John4thirsty
Title: I am thirsty!
Text: John 4:7-15
Introduction: 70% of our body is made up of water. We need to constantly replenish this amount so our body can function properly and if we don’t dehydration will take place. Dehydration is when the amount of fluid going out of your body is greater that what is coming in. As a result, your body organs “dry up”. This sense dehydration creates a stimulus called thirst which is a desire or lack of fluids. Life’s circumstances has dried you out. You may not be thirsting for water but metaphorically you are thirsting for some type of satisfaction for the dehydration in you life. You life is dry. You have been giving out more than what is going in you life. And you have been thirsting so long to be satisfied but nothing you have done was able to do it. The magnitude of your needs has put you in a mode of desperation. Your desire to get this thirst quenched has caused you to make some decisions that you may be not so proud of. But I got something for you today. If you can receive what Jesus has to offer you, you won’t dry up from dehydration!
Our text today is about a woman who tried to fulfill her need. In doing so, it led to some dysfunctional behavior. Meeting your needs in an unhealthy or ungodly can lead to social and emotional dysfunctions. As we look at the dysfunctions of this woman, we can see our own dysfunctions that manifest in our lives.
I. She was dealing with the feeling of insignificance
Here we have in our text a woman from Samaria. In that culture, this woman had 2 strikes against her. The first was that she was a woman in a male dominate culture. Second, she was from Samaria. A Samaritan was mix races (half Jew/half gentile) who were known to practice idol worship but had later adopted the Jewish religion. Because of who she is and where she comes from, society was not kind to her. She had to deal with oppression, radical prejudice and bigotry. She was not a pure Jew and the “traditional” Jewish people let the Samaritans know that they weren’t pure. Just like today, people don’t have a problem telling you what you are not. Many of us can relate to the pain that this woman must of felt. What do you do when the world makes you feel insignificant because of who you are? How do you feel when you are not valued by anybody? The world is saying that: you are insignificant because you were born poor. You are insignificant because of the color of your skin. You are insignificant because you are a woman. You’re a black man. You are insignificant. Your mother loved your brothers and sister but resented you because your daddy hurt her. You are insignificant because your sister is skinny and light but you are full figured and chocolate. This woman had to deal with pain of who she was by constant reminders from people. People have made you feel insignificant and it has caused you to behave a certain way.
To add to her feeling of insignificance, she herself was the cause of some of her pain. You don’t need any enemies when you are your worst enemy! If we look at the context of the text, we will see in v. 16-18 that his woman was known to have a man or two or 3 or…. She made her own reputation. In the Jewish culture you were only allowed to marry 3x times. She exceeded the limit. If we look close at this type of behavior it is safe to say she was looking for something a man could give her. Some of us of here are just like this woman trying to get her need met. You might not be running hard after the opposite sex but you are running hard after liquor, money, drugs, power, acceptance etc. It could be anything. You do it just to get some type of satisfaction. This desperate need for a man caused this woman shame. Pause. But I don’t believe she did not start out this way. Just like you, you did not start this way. You just wanted a little taste of liquor to take the edge off. You just took hit just feel better. You just fooled about to get out some frustration out. It was not your intent to get caught up in what you were into. You did not know it would caused you shame. People will see how you live especially when it is not godly. Her shame leads us to our next point which is…
II. She isolated herself
Look how she isolated herself. First of all in that culture, part of the women’s duty was to get water for their families. However, they did not do it alone but in groups. This woman came to the well alone. In verse 6 it tells us that Jesus was at this well at the 6th hour which was twelve noon. At this time of day in that region it was sweltering hot. This woman went to the well at a time that no one would see her therefore escaping the potential ridicule of having a shameful life. She inconvenienced herself physically by carrying a water jar in the hottest part of the day so she can be at ease emotionally by avoiding people. Many of us are just like this. We live with a sense of avoidance because of our issues. However, this only drives us further into a cave of isolation creating an inward spiral of self defeat and depression. But the sad part is that we did it to ourselves trying to fill the God shaped void in our lives with ungodly stuff. You did it to yourself and now you feel bad. You may avoid people but you can’t avoid yourself.
In her effort to isolate herself by going to the well at an off time, she had a surprise when she got there. There is a man there sitting and weary. He turns to her and says “Give me a drink”! But this man is not a man that this woman would speak to let alone be seen in the same place. Nor would He even crack his lips to speak to her because of her cultural difference. Just by the look of this man, this woman got indignant by the fact He had the nerve to speak to her let alone ask her for some water. But this was not a normal man or a normal circumstance. It is Jesus our Lord speaking to this Samaritan woman. Pause. It was Jewish “taboo” for a single man to speak to a woman in public let alone a woman from Samaria. Point: Jesus will break any tradition, religion, and cultural stigma to get to you! Jesus will go to the utmost to save you and meet your needs! Amen. In verse 9, the woman says to Jesus (paraphrased) “you got some nerve talking to me, you being a Jew in all”. Y’all don’t deal with us. Jesus replies in v.10, “if you knew the gift of God and who is asking you, instead of getting this water from the well you would have been asking me for some Living Water and I’ll give it to you”. She did not know who she was talking too. Her not knowing is our next point.
III. She was ignorant about who Jesus was This woman was ignorant about who Jesus was and what He had to offer. Just like us today, if we really knew who Jesus was our behavior toward Him and His people we would be different. If we really knew him, we would not worry like we do. If we knew him we would not live out like we do. If we knew we would really trust him and obey him more. We say we know him but our behavior and belief speaks differently! We are ignorant of all that He is and all that He can do in the time of need! Because she did not know Him…
III. She has bad insight
Her ignorance led to bad insight. Verses 11-12a truly shows her bad insight concerning Jesus and what He was able to do. Look at her mistakes:
1. She called Jesus, “Sir”. He is not just Sir, He is Lord!
2. She says, you have nothing to draw with. She did not realize that Jesus has the power to do the exceedingly abundantly…If He can’t do, it can’t be done!
3. She says the water is deep: She did not know that nothing is impossible with Jesus. Nothing is too far for Jesus to reach.
4. She next asks,” where does this water come from? She did not know that Jesus is the source of the Living Water.
5. She says to Jesus, you are not greater than Jacob. She did not know that he is the Great I am!
This is our problem. We have bad insight on His abilities to meet our needs. This woman looked at Jesus and saw a Jewish man but she did not see a Savior. The world looks at Jesus as a man that does good things but lacks the faith to look at Him as Lord. This woman intuitively looked at Jesus with her natural eye. Intuition looks at what is physical. But faith looks what is spiritual. It is through faith we know who Jesus is and what he is able to do in the time of need. It is by faith that I know Him as a…Pause. Jesus is now about to give this woman an invite on what He has to meet her need.
IV. He gives her an invitation to have an invigorated life
In v.14, Jesus answers the Samaritan woman saying “If you drink my water you won’t thirst again! And in you will be a wellspring of living water”. The woman knew about the water in the well which was still and contained. This represents our life without the living water. We become still and contained. We are not flowing. We just exist. And if somebody wanted to draw from us they would have go down deep to get it out us. However, living water is vibrant, refreshing and abundant. It is not limited but overflowing! You don’t have to get it drawn out of you. Those around you can’t help but get wet by it because constantly flows out of you!
In verse 15, the woman replies to Jesus “give me this water so I won’t ever get thirsty, and won’t ever have to come back to this well again!” This woman response to Jesus models a behavior that we should have in order to get our needs met. First…
She has a change in attitude. When you have a real encounter with Jesus you will never be the same. Once closed, she is now open to what Jesus is saying. In order for your needs to be met, you have to be open to what Jesus has to offer. Second…
She has an attraction of His water. She says give me this water. This woman wants this water bad! Jesus loves it when you say gimme what you got! You have to want it! When you thirst for Him, you can be sure He will quench your thirst! Third…
She wants to apply or utilize this water to her life. She does not have to come back to the well again. This tells us if we have this water our lives will not be the same. If I have this water, I won’t go thru that mess with trifling people anymore. If I have this water, I won’t go through that pain again. I won’t be the same! Give me this water! I am thirsty! Are you thirsty?
CL: When I am thirsty I like to drink Gatorade. Gatorade was designed to end my dehydration. Gatorade puts the fluid and minerals back into my body that I lost during the strenuous activities of life. It fills me up and most importantly it quenches my thirst. It meets my physical needs. But I got some needs the Gatorade just won’t fulfill. It puts stuff back into my body but it can’t soothe my soul. It can give me the minerals that I lost but it can’t make me have joy. It can replenish my body with fluid but it can’t replenish my life with power! I just stop by here to tell you that there is something better than Gatorade. Jesus offers us some living water that with one sip, your soul is replenished and you will never be thirsty again! I got something now coming out of me I don’t have to refill because it is overflowing inside of me! If you want it, you got to thirst for it! And Jesus will satisfy your thirst with the Holy Ghost, life never-ending refresher! Get what you need! I got eternal life because I was thirsty. I got power because I was thirsty. I got joy because I was thirsty! Is anybody here thirsty? I dare you to take a drink and get! It will meet you need. The Holy Spirit is my:
Sustainer, Director, Enabler, Comforter, Helper, Instructor
Teacher, Sanctifier, Glorifier, Redeemer, Convicter, Reminder, Revealer, Counselor, Consecrater