Our purpose and design is to glorify God.
That which Glorifies God is what Magnifies Jesus and dignifies humans.
All this is done through the power of the Holy Spirit. Resulting in Lives Changed By Christ.
Jesus calls us to follow Him.
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The People Disagree That Jesus is From Heaven
John 6:41-59
OPEN:
What type of bread are you today: All natural? Rye? Moldy? Crusty? Fresh? Easy to butter up?
DIG:
In John 6:41-42, how do the crowds respond to his claims? How is the principle of the hometown prophet (John 4:44) played out here?
What part is played by God and by the people in the process of coming to know Jesus (John 6:44-45)? What promise is repeated three times for those who do come to him? Why the emphasis on this?
How is the "bread" he gives greater than that of Moses (John 6:32, 49)?
Why does Jesus develop the food analogy even more graphically (John 6:53-58)?
What does Jesus mean by "eating his flesh" and "drinking his blood" (John 6:51-58)?
REFLECT:
Has your familiarity with Jesus (from Sunday School stories, Christian school, etc.) ever kept you from seeing who he really is? What can remove the blinders?
If someone asked, "How do you hunger and thirst after God," what counsel could you offer?
God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
OPEN:
What type of bread are you today: All natural? Rye? Moldy? Crusty? Fresh? Easy to butter up?
DIG:
Why are the crowds still searching for Jesus (John 6:24-26)?
How does Jesus' response to their question show the difference between his interests and theirs?
How are they to work for the food that leads to eternal life (John 6:29)?
What does the crowd ask Jesus to do in order that they can believe him? What is their real interest?
How does Jesus use their interest in food to illustrate what he wants them to under-stand? What are the similarities and differences between manna (Exodus 16) and the "bread of life" (John 6:35)?
What claims does Jesus make in John 6:35-40? What do these claims emphasize about his being the bread of life? About the will of the Father?
REFLECT:
What is the main reason you follow Jesus?
How would you describe your daily spiritual diet: Junk food? Frozen food? Baby food? TV microwave food? Leftovers? Meat and potatoes? Pure bread and wine?
“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” (John 6:27)
We live in a busy and hectic world. In the busyness of life, it is easy to relegate God to the back seat of our lives. When people are asked to describe their daily walk with Christ, they often reply, “I pray during the day.” Upon further inquiry, there is usually no reading of the Bible outside a verse or two, while most prayer is done on the run or only in times of crisis.
In Luke 10:27, Jesus describes what our relationship with God should look like, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.”
Loving God this way is comprehensive. An examination of most of our schedules would not offer much of an excuse for not setting aside one good time period each day to feed on the Giver of life. Jesus said in John 6:32-33, “It is My Father who gives you the true Bread from heaven. For the Bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."
Most people eat two to three meals a day and snack between. If we can make time for the food that spoils, can’t we surely make time for the food that gives abundant life?
Establishing the need for satisfying your hunger and thirst for Jesus is essential for living out and experiencing your life in Christ. In John 6:28, Jesus was asked how to live the Christian life: “What must we do to do the works God requires?" They were expecting a laundry list of requirements. Jesus surprised them in John 6:29 when He answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent."
Pretty simple. Jesus said he was the Bread of Life. We demonstrate our belief by feeding on Jesus, our food, for our existence. Just as you go to the kitchen to get food, you should go to Jesus to be fed your eternal food.
The root problem of growing and experiencing Christ is our unbelief. You believe your hunger can be satisfied in the kitchen of life: priorities, entertainment, fun, sports, movies, etc. But do you really believe that Jesus can satisfy the longings of your life?
Jesus goes on to say in John 6:63, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and they are life.” Just as you feed on three meals a day plus snacks, you must also feed on Jesus through his Word, a devoted prayer life, and continual prayer throughout the day. God will take hold of your life—if you allow Him. God will satisfy your innermost needs—if you give yourself to Him. God will surround you with His love, grace, peace, and satisfaction—if you make Him the provision of your life.
==========
"Feeding on Jesus"
“Jesus answered, ‘The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.’” (John 6:29)
It would be easy to read this section of Scripture (John 6:29-58) rejoicing only in the salvation we have in Jesus. This teaching of Jesus goes beyond just declaring Jesus as the only Source of salvation; it shows how to live the Christian life through faith. Faith not only ushers you into the throne room of God for eternity, but your faith is also the sustaining work of God for His life in you. It is not you who accomplishes God’s work, but Jesus through the work of the Holy Spirit in you.
John 6:56-57 helps us to visualize how this happens as we find spiritual sustenance and nourishment with Jesus: “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.”
By continuing to feed on Jesus you remain in Him. The natural result of remaining in Jesus is to grow into His likeness as you trust His leading (drink). Trusting Jesus releases the work of the Holy Spirit for His work in and through you. Jesus introduced this concept in John 4:34 when He said, “‘My food,’ said Jesus, ‘is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work.’”
As you feed on Jesus, His will and life will become a commanding presence and desire to not only follow Him, but to also obey Him. Following and obeying will always be fed by believing and not merely laboring to do so. It is the practice of continually reminding yourself of the gospel, believing it, and stepping out by trusting the work of the Holy Spirit in you.
The victorious Christian life rides on faith, while believing in the finished work of Jesus that is expressed in Philippians 1:6 that says, “Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
When fear grips you or you are at a loss on how… or you are just exhausted from where you are currently, then come back to Jesus for faith, refreshment, and rejuvenation as in John 7:37-38, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
Never forget that the work of God begins by believing in Him and ends by believing in Him.
John 6:35 “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me will never go hungry, and he who believes in Me will never be thirsty.’” (NIV)
Mk 2:18Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. People came and asked Him, “Why do John’s disciples and the Pharisees’ disciples fast [Lk 5:33afast often and say prayers], but Your disciples do not fast?”
Mt 9:15Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests be sad while the groom is with them? The days will come when the groom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”
Lk 5:36aHe also told them a parable: Mk 2:21–22a“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new patch pulls away from the old cloth, and a worse tear is made. 22aAnd no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost as well as the skins. Lk 5:38–39But new wine should be put into fresh wineskins. 39And no one, after drinking old wine, wants new, because he says, ‘The old is better.’ ”
Disciples Not Fasting
Matthew 9:14-17
Mark 2:18-22 Luke 5:33-39
God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
Why is Jesus questioned about fasting?
What is Jesus implying by the parable? (Luke 5:34-35) (Luke 5:36-39) How does this relate to Levi's call and to the disciples not fasting?
What is the new cloth? Old garment? New wine? Old wineskins?
I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How will I
You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
Lk 5:1As the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear God’s word, He was standing by Lake Gennesaret. 2He saw two boats at the edge of the lake; the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3He got into one of the boats, which belonged to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the land. Then He sat down and was teaching the crowds from the boat.
Fishing on Lake Galilee
Lake Galilee in northern Palestine was the center of the commercial fishing business for the Jewish nation during New Testament times. Fresh fish were sold in the local markets. Fish were also preserved by salting, then shipped to Jerusalem in the south and even exported to major markets such as Rome.
Casting nets from small boats and pulling in the catch was hard, messy work. And there was always something for fishermen to do even when on shore—patching and washing their nets, taking care of their boats, buying supplies, and preserving the fish for shipment.
This passage from Luke shows clearly that at least four of Jesus’ twelve disciples were commercial fishermen—the brothers Peter and Andrew and the brothers James and John. Other disciples may also have been involved in the fishing business.
4When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
5“Master,” Simon replied, “we’ve worked hard all night long and caught nothing! But at Your word, I’ll let down the nets.” 6When they did this, they caught a great number of fish, and their nets began to tear. 7So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them; they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Depart from me, because I’m a sinful man, Lord!” 9For he and all those with him were amazed at the catch of fish they took, 10aand so were James and John, Zebedee’s sons, who were Simon’s partners.
10b“Don’t be afraid,” Jesus told Simon. “From now on you will be catching people!”
Jesus in Galilee
From His headquarters city, Capernaum on Lake Galilee, Jesus traveled throughout the surrounding province of Galilee—preaching, teaching, and healing. Galilee was the most northerly of the three provinces of Palestine—Galilee, Samaria, and Judea.
In this region of the country, known as “Galilee of the Gentiles” (Isa. 9:1; Matt. 4:15), Jesus spent the first two years of His ministry. The Galileans, influenced by both Jewish and Gentile customs, were probably more open to Jesus’ message than the citizens of the southern part of the country, where the Pharisees and scribes were strong and influential.
Jesus Himself was a native of Galilee, and all His disciples except Judas were from this province. He was known as Judas Iscariot, indicating he was from the town of Kerioth in southern Judah (Luke 6:16; Josh. 15:25).
Great Catch of Fish
Luke 5:1-10a (Lake of Gennesaret)
What was the first paying job you had?
God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
What do you think Simon was thinking and feeling? Luke 5:5, 7, 8
How did this miracle affect Peter? Why does it have a more profound effect on him than the healing of his mother-in-law? What is Peter beginning to grasp about Jesus? About Sin? About belief in himself?
I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How will I
When was the first time, if ever, that you responded to Jesus like Peter did? Luke 5:8
In your "fishing business," how do you see Jesus:
Interesting, but a slightly irrelevant teacher?
Potentially a great business partner -- if you could hire him to work for you?
The one who calls all the shots?
You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
Footnotes:
Simon Simon's other name was Peter.
leprosy A very bad skin disease.
show yourself to the priest The law of Moses said a priest must say when a Jew with leprosy was well.
Lk 5:1As the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear God’s word, He was standing by Lake Gennesaret. 2He saw two boats at the edge of the lake; the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3He got into one of the boats, which belonged to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the land. Then He sat down and was teaching the crowds from the boat.
Fishing on Lake Galilee
Lake Galilee in northern Palestine was the center of the commercial fishing business for the Jewish nation during New Testament times. Fresh fish were sold in the local markets. Fish were also preserved by salting, then shipped to Jerusalem in the south and even exported to major markets such as Rome.
Casting nets from small boats and pulling in the catch was hard, messy work. And there was always something for fishermen to do even when on shore—patching and washing their nets, taking care of their boats, buying supplies, and preserving the fish for shipment.
This passage from Luke shows clearly that at least four of Jesus’ twelve disciples were commercial fishermen—the brothers Peter and Andrew and the brothers James and John. Other disciples may also have been involved in the fishing business.
4When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
5“Master,” Simon replied, “we’ve worked hard all night long and caught nothing! But at Your word, I’ll let down the nets.” 6When they did this, they caught a great number of fish, and their nets began to tear. 7So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them; they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Depart from me, because I’m a sinful man, Lord!” 9For he and all those with him were amazed at the catch of fish they took, 10aand so were James and John, Zebedee’s sons, who were Simon’s partners.
10b“Don’t be afraid,” Jesus told Simon. “From now on you will be catching people!” 11Then they brought the boats to land, left everything, and followed Him.
Jesus in Galilee
From His headquarters city, Capernaum on Lake Galilee, Jesus traveled throughout the surrounding province of Galilee—preaching, teaching, and healing. Galilee was the most northerly of the three provinces of Palestine—Galilee, Samaria, and Judea.
In this region of the country, known as “Galilee of the Gentiles” (Isa. 9:1; Matt. 4:15), Jesus spent the first two years of His ministry. The Galileans, influenced by both Jewish and Gentile customs, were probably more open to Jesus’ message than the citizens of the southern part of the country, where the Pharisees and scribes were strong and influential.
Jesus Himself was a native of Galilee, and all His disciples except Judas were from this province. He was known as Judas Iscariot, indicating he was from the town of Kerioth in southern Judah (Luke 6:16; Josh. 15:25).
Simon, Andrew, James, and John Matthew 4:18-22
Mark 1:16-20 Luke 5:10b, 11
God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How will I
You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
Research Questions — “Dig Deeper” to find God’s Will
1.What caused these men to immediately follow Jesus? (v. 18) What is it about Jesus that makes you follow him?
2.What are the results of the disciples following Jesus? (Later in their life)
3.How can God use you to be his fisher of men? How can you train new converts to find new seas and cast new nets where waters have never been fished before? =========
As Jesus walked
beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net
into the lake, for they were fishermen.
“Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed
Him. ‐Mark 1:16‐18
This verse has always amazed me. It is possible that Simon and Andrew had been
eyeing Jesus for some time, allowing His words to penetrate their hearts and
minds. Undoubtedly, they were drawn to
Him. All of their pleasure of knowing
Jesus came to a head right in the middle of a work day, during the peak of
activity. Jesus entered their lives not
only at an inconvenient time, but also challenged them with the most life-changing decision they would ever make!
When you ask most committed Christians how they are
doing, they will likely begin hyperventilating about how busy they are. Present an opportunity of significance and
they will often say they are too busy to get involved. Lay another’s need (Good Samaritan Parable)
in front of them and it will be like the need did not exist.
Are you too busy for God to be Lord of your
life? Are your eyes, ears, and heart
pliable and tender enough to recognize God’s opportunities, leading, and
work? Do you have a heart that is sold
out to God so that when He calls, you can respond as Andrew and Simon
responded: “At once they left their nets and followed Him,”?
If you want to experience God… if you want the
fullness of His life in you… if you want to see His hand at work in your life…
if you want to be used by Him… if you want God’s kingdom to be revealed through
and around you – you must be available, usable, and obedient to His calling.
“For I am already being poured out like a drink
offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished
the race, I have kept the faith. Now
there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the
righteous Judge, will award to me on that day.” ‐2
Timothy 4:6‐8
Jn 4:1–2Jesus knew that the Pharisees heard He was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2(though Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were). Mt 4:12aBut after He heard that John had been arrested, He Lk 4:14areturned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, Mk 1:14bpreaching the good news of God, Lk 4:14band news about Him spread throughout the entire vicinity. Jn 4:4He had to travel through Samaria.
5So He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well. It was about six in the evening.
7aA woman of Samaria came to draw water.
7b“Give Me a drink,” Jesus said to her, 8for His disciples had gone into town to buy food.
9“How is it that You, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” she asked. For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.
10Jesus answered, “If you knew the gift of God, and who is saying to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would ask Him, and He would give you living water.”
11“Sir,” said the woman, “You don’t even have a bucket, and the well is deep. So where do you get this ‘living water’? 12You aren’t greater than our father Jacob, are you? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and livestock.”
13Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again. 14But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty againever! In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up within him for eternal life.”
15“Sir,” the woman said to Him, “give me this water so I won’t get thirsty and come here to draw water.”
16“Go call your husband,” He told her, “and come back here.”
17a“I don’t have a husband,” she answered.
17b“You have correctly said, ‘I don’t have a husband,’ ” Jesus said. 18“For you’ve had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.”
19“Sir,” the woman replied, “I see that You are a prophet. 20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, yet you Jews say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”
21Jesus told her, “Believe Me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You Samaritans worship what you do not know. We worship what we do know, because salvation is from the Jews. 23But an hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. Yes, the Father wants such people to worship Him. 24God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
25The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will explain everything to us.”
26“I am He,” Jesus told her, “the One speaking to you.”
Knight, G. W. (2001). A simplified harmony of the Gospels. Holman Bible Publishers.
The feud between Jews and Samaritans extended over many centuries. According to 2 Kings 17:24, after the Assyrian conquest of 722 b.c., the cities of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) were repopulated by foreigners from Babylonia, Syria, and several other pagan nations. The Jews in this region intermarried with these foreigners. This produced a mixed race of “half-breed” Jews who grew to the point where they knew nothing of the religion of Israel. They rejected the temple in Jerusalem and substituted their own shrine at Mount Gerizim.
Judah, the Southern Kingdom, also fell to a foreign power. Its leading citizens were deported to Babylonia, but they returned seventy years later with their Jewish bloodline intact. These full-bloodied Jews of Judah looked down on the Samaritans because of their mixed marriages and pagan worship. The hostility between these two groups was so severe that this Samaritan woman was amazed that Jesus would talk to her.
John 4:1-3 (Judea) Jesus Leaves for Galilee
John 4:4-26 (Sychar) Woman At The Well
Intro Questions
Text Graphic
God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at a well and offers her living water. Many Samaritans in the woman’s village believe in him. He heals the son of a government official in Capernaum.
JESUS REDEEMS A SAMARITAN WOMAN (4:1–42).
A. The Savior at Sychar (4:1–6): Jesus leaves Judea for Galilee.
1. Why he leaves (4:1–3): He departs to avoid a popularity contest between himself and John.
2. Where he stops (4:4–6): He rests beside Jacob’s well at Sychar, a town in Samaria.
B. The sinner at Sychar (4:7–27): A Samaritan woman comes to the well for water.
1. The contact (4:7–9)
a. Jesus’ request (4:7–8): He asks her for a drink.
b. Her response (4:9): She wants to know why he, a Jew, is even talking to her, a Samaritan!
2. The contrasts (4:10–27)
a. Jesus contrasts liquid water with living water (4:10–15).
(1) Liquid water (4:11–14)
(a) His revelation (4:13–14): Liquid water must be drunk often, but living water becomes an eternal perpetual spring from within!
(b) Her response (4:11–12): First, how can he draw such water without a rope or bucket, and second, is he greater than the patriarch Jacob?
(2) Living water (4:10, 15)
(a) His revelation (4:10): He will give her living water if she but asks.
(b) Her reaction (4:15): She desires this kind of water!
b. Jesus contrasts real worship with ritual worship (4:16–27).
(1) The command (4:16): “Go and get your husband.”
(2) The concealment (4:17a): “I don’t have a husband.”
(3) The correction (4:17b–18): Jesus says he knows she has had five husbands and is now living with a man to whom she is not married.
(4) The cleverness (4:19): Attempting to change the subject, she says, “You must be a prophet.”
(5) The confusion (4:20): She asks, “Why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim?”
(6) The clarification (4:21–24): Jesus says that true worship involves not the where but rather the how; that is, God must be worshiped in spirit and truth!
(7) The conversion (4:25–26): She acknowledges Jesus as the Messiah!
(8) The concern (4:27): The disciples arrive just as she departs and are amazed that he was talking to an immoral woman!
C. The soul winner in Sychar (4:28–42)
1. The faithfulness of the Samaritan woman (4:28–38)
a. As seen by the message she proclaims (4:28–30): She returns to Sychar and witnesses to the entire city!
b. As seen by the model she presents (4:31–38): Jesus uses her as a role model to his disciples on the subject of soul winning.
(1) He talks about the real food (4:31–34): When urged to eat some food they have brought him, he says his food is to do God’s will!
(2) He talks about the ripe fields (4:35–38): He says that the fields of human souls are ripe for harvest!
2. The fruitfulness of the Samaritan woman (4:39–42): At her urging, many townspeople agree to hear the Savior and believe in him!
Willmington, H. L. (1999). The Outline Bible (Jn 4). Tyndale House Publishers.
========
In Samaria (Woman at well), 4:1-42
Synopsis: On the way to Galilee, Jesus went through Samaria. He stopped at Jacob's well in Sychar while his disciples went into town to purchase food. While Jesus was resting at the well, a Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus asked her for a drink. The Samaritan woman was astonished that a Jew would ask a Samaritan for a drink. Jesus told her if she knew who he was, she would ask for living water. The woman did not understand that Jesus was talking about spiritual water until Jesus explained it to her. Jesus told the Samaritan woman the man she was living with was not her husband. Again, she was astonished and said, "Jesus must be a prophet." She stated their fathers worshipped in these mountains; however, Jesus would say Jerusalem is the place to worship. Jesus pointed out that God is a Spirit. The time is almost near when people will worship God in spirit and in truth. The woman said she knew when the Messiah came he would tell them everything. Jesus said, "I am He."
When the disciples returned, they were astonished that Jesus was talking with a woman. The woman went back to town and told the people that Jesus had told her everything she had ever done. Surely, Jesus was the Messiah. The people from Sychar went to see Jesus.
Meanwhile, the apostles urged Jesus to eat. Jesus replied he had food of which they did not know. The apostles were puzzled by his saying. Jesus pointed out that the fields were white unto harvest. The people from Sychar invited Jesus to stay with them. Jesus and the apostles spent two days with them and many of them believed in him. They told the woman they believed in Jesus because they had heard him.
1 When therefore the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John
This verse makes the transition from Jesus' ministry in Judaea to his ministry in Galilee. The Pharisees had been interested in the ministry of John the Baptist. They were also interested in the ministry of Jesus. The Pharisees had observed that Jesus was even more successful than John the Baptist. John had been imprisoned; however, Jesus presented even more of a problem to the Pharisees.
2 (although Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples),
Jesus preached the kingdom of heaven was near and commanded disciples to be baptized. It was probably the same baptism of repentance that John taught. However, Jesus did not do the actual baptizing himself; he let his disciples do the baptizing.
3 he left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee.
After Jesus had performed his first miracle in Cana of Galilee, he went to Judaea to preach and teach. After several months of successful preaching, the Jewish leaders were beginning to resent Jesus. It was now time for Jesus to leave Judaea and return to Galilee because Jesus did not want a premature crisis. When the time is ready according to God's plan, Jesus will willingly lay down his life for mankind; however, the time is not ready. Judaea is the southern part of Palestine. Samaria is the middle part of Palestine. Galilee is the northern part of Palestine. The shortest distance to Galilee was through Samaria although one could go around Samaria. Jesus wanted to go through Samaria on his way to Galilee.
4 And he must needs pass through Samaria.
Jesus chose the road through Samaria because he had work to do there.
5 So he cometh to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph:
Jesus and his disciples enter Samaria and come to Sychar, which is near Shechem. Mt. Gerizim and Mt. Ebal are nearby. Sychar was about half a mile from the parcel of ground that Jacob gave Joseph (Genesis 48:22). Joseph had requested his body be taken back to Canaan when the Israelites returned there (Genesis 50:25, 26). When the Israelites conquered Canaan, they buried Joseph here (Joshua 24:32). Sychar means "the town of the sepulcher."
6 and Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus by the well.It was about the sixth hour.
Jacob's well is in this spot although there is no Old Testament reference to Jacob digging this well. The well is still there today. The well was around one hundred feet deep in Jesus' day. The word for well indicates it was spring fed.
Jesus was tired from traveling. Since it seems John uses Roman time instead of Jewish time, the sixth hour would be 6 p. m. This would mean they had been traveling all day. The evening was the usual time for women to draw water.
7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
As Jesus is sitting by the well, a Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus is thirsty and asks her for a drink of water.
8 For his disciples were gone away into the city to buy food.
Jesus was alone because his disciples had gone into Sychar to purchase food.
9 The Samaritan woman therefore saith unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, who am a Samaritan woman? (Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)
The Samaritan woman was astonished that a Jewish man would ask her for a drink. The reason being there was great animosity between the Jews and Samaritans. The Samaritans were Jews who had intermarried with Gentiles beginning with the Assyrian captivity in 722 B.C. They lost their bloodline as Jews. The Jews would not allow the Samaritans to worship with them. Jews and Samaritans did not mix socially. It was unthinkable for a Jew to drink out of the same vessel as a Samaritan. To drink out of the same vessel which the Samaritan used would make the Jew unclean. The Jews did business with Samaritans when it was necessary. The sentence For Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans could best be translated, "For Jews do not use vessels together with Samaritans."
10 Jesus answered and said unto her, 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.
The Samaritan woman knew Jesus was a Jew; however, she did not realize that he was the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus told her that if she knew who he really was, it was she who would be asking for living water. The Gift of God is the living water. Jesus used a term she was familiar with to teach her a great spiritual truth. The common meaning of living water was running water. In the case of a well, it would be the water at the bottom that bubbled up out of the spring that fed the well. However, in the spiritual sense, Jesus uses the term living water to mean eternal life, salvation and all of the needs that the spirit of man has.
11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: whence then hast thou that living water?
The Samaritan woman took the term living water in a literal sense. She thought Jesus was referring to the fresh water coming out the spring which fed the well at the bottom of the well; therefore, she asked, "How can you give living water?" You have nothing with which to draw water out of the well." The well was over a hundred feet deep. The well was not like the cisterns of Palestine where one could walk downstairs to where the water was. One had to have a rope and a bucket to get to the water in the well, much less the living water at the bottom of the well. Just as Nicodemus misunderstood the new birth, the Samaritan woman misunderstood the living water.
12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his sons, and his cattle?
The woman does not understand how Jesus can give her better water than is in the well. She asks, "Are you greater than our father Jacob who gave us this well?" The Samaritan woman understands the implication of what Jesus says; however, she is not yet ready to accept him as greater than Jacob. Her question implies a "no" answer.
13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Everyone that drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
Jesus now compares water from the well with the spiritual living water, which he is offering. Jesus makes an obvious comment concerning the water in Jacob's well. Anyone drinking water out of Jacob's well will soon be thirsty again.
14 but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water springing up unto eternal life.
Jesus now shows the Samaritan woman he is speaking in a spiritual sense. The living water is spiritual. It is not only salvation, it is eternal life. Eternal life means more than existence; it means satisfying all the deep needs of the soul of man. Only God can do this. God's Spirit dwelling in man gives him the abundant life.
15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come all the way hither to draw.
The Samaritan woman now wants the water Jesus can give; however, her conception of living water is still incomplete. She still thinks living water is physical water.
16 Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.
The Samaritan woman wanted the living water. However, she needed to have a thirst for this water. The command of Jesus was addressed to her conscience. His command reminded her of the immoral life she was living. Only when there is a sense of guilt and consciousness of sin will one realize he is lost and want to be saved.
17 The woman answered and said unto him, I have no husband: Jesus saith unto her, Thou saidst well, I have no husband:
The woman denied having a husband. Jesus told her she had spoken the truth as far as it went.
18 for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: this hast thou said truly.
Jesus then reminds her of her sinful condition. He relates her five husbands and the fact the man she is living with is not her husband. It cannot be ascertained if her five husbands had died or were divorced. However, she is living with a man to whom she is not married, a sinful condition. Jesus tells her about her past life.
19 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.
Since Jesus knew about her past life, the Samaritan woman concluded that Jesus was a prophet. She is growing in her perception of who Jesus is. She did not deny the remarks of Jesus concerning her immoral life. By calling him a prophet, she admits her guilt. However, she wanted to change the subject from her personal life.
20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
The Samaritan woman now raised the question where men ought to worship. Whenever Jews and Samaritans talked about spiritual things, this question came up. This mountain refers to Mt. Gerizim, which they could see from Jacob's well. The Samaritans had worshipped on this mountain since the time of Nehemiah. They believed it was the only place to worship. Ye is plural, meaning the Jews. The Jews worshipped in the temple which was built on Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem (Deuteronomy 12:50-11; I Kings 9:3; II Chronicles 3:12). The Samaritans were in the wrong. Jesus had a sensitive question to answer.
21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father.
The woman acknowledged that Jesus is a prophet. Jesus now asks her to believe what he says. The hour cometh refers to the new covenant and the establishment of the church. This necessarily includes the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, as this is when the old covenant ended and the new covenant began. Jesus tells the woman that in the near future, it will not matter where you worship; it will matter how you worship. God can be worshipped anywhere.
22 Ye worship that which ye know not: we worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews.
The Samaritans had an imperfect knowledge of God and worship. They accepted only the first five books of the Old Testament. They rejected the other thirty-four books of the Old Testament; therefore, their knowledge of God and how to worship him were limited. They were in ignorance, not only of where to worship God, but also how to worship him.
The promise was for the Messiah to come from the seed of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah and David. Therefore, the Messiah was to be a Jew. In this sense, salvation is of the Jews.
23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for such doth the Father seek to be his worshippers.
However, the hour cometh, and now is refers to the new age, the Christian Age. The Christian Age will become a reality in just a few months. It will mark a change. True worshippers refers to people who believe in God, live in accordance with his will and worship God, their Creator. In the Christian Age, refers to those who have believed in Jesus Christ and have obeyed the gospel by being baptized for the remission of their sins. Moreover, they are continuing to live the Christian life.
In spirit refers to the spirit of man in this context, not the Holy Spirit. It means true worshippers worship God sincerely motivated by their love for God. In truth means they worship according to the way that God has instructed them to worship. True worship does not depend upon the place. True worship depends on having the right attitude and worshipping God's way. God has never said, "Worship me any way you please." God has always dictated to man how God is to be worshipped. The important thing in worship is to worship God in such a way that God is pleased. This can only be done in spirit and in truth; otherwise, the worship will be unacceptable. Many people worship God the way they want to worship him instead of in spirit and truth. Their worship is unacceptable to God (Matthew 15:8-9).
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth.
God is Spirit. He is not confined to one place. He can be worshipped anywhere on earth. The criteria for worshipping God is not the place, but worshipping him in spirit and truth (see verse 23 for discussion of these words). God must be worshipped this way. There is no other way to worship God (Matthew 4:10).
25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messiah cometh (he that is called Christ): when he is come, he will declare unto us all things,
The Samaritan conception of the Messiah was limited because they accepted only the first five books of the Old Testament. They thought of him as being a prophet who would teach them all things, not a king upon the throne of David (Deuteronomy 18:18). What Jesus said reminded the Samaritan woman there was to be a Messiah. The Messiah would explain all things when he came.
26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
The answer Jesus gave astonished her. Jesus declared to the Samaritan woman he was the Messiah. This is remarkable in as much as he had not told the Jews this; however, this woman did not have the preconceived ideas which the Jews had, nor was she a threat to Jesus. That she believed Jesus can be seen in verses 28 to 30 and 39 to 42.
Open:
When you were growing up who were the people you were told to avoid? What part of the city or country would you be warned about? What would have happened if you had gone there?
What causes you to skip a meal? To eat too much unintentionally?
DIG
What is significant about this story taking place in Samaria?
Since "nice" girls did not come to draw water at noontime (the sixth hour"), why do you think Jesus risked his reputation to ask a favor of this woman?
How would you describe the woman's response?
How did Jesus turn the tables on her in John 4:10?
In the woman's reply, what is she really saying? How is she like Nicodemus (3:1-21)?
Why does Jesus change the topic of conversation so abruptly to her personal life (John 4:16-18)? What strikes you about the way he responds to her claim not to have a husband?
Why do you think this woman changed the conversation to focus on a religious controversy? In this story, what does Jesus mean by telling her that God is interested in worshipers who will do so in "spirit and truth"?
What is significant about Jesus choosing this woman as the first person to whom he revealed himself (see John 4:39-42)?
Why were the disciples surprised to find Jesus with this woman?
What does "leaving her water jar" reveal about Jesus' impact on the woman? How did she affect others?
How is Jesus' figurative speech once again misunderstood (see 2:19; 3:3; 4:10)? Why does he continue to speak like this? In what ways is God's will like food for him?
How does the parable of harvesting apply to the disciples?
Given the social barriers between Jews and Samaritans, what do John 4:40-42 teach you about Jesus?
REFLECT
What social, ethnic, or religious barriers have you overcome in Jesus' name?
What aspects of Jesus' conversation could you use as a model for your own discussions with searching friends?
What are you constantly "thirsting for? How has Jesus satisfied you?
Considering your interest in "spiritual things," are you more like the disciples or the woman? Why?
Is doing God's will as essential to you as eating food? Why?
What do you learn from the woman about telling others about Jesus? From the parable (John 4:35-38)?
You're Invited: "Drink Living Water" by Kent Risley
Milwaukee Police Officer Kevin Zimmerman pulled over Andrella “Lashae” Jackson because her car registration was defective. As he walked up to the car, the woman and her two young daughters greeted him—and he was unhappy to see that the little girls were not in car seats. Jackson explained that she was using her money to buy winter coats and boots for her children. Officer Zimmerman gave her a verbal warning instead of a ticket, but collected her contact information just as he was summoned to an incident at a Walmart nearby.
The disturbance at the Walmart was over when he arrived, but he shopped for two car seats, some coloring books and stickers and paid for them out of his pocket. He then contacted Jackson, delivered the crayons and stickers to the children and installed the car seats in Jackson’s car. He then went back to work without a thought, but Jackson gratefully posted the story to her Facebook® page. It was picked up and reposted by various news agencies and now, millions of views later, the event is known all across the country. Officer Zimmerman pointed out that Milwaukee police officers frequently buy food and toys for children and never get the recognition he did. Yet the response to the story shows how hungry people are for good news.
“Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, ‘Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?’” (John 4:28-29 NIV).
After a brief conversation with Jesus, this woman broke off her errand to spread the news about her discovery. It seems that when she realized she had good news, her first impulse was to share it with others. We’ve seen this drama play out in many ways at many times. Grandparents are eager to share pictures of the new arrival. Women call their friends with news of an unexpected sale at a favorite store. Men brag to their friends about the great deal they got on the new vehicle. Our joy impels us to tell our story. Since joy is infectious, most people will listen with great interest and may repeat our news so that even more people can benefit.
That’s really what evangelism is about—telling our story of joyous redemption through Jesus. We don’t need to identify and call down other people’s failures or memorize all the Scriptures or prepare to answer all religious objections. We just need to know what has happened to us because of our faith and obedience to Jesus. The evaluation of our lives will energize us with joy due to the transformation that Jesus is working in us. From that starting point, we will tell our story with true enthusiasm. Far from rejecting us, our friends and family will listen to our joy with great interest. They may be so touched by our excitement that they, too, will give their lives to Jesus. And the excitement will build and expand and energize others because, at heart, we’re all hungry for some good news.
