you want to go ahead and read that all before watching the rest of this go ahead and so, I’m going to pick up from verse ten But I’ll just explain what’s going on in case you don’t want to go back and read it all So Jesus is with his disciples. They’ve left Jerusalem and they’re on their way to Galilee, on the way they stop off at this Samaritan village.
Jesus goes to Jacob’s well to rest, to have a drink and the rest and his disciples go off into town to go get some food Jesus meets this woman at the well who is drawing water and that’s where we pick up. So Jesus starts a conversation with this lady, and says, Pour me a drink, get me a drink.
And this lady sort of, you know, challenged him, says, I’m a Samaritan, you’re a Jew. We shouldn’t be talking. Why are you asking me for a drink? And we pick up on verse ten, Jesus, replied. If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.
But, sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket, she says. And this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water And besides, do you think you are greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this Well? how can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed? Jesus replied Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again.
But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life. Please, sir, the woman said, Give me this water, then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water. I think a valuable lesson, one that we can learn from this lady that Jesus meets is she’s curious, she’s hungry, and she wants to know more.
She’s engaging in conversation with Jesus. First of all, she challenges him. And so it gives Jesus an opt-out of this conversation, which Jesus doesn’t take and a valuable lesson. But Jesus draws her into this conversation. She fully becomes part of the conversation. And she’s asking questions. And she’s still challenging Jesus with the words that she says.
And I think what is so valuable about this, what is interesting, what is good for us and healthy for us to take away is the desire, the need to ask Jesus questions. I think that’s a very valuable goal for us to learn. You know, are we hungry to know answers? Are we hungry to seek what Jesus has for us?
And I think the second important thing from this sort of conversation they’re having is that I could safely bet that when she’s challenging Jesus when Jesus replies, she is fully invested in knowing the answers, she’s fully invested in what Jesus is saying.
Valuable lesson number one Ask questions. Be hungry for those answers. Find time in your day to talk to Jesus, to listen to Jesus, to ask questions, to be curious, to be hungry for more but then also to listen as well. Make time for Jesus and listen. I’m going to pick up next verse 21 Jesus replied, Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter.
whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem, you Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jesus it all about him for salvation comes through the Jews the time is coming. Indeed, it’s here now when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth the father is looking for those who will worship him that way, for God is Spirit.
So those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth, the woman said, I know the Messiah is coming, the one who is called Christ. When He comes, he will explain everything to us. Valuable lesson number two that we can learn from this lady she says, I know the Messiah is coming. The one who is called Christ.
When He comes, he will explain everything the valuable lesson here. The second valuable lesson we can learn is to live in expectation that the Messiah is coming. In terms of this, it’s the first coming. But for us as Christians that believe Jesus came died, raise again, and ascended, it’s to live in expectation that He’s going to come back we don’t often live in expectation that Jesus is coming back as a Western society.
We are pretty, pretty shameful at that. Honestly, we’re not great at living in that expectation, not great at living in the belief that Jesus will come again.
So how can we do that? How can we live with the expectation that Jesus is on his way back? I think one thing that we’ve been picking up a lot on during our Sunday morning services recently is this image that often we think of it as a church that has a mission. But in actual terms, what it is, is the mission of God to have a church.
And if we’re living in expectation that Jesus is coming back, we have the mandate to fulfil. We have a job to do here on Earth, whilst we’re here. You know, we’re called to make disciples of all nations. That is the church’s mission that’s what we’re called to do.
So if we’re living in the expectation of Jesus coming back, we’ve got some work to do. And that starts today. I know I can hold my hand up and say, I really do not live in expectation that Jesus is coming back, but I want to, so small steps I can make towards that. How can I share the gospel with someone?
How can I show God’s love to someone?
How can I be listening out for what Jesus is calling me to do in day to day life? It’s not always the thinking futuristically ahead and thinking, Well, I’m going to do this in two years for God. God can use you right now, God can use me right now, and if we’re too future-focused, we can easily forget that but this lady lives in the expectation that Christ is coming and that when He comes, He will explain everything to her.
She lives in expectation. Two valuable lessons to learn from this lady, to live in expectation that Christ is coming and to do something about it.
And also the second one, to be hungry, to be curious, to ask questions. But after you’ve done that, really invest in the time to listen to what God is saying back to you. Really invest that time because it’s precious and God wants to speak to each and every one of us. Two valuable lessons. Have a great rest of your day and we’ll see you again soon.
Bye-bye.
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