Living Water (John 4:1-45)

In the third chapter of John, we read about a nighttime encounter between Jesus and a distinguished religious leader named Nicodemus. Jesus admonished Nicodemus for boasting about his religious knowledge and his position as a high-ranking Pharisee. Jesus told him, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (v. 3:3). In essence, Jesus was saying that all of his earthly accomplishments meant nothing in an eternal sense...Jesus was telling him that if he wanted to truly worship God, he would need to be “all in”.

Chapter four describes another conversation – this time it's a “chance encounter” with a woman at a well as Jesus was traveling through Samaria on his way to Galilee. As they arrived in the town of Sychar in the region of Samaria, Jesus' disciples had momentarily left him to go buy food while he found a place to sit and rest next to Jacob's well. The Samaritan woman came to the well to draw water and Jesus started the conversation by saying to her, “Give me a drink.” (v. 7)

While the encounter with Nicodemus and the encounter with the woman are much different in content, it is remarkable to realize that they are very similar in structure:

Jesus gives a spiritual metaphor to Nicodemus: new birth (John 3:3)

Jesus gives a spiritual metaphor to the woman: living water (John 4:10)

Nicodemus is confused (John 3:4)

The woman is confused (John 4:11-12)

Jesus clarifies things with Nicodemus (John 3:5)

Jesus clarifies things with the woman (John 4:13-14)

Nicodemus is again confused (John 3:9)

The woman is again confused (John 4:15)

More clarification & a mild rebuke towards Nicodemus: (John 3:10-12)

More clarification & a mild rebuke towards the woman: (John 4:21-24)

Jesus identifies himself to Nicodemus (John 3:13-21)

Jesus identifies himself to the woman (John 4:26)

The conversation unfolds as the woman responds to Jesus' request for a drink of water. She points out that Jews and Samaritans simply do not socialize. The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” (vv. 9-10).

And by mentioning “living water”, Jesus was able to pique her curiosity and then he prods her to ask him, “Where do you get that living water?” (v. 11).

It's likely that you are aware of an effective technique in sales called the “take away”. It is a counter-intuitive technique which takes attention away from the item you are selling. It can work effectively because when executed properly, the other person will feel a sense of control of the conversation and they will re-focus their attention to the item in question on their own initiative. The technique itself has received somewhat of a bad rap only because it can be used by rookie salesmen in an over-dramatic, guilt-driven way. But when done respectfully and genuinely, it works very well. If you have children, chances are you've used this technique yourself.

Jesus is not a salesman, nor does he encourage us to “sell” the Gospel to others. But I do believe we can learn a lot about how to relate to others in this scenario. Notice how he passively mentions God, his own greatness, and “living water” in one breath – and he does this without arrogance or pretense. His loving sensitivity makes her curious about all of these things and he provides a wonderful explanation – Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.” (vv. 13-15).

Let's set theology aside for a moment – in this passage we can learn a lot from Jesus about how to communicate with people, how to listen, how to show sincere love, etc. There is no question that Jesus comes across very genuine and loving in this situation. I am certainly not trying to say that Jesus is relying on sales techniques – but it is his genius and skill and sensitivity that is displayed in this encounter.

Notice how, in five minutes, he builds trust and gets her to open up about her personal life. Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. (vv. 16-19)

I believe she might have became embarrassed at this point and attempted to steer the conversation to a theological discussion. She does this by immediately making a distinction about where Jews and Samaritans worship (v. 20). But whenever anyone makes an attempt to confront Jesus with theology, Jesus is sure to respond with a theology that they will never forget. Jesus does this superbly, and he sets her straight before revealing himself as the Messiah. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.” (vv. 23-26).

It is at this point when the disciples return and find Jesus speaking with this woman. From their point of view, they saw this scene as scandalous, for the passage says, “They marveled that he was talking with a woman” (v. 27). In their minds, she had three strikes against her: 1.) she was a woman, 2.) she was a Samaritan, 3.) she had a questionable reputation. But none of these seemed to bother Jesus.

The scriptures tell us that many Samaritans believed in Jesus because of her simple testimony. She told everyone that the Messiah knew everything about her life (v. 39). And because of this, the town convinced Jesus to stay with them for two days (v.40). I've often wondered what those two days were like to fellowship with him – it must have been amazing. Then the scriptures then tell us the depth of trust those people eventually had for Jesus: They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.” (v. 42). This is a story about everyone in one town who comes to a personal relationship with the Lord. And all of this was sparked by a woman's simple and honest story.

What is truly amazing about this story is that after a short encounter with the Lord, this woman immediately went on mission by telling all the people in her town about how Jesus changed her life. John carefully tells us in verse 28 that she actually left her water jar because she was so excited to tell others! I've known Christians who have known the Lord for more than twenty years...and they are still trying to figure out God's will for their life. They're still trying to determine if God is calling them to be on mission. Can I please tell you...if you know the Lord, your mission has already begun...in your own town!

Over the years, I have heard many people talk about John 4:1-45 and one comment that's made so often about the woman is that she is “spiritually bankrupt”. While I would certainly agree with that assessment, I feel compelled to ask: why do we not say the same about Nicodemus? We tend to condemn the woman, while subconsciously we respect the Pharisee. And yet, there is clear evidence that this woman was immediately changed and that she glorified God by spreading the news of Jesus. Her life helped change the lives of many. On the other-hand, there is only vague biblical evidence that Nicodemus became a true believer in the Lord (John 7:50-52 & John 19:39).

So why do we so easily judge the woman, and excuse Nicodemus? Is it because of the woman's questionable past? Or the Pharisee's credentials? The truth is that without Jesus, we are all spiritually bankrupt. Before we met Jesus we were all dead in our sins...just like the woman and just like Nicodemus.

If you do not know Jesus as your Lord, please know that you can never please God by the life you live. Your sins prevent that from ever happening...and just like Nicodemus, you can never please God by your wonderful accomplishments. For as Paul said, “Now we see how God does make us acceptable to him. The Law and the Prophets tell how we become acceptable, and it isn’t by obeying the Law of Moses. God treats everyone alike. He accepts people only because they have faith in Jesus Christ. All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. But God treats us much better than we deserve, and because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us and sets us free from our sins.” (Romans 3:21-24). This means that we can never please God by our actions. But if we believe and have faith in Jesus, we are set free by his blood on the cross. Our faith in him is the only thing that pleases a Holy Father. This redemption is given freely to us by grace...a gift from God. My prayer is that you will place your trust in Jesus and allow him to completely change you. If you yield to him like the woman did, he will change you forever!

(This article highlights my current preaching series through the Gospel of John. These originate from Roots Family Church - Lake Elsinore, CA 951-764-7642.)