Sermon Tone Analysis

*[wrapping up series, next sermon series; read passage; prayer]*

 

Last major event of Jesus’ first year of ministry is an encounter between Jesus and Samaritan woman.

Every day we meet people.

Some encounters somewhat substantial (e.g.

waiter, airplane).

Others casual, momentary (e.g.

elevator), etc…

 

Look to learn from what Jesus says and also from what Jesus does.

Or to put it another way, learn how Jesus purposefully puts himself in position to say what he says, along with learning from what he does actually say.

First explore background to this encounter.

Passage starts off by telling us* *that Jesus and his disciples traveling from Jerusalem back to Galilee.

As travel through region of Samaria they stop off at town could Sychar.

Disciples go into town to buy some food while Jesus rests for awhile at the town well when woman comes up.

And Jesus begins talking with her by asking for drink.

All sounds ordinary enough.

But much more going on here.

Get sense of it from certain details in story, biggest one being in v.9 where John writes that “the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans.”

Samaritans and Jews had long and complicated history.

Samaritans considered themselves to be Jews, but Jews saw them as being same as Gentiles, non-Jews.

This is because of their history.

Samaritans the descendants that come from low point in Israel’s history.

Back in 722 BC nation of Assyria came, conquered Samaria.

Deported most of the Jewish people who lived there, then imported foreigners from other places to take their place.

These foreigners intermarried with the remaining Jews in the land.

What came out of this union was Samaritans.

So in Jewish eyes they basically racial mutts, not true Jews.

Even worse, Samaritans followed a kind of Bizarro alternate Judiasm.

They had a Bible, but only consisted of first five books of Old Testament.

Built own temple in 400 BC on Mount Gerizim.

Jews so offended by this they eventually destroyed it in 128 BC.

Put all this together what got by Jesus’ day was great deal of hostility and outright racism in how Jews viewed and treated Samaritans.

Particularly more religious Jews like the Pharisees.

Many of these more religious Jews considered anything Samaritans touched to be unclean.

Samaritan women, just like Gentiles, were in continual state of uncleanness.

Often purposefully avoid going through Samaria.

*[CLICK - MAP]* *[CLICK – BACK TO IMAGE]* Not everyone did this.

If you in a hurry you of course would go through Samaria.

But if you were an especially strict religious Jew, would cross Jordan, travel on east side.

So immediately, background to this encounter is peculiar.

By intentionally going through Samaria, stopping at one their towns, and then engaging a Samaritan in conversation, in fact being willing to drink from the water jug that had been handled by a Samaritan, well this is something that many Jews would have questioned, and especially religious Jews would have very much frowned at.

But this not only barrier Jesus crossing.

Also moral barrier.

Remember detail of  v.3, that it was around the sixth hour, which means was around noon when woman came up and met Jesus.

Women back then usually came in groups to get water, and they would go early in the morning or later in the day in order to avoid the heat.

But this woman comes alone, during hottest part of day.

Even most casual observer could easily guess that this was woman with probably low reputation in the community, intentionally coming by herself because not welcome among other women, most likely ostracized by general community.

This will be confirmed for next week when we find out more about her sexually immoral background.

Morally speaking, this not woman want to form any connection with.

Finally there is also gender barrier.

Jewish men did not usually talk to women in public.

According to Jewish wise men, Jewish men were to avoid unnecessary conversation with women.

Could be accused of being improperly flirtatious.

Ethnic and racial barrier.

Moral and social barrier.

Gender barrier.

All of these at play when Jesus decides to open his mouth and ask this woman for drink.

No surprise then woman’s response is one of shock that touches on many of these barriers that are supposed to be between them.

*4:9, The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)*

Shock leads to much misunderstanding, at least for the first half of the conversation.

She thinks main issue is some kind of new water source of some kind.

Or that Jesus is trying to say he’s greater than their Jewish ancestor Jacob!

 

Jesus not give up.

Not mistake that Jesus is here with her.

Jesus not talking about superficial things.

Begin to draw some of this out.

First, considering just what Jesus doing.

*[CLICK] [Learning from what Jesus does]*

 

Very simply, Jesus purposefully engages this woman.

I believe this purposefulness starts back in v.4 where we told that Jesus *“had to pass through Samaria.”*

* *

Jesus is missionally driven in everything he does.

Saw his entire ministry and in fact his entire life as one to be lived purposefully, intentionally.

Jesus on purpose went through Samaria because there were people there he needed to purposefully engage.

We don’t live our lives like this to do we?

Many of us say we believe there is a God.

But live our lives as if there is no God, as if in fact there really was a random Big Bang and we all here by accident.

There is no purpose, no direction, no intentionality to anything we do!

We just kind of hanging.

Hanging out in same places, with same people, talking about same things.

All meaningless and purposeless.

Jesus reminds us that there is a God, that he is at work, and that if we are truly Christians we must be at work.

We must be involved in God’s mission!

Let’s be challenged here by Jesus and missional nature to his actions.

Notice story starts off with Jesus experiencing something very normal.

He’s thirsty, and also hungry (that’s why disciples go off to buy food).

So Jesus experiencing and living in way just like all of us.

Jesus fully God, but also fully human.

Now at this point, if was me here, whole focus on getting water, food.

Ruled by those realities – hunger and thirst!

Not so with Jesus.

Woman comes and Jesus first engages her, which shows that he not going to ruled by physical discomforts or conditions.

Even less will he be held back by racial or social barriers of day.

Jesus then intentionally takes conversation to deeper level.

Does this in very strategic way.

Subject of the conversation, “water,” is used to convey spiritual truths.

Essentially, he uses her language, and her major concerns, to convey his message.

She starts at this basic level, he meets her there, but doesn’t let it stay there.

He uses what they talking about to bring deeper, get talking about the deeper needs and the deeper truths.

This what looks like to live life on purpose, a life on mission.

Roosevelt, are we a people who live life on purpose?

Can our lives be characterized as being missional lives?