Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John2
(although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3
he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5
So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.6
Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7
A woman from Samaria came 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
The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)
So, what is Jesus doing sitting on the ground talking to a Samaritan woman? Even the disciples think this to be a royal waste of time, after all the kingdom work awaits
them, there are big things to do, and Jesus speaks to this despised woman. But then again, where would we expect to find the King of the World? What we know of Jesus says to us, indeed this is where He would be, bowing down to serve one who doesn’t even know
who He is…yet.
When the great preacher Chrysostom read this passage, he wrote: “Not upon a throne, not upon a cushion, but simply as he was, upon the ground.”
At the beginning, Abraham was told that the gospel promise is to the nations, that, although flowering in Israel, it will be for the glory of God to the ends of the
earth. And here we see its humble protrusion into the world, but not to kings, not to princes, not to multitudes…but to one Samaritan woman.
Who were the Samaritans and why do we so often read in the NT about how Israelites hated them so much? Well, it goes way back. In 722 BC the nation of Israel was conquered
by Assyria. Assyria had a very interesting way of dealing with folks they defeated. They would take some from one defeated country and move them to the land of another defeated country. They would take the folks they conquered and mix them all up. So, they
moved those they defeated all around, and soon all these people would intermarry which would begin to erode any national loyalties.
The Samaritans, living in the north, were the result of Assyria’s plan all those years ago. They were part Jewish but not fully Jewish, and so the Jews looked down
on them as being impure. In fact, they hated them. That is why the story of the Good Samaritan had such a kick to it; not only did the Jewish rabbi and Jewish priest do nothing, but mercy and kindness was found in contrast from a despised Samaritan. And it
is why the disciples are surprised to find Jesus talking to this person, not only a woman, which in itself offered some problems for that culture, but a Samaritan woman and then to share her drinking vessel!
Many folks when they were traveling between Galilee and Judea would actually take the time and inconvenience to cross the Jordan river twice and go the long way around,
rather than pass through Samaria, such was their hatred for these people. But Jesus, purposefully went the way he did, he purposefully went to those who were despised, who were thought to be worthless and looked down upon.
Think of the contrast between this account with the Samaritan woman here in chapter 4 and Jesus’ interaction with Nicodemus in chapter 3.
In chapter three, Christ’s work was in Judea, in chapter four, Samaria.
In three, Jesus is dealing with a man, in four, a woman.
In three, there was a person of high, moral standing, in four, a person of low repute.
In three a Jew, a teacher, a leader. In four, a Samaritan, an outcast, a ‘sinner’.
Nothing will stop the kingdom’s progress, not hatred, not the world’s agenda for success, not man’s wisdom, not bigotry, not even death and a Roman cross, but grace
has to make us see it…grace has to make us understand.
Like with Nicodemus, Jesus uses the very ordinary things of life to point the one listening to the life that is from above. Jesus has brought all men and women, Jew
and Gentile, slave and free, intelligent and simple, all into the same family, the same body and we see all of that so beautifully set before us in this one incident…the barrier of hostility, in the gospel, is going to be brought down.
As I mentioned, even the disciples are surprised, they too shocked at the nature of the kingdom, where allegiance is not paid to color, or nationality, or gender,
but all are brought under one banner and one allegiance, because that is the power of the gospel, that is the wonder of the kingdom of God.
Over the next couple of days, we will look at what the Lord does to bring the nations, represented in this one woman, to the glory of the gospel. For this morning,
we note that the Lord Jesus breaks down the hatred of bigotry.
The gospel is the true reconciliation. The end God has in mind is the salvation of men and women from every tongue and tribe, we read in the Revelation: “You have
redeemed us to God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God…”
The power of Jewish prejudice in these days was astounding. When Jesus first goes to the synagogue to teach in Luke 4…he tells them about the faith of two OT people
and how incredibly they responded to God because of faith, Naaman the Leper and a widow woman from Nain. And when he said this, the Jewish people tried to kill him!!! How dare He use Gentiles as those who have faith and not Jewish people as examples!
Think of this: On Pentecost Sunday there were 120 believers in a house in Jerusalem. Every one of them was a Jew. Today, wherever you go in the world you will find
Christians. You take away the ethic and cultural foundation of Islam, Buddhism, or Hinduism, you take away the connection of those religions with a particular part of the world and they all but disappear.
But Christianity is not this way. It has transcended every boundary, every division that sin has erected, every division between mankind and Jesus has followers everywhere.
There is a lot of talk in our day about racial reconciliation. There are two things to remember: First, the Bible doesn’t speak about racism, it speaks about hatred.
It would do well for us to call this sin what it is. Second, the only way reconciliation will ever happen, the only way to be rid of hatred is to fall on our knees at the cross of Jesus. In Jesus Christ, hatred and therefore racism, is destroyed. He unites
the nations; people from every race and ethnic group, through His life, death and resurrection. All others attempts to reconcile people are simply man’s attempts to fix the problems that man has created. The cross of Jesus has made peace between us and God
and also brought peace between men and women. But…only…the…cross!
To be continued…
Prayer: Father, help me to see the extent of what my Savior has accomplished on the cross. I confess that I too often view His work too small and I fail to see
how He is reconciling me not only to You, my Heavenly Father, but also to all believers who name Jesus as Lord, King and Savior. Help me to see my true family, clearly and to give thanks for the work of Jesus that unites men and women together into one holy
family, through Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen.
Hymn: Savior of the Nations Come
Savior of the nations, come;
Show the glory of the Son!
Marvel now, O heav’n and earth,
That our Lord chose such a birth.
Not by human flesh and blood,
By the Spirit of our God
Was the word of God made flesh,
Woman’s offspring, pure and fresh.
Wondrous birth! O wondrous child
Of the Virgin undefiled!
Mighty God and man in one,
Eager now his race to run!
God Creator is his source,
Back to God he runs his course,
Down to death and hell descends,
God’s high throne he re-ascends.
Now your lowly manger bright
Hallows night with newborn light;
Let no night this light subdue,
Let our faith shine ever new.