1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:03,600 Please open your Bible at John and chapter four. 2 00:00:03,600 –> 00:00:06,400 We come today to a marvelous story 3 00:00:06,400 –> 00:00:09,380 about a woman whose life was changed forever 4 00:00:09,380 –> 00:00:11,500 by Jesus Christ. 5 00:00:11,500 –> 00:00:13,640 The story, which will be familiar, I’m sure, 6 00:00:13,640 –> 00:00:16,940 to many of you, took place in Samaria. 7 00:00:16,940 –> 00:00:20,200 We’re told in verse three that Jesus left Judea, 8 00:00:20,200 –> 00:00:21,879 which was in the south of the country, 9 00:00:21,879 –> 00:00:24,660 that he was going to Galilee, which was in the north, 10 00:00:24,660 –> 00:00:26,660 and that he therefore, verse four, 11 00:00:26,660 –> 00:00:28,680 had to pass through Samaria. 12 00:00:28,680 –> 00:00:31,180 That was the direct route if you were going 13 00:00:31,180 –> 00:00:34,160 from south to north in Israel, 14 00:00:34,160 –> 00:00:37,900 and the disciples, verse eight, had gone to buy food, 15 00:00:37,900 –> 00:00:42,580 and so Jesus was alone when he came to this well 16 00:00:42,580 –> 00:00:47,000 in a little town, or outside a little town, called Sychar. 17 00:00:48,240 –> 00:00:50,220 If you picture then the low wall 18 00:00:50,220 –> 00:00:52,380 that would have been around the top 19 00:00:52,380 –> 00:00:54,660 of the well protecting it, 20 00:00:54,660 –> 00:00:57,700 and Jesus is sitting beside that low wall. 21 00:00:57,700 –> 00:01:00,380 He’s sitting on the ground, and his back is 22 00:01:00,380 –> 00:01:03,439 to the low wall around the well. 23 00:01:03,439 –> 00:01:06,040 He’s tired, and he has been walking 24 00:01:06,040 –> 00:01:08,139 for many, many miles. 25 00:01:08,139 –> 00:01:09,900 And verse seven tells us that a woman 26 00:01:09,900 –> 00:01:13,440 from Samaria came to draw water, 27 00:01:13,440 –> 00:01:18,440 and Jesus said to her, give me a drink. 28 00:01:18,739 –> 00:01:20,900 That was the beginning of the conversation 29 00:01:20,900 –> 00:01:23,480 that was to change that woman’s life, 30 00:01:23,480 –> 00:01:25,639 not only her life, but also the lives 31 00:01:25,680 –> 00:01:28,360 of many, many other people forever. 32 00:01:28,360 –> 00:01:31,839 And just to take a bird’s eye view of the story, 33 00:01:31,839 –> 00:01:33,559 it’s good to look at the bookends 34 00:01:33,559 –> 00:01:36,260 and to see the contrast between where 35 00:01:36,260 –> 00:01:39,400 this woman was at the beginning 36 00:01:39,400 –> 00:01:41,639 and where she was at the end of the story, 37 00:01:41,639 –> 00:01:44,580 just to get a sense of the remarkable transformation 38 00:01:44,580 –> 00:01:48,459 that came in her life, in a single day, 39 00:01:48,459 –> 00:01:51,879 through this encounter with Jesus Christ. 40 00:01:51,879 –> 00:01:53,239 At the beginning of the story, 41 00:01:53,459 –> 00:01:56,000 if you look in verse 10, Jesus says this, 42 00:01:56,000 –> 00:01:58,339 if you knew the gift of God 43 00:01:58,339 –> 00:02:00,419 and who it is that is saying to you, 44 00:02:00,419 –> 00:02:03,680 give me a drink, you would have asked him 45 00:02:03,680 –> 00:02:06,599 and he would have given you living water. 46 00:02:06,599 –> 00:02:09,039 So, from the words of Jesus, we know here, 47 00:02:09,039 –> 00:02:10,460 at the beginning of the story, 48 00:02:10,460 –> 00:02:13,940 this woman does not know Jesus 49 00:02:13,940 –> 00:02:16,720 and she does not know the gift of God. 50 00:02:16,720 –> 00:02:19,679 She doesn’t know what grace is 51 00:02:19,679 –> 00:02:22,240 and she’s not asked of God 52 00:02:22,339 –> 00:02:24,880 and she has not received from God. 53 00:02:24,880 –> 00:02:28,539 That’s where she is when she meets Jesus. 54 00:02:28,539 –> 00:02:32,160 But if you look at the end of the story, verse 29, 55 00:02:32,160 –> 00:02:36,199 the woman is going back into the town where she lives 56 00:02:36,199 –> 00:02:38,539 and she says, come and see a man 57 00:02:38,539 –> 00:02:42,139 who told me all that I ever did. 58 00:02:42,139 –> 00:02:44,080 And not only does the woman become, 59 00:02:44,080 –> 00:02:47,559 the means by which many Samaritans 60 00:02:47,559 –> 00:02:51,600 we’re told in verse 39 came to believe in Jesus, 61 00:02:51,600 –> 00:02:54,899 but when many more came to believe Jesus, 62 00:02:54,899 –> 00:02:58,639 these folks asked Jesus to stay in their town 63 00:02:58,639 –> 00:03:02,520 and he stayed we’re told for two more days. 64 00:03:02,520 –> 00:03:04,399 And as a result of that, verse 41, 65 00:03:04,399 –> 00:03:07,460 there were many more who believed 66 00:03:07,460 –> 00:03:09,919 in Jesus Christ in that place. 67 00:03:09,919 –> 00:03:11,440 And when they believe, 68 00:03:11,440 –> 00:03:14,000 the many more then came back to the woman. 69 00:03:14,000 –> 00:03:16,199 So if you look right down to verse 42, 70 00:03:16,199 –> 00:03:17,419 they say to the woman, 71 00:03:17,419 –> 00:03:20,279 it is no longer because of what you have said 72 00:03:20,500 –> 00:03:23,380 that we believe for we have heard for ourselves 73 00:03:23,380 –> 00:03:28,380 and we know that this indeed is the savior of the world. 74 00:03:29,080 –> 00:03:31,919 Well you couldn’t ask for a clearer testimony 75 00:03:31,919 –> 00:03:34,380 to faith in Jesus Christ than that. 76 00:03:34,380 –> 00:03:36,039 We’ve come to know for ourselves 77 00:03:36,039 –> 00:03:41,039 that he really is the savior of the world. 78 00:03:41,160 –> 00:03:44,020 So try and take in the big picture with me. 79 00:03:44,020 –> 00:03:45,880 This is a marvelous story. 80 00:03:46,800 –> 00:03:49,720 A remarkable transformation that happened 81 00:03:50,279 –> 00:03:51,679 in the life of this woman 82 00:03:51,679 –> 00:03:54,559 who at the beginning of the day did not know Jesus, 83 00:03:54,559 –> 00:03:58,740 did not know anything about grace or the gift of God, 84 00:03:58,740 –> 00:04:02,639 had not asked of God and had not received from God. 85 00:04:02,639 –> 00:04:06,039 But by the end of the day she is a woman 86 00:04:06,039 –> 00:04:10,240 who is so captivated by Jesus Christ 87 00:04:10,240 –> 00:04:13,160 that she’s able to speak to others with freedom 88 00:04:13,160 –> 00:04:18,160 and with joy about what she has found in him 89 00:04:18,359 –> 00:04:21,679 and becomes the means by which 90 00:04:21,679 –> 00:04:23,959 other people who also don’t know Jesus 91 00:04:23,959 –> 00:04:25,700 and don’t know grace and have not asked 92 00:04:25,700 –> 00:04:27,959 and have not received, by which other people 93 00:04:27,959 –> 00:04:31,600 come to know that this indeed is the savior of the world. 94 00:04:31,600 –> 00:04:34,600 That is a remarkable transformation 95 00:04:34,600 –> 00:04:39,600 to happen in the life of one person, in a single day. 96 00:04:41,700 –> 00:04:45,779 And that’s what Jesus Christ is able to do. 97 00:04:45,779 –> 00:04:49,100 And what we’re seeing right here in this story, 98 00:04:49,100 –> 00:04:51,380 which for that reason, is so very remarkable. 99 00:04:51,380 –> 00:04:54,619 Now I want to ask the very simple question of this story, 100 00:04:54,619 –> 00:04:57,220 how did this come about? 101 00:04:57,220 –> 00:05:01,440 How is it, then, that Jesus Christ reached 102 00:05:01,440 –> 00:05:04,540 and won this lady who, at the beginning of the day, 103 00:05:04,540 –> 00:05:06,700 was very, very far from Him, 104 00:05:06,700 –> 00:05:08,799 and very, very far from grace? 105 00:05:09,739 –> 00:05:14,220 How is it that this remarkable change came about for her? 106 00:05:14,399 –> 00:05:16,299 How is it that such a change might come about 107 00:05:16,299 –> 00:05:20,739 for someone here today who is very, very far 108 00:05:20,739 –> 00:05:25,359 from worshiping God in spirit and in truth? 109 00:05:26,859 –> 00:05:29,480 Well, I want to present to you the story 110 00:05:29,480 –> 00:05:30,899 under these two headings. 111 00:05:30,899 –> 00:05:33,700 First, I want us to look at where Jesus Christ finds her. 112 00:05:33,700 –> 00:05:37,140 I want you to see the distance that she was away. 113 00:05:37,140 –> 00:05:39,339 Then, secondly, we’re going to look at how it is 114 00:05:39,339 –> 00:05:42,299 that Christ wins us, and particularly for us to learn 115 00:05:42,399 –> 00:05:46,239 how we therefore might be able to go about seeking 116 00:05:46,239 –> 00:05:51,100 to win others who seem very far from worshiping God 117 00:05:51,100 –> 00:05:52,859 in spirit and in truth. 118 00:05:52,859 –> 00:05:55,920 So, first of all then, where Christ finds her, 119 00:05:55,920 –> 00:05:59,579 and here we’re looking at the barriers to faith. 120 00:06:00,619 –> 00:06:02,679 Now, the point of this story, of course, 121 00:06:02,679 –> 00:06:07,220 is that this is a woman who is about as far 122 00:06:07,220 –> 00:06:11,100 from faith in Jesus as it is possible to be. 123 00:06:11,100 –> 00:06:15,480 There were multiple barriers between her and Jesus, 124 00:06:15,480 –> 00:06:17,779 and at the beginning of the day, 125 00:06:17,779 –> 00:06:20,660 she must’ve seemed like a very unlikely candidate 126 00:06:20,660 –> 00:06:22,980 to become a disciple of Jesus. 127 00:06:22,980 –> 00:06:25,220 Let me focus on just three of the barriers 128 00:06:25,220 –> 00:06:27,179 that Jesus wonderfully overcame. 129 00:06:28,299 –> 00:06:31,619 The first of these was the barrier of race. 130 00:06:31,619 –> 00:06:35,839 The Samaritan woman, verse nine, said to him, 131 00:06:35,839 –> 00:06:40,820 “‘How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, 132 00:06:41,000 –> 00:06:44,880 “‘a woman of Samaria, for Jews 133 00:06:44,880 –> 00:06:48,980 “‘have no dealings with Samaritans.’” 134 00:06:48,980 –> 00:06:51,059 That’s quite clearly a statement about race. 135 00:06:51,059 –> 00:06:54,559 It’s an issue about racial prejudice 136 00:06:54,559 –> 00:06:57,859 and about racial division. 137 00:06:57,859 –> 00:07:00,239 And so at first, because Jesus is a Jew, 138 00:07:00,239 –> 00:07:02,600 this woman’s a Samaritan, the history between these 139 00:07:02,600 –> 00:07:07,600 two races, very, very, very loaded with conflict, 140 00:07:07,720 –> 00:07:10,019 and when Jesus asks her for a drink, 141 00:07:10,019 –> 00:07:13,059 it seems that our first words to Him were just spoken 142 00:07:13,059 –> 00:07:15,399 with absolute contempt. 143 00:07:15,399 –> 00:07:18,559 You’re a Jew, and there’s a huge barrier. 144 00:07:19,820 –> 00:07:24,820 Now the history of tension, and at times hatred 145 00:07:25,459 –> 00:07:27,880 between the Jews and the Samaritans was well, 146 00:07:27,880 –> 00:07:30,019 well known in the ancient world and will be 147 00:07:30,019 –> 00:07:32,839 familiar to many of you today. 148 00:07:32,839 –> 00:07:37,420 700 years before the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, 149 00:07:37,420 –> 00:07:41,320 the Assyrians, who were the ruling power of the day 150 00:07:41,320 –> 00:07:45,739 invaded this northern part of Israel, Samaria, 151 00:07:45,739 –> 00:07:50,100 and took the vast majority of the people off into exile. 152 00:07:50,100 –> 00:07:53,059 Only a few were left, and it was like a kind of ghost town. 153 00:07:53,899 –> 00:07:56,119 And so then what they did, rather than leave 154 00:07:56,119 –> 00:08:01,119 the area empty, they moved people 155 00:08:01,859 –> 00:08:06,220 from other nations that the Assyrians had conquered 156 00:08:06,339 –> 00:08:09,700 kind of forcibly repatriated these people 157 00:08:09,700 –> 00:08:12,880 to repopulate this area with a mixture of folks 158 00:08:12,880 –> 00:08:16,160 from all kinds of background, different race, 159 00:08:16,160 –> 00:08:18,140 different religion. 160 00:08:18,140 –> 00:08:20,820 This was, therefore, what we would call today 161 00:08:20,820 –> 00:08:23,540 a multicultural society, which, of course, 162 00:08:23,540 –> 00:08:26,500 is very, very common and familiar to us today, 163 00:08:26,500 –> 00:08:31,500 but would have been very, very unusual back in those days. 164 00:08:31,779 –> 00:08:35,700 And we read about it in 2 Kings Chapter 17 and verse 33, 165 00:08:35,719 –> 00:08:40,159 where we re told that the people of Samaria feared the Lord, 166 00:08:40,159 –> 00:08:42,979 but they also served their own gods. 167 00:08:42,979 –> 00:08:45,539 In other words, there was a mix of religions 168 00:08:45,539 –> 00:08:46,919 that people had brought with them, 169 00:08:46,919 –> 00:08:49,799 because they had come from different parts of the world, 170 00:08:49,799 –> 00:08:51,440 so they served their own gods 171 00:08:51,440 –> 00:08:53,099 after the manner of the nations 172 00:08:53,099 –> 00:08:56,880 from among whom they had been carried away. 173 00:08:57,880 –> 00:09:01,440 Now I think, therefore, it is of huge significance 174 00:09:02,479 –> 00:09:05,479 that Jesus went to Samaria. 175 00:09:06,299 –> 00:09:11,299 That he went into this very, very mixed kind of environment 176 00:09:11,659 –> 00:09:16,280 with people who had adopted religious traditions 177 00:09:16,280 –> 00:09:17,380 from all over. 178 00:09:17,380 –> 00:09:18,460 Why does he go there? 179 00:09:18,460 –> 00:09:23,260 Because he is drawing to himself 180 00:09:23,260 –> 00:09:26,580 people from every tribe and every nation 181 00:09:26,580 –> 00:09:29,179 and every language. 182 00:09:29,179 –> 00:09:33,380 And no culture and no people group 183 00:09:33,380 –> 00:09:36,340 is beyond the reach of the love and the grace 184 00:09:36,340 –> 00:09:40,559 of our Lord Jesus Christ. 185 00:09:40,559 –> 00:09:42,380 Now I mention this particularly today 186 00:09:42,380 –> 00:09:45,219 not only because it’s an important part of the story 187 00:09:45,219 –> 00:09:47,919 but also because there are many within our congregation 188 00:09:47,919 –> 00:09:51,219 who did not grow up in Christian homes. 189 00:09:52,099 –> 00:09:54,940 You may have grown up in a home 190 00:09:54,940 –> 00:09:59,739 that was Jewish or Muslim or Hindu or Buddhist. 191 00:09:59,739 –> 00:10:01,719 You may have grown up in an environment 192 00:10:01,719 –> 00:10:04,760 when the Bible was not really your book. 193 00:10:04,760 –> 00:10:05,840 There were other books. 194 00:10:05,840 –> 00:10:08,479 And the Bible was a book that belonged to other people, 195 00:10:08,479 –> 00:10:10,359 and therefore the starting point 196 00:10:10,359 –> 00:10:14,919 for you is to feel, now I’m a long, long way away from this. 197 00:10:16,460 –> 00:10:21,460 And if you grew up in a Hindu or a Muslim home, 198 00:10:23,940 –> 00:10:28,940 you may feel that Christian faith is remote from you. 199 00:10:29,580 –> 00:10:33,659 And I want you to see that that was precisely 200 00:10:33,659 –> 00:10:36,080 the position of this woman 201 00:10:36,080 –> 00:10:39,380 when she first met the Lord Jesus Christ, 202 00:10:39,380 –> 00:10:43,219 and her life was wonderfully touched 203 00:10:43,219 –> 00:10:45,679 and changed by the Savior. 204 00:10:46,840 –> 00:10:51,059 Second, there was a barrier that also needed to be crossed 205 00:10:51,059 –> 00:10:54,940 in relation to her religious background. 206 00:10:54,940 –> 00:10:57,659 So first race, and second, religion. 207 00:10:57,659 –> 00:11:01,179 Notice verse 20, our fathers, she says, 208 00:11:01,179 –> 00:11:04,619 worshiped on this mountain. 209 00:11:04,619 –> 00:11:06,859 So she’s speaking there about belonging 210 00:11:06,859 –> 00:11:09,820 to a particular religious tradition. 211 00:11:09,820 –> 00:11:11,979 Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, 212 00:11:11,979 –> 00:11:16,719 and Jesus said to her, you worship what you do not know. 213 00:11:17,619 –> 00:11:19,880 So this lady was familiar with worship. 214 00:11:20,979 –> 00:11:24,219 She had grown up with a certain tradition, 215 00:11:25,219 –> 00:11:28,000 and she did have a certain amount 216 00:11:28,000 –> 00:11:29,159 of knowledge of the truth. 217 00:11:29,159 –> 00:11:31,260 I mean, she says in verse 25, 218 00:11:31,260 –> 00:11:34,619 I know that Messiah is coming. 219 00:11:36,419 –> 00:11:37,659 But here’s the question, 220 00:11:37,659 –> 00:11:40,900 what had her religion done for her? 221 00:11:42,760 –> 00:11:45,099 I mean, she didn’t know God. 222 00:11:46,340 –> 00:11:49,460 She had not asked of God. 223 00:11:50,479 –> 00:11:53,239 She had not received from God. 224 00:11:54,299 –> 00:11:59,299 She had grown up with a certain form of religion 225 00:11:59,340 –> 00:12:03,059 but it had not been a source of life 226 00:12:03,059 –> 00:12:06,919 or of joy or of peace to her. 227 00:12:06,919 –> 00:12:09,820 It was simply what our fathers did. 228 00:12:09,820 –> 00:12:12,940 It was an inherited tradition. 229 00:12:14,619 –> 00:12:16,320 Folks, thinking about this, 230 00:12:16,320 –> 00:12:20,219 my mind went back to my days in high school 231 00:12:20,219 –> 00:12:22,619 in Edinburgh, Scotland. 232 00:12:22,619 –> 00:12:25,179 My experience was probably quite different 233 00:12:25,179 –> 00:12:28,419 from what most of you have experienced 234 00:12:28,419 –> 00:12:32,460 in your education in this country for sure. 235 00:12:32,460 –> 00:12:36,820 But where I grew up, the school that I attended 236 00:12:36,820 –> 00:12:39,679 had a religious assembly for quote, 237 00:12:39,679 –> 00:12:44,679 Christian worship every morning of the week. 238 00:12:45,659 –> 00:12:49,219 And every morning we all filed 239 00:12:49,239 –> 00:12:54,239 into the great hall with its ancient wooden benches, 240 00:12:57,080 –> 00:13:01,979 we stood to attention when the headmaster 241 00:13:01,979 –> 00:13:04,580 and his deputies and a chaplain 242 00:13:04,580 –> 00:13:09,200 and their robes came onto the platform. 243 00:13:09,200 –> 00:13:12,619 The music master then would strike up 244 00:13:12,619 –> 00:13:17,619 the organ for a hymn that nobody sang, 245 00:13:17,739 –> 00:13:22,419 except for the chaplain who made a gallant attempt, 246 00:13:22,419 –> 00:13:23,919 but even he seemed to me 247 00:13:23,919 –> 00:13:26,419 to look rather embarrassed about the whole thing. 248 00:13:27,859 –> 00:13:32,039 Then we sat down, the chaplain led a prayer, 249 00:13:33,099 –> 00:13:36,460 someone read a few verses from the Bible 250 00:13:36,460 –> 00:13:39,539 and then we were treated to the list of names 251 00:13:39,539 –> 00:13:42,059 of those who were to report to the headmaster 252 00:13:42,059 –> 00:13:44,739 to be disciplined and we filed. 253 00:13:45,739 –> 00:13:50,739 Friends, the deadening effect of compulsory worship. 254 00:13:53,820 –> 00:13:58,440 And I tell you, hundreds of students, 255 00:13:59,340 –> 00:14:04,099 young men who every day were receiving 256 00:14:04,099 –> 00:14:09,039 what effectively was an inoculation against Christianity, 257 00:14:10,419 –> 00:14:14,099 making them quite sure that they knew what Christianity was 258 00:14:15,340 –> 00:14:20,340 and highly resistant to ever really being receptive at all 259 00:14:21,140 –> 00:14:22,859 to the claims of Jesus Christ 260 00:14:22,859 –> 00:14:26,020 or to the glorious reality of worship in spirit 261 00:14:26,020 –> 00:14:27,020 and in truth. 262 00:14:28,000 –> 00:14:30,619 And some of you will also have known 263 00:14:30,619 –> 00:14:33,700 from your own background in a different way 264 00:14:33,700 –> 00:14:38,700 a kind of formal religion that was without joy 265 00:14:39,380 –> 00:14:42,739 and was without life and was without peace 266 00:14:43,000 –> 00:14:47,179 and was without love and was without power for you. 267 00:14:47,179 –> 00:14:49,780 And this was the position you see of this woman. 268 00:14:49,780 –> 00:14:51,539 She had a religious tradition 269 00:14:51,539 –> 00:14:54,640 but she did not know the gift of God. 270 00:14:55,700 –> 00:14:59,640 Grace was like a foreign language to her. 271 00:14:59,640 –> 00:15:01,700 It was an unknown tongue. 272 00:15:03,500 –> 00:15:05,859 So this is a huge barrier. 273 00:15:07,260 –> 00:15:10,500 Folks who have had the inoculation of formal religion 274 00:15:10,599 –> 00:15:12,739 are among the hardest to reach. 275 00:15:13,580 –> 00:15:15,859 If you’ve had a little taste, 276 00:15:15,859 –> 00:15:19,340 you can end up being as hardened against the Lord 277 00:15:19,340 –> 00:15:21,919 as anyone on the face of the earth. 278 00:15:24,539 –> 00:15:26,739 So third barrier was her record. 279 00:15:26,739 –> 00:15:28,760 Race, religion, and records, 280 00:15:28,760 –> 00:15:31,919 her whole life story, had been immensely sad. 281 00:15:33,340 –> 00:15:37,299 Verse 18, Jesus says you have had five husbands 282 00:15:38,099 –> 00:15:41,440 and the one that you now have is not your husband. 283 00:15:41,440 –> 00:15:44,539 I just spent some time pondering 284 00:15:44,539 –> 00:15:47,400 how sad this woman’s life has been. 285 00:15:49,140 –> 00:15:53,359 I mean her personal history is a story 286 00:15:53,359 –> 00:15:55,359 of broken relationships, 287 00:15:57,059 –> 00:16:00,859 relationships that have ended in disappointment. 288 00:16:02,580 –> 00:16:05,359 Think of all the hope and the anticipation 289 00:16:05,400 –> 00:16:09,539 and all the joy that goes into a wedding. 290 00:16:09,539 –> 00:16:13,000 Here’s a couple and they come to be married 291 00:16:13,000 –> 00:16:15,320 and all the happiness that they anticipate 292 00:16:15,320 –> 00:16:17,159 that’s going to lie ahead, 293 00:16:17,159 –> 00:16:19,979 five times she had been there 294 00:16:19,979 –> 00:16:23,900 and five times it had ended in disappointment. 295 00:16:24,859 –> 00:16:28,119 And now she was living with a man 296 00:16:28,119 –> 00:16:31,059 who wouldn’t make a commitment to her. 297 00:16:31,059 –> 00:16:33,140 Didn’t want to marry her. 298 00:16:33,880 –> 00:16:37,460 Now I suspect that her whole life story 299 00:16:37,460 –> 00:16:39,039 and the sadness of it all 300 00:16:39,039 –> 00:16:42,080 would have brought her to a place of thinking 301 00:16:43,260 –> 00:16:46,659 why would God ever be interested in me? 302 00:16:48,700 –> 00:16:51,479 But here’s what I want you to take in today, 303 00:16:52,700 –> 00:16:57,200 that Jesus Christ is so interested in her 304 00:16:58,400 –> 00:17:01,200 that he overcomes every barrier 305 00:17:01,200 –> 00:17:02,900 that would distance her from him, 306 00:17:03,340 –> 00:17:04,540 the barrier of race, 307 00:17:04,540 –> 00:17:07,459 the barrier of her formal religious tradition 308 00:17:07,459 –> 00:17:09,359 that had done nothing for her, 309 00:17:09,359 –> 00:17:12,739 the barrier of her own life story 310 00:17:12,739 –> 00:17:15,119 that had just been filled with sadness 311 00:17:15,119 –> 00:17:16,819 and wreckage and brokenness, 312 00:17:16,819 –> 00:17:19,839 he overcomes every barrier 313 00:17:19,839 –> 00:17:21,839 in order to bring transformation 314 00:17:21,839 –> 00:17:24,900 into the life of this woman. 315 00:17:26,239 –> 00:17:27,680 Now there will be some of us here 316 00:17:27,680 –> 00:17:30,319 and you might say at one or more of these points 317 00:17:30,319 –> 00:17:32,459 I think I can relate to this woman. 318 00:17:33,699 –> 00:17:36,579 And I want to say to you that Jesus Christ 319 00:17:36,579 –> 00:17:38,939 will overcome every barrier 320 00:17:39,859 –> 00:17:41,599 in order to reach you. 321 00:17:41,599 –> 00:17:42,439 That’s who he is. 322 00:17:42,439 –> 00:17:43,780 That’s what his grace is like. 323 00:17:46,319 –> 00:17:48,500 And then there will be others of us 324 00:17:48,500 –> 00:17:50,000 that will be saying here, 325 00:17:50,000 –> 00:17:53,339 boy I’m thinking of someone who’s like this woman. 326 00:17:54,939 –> 00:17:58,319 You have a friend, 327 00:17:58,540 –> 00:18:03,000 a neighbor, a colleague, 328 00:18:04,339 –> 00:18:09,339 a family member who is highly resistant 329 00:18:12,040 –> 00:18:16,680 a long, long way away from faith in the Lord Jesus Christ 330 00:18:16,680 –> 00:18:18,560 you pray for that person you say 331 00:18:18,560 –> 00:18:22,520 I can’t imagine them ever, ever being a follower of Jesus. 332 00:18:22,520 –> 00:18:24,479 How in the world could I reach them? 333 00:18:25,079 –> 00:18:28,180 Right here in this story I want us to look 334 00:18:28,180 –> 00:18:31,199 in the second part today at how Jesus 335 00:18:31,199 –> 00:18:33,979 reached her because He gives to us 336 00:18:33,979 –> 00:18:38,880 the most marvelous model of seeking 337 00:18:38,880 –> 00:18:42,819 to reach with love and sensitivity and compassion 338 00:18:42,819 –> 00:18:45,599 a person who may seem very far away 339 00:18:45,599 –> 00:18:48,579 a person for whom there are many, many barriers 340 00:18:48,579 –> 00:18:51,839 and yet a person who Jesus Christ is able 341 00:18:51,880 –> 00:18:55,880 to wonderfully win and transform such a life. 342 00:18:55,880 –> 00:18:58,300 That’s the beauty and the marvel of this story. 343 00:18:58,300 –> 00:19:01,859 So let’s look secondly at how Christ wins her 344 00:19:02,959 –> 00:19:06,099 and seek to learn from this, not only how Christ 345 00:19:06,099 –> 00:19:09,920 can win us but how we might seek to go about 346 00:19:09,920 –> 00:19:12,119 winning others who may seem at first 347 00:19:12,119 –> 00:19:14,800 to be very far from the truth. 348 00:19:14,800 –> 00:19:17,439 So how Christ wins her, the path to faith, 349 00:19:17,479 –> 00:19:22,140 so what does the path to faith look like 350 00:19:22,140 –> 00:19:25,420 for someone who is very, very far away? 351 00:19:25,420 –> 00:19:28,140 And again let me just give you three very simple words. 352 00:19:28,140 –> 00:19:30,739 The first is hope, hope. 353 00:19:31,780 –> 00:19:36,780 Verse 14, whoever drinks of the water I will give him 354 00:19:38,339 –> 00:19:40,959 will never be thirsty again. 355 00:19:42,459 –> 00:19:46,040 The water that I will give him will be 356 00:19:46,280 –> 00:19:51,280 a spring of water welling up to eternal life. 357 00:19:54,219 –> 00:19:57,699 And I want you to notice where Jesus begins. 358 00:19:58,839 –> 00:20:02,020 This is a person who’s a long way off 359 00:20:02,020 –> 00:20:07,020 and he begins with the great thirsts in her soul. 360 00:20:08,079 –> 00:20:11,099 There are great thirsts in every human soul 361 00:20:11,099 –> 00:20:13,699 we all have a sense of longing 362 00:20:14,359 –> 00:20:16,560 for what we have not yet grasped, 363 00:20:16,560 –> 00:20:18,939 what we have not yet received or enjoyed 364 00:20:18,939 –> 00:20:22,060 or found in our lives. 365 00:20:22,060 –> 00:20:25,099 And Jesus speaks to this it’s the first thing he does, 366 00:20:25,099 –> 00:20:29,819 he speaks about springs of water. 367 00:20:29,819 –> 00:20:33,979 In other words a source of joy, 368 00:20:33,979 –> 00:20:36,780 a source of satisfaction, 369 00:20:36,780 –> 00:20:39,380 and of peace and of love, 370 00:20:39,380 –> 00:20:41,540 and of fulfillment. 371 00:20:41,619 –> 00:20:43,500 And Jesus makes it very clear. 372 00:20:43,500 –> 00:20:47,140 Do you notice in verse 14 he says it twice 373 00:20:47,140 –> 00:20:49,339 that this is something that he gives. 374 00:20:49,339 –> 00:20:52,579 Whoever drinks of the water, I will give him, 375 00:20:52,579 –> 00:20:54,060 will never be thirsty again, 376 00:20:54,060 –> 00:20:57,599 the water that I will give him. 377 00:20:57,599 –> 00:21:00,859 So Jesus says look there is a source of joy 378 00:21:02,060 –> 00:21:04,140 and there is a source of peace 379 00:21:05,040 –> 00:21:08,239 and I can give that to you. 380 00:21:08,239 –> 00:21:11,920 And more than that, Jesus says, 381 00:21:11,920 –> 00:21:16,199 when I give it can actually be in you. 382 00:21:16,199 –> 00:21:20,119 A spring of water in him he says. 383 00:21:20,119 –> 00:21:22,800 I can give a joy that will be in you, 384 00:21:22,800 –> 00:21:25,599 I can give a love that will be in you, 385 00:21:25,599 –> 00:21:28,640 I can give a peace that will be in you. 386 00:21:28,640 –> 00:21:30,680 That’s what he’s saying. 387 00:21:30,680 –> 00:21:32,839 And not just in you for a little time 388 00:21:32,839 –> 00:21:35,099 but notice up, the spring of water 389 00:21:35,339 –> 00:21:38,479 will be welling up to eternal life. 390 00:21:38,479 –> 00:21:40,939 In other words it will never end. 391 00:21:40,939 –> 00:21:42,739 This gift will always be yours. 392 00:21:42,739 –> 00:21:43,660 It will be yours in life, 393 00:21:43,660 –> 00:21:44,660 it will be yours in death, 394 00:21:44,660 –> 00:21:45,959 it will be yours forever. 395 00:21:48,079 –> 00:21:53,079 Now notice that Jesus speaks to this woman’s thirst 396 00:21:55,739 –> 00:22:00,459 before he addresses her sins. 397 00:22:00,459 –> 00:22:03,619 Now I know that Jesus dealt with different people 398 00:22:03,660 –> 00:22:07,359 and spoke to different people in very different ways. 399 00:22:07,359 –> 00:22:11,199 But I think it is significant that with this woman 400 00:22:11,199 –> 00:22:13,319 who is so far from the truth, 401 00:22:13,319 –> 00:22:15,479 with so many barriers to overcome, 402 00:22:15,479 –> 00:22:18,640 he does not begin with her sins. 403 00:22:19,800 –> 00:22:21,979 He begins with her thirsts. 404 00:22:23,219 –> 00:22:24,839 Now here’s why this is important. 405 00:22:25,800 –> 00:22:28,699 No one will turn from their sins 406 00:22:28,699 –> 00:22:31,959 unless they have hope of something better. 407 00:22:32,780 –> 00:22:34,800 Remember the prodigal son. 408 00:22:35,780 –> 00:22:38,479 And in that story he ends up in the far country, 409 00:22:38,479 –> 00:22:39,500 spends all his money, 410 00:22:39,500 –> 00:22:41,900 ends up eating the same food as the pigs. 411 00:22:41,900 –> 00:22:43,880 He’s in an awful state. 412 00:22:43,880 –> 00:22:47,079 And eventually he comes to his senses the Bible says. 413 00:22:47,079 –> 00:22:51,479 And he says, well I will arise and I will go to my father 414 00:22:51,479 –> 00:22:56,160 and perhaps he will make me one of his hired servants. 415 00:22:56,160 –> 00:22:59,000 So he has some hope 416 00:22:59,040 –> 00:23:02,619 that he can have a better life 417 00:23:02,619 –> 00:23:04,719 if he goes back to his father. 418 00:23:05,880 –> 00:23:08,000 But think about this with me. 419 00:23:08,000 –> 00:23:11,420 If the prodigal son had known 420 00:23:11,420 –> 00:23:15,280 that when he got within sight of the house 421 00:23:15,280 –> 00:23:17,660 the father would not be standing waiting for him 422 00:23:17,660 –> 00:23:19,380 but would run towards him 423 00:23:19,380 –> 00:23:21,599 and would embrace him and kiss him 424 00:23:21,599 –> 00:23:23,160 and put a robe on his back 425 00:23:23,160 –> 00:23:24,260 and a ring on his finger 426 00:23:24,260 –> 00:23:25,880 and kill the fatted calf 427 00:23:25,880 –> 00:23:28,459 in order to throw the greatest party and celebration 428 00:23:28,780 –> 00:23:29,699 for his return, 429 00:23:29,699 –> 00:23:31,239 if he had known that 430 00:23:31,239 –> 00:23:32,739 when he was in the far country 431 00:23:32,739 –> 00:23:36,280 would he not have gone back to the father sooner? 432 00:23:36,280 –> 00:23:39,199 Would he not have walked more quickly? 433 00:23:39,199 –> 00:23:40,479 Of course he would 434 00:23:40,479 –> 00:23:45,060 because change always begins with hope. 435 00:23:48,020 –> 00:23:49,719 Giving up your sin 436 00:23:49,719 –> 00:23:51,420 becomes possible 437 00:23:51,420 –> 00:23:53,959 when you know the grace 438 00:23:53,959 –> 00:23:55,979 that God has in store for you, 439 00:23:55,979 –> 00:23:57,040 and this woman didn’t know it. 440 00:23:57,079 –> 00:23:58,599 She didn’t know the gift of God. 441 00:23:58,599 –> 00:24:01,380 And that’s why Jesus starts with this grace. 442 00:24:01,380 –> 00:24:03,119 What God can give you, 443 00:24:03,119 –> 00:24:05,060 that’s where he begins. 444 00:24:06,439 –> 00:24:11,339 When you know that grace awaits you, 445 00:24:12,719 –> 00:24:16,300 you will be freed to confess sins 446 00:24:16,300 –> 00:24:17,839 that you have concealed. 447 00:24:19,619 –> 00:24:21,780 When you know that forgiveness 448 00:24:21,780 –> 00:24:24,339 and the welcome from the father awaits you, 449 00:24:24,339 –> 00:24:27,439 you will be drawn more quickly to return. 450 00:24:29,099 –> 00:24:32,739 When you know the father’s love for you, 451 00:24:32,739 –> 00:24:37,739 you will not steal your heart and your mind against him. 452 00:24:39,500 –> 00:24:42,959 See, change always begins with hope. 453 00:24:44,140 –> 00:24:47,599 And there is the most marvelous, marvelous hope here 454 00:24:47,599 –> 00:24:49,760 in what Jesus says to this woman. 455 00:24:49,760 –> 00:24:53,280 Look, your life can be more than what it’s been. 456 00:24:54,819 –> 00:24:57,280 I can give into your life something 457 00:24:57,280 –> 00:24:59,079 that you have not yet known. 458 00:25:00,160 –> 00:25:02,880 There is a joy and there is a satisfaction 459 00:25:02,880 –> 00:25:04,040 that can be yours. 460 00:25:04,040 –> 00:25:05,680 That’s what Jesus is saying. 461 00:25:05,680 –> 00:25:08,560 He’s ready to do this for you. 462 00:25:08,560 –> 00:25:10,359 And He’s able to do it, too. 463 00:25:11,640 –> 00:25:14,380 So Jesus wins her first with hope. 464 00:25:16,160 –> 00:25:19,739 Second word, candor, candor. 465 00:25:20,579 –> 00:25:22,680 Verse 16, Jesus said to her, 466 00:25:22,680 –> 00:25:26,839 go call your husband and come here. 467 00:25:28,359 –> 00:25:30,760 Now I use the word candor because 468 00:25:30,760 –> 00:25:33,680 this is the moment and it’s a necessary moment 469 00:25:34,540 –> 00:25:37,420 in which the conversation becomes 470 00:25:37,420 –> 00:25:38,979 intensely personal. 471 00:25:40,439 –> 00:25:44,000 And Jesus says, now let’s have an honest talk 472 00:25:45,099 –> 00:25:47,300 about what’s actually going on in your life. 473 00:25:48,219 –> 00:25:49,300 Let’s get down to it. 474 00:25:50,500 –> 00:25:52,859 Because we’ve not yet come to a place 475 00:25:52,859 –> 00:25:56,660 where you’ve been open about what really 476 00:25:56,660 –> 00:25:59,739 is going on inside of you. 477 00:26:01,060 –> 00:26:05,099 And you see Jesus is leading this woman 478 00:26:05,099 –> 00:26:09,239 to a place where she can come to a greater candor with him. 479 00:26:10,140 –> 00:26:12,560 And not just speak about things in general terms. 480 00:26:13,359 –> 00:26:15,640 She has already said in verse 15, 481 00:26:15,640 –> 00:26:19,239 sir give me this water so that I will not be thirsty 482 00:26:19,239 –> 00:26:22,859 or have to come here to draw water. 483 00:26:22,859 –> 00:26:24,479 You see, I don’t think she has yet understood 484 00:26:24,479 –> 00:26:26,880 what Jesus is talking about. 485 00:26:26,880 –> 00:26:28,979 But at least her interest is now engaged. 486 00:26:28,979 –> 00:26:30,079 She does want to know more. 487 00:26:30,079 –> 00:26:32,680 She is not sitting there in contempt. 488 00:26:34,180 –> 00:26:35,819 Our heart is beginning to open. 489 00:26:37,099 –> 00:26:41,040 And the point where hope begins to open the heart 490 00:26:41,800 –> 00:26:45,040 Jesus says well now we’ve got to have a really honest talk. 491 00:26:46,439 –> 00:26:50,439 And I just love the gentleness of Jesus here. 492 00:26:51,660 –> 00:26:55,219 If the woman is to receive anything from the Lord 493 00:26:56,160 –> 00:26:57,959 into her sad life, 494 00:26:58,880 –> 00:27:01,920 she has to get to the place of being open 495 00:27:01,920 –> 00:27:03,739 and honest with him, 496 00:27:03,739 –> 00:27:07,020 and Jesus helps her get there 497 00:27:07,099 –> 00:27:11,780 by saying, go call your husband. 498 00:27:11,780 –> 00:27:13,579 First that then leads her to say 499 00:27:13,579 –> 00:27:14,900 well, I have no husband, 500 00:27:14,900 –> 00:27:18,160 which of course Jesus already knew by his divine knowledge 501 00:27:18,160 –> 00:27:20,900 and he says verse 17, you’re right in saying 502 00:27:20,900 –> 00:27:23,900 I have no husband for you have had five husbands 503 00:27:23,900 –> 00:27:27,780 and the one that you now have is not your husband. 504 00:27:28,900 –> 00:27:31,979 By the way, isn’t it just very, very clear right there 505 00:27:31,979 –> 00:27:35,760 that living as husband and wife 506 00:27:35,800 –> 00:27:39,300 with someone who’s not your husband or your wife 507 00:27:39,300 –> 00:27:41,819 does not honor God? 508 00:27:43,359 –> 00:27:46,479 Well the woman responds to this by saying 509 00:27:46,479 –> 00:27:51,479 well, I perceive verse 19 that you are a prophet. 510 00:27:52,719 –> 00:27:57,719 Now a prophet was someone who was given knowledge from God 511 00:27:59,239 –> 00:28:02,079 of something that could not otherwise be known. 512 00:28:02,939 –> 00:28:05,719 Like Nathan who went to David 513 00:28:06,280 –> 00:28:07,099 do you remember? 514 00:28:07,099 –> 00:28:09,680 And exposed because he was a prophet 515 00:28:09,680 –> 00:28:13,839 the sin that David had tried to cover up. 516 00:28:13,839 –> 00:28:15,920 So at this point the woman’s thinking 517 00:28:15,920 –> 00:28:19,760 oh, I’ve run into a prophet. 518 00:28:19,760 –> 00:28:24,760 I’ve run into someone who sees right through me 519 00:28:24,920 –> 00:28:28,439 and knows everything about me 520 00:28:28,439 –> 00:28:32,400 and has therefore come to tell me about my sins. 521 00:28:33,400 –> 00:28:35,599 Now friends this is true. 522 00:28:36,800 –> 00:28:38,920 Jesus is a prophet. 523 00:28:38,920 –> 00:28:40,920 He knows everything about you. 524 00:28:40,920 –> 00:28:42,079 He is the prophet. 525 00:28:42,079 –> 00:28:43,839 He is God in the flesh 526 00:28:43,839 –> 00:28:47,560 and therefore there is nothing that is hidden from him. 527 00:28:47,560 –> 00:28:51,459 He is the one before whom all hearts are open 528 00:28:51,459 –> 00:28:56,459 and from whom no secret is ever, ever hidden. 529 00:28:56,500 –> 00:28:58,180 But friends don’t you thank God with me 530 00:28:58,180 –> 00:28:59,680 that he’s more than a prophet. 531 00:29:00,520 –> 00:29:02,300 Don’t you thank God with me today 532 00:29:02,319 –> 00:29:06,579 that he’s done more than to tell us about our sins. 533 00:29:06,579 –> 00:29:09,339 He has come to save us from our sins. 534 00:29:09,339 –> 00:29:11,859 That’s why the word savior is so wonderful 535 00:29:11,859 –> 00:29:13,819 in relation to the Lord Jesus Christ. 536 00:29:13,819 –> 00:29:15,579 Prophet is something good. 537 00:29:15,579 –> 00:29:18,020 Savior is something infinitely better 538 00:29:18,020 –> 00:29:20,719 and only Jesus Christ is the savior. 539 00:29:23,140 –> 00:29:26,579 So with her conscience now awakened, 540 00:29:27,979 –> 00:29:31,859 this woman wants to know what she can do. 541 00:29:32,739 –> 00:29:34,859 And she says, verse 20, 542 00:29:34,859 –> 00:29:39,540 our fathers worshiped on this mountain 543 00:29:39,540 –> 00:29:42,780 but you say that in Jerusalem 544 0:29:42,780 –> 00:29:46,219 is the place where people ought to worship. 545 00:29:47,619 –> 00:29:48,780 Now, I wonder what you think 546 00:29:48,780 –> 00:29:51,520 about the flow of the conversation here. 547 00:29:51,520 –> 00:29:55,040 There are a number of commentators who say 548 00:29:55,040 –> 00:29:56,920 this looks like a distraction. 549 00:29:58,140 –> 00:30:01,400 Jesus, you’re talking to me about my life 550 00:30:01,400 –> 00:30:04,900 and about my brokenness and about my sin. 551 00:30:04,900 –> 00:30:06,319 Let’s get off that subject 552 00:30:06,319 –> 00:30:08,719 and have a theological conversation 553 00:30:08,719 –> 00:30:10,599 about where’s the right place to worship. 554 00:30:10,599 –> 00:30:14,760 So some people think that this is merely an evasion, 555 00:30:14,760 –> 00:30:18,260 a distraction tactic to move the conversation 556 00:30:18,260 –> 00:30:19,959 on the part of the woman. 557 00:30:19,959 –> 00:30:21,000 I don’t think so. 558 00:30:22,680 –> 00:30:27,680 I think that this woman sees her need 559 00:30:28,280 –> 00:30:32,140 and actually wants to do something about it. 560 00:30:33,219 –> 00:30:35,640 And so I think that the flow of the conversation 561 00:30:35,640 –> 00:30:36,520 is more like this. 562 00:30:36,520 –> 00:30:38,760 I think what she’s saying is, 563 00:30:38,760 –> 00:30:40,140 all right, Jesus, 564 00:30:41,599 –> 00:30:43,699 you’re telling me that I’ve not lived 565 00:30:43,699 –> 00:30:45,280 the life that God calls me to lead. 566 00:30:45,280 –> 00:30:48,180 You’re telling me that I’m not living that life right now. 567 00:30:49,479 –> 00:30:51,199 Okay, I get it. 568 00:30:51,199 –> 00:30:52,760 My life right now, 569 00:30:53,800 –> 00:30:57,180 is not what God calls me to be. 570 00:30:58,540 –> 00:30:59,520 So what can I do? 571 00:31:00,760 –> 00:31:02,479 Where can I find God? 572 00:31:03,599 –> 00:31:05,579 How can I put it right with him? 573 00:31:06,800 –> 00:31:09,439 Can I offer a sacrifice here on this mountain 574 00:31:09,439 –> 00:31:10,979 where our father’s have done it? 575 00:31:10,979 –> 00:31:14,439 Or are you telling me that I now need to go to Jerusalem? 576 00:31:14,439 –> 00:31:16,239 But tell me, what is it that I need to do? 577 00:31:16,239 –> 00:31:17,800 Where is it that I can find God? 578 00:31:17,800 –> 00:31:19,540 How is it that I can seek him? 579 00:31:21,500 –> 00:31:25,079 And you see, our Lord’s answer is very, very wonderful. 580 00:31:26,079 –> 00:31:28,079 Because in effect he’s saying this, 581 00:31:28,079 –> 00:31:30,300 this indeed is the flow of the conversation, 582 00:31:30,300 –> 00:31:33,540 Jesus is saying, you know, you’re asking me the question, 583 00:31:33,540 –> 00:31:35,500 where can you go and seek God? 584 00:31:36,420 –> 00:31:38,280 What I want to tell you is the wonderful truth 585 00:31:38,280 –> 00:31:41,079 is that right now God is seeking you. 586 00:31:42,099 –> 00:31:43,760 And of course, that is the point, 587 00:31:43,760 –> 00:31:45,280 is it not, of verse 23 588 00:31:45,280 –> 00:31:47,619 which takes us to the last of the three headings 589 00:31:47,619 –> 00:31:50,900 where Jesus speaks about her calling from God. 590 00:31:50,900 –> 00:31:54,420 Verse 23, the hour is coming and is now here 591 00:31:54,420 –> 00:31:58,560 when the true worshipers will worship the Father 592 00:31:58,560 –> 00:32:00,959 in spirit and in truth, 593 00:32:00,959 –> 00:32:05,959 for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. 594 00:32:09,939 –> 00:32:13,359 Now, notice that when her conscience is awakened, 595 00:32:14,680 –> 00:32:17,959 the woman’s question is, what can I do? 596 00:32:17,959 –> 00:32:19,380 And where should I go? 597 00:32:20,959 –> 00:32:23,119 Where’s the right place to offer a sacrifice? 598 00:32:23,160 –> 00:32:24,680 What can I do? 599 00:32:24,680 –> 00:32:27,359 But Jesus answers her question, 600 00:32:27,359 –> 00:32:30,839 not in terms of what God wants her to do, 601 00:32:30,839 –> 00:32:34,719 but in terms of what God calls her to become. 602 00:32:34,719 –> 00:32:36,300 It’s a shift of categories. 603 00:32:38,180 –> 00:32:41,619 Forget doing, let’s talk about becoming. 604 00:32:42,680 –> 00:32:46,800 And let’s talk about what God wants you to become. 605 00:32:46,800 –> 00:32:49,439 What God wants you to become 606 00:32:49,479 –> 00:32:53,160 is a person who worships him in spirit and in truth. 607 00:32:55,640 –> 00:32:57,300 For you to become a true worshiper, 608 00:32:57,300 –> 00:33:00,380 that’s what he’s seeking, that’s what he’s seeking for you. 609 00:33:01,760 –> 00:33:04,160 To worship in spirit means 610 00:33:05,599 –> 00:33:09,640 to find joy in God from the heart, 611 00:33:10,880 –> 00:33:14,760 to love him with all your heart and soul 612 00:33:14,760 –> 00:33:18,339 and mind and strength, that’s what God’s calling you to, 613 00:33:18,339 –> 00:33:20,939 to find your joy in him, your peace in him, 614 00:33:20,939 –> 00:33:23,319 your hope in him, your satisfaction 615 00:33:23,319 –> 00:33:25,079 and your fulfillment in him. 616 00:33:26,199 –> 00:33:28,560 And to worship in truth means to worship 617 00:33:28,560 –> 00:33:32,040 through the true way that God has opened up, 618 00:33:32,040 –> 00:33:34,160 which is, of course, Jesus himself. 619 00:33:34,160 –> 00:33:38,579 He says, I am the way and the truth and the life. 620 00:33:40,000 –> 00:33:42,020 So, true worshipers are those 621 00:33:42,020 –> 00:33:46,160 who worship God in spirit and in truth. 622 00:33:47,119 –> 00:33:51,979 And I’ve never seen that better described or laid out 623 00:33:51,979 –> 00:33:54,939 than in some wonderful and beautiful words 624 00:33:54,939 –> 00:33:59,719 of Archbishop William Temple who, in the last century, 625 00:33:59,719 –> 00:34:02,280 wrote these words, worship he said, 626 00:34:02,280 –> 00:34:06,520 is the submission of all our nature to God. 627 00:34:06,520 –> 00:34:10,919 It is the quickening of conscience by its holiness. 628 00:34:10,919 –> 00:34:14,219 It is the nourishment of mind by his truth. 629 00:34:15,139 –> 00:34:19,739 It is the purifying of imagination by his beauty. 630 00:34:19,739 –> 00:34:23,419 It is the opening of the heart by his love. 631 00:34:23,419 –> 00:34:27,379 And it is the surrender of the will to his purpose. 632 00:34:27,379 –> 00:34:30,360 That’s what worship in spirit and in truth 633 00:34:30,360 –> 00:34:33,580 actually looks like and that’s why it’s transforming, 634 00:34:34,540 –> 00:34:37,820 changing you from the inside out 635 00:34:37,820 –> 00:34:42,820 when you worship him in spirit and in truth. 636 00:34:44,360 –> 00:34:48,399 Couldn’t be further from what I experienced 637 00:34:48,399 –> 00:34:52,379 as a high school student and what many people experience 638 00:34:52,379 –> 00:34:53,919 in the world of religion today. 639 00:34:55,199 –> 00:34:57,040 And perhaps couldn’t be further from where 640 00:34:57,040 –> 00:34:59,360 your closed heart has been even this morning. 641 00:35:01,560 –> 00:35:05,840 Now how is this woman to become 642 00:35:05,840 –> 00:35:08,840 the kind of worshiper that God seeks? 643 00:35:10,780 –> 00:35:12,479 Formal religion is easy. 644 00:35:12,479 –> 00:35:13,919 You just show up at church. 645 00:35:14,659 –> 00:35:17,000 You just make a confession. 646 00:35:17,000 –> 00:35:20,379 You just say a prayer, you just offer a sacrifice 647 00:35:20,379 –> 00:35:21,699 or whatever it is. 648 00:35:22,899 –> 00:35:26,580 Formal religion is easy but how are you going 649 00:35:26,580 –> 00:35:29,560 to become a person who so loves God from the heart 650 00:35:29,560 –> 00:35:31,760 that you worship Him in spirit and in truth? 651 00:35:33,379 –> 00:35:37,020 How does a person who is steeled against God 652 00:35:37,020 –> 00:35:39,500 to be changed from the inside out like that? 653 00:35:40,000 –> 00:35:43,139 And at that point the woman backs off. 654 00:35:44,060 –> 00:35:46,260 Because remember, she doesn’t yet know who Jesus is, 655 00:35:46,260 –> 00:35:48,060 she’s still thinking of Him as a prophet, 656 00:35:48,060 –> 00:35:49,840 she’s still thinking that this whole message 657 00:35:49,840 –> 00:35:52,500 is about telling her where she’s failed. 658 00:35:52,500 –> 00:35:56,439 And so she feels, you’re telling me what I need to become, 659 00:35:56,439 –> 00:35:59,739 I can’t become that and so she says, verse 25, 660 00:35:59,739 –> 00:36:02,979 I know that Messiah is coming 661 00:36:02,979 –> 00:36:07,179 and when He comes He will tell us all things. 662 00:36:08,179 –> 00:36:11,800 So this is a kind of conversation over kind of line. 663 00:36:13,540 –> 00:36:16,100 It’s been nice talking to you, Jesus. 664 00:36:16,100 –> 00:36:17,860 You’ve said some really interesting things 665 00:36:17,860 –> 00:36:21,500 and I’m sure I need to think about them a great deal more. 666 00:36:21,500 –> 00:36:23,179 But it’s all a little bit beyond me now, 667 00:36:23,179 –> 00:36:24,979 I’ve come here to get water 668 00:36:24,979 –> 00:36:26,820 and that’s because I have meals to cook, 669 00:36:26,820 –> 00:36:28,580 I have a house to clean. 670 00:36:28,580 –> 00:36:31,500 I need to get back to it now to my daily life. 671 00:36:31,500 –> 00:36:34,100 Maybe one day there’ll be someone who comes into my life 672 00:36:34,100 –> 00:36:36,300 who’ll be able to explain all of these things to me. 673 00:36:37,239 –> 00:36:40,139 They say that’s what Messiah will do when he comes 674 00:36:40,139 –> 00:36:44,879 and Jesus says, I who speak to you, am he. 675 00:36:46,479 –> 00:36:47,879 Can you imagine that moment? 676 00:36:49,639 –> 00:36:53,300 Lady, I am the one who has come into the world 677 00:36:54,560 –> 00:36:57,899 to do for you what you cannot do for yourself 678 00:36:57,899 –> 00:37:02,280 to cause you to become what God is calling you to be. 679 00:37:02,280 –> 00:37:05,520 I’m the one who’s able to give this inner spring 680 00:37:05,879 –> 00:37:08,159 that will change you from the inside out. 681 00:37:08,159 –> 00:37:10,979 That’s what I was speaking to you about. 682 00:37:13,280 –> 00:37:16,139 Jesus Christ can do more for you than any prophet. 683 00:37:17,560 –> 00:37:21,120 He can do more than tell you what God requires of you 684 00:37:21,120 –> 00:37:23,679 and then leave you to go work it out. 685 00:37:23,679 –> 00:37:27,959 He’s able to produce within you a love. 686 00:37:27,959 –> 00:37:31,379 He’s able to purify your heart. 687 00:37:31,379 –> 00:37:33,679 Jesus Christ says, this is the very reason 688 00:37:33,679 –> 00:37:34,560 I’ve come into the world. 689 00:37:34,739 –> 00:37:36,020 I’m the one who can do it. 690 00:37:36,020 –> 00:37:38,959 Listen, Jesus Christ is the one 691 00:37:38,959 –> 00:37:42,540 who can quicken your conscience by his holiness. 692 00:37:42,540 –> 00:37:46,419 He is the one who can nourish your mind with his truth. 693 00:37:46,419 –> 00:37:49,419 He’s the one who can purify your imagination 694 00:37:49,419 –> 00:37:50,459 with his beauty. 695 00:37:50,459 –> 00:37:54,620 He’s the one who can open your heart with his love, 696 00:37:54,620 –> 00:37:58,260 and he is the one who will bring you to the place 697 00:37:58,260 –> 00:38:00,219 where you are, in increasing measure, 698 00:38:00,219 –> 00:38:04,260 able to freely and gladly surrender your will 699 00:38:05,100 –> 00:38:08,139 to his great purpose for your life. 700 00:38:09,500 –> 00:38:12,199 And so here’s this woman and she’s face to face 701 00:38:12,199 –> 00:38:17,199 with the savior, the one who is able to work in her 702 00:38:18,040 –> 00:38:21,840 everything that God is calling her to be. 703 00:38:21,840 –> 00:38:24,239 So I wanna end here. 704 00:38:24,239 –> 00:38:29,239 The Father is seeking true worshipers, 705 00:38:30,239 –> 00:38:34,679 and they are the ones who worship him in spirit 706 00:38:34,679 –> 00:38:36,500 and in truth. 707 00:38:38,120 –> 00:38:39,580 Does that describe you? 708 00:38:42,840 –> 00:38:47,840 Could you say today, I’m a worshiper 709 00:38:48,280 –> 00:38:52,639 from the heart of this living God, he’s my joy. 710 00:38:52,639 –> 00:38:55,639 He’s my life, he’s my peace, he’s my hope. 711 00:38:56,600 –> 00:39:01,600 Or, do you find yourself saying I am so far from that? 712 00:39:03,780 –> 00:39:08,719 I am so far from what God is calling me to be. 713 00:39:10,459 –> 00:39:12,560 Well then I simply give to you 714 00:39:12,560 –> 00:39:17,560 in closing the verse with which we began, verse 10, 715 00:39:18,919 –> 00:39:23,139 where Jesus said if you knew the gift of God, 716 00:39:23,979 –> 00:39:27,379 and if you knew who it is that is saying 717 00:39:27,379 –> 00:39:30,239 to you give me a drink, you would have asked him 718 00:39:30,239 –> 00:39:33,719 and he would have given you living water. 719 00:39:35,199 –> 00:39:38,879 And friend, you do know this morning 720 00:39:38,879 –> 00:39:41,800 from John, in chapter 4, who Jesus is. 721 00:39:43,020 –> 00:39:47,459 And you do know from John, chapter 4 this morning 722 00:39:47,459 –> 00:39:52,459 what grace is, and what God’s gift is. 723 00:39:53,340 –> 00:39:57,139 And since you know these things, 724 00:39:57,139 –> 00:40:00,939 why in the world would you not ask of him, 725 00:40:02,320 –> 00:40:07,320 knowing that those who ask of him always receive? 726 00:40:09,379 –> 00:40:10,540 Well, you pray with me. 727 00:40:11,959 –> 00:40:14,860 Father, we confess that we are so far 728 00:40:14,860 –> 00:40:18,580 from being the kind of worshipers that you seek. 729 00:40:19,500 –> 00:40:23,399 And so we thank you that your Son Jesus Christ 730 00:40:23,399 –> 00:40:25,540 has come into the world 731 00:40:25,540 –> 00:40:29,300 to be what we are not, 732 00:40:29,300 –> 00:40:31,820 to do what we cannot 733 00:40:31,820 –> 00:40:35,379 and to give what we have not. 734 00:40:36,659 –> 00:40:39,820 So we ask that your dear Son Jesus Christ 735 00:40:39,820 –> 00:40:42,459 will make us all that you are calling us to be 736 00:40:42,459 –> 00:40:45,080 in increasing measure. 737 00:40:46,000 –> 00:40:50,040 And these things we ask in the Savior’s name. 738 00:40:50,040 –> 00:40:52,239 And those who are making this prayer together 739 00:40:52,239 –> 00:40:56,199 with me today, said amen.