[3.22-23][1-2 when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were)] So, Jesus stays in Judea, gathering and baptizing followers - until He knows that the Pharisees know that He has surpassed John. Jesus above all. John himself confesses this [3.30-31]. But why did the Pharisees need to know this? 1) They had been thinking it was about John; 2) But also, for them it was more about the Law. [Law above all]. So Jesus wants them to understand this basic truth - Jesus above all. But so now at this point (at least in theory?) they know it’s about Jesus.
[3-4 He left Judea and went away again into Galilee. And He had to pass through Samaria.] So, Jesus is heading back to Galilee. And He HAS to pass through Samaria? As the crow flies, maybe? The Greek says, it was NECESSARY for Him to COME THROUGH Samaria, thru this place that Jews came through NEVER. For good Jews it was necessary to AVOID Samaria [9b] - they would go around, if at all possible. Samaritans were forsaken - at least by the Jews. So why is it necessary for the King of the Jews to come through this supposedly [“God-forsaken”] place? Well, for one, that is the misnomer of misnomers. God-forsaken is kind of an oxymoron. First of all, God promises that He Himself will never forsake His people [Heb. 13:5b He Himself has said, “I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU”][originally made to Joshua but now applied to all who trust in Christ]. Maybe you feel forsaken? [Ps 34:18 The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Ps 145:18 The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.]
Now, do God’s people go thru seasons of [wandering in wilderness], times when it feels like God is silent and even distant? Where life is coming up more thorns than roses? Where questions outstrip answers? [Yes] Sometimes the Lord allows these seasons to get our attention. Or to refine, to purify our faith. To help us learn to look to and hold on to Him first and foremost. I am with you always…[Psa. 23:4 Even though I walk through the [valley of the shadow of death], I fear no evil, for You are with me.][“You are with me” - say it!] Even in the deepest valley, the darkest night, God’s people are never alone. We don’t put our trust in our feelings; we trust God & His Word which is true.
And what about those who ARE far from God in their hearts and lives? Much of the time, if God feels distant, guess who moved? Who forsook who? [Rom 1:21,23 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they…exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.] But people do not come out of the womb as atheists. Look at the [nations]. All peoples everywhere believe in some kind of higher power, in unseen spirits and forces. UNbelief is a path I choose out of 1) pride [Rom 1:22 Professing to be wise…][where I say, God - & you - not necessary] and/or 2) disillusionment over the [brokenness] I’ve experienced or see in/around me [Rom 8:20,22 For the creation was subjected to futility, … slavery to corruption …For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.]. Often it’s some of both. But so more likely, God becomes distant (or “non-existent”) as people reject Him. They test Him, and find Him wanting [Rom. 1:28 They didn’t think it was important to know God. So God let them go…]. People forsake God - and He lets us have our way [like the prodigal son].
Are you finding God wanting? Do you feel like God has let you down? Look to the [Cross]. The gift of God’s only Son. The One Who lifted up His only Son on the Cross for you will NEVER let you down. Look to the [empty tomb]. Because He not only came and died for you, but that grave is empty. There is no denying the truth of what God has done for you. We are so blindered by the [physical]. And we’re so prone to navel-gazing, we get to thinking that life is all about me and what I’m going through right now, the temporal, when in fact all this, this entire life is about getting ready to meet our Maker, for eternity. The [Eternal]. And God sent Jesus to make that possible. The God•send. That’s what we see in John’s book. And this is why Jesus is about to go through Samaria. He HAS to…
Because we COULD say that Samaria WAS forsaken - but NOT by God. By the Jews. We touched on this in ch 3. Samaria was full of “half-breeds” [northern tribes of Israel who had been mingled with filthy Gentiles under the Assyrians, then intermarried w them]. Such that devout Jews vigorously avoided Samaritans like the plague, even though they also traced their ancestry back to Abraham. They were ethnically AND spiritually impure to Jews. The Jews avoided them, AND their territory. Unwelcome. Unloved. So the text tells us, for “some reason” it was necessary for Jesus to go right through the middle of their territory. God so loves the forsaken…
He sends His Son, right into the heart of Samaria [5-6 So He comes to a city of Samaria called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph; and Jacob’s well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.]. Sychar. The precise spot where Abraham and Jacob/Israel had lived. Jacob’s Well. Where there just “happens" to be a woman - doubly forsaken - who needs a godsend. She needs to know Jesus.
Jesus gets to said well at the sixth hour —> Noon. i.e. nobody comes to the well at noon (they’ve already come)(plus this is some time after Passover, probably summer, and this is the hottest part of a hot day). And since He’s likely been walking for 5-6 hours, Jesus is parched and exhausted. He really could use a drink of water. So let’s consider this: from a human perspective, THIS CONVERSATION SHOULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED! The odds were so stacked against it. First of all, nobody should even be at the well. Also, He IS [exhausted]. Plus, a Jew would never want to talk to a Samaritan (much less come thru Samaria in the first place). On top of all this, in that culture, a man would never talk to a female stranger [much less THIS woman - who is coming to the well at a time when nobody else would be there because she is neck-deep in immorality]. She is a filthy filthy Samaritan woman (doubly forsaken - by Jews AND her own people). So, talking with devout Jewish Rabbi? It should never have happened. BUT it was necessary. From God’s perspective, it HAD to happen. Necessary.
This fallen woman probably felt filthy. She probably felt forsaken. But Jesus is going out of His way to tell her that she was necessary. She needed to have a conversation with the God•send. With Jesus. She needed to know that He made her. She was fearfully and wonderfully made. Designed in heaven by the Creator of the universe Himself. He made her special, and made her to enjoy life in a relationship with Him. He made her with a purpose, a divine calling, a heavenly reason to be alive on earth - she was necessary. You and I are necessary. If you’re alive today, you are necessary. Regardless of what you or anybody else thinks… [SAY IT!]
[7-8][agorazo] So Trend-buster Jesus [everyone else does this: keeps to themself, goes with the crowd], breaks w social convention, ignores the cultural stigma, goes straight into the heart of Samaria and speaks to this filthy forsaken Samaritan woman. Give Me a drink. And she calls Him on it. [9] Wait, you’re talking to me? What are you doing? Why are you talking to me? And Jesus is like, Sam, you don’t realize it, but you are necessary. I love you. Let Me show you... To be continued...
Referenced verses
Psa. 34:18 The LORD ais near to the bbrokenhearted
And saves those who are 1ccrushed in spirit.
Psa. 145:18 The LORD is anear to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him bin truth.
Psa. 23:1 The LORD is my ashepherd,
I 1shall bnot want.
2 He makes me lie down in agreen pastures;
He bleads me beside 1cquiet waters.
3 He arestores my soul;
He bguides me in the 1cpaths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
4 Even though I awalk through the 1valley of the shadow of death,
I bfear no 2evil, for cYou are with me;
And a random funny thought on the difference between dogs and cats:
A German Shepherd, Doberman and a cat all die.
All three stand before God, who wants to know what they believe in.
The German shepherd says: "I believe in discipline training and loyalty to my master."
"Good," says God. "Then sit down on my right side. Doberman, what do you believe in?"
The Doberman answers: "I believe in the love, care and protection of my master."
Ah," said God. "You may sit to my left."
Then he looks at the cat and asks, "And what do you believe in?"
The cat answers: "I believe you're sitting in my seat."
