Woman At The Well

Scripture

John 4:1–15 NIV

1 Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John— 2 although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. 3 So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. 4 Now he had to go through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. 7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” 11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” 13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

Introduction

A small boy was sent to bed by his father.......

Five minutes later.... "Da-ad...." "What?"

"I'm thirsty. ......Can you bring drink of water?"

"No. You had your chance.... Lights out."

Five minutes later: "Da-aaaad.....""WHAT?" "I'm THIRSTY. Can I have a drink of water??"

"I told you NO!".... If you ask again, ....I'll have to spank you!!"

Five minutes later......"Daaaa-aaaad.....""WHAT!"

"When you come in to spank me, .....can you bring a drink of water?

Background

TODAY we want to look at a woman who was thirsty.

She had a spiritual thirst in her life that Christ identified. We all have that thirst.

Have you ever gone and worked really hard or worked out and you are so thirsty? You can’t really quench the thirst. Pepsi doesn’t do it. Water doesn’t do it. Gatorade doesn’t do it. You just can’t quite quench that thirst.

In the same way we all have a spiritual thirst deep down inside of us. There is nothing in this world that is going to satisfy that thirst except a relationship with God.

Jesus was heading to Galilee at this time and was leaving Judea cause he was trying to avoid confrontation with the Pharisees who at this time were trying to stir up trouble for him so he was on his way to Galilee and according to the scriptures he had to go through Samaria to get there……

Today I want to share a bit on how you can find fulfilment in your life because here is what I know about some of you listening to me today .

You are not satisfied with your life right now

You believe there is something more

You’ve been trying everything that the world says will bring you fulfilment but it doesn’t happen

If you forget everything I am about to say, the main thing I want you to remember is When Jesus is our sole satisfaction, We will have true satisfaction in our soul.

Only a relationship with him will bring you satisfaction.

You Matter To God and He Wants To Meet With You

John 4:4 “4 Now he had to go through Samaria.”

⁃ He had to go through Samaria

⁃ Samaria was an area that Jews avoided at all costs

⁃ They hated Samaritans and Samaritans hated them

⁃ Pharisees prayed that no Samaritan will be raised in the resurrection

⁃ Jesus enemies called him a Samaritan when they wanted to insult him

⁃ One of the major reasons for their dislike of each other was the Samaritans had offered to help the Jews rebuild the temple in Jerusalem after the Jews had returned from Babylonians exile and this caused great bitterness so they chose not to worship in Jerusalem but in Mt. Gerizim.

⁃ There were even times when Samaritans will detain any Jew that is passing through their territory.

⁃ When you hate people you do whatever it takes to avoid contact with them

⁃ Jesus being a Jew had to pass through there

⁃ Because he Loved Samaritan people in the same way he love Jews

⁃ This shows how much God loves people who otherwise would have been rejected by others

⁃ God loves you irregardless of who you are

⁃ I don’t care what you have been done

⁃ Whether you are labelled as a Jew or as a Samaritan

⁃ Whether you are black or white ⁃ Jesus loves you and he cares for you a whole lot

This verse alone shows us just how intentional Jesus was. Jesus needed to go through Samaria to meet with this woman. This woman didn’t have a clue that she was on the Lord’s mind, but from the moment she left her house and as she was going through the motions of her day, she was on the mind of Jesus. Yet she never knew that the Lord wanted to meet with her.

It’s the same with every one of us, we are on His mind and He desires to meet with us each day. How amazing is that?

It is necessary for the Lord to meet with you. It is of great importance to Him. An encounter with God doesn’t just happen in the four walls of a church or when a special song is playing. You can encounter God each day of your life, wherever you are. You just have to be open.

An encounter with God is the fuel that enables us to continue our days and to live wholeheartedly for Him. An encounter with God ignites us to live as our greatest selves through Him and it affirms us by reminding us of who we are in Him.

An encounter with God is the key to freedom from the things that hold us down. He knows you, sees you and there is not a moment when you are not on His mind! God hasn’t forgotten you and He has never left you.

When you come to Him, He will not reject you! This is the truth. The enemy can use faults and failures to stop you from encountering the Lord, but today, you can go boldly before Him, transparent and surrendered and meet with Him again.

⁃ YOU MATTER TO GOD

John 4:6 NIV

6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

⁃ IT Says in verse 6 that Jesus was actually exhausted but he still reached out to talk to this Samaritan woman

⁃ God is never to tired to reach out to you

- to hear your problems

⁃ I might get tired of you but not God

⁃ He loves you with an everlasting love and he wants to shower you with his love

⁃ This woman was a whore who as we would soon see had 5 different husbands but Jesus did not care what her reputation was or how she was viewed by society he wanted to let her

know that she mattered to him

⁃ Today I want to let you know whether you are a drug addict, a whore, a thief etc you Matter to God and he loves you a whole lot.

⁃ GOD MAY NOT MATTER TO YOU BUT YOU WILL ALWAYS MATTER TO GOD

There is no person or race of people beyond the reach of God's grace. All are sinners and are in need of salvation. Jesus loves them all and we are commanded to love them as well. If Jesus would reach out to the most hated people of His day, then it is up to His children to tear down every wall of prejudice and reach out to people regardless of where they are or where they come from!)

God Has A Gift For You

John 4:10 NIV

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

• Not only do you matter to God but God has a gift for you ⁃ What gift? ⁃ Today is not my birthday, it is not Valentines

Day, It is not Christmas

⁃ Why does he have a gift for me?

⁃ This gift is better than any gift you desire or ever asked for!!!!

⁃ This woman was asking for water to quench her thirst but Jesus was offering her water that when she drinks it she will not thirst again

⁃ Whatever you might be asking God for, just remember that God has better in store for you.

⁃ Ephesians 3:20 “20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,”

⁃ God offers not just any water but living water

⁃ Many times we drink water but we need to be worried

- WASA

⁃ This living water produces life

⁃ She asks how can he offer a better water than their ancestor Jacob who gave them the well.

⁃ Jacob was held in high regard by these Samaritan people because of the first 5 books

⁃ Jesus is greater than any hero you have

⁃ Nothing wrong with having a hero ⁃ Just know that Jesus is greater ⁃ There is only so much a man can do for you

⁃ Jesus is greater

⁃ How was Jesus greater than Jacob

⁃ Jacob was just an ordinary man

- Jesus was God

- Jacob gives water that will make you thirsty again

- Jesus water will never make you thirsty again

⁃ Jacob’s water you will die but Jesus’s water you will never die

- life eternal

⁃ Which well are you drinking In today?

⁃ The wells of this world will never satisfy your deepest longings

⁃ Well of sex, well of drugs, well of alcohol, well of fame.

⁃ Jim Carrey quote "I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it's not the answer"?

⁃ What is this living water

⁃ Eternal life that comes from the Holy Spirit to everyone who believes in Jesus Christ

⁃ Eternal life is found only in the person of Jesus Christ and can only come through the help of the Holy Spirit. So the teaching of Jesus, His words of wisdom and truth, is life,

GOD MAY NOT MATTER TO YOU BUT YOU WILL ALWAYS MATTER TO GOD

We know that we matter to God

He has a gift for us

The last thing is we need to receive the gift How do we get this gift???

We need to first of all ask for it

Verse 15 the lady asks Jesus for this water

John 4:15 NIV

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

While other Rabbis would never have spoken to this woman at this well, Jesus was not afraid of social stigmas, nor did He care for common religious practice. Jesus was will to reach out to her in an effort to win her despite the personal cost to Himself. What a lesson to Christians! We are to reach beyond all manmade barriers to bring the lost to Jesus.).

John Maxwell - You dont have to be like them to win them but you have to like them to win them

This woman was searching for something that nothing in this world could give her. She had been married many times, in a quest to find something that only Jesus could give. She was searching for love and Jesus was ready and willing to meet that need that roared inside of her.

God desires to meet the need that is burning inside of you, too. He sees all and He is here to meet whatever needs you have. Stop searching for it in people and in material things. Those are all temporary fixes.

Why do you spend your money and time on things that temporarily satisfy?

Why do you invest in relationships that have no guaranteed return?

Jesus is not a temporary fix; the work that He does in the heart is permanent. A true relationship with Him guarantees a return of peace, joy, love and much more. All that you're searching for is in Him. Your purpose, your worth and happiness are all hidden in Him. The true living water that Jesus speaks of in this scripture represents God’s Spirit, the Spirit that is living inside of you, that is ready to truly fill you up.

Living an abundant life is not about obtaining things, but about discovering your life through Him. Today I challenge you to invest and commit yourself to knowing God. You will truly see the result.

If we ask for the best gift which is for eternal life found through him he will be more than willing to give it to us

But before she could get it something had to be set straight. She had to admit her sin.

Jesus told her in verse 16 to go get her husband

She admitted she did not have a husband and Jesus told her he knew she had 5 husbands and one she was living with was not her husband

It was through this statement she realised she was not talking to any man but a man who knew her every word cause he was God.

She was a sinner and she knew that and God knew that.

Jesus did not condemn her for her sin but he pointed it out to her so she could turn from it and turn to him instead.

She was trying to find satisfaction in men when true satisfaction can only be found in Jesus alone.

This woman was a sinner; she had been married five times and was currently living with a man who was not her husband. In those days, this was something that was greatly frowned upon, and she was an outcast.

Jesus did not highlight her flaws to condemn or scorn her. He needed her to see that her current lifestyle was a hindrance to her experiencing the fullness of life in God.

If you truly desire to experience God and all of His goodness, it will require you to let go of some things and people.

You have to ask yourself, what is keeping me away from God? What stops me from being with Him? You must answer those questions honestly. Nothing should stop you from being close to God. You shouldn’t give anything or anyone that right. It could be a set of friends, a relationship, a bad habit or a TV show. Whatever it is, it is stopping you from knowing God and reaping the benefits.

Your relationship with God impacts your entire life, and His leadership in your life is vital. As you grow in God and you continue to immerse yourself in all that He is, you will naturally change. Your desires will not be the same, and you will discover things in you that you never knew you had, bad and good, but it is necessary so that you can be better.

IN THE story of the woman at the well Jesus points out the lady's sin to her but does not dwell on it as much as he could have. He could have been quick to say how she is a big sinner sleeping with 5 different set of men but he did not go that route..... He showed her she was a sinner and needed to turn to him and away from any other man to get fulfilment in her life. You might be living in sin right now and might even be enjoying it but Jesus is saying to you that what he has to offer is way better than what sin has to offer to you!!!

When Jesus is our sole satisfaction, We will have true satisfaction in our soul. God may not matter to you but you will always matter to God.

Because there can be no forgiveness without repentance. There can be no conversion without conviction. This is important. And before I can get into a proper relationship with God I have to admit I am a sinner. I have to say I am sorry for that sin and be willing to turn from it and stop blaming it on people or other things. And if there is specific sin in my life, it needs to be turned from.

Some people say I don’t want you pointing out my sin.

If you went to a doctor and you had heart issues and he saw it and did not tell you you had hearts issues because he did not want to make you uncomfortable or spoil your lunch, what kind of doctor is that?

Oh, everything is fine. Just go and play football and run as fast as you can.... No problems. You are cool.

No. You know as much as I hate to hear it I want the doc to say I saw something that concerns me. I want to run tests on it. And then if he runs a test and determines it is a heart issue I want the doctor to say OK we need to do something about it.

We need to take care of it. Here is the course of action. You know I don’t like to hear it but it is better than the alternative. Death. But if that doctor just said oh well I know this about them but I don’t want to say it, it might make them uncomfortable.

And the only reason the Lord brings that to your attention is so you will repent of it and that is exactly what this woman needed to do and perhaps that is what some of us need to do.

Some folks say Preacher you should not talk about sin, you will offend your audience.

The truth is that the truth will set you free, but first it will hurt you a little.

Unless This woman comes to know and accept the One who speaks to her, His gift can never be hers. For the Father shares this living water through the Son.

GOD MAY NOT MATTER TO YOU BUT YOU WILL ALWAYS MATTER TO GOD

Love brought Jesus to the well to meet the woman. Love took Jesus to the cross. That love has no limit neither will it fail any of us.

You are loved.

This is a truth that remains constant for every individual; God’s love never fails towards us. God is a Father to all. He loves His children and you are His child.

Conclusion

Let me ask in closing are you drinking at some well right now trying to find fulfillment? Are you trying to fill that hole in your heart with physical things? With possessions? It hasn’t worked has it?

RUM - FAME ETC WILL NOT SATISFY

Jesus has the living water and if you will drink of it you will be satisfied. You say, “Well, how do I drink of it?”

Well you have to realize that as I mentioned already you are a sinner. You have broken God’s commandments. You have fallen short of His standards. But God loved you so much that 2000 years ago He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross in your place. And if you will turn from that sin and believe in Jesus you can be forgiven.

SPRITE® in its latest marketing campaigns has a new slogan that says this: “Image is nothing. Thirst is everything. OBEY YOUR THIRST.

Well, if you look at that bottle of soft drink, or whatever it is that you’ve been drinking, you’ll see that it says “artificially colored,” and “artificially flavored,” and for most of us, “artificially sweetened,” and there’s just something there that doesn’t have that touch of authenticity and reality.

Now there are a lot of us who are trying to satisfy and to quench our thirst with things that are artificially colored, things that are artificially sweetened, and artificially flavored, and what we need is the water of life

God has placed a thirst in your life that can only be filled by Him! The problem is that many of you are obeying the world’s thirst. You are drinking up what everyone around you calls love.

You are pursuing what your neighbors and friends call happiness, but is not happiness at all. You are trying to find meaning and significance for you life as defined by Dr. Phil, Oprah, or MTV. The result is that an even greater thirst is created. It must be filled with Jesus, the living water!

Just imagine what you life will look like if you were totally fulfilled

No need to try to keep up with the Joneses No need to spend out all your money on alcohol

No need to jump from relationship to relationship

What you need is the living water

Is there someone here today that will say I want this living water - I want eternal life

LEAD THEM IN SINNER’S PRAYER

GOD MAY NOT MATTER TO YOU BUT YOU WILL ALWAYS MATTER TO GOD