Water

Intro: 3 Days without water. The body can’t not survive long periods of time without water.

Water: An Essential for Life

Explanation.: Water is one of the primary elements that we, as human beings, need to survive. How times did you say to your children, or your parents may said it to you, I am going to lock you up and give you bread and water. Bread, the most common and one of the cheapest foods and water, the cheapest of all fluids that we can put in our bodies.

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Application: There are times in our lives were we feel dry and thirsty just like Jesus is in our passage, but we can also have times in our walk with God were spiritual we feel dry and thirsty. We have not experienced God in a long time. Our prayers seems like a monolog instead of dialog.

Today, I want us to think about water, as found in the Bible, in three different ways. One water as a life giving substance and is for everyone. Two,

Transition: What can we learn about the spiritual realm from the physical realm?

This water, eternal life, is for Anybody and Everybody!

Explanation.: Here in John 4, we find Jesus asking a person for a drink of water. But he is not asking for water from just anyone and the woman at the well knows it. Now, as the scripture was read, he heard a phrase,

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Application:

English Standard Version Chapter 4

And he had to pass through Samaria

Did you ever stop to think, “Why did John add this phrase when he wrote this? So he passed through Samaria? Who Cares? I am sure that most of you have probably heard why but let me take a moment to refresh your memory. If we go back to King David, the nation of Israel is one united kingdom. But sometime around 930 BC, during the reign of David’s grandson, Rehoboam, the nation splits in two. The two bodies of water that you see are Mediterranean Sea and the other that is inland is the dead sea. Also note were Philistines are, that area is today’s Gaza Strip, where Hamas was firing missiles at Israel. Anyway, back to John 4 and why the phrase, “And he had to pass through Samaria.”

Samaritans were the Northern Israelites made up of the tribes of Dan, Asher, Naphtali and Zebulun, that allowed their captivity to corrupt them. They intermixed with various foreigners from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharmvaim. This intermixing of races led to the contamination of Israel’s religion and further antipathy. Now all this took started to take place with the fall of the Northern Kingdom Israel in 722BC.

Now the Southern Kingdom called Judah, were Jerusalem is located fell in 586 BC when King Nebe, came took the people as slaves to Babylon, this of course is know as the Babylonian Captivity. Well because of the intermixing of races and the contamination of Israel’s religion, and the placed they lived, Samaria they became know as Samaritans and they were hated by the Jews. The jews would normal go around Samaria to get to their destinations. It would be like Iowans go up to I-90 to Minnesota go through South Dakota into WY, then down into CO to get to Denver to avoid going across NE on I-80.

By asking the Samaritan Woman for a drink of water, and then telling her he would have given living water, Jesus was telling her, that this water, called eternal life, or salvation is not just for the Jews. It is for everyone.

Some Will Drink Some will not

This Water Will Cleanse

Another way we use water is to cleanse things or ourselves. When you are out in the woods or in a survival situation you might need to cleanse something. Or, maybe we need to cleanse the water so we can drink it. I need a helper from the audience.

Get the water, filter it, drink it. What we are basically doing is taking dirty water, poor it over some rocks to clean it and then drinking it.

You know sometimes the waters of life can be like this water. You first look at it and life has some nasty things going on it. Then some situat

This Water will satisfy

Explanation.:

Illustration: Have you ever been so thirsty and you took a big gulp of ice cold water. There is nothing more refreshing than water when you are super thirsty. It just seems to naturally satisfy our thirst. But at some point, we will thirst again won’t we and hopefully we will have access to water again. When Jesus told the woman at the well,

Application:

Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 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 Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Jn 4:13–14.

Jesus was telling her that if you need a spiritual drink of water, you don’t have to worry about it. There will always be an ample supply of eternal life flowing into your life if you follow me. The same is true with your life as well. When you follow Jesus and you need spiritual water for you dry and thirst soul, I can assure you that there is an ample supply of eternal life waiting for you. It will satisfy you like nothing as can or will. You can have joy unspeakable and full of glory, you can peace that surpass all understanding and you can have love that is never ending. Of the water that Jesus offers satisfy and sustains us today, but only if you drink it, only if you experience the love of God in Christ.

Who is this water for you ask? Is it only for the Jews? No! Is it only for Christians? No but if you drink of it you will become a Follower of Jesus and it will help you stay on the straight and narrow path. Notice the first word … WHOEVER drinks of the water… Whoever will come Jesus Christ and ask for a drink of eternities water will in no wise be rejected. The Water that Jesus gives us will satisfy.