Start Here : Move people form a category to a conversation.

INTRODUCTION

· Cruise Friends Story

We hang out with people who like the same music, like the same clubs, shop at the same stores, play the same sports, and like or dislike the same people we do.

We migrate toward people who look, talk, dress, act, and believe like we do.

That’s not a bad thing, we have to have some things in common or you wouldn’t be friends. You have less drama when people are like you.

TENSION

· In the same way that we tend to drift toward people who are like us, we tend to drift away from people who aren’t.

Think about someone you were friends with in elementary school, but over time your friendship faded.

· You may even have groups of people that you tend to avoid or ignore. You’re not harsh, you just don’t really interact with them because they’re so different than you.

The popular kids.

The super smart kids.

The troublemakers.

The people who like that kind of music - K POP, country, etc.

The people who live in that kind of house.

The people who go to that school.

The people who play that sport.

· We tend to stick close to people who are like us and kind of keep our distance with people who aren’t.

· We can’t force ourselves to feel comfortable around people we feel uncomfortable with, can we?

· It’s like people fit into one of two buckets . . .

o We

o They

· Most of us would never admit this, but I think there’s something deeper that happens when it comes to the “We” and “They” categorizing. Sometimes, we highlight all the ways that WE are better than THEY.

Sometimes we tend to think that NOT liking certain people because of their differences is actually the Christian thing to do.

When they have a a different faith, no faith, or some sort of sin they are walking through that’s blocking them from growing in their faith, it’s tempting to judge them and say well I’m better than them, I’m holier than them, etc.

We often tend to think we need to stay away from people who don’t believe or act like us.

Bad choices can be bad influences, right?

· To a certain extent, that’s true. But are we really better followers of Jesus by keeping our distance from people who are different than us

How did Jesus deal with people who were different from him?

TRUTH

· Today’s passage is in John, one of the Gospels.

· One of the most smallest but most pivotal moments of Jesus’ life and ministry that John records is when Jesus interacts with a woman at the local well.

· He had to go through Samaria on the way. Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food (John 4:4-8 NLT).

· Here are a few things you should absolutely know about what’s going on:

o Jesus was in a surprising place.

There had been tension between the Jews and the Samaritans for multiple reasons, including religious differences.

The Jews had viewed them as unholy, unclean, idolatrous and more.

A Jewish leader had once destroyed the Samaritan temple, and the Samaritans retaliated by spreading bones in the temple to make them ritually unclean.

By Jesus time, being called a Samaritan was one the biggest insults.

He was headed to Galilee. And on the way, He went through Samaria. Well, there were major problems between the Jewish people and the Samaritans: racial hatred that went WAY back. On any average day, Jews would do ANYTHING to intentionally avoid interacting with Samaritans.

o Jesus was talking to a surprising person.

First - In that culture, women and men didn’t talk in public. Ever. I know that sounds weird now, but it was shameful back then. On top of that, she was a Samaritan woman.

Second - She had a past. She had been through some rough times and was making some questionable life choices.

In that time, you had to travel to a nearby well to get your water. Woman would travel to the well in the first thing in the morning because it got so hot during the day in the Middle East.

Nobody ever went to the well around noon because it was the hottest part of the day, this shows us she was an isolated woman, she was probably shunned from her community, she was an outcast because the town knew her past.

· But as surprising as it was that Jesus talked to her, what’s even more surprising is what He said:

· Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life” (John 4:13-14 NLT).

· The woman basically answers by saying, “Yes, I’ll take that!” To which Jesus answers, “Go, call your husband and come here.”

· Over the next few verses, we discover that Jesus already knew the woman didn’t have a husband.

· She had been married to five men, and the person she lived with now wasn’t her husband.

· Despite that though, Jesus continues to talk with her about things like

Worship - A time is coming where you don’t need to go to Jerusalem, but worshipping the Father and Spirit and in truth.

Truth - God is spirit, and worshippers must worship in spirit and truth.

She said “I know that the Messiah is coming when he will explain everything to us.” - Her life is about to change!

· Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!” (John 4:26 NLT).

Why is this a big deal? Jesus just told her she’s the Messiah. Up until this point, Jesus had never revealed his identity.

· Before He declared it to anyone else, Jesus told this woman who He was and what He meant to the world.

I don’t know about you, but I think it’s cool that Jesus declared who He was, first and foremost, not to the people who claimed to be perfect or holier than thou, but to an outcast woman from a different race, who was stuck in her sin. Only Jesus would do something like that!

· After, this woman did exactly what Jesus empowered her to do: She told everyone in her village. And I love what happened next!

· Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world” (John 4:39-42 NLT).

This came to the village and said, “Come and see, the Messiah who told me everything I ever did, and I’d like to add, “and still loves me”

· In some ways, this woman—who nearly everyone looked down on—became one of the first people to spread the message of who Jesus was into parts of the world where people hadn’t experienced Him yet.

A woman most people avoided was someone who Jesus

Moved toward.

Talked to. - Spoke in truth and in love.

Saw more than anyone else could see in her.

This woman had been searching and searching for fulfillment, for love that she’d never experienced before, and she had never experienced a love like Jesus.

· Like we’ve already mentioned, Jesus’ conversation with this woman broke ALL of the cultural rules of the time.

· She was the one He trusted with His message to change the world.

· And what Jesus did is the thing that you and I can remember forever…

Move people from a category to a conversation.

Jesus didn’t shy away from the truth, but spoke the truth in love AND stayed.

There’s no doubt that we live in an increasingly polarizing time.

Charlie Kirk -

How should we view this as Christians?

He was an image bearer.

He was a Father and a Husband.

The Church is at its worst when it is caught up in rage and animosity with the steadily “other loving” grace of Jesus.

Some people rage, others sadness.

The Church cannot be rooted in cultural anxiety and fear. We have to realize that we are citizens of another kingdom and we cannot let allegiance to this kingdom override our deeper convictions to the kingdom of Heaven.

Be rooted in compassion and love.

All of these things should wake up and pray to God, we need to show you up today.

I believe that now is the time when this country is hurting to show what following Jesus is truly like.

Thousands of people around the world are gathered not to riot and burn buildings down, but to pray together.

I’m telling you, I’ve seen where people are searching to fulfill themselves in every place but God.

People are broken, they are hurting, and they need Jesus.

I believe that more and more people are going to experience Christ through these hard times.

APPLICATION

· So what does this mean for us? If we want to follow Jesus’ example, especially when it comes to people who are different from us, we have to start seeing people the way He did—not as labels, but as individuals with value.

o 1. Start conversations with people you've been keeping at a distance.

We all have people we’ve placed in the “them” category (INCLUDING MYSELF) - people we assume things about, avoid, or judge.

Jesus moved towards people like that. He didn’t let differences stop Him from connecting with them.

What is one step you can take toward a real conversation with someone you’ve been keeping at a distance? Be humble, be kind. You don’t have to agree with them, just see them!

o 2. Show people their value with your actions.

Jesus didn’t just say hi to the Samaritan, he made her feel seen, known, and valued. What can you do this week to show someone that same kind of value?

Encouragement, asking them questions to make them feel seen or heard, or just listening.

When we treat others with dignity - even those who others write off, we reflect the heart of Jesus.

LANDING

· As you head out, start thinking through some actual people in your life that you’ve kept at a distance—people you’ve placed in a category instead of taking time for a conversation.

· What would it look like to take one step toward them this week?

· Move people from a category to a conversation.