Greetings in the name of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
“Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. (Isaiah 1:18)
Jesus knew the Pharisees had heard that he was baptizing and making more disciples than John (though Jesus himself didn’t baptize them—his disciples did). So Jesus took His disciples and left Judea and returned to Galilee.
At that time, the Jewish people dd not travel through Samaria, which was in between Galilee and Judea. The reason was Samaritans were not pure Jews, but they were mixed with Gentiles. They were unclean according to the Law. Thus, Jews did not want to associated with Samaritans not be defiled by Samaritans. In order to avoid this issue, the Jews rather went around the region of Samaria to get to Galilee from Judea. Jews had a good intention of keeping them clean according to the Law, but this made them to treat their fellow Samaritans very poorly. In some sense, for the eye of Jews, Samaritans even worse than Gentiles because Samaritans used to Jews, but they defiled themselves by mixing them with Gentiles like traitors, who betrayed their own people. As a result, the Jews at that time hated Samaritans.
Jesus clearly knew the above fact. Despite of this terrible relationship issue between Samaritans and Jews, He took His disciples and traveled through Samaria. Initially, the disciples were not fond of going through Samaria. They talked about among themselves – “Why we have to go through Samara, which is not good, and even unlawful?” But Jesus seemed having no concern at all. They soon became calm and followed Jesus. They was also extremely careful not to be defiled by Samaritans.
When Jesus and His disciples were going through Samaria on the way to Galilee, they came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. The famous Jacob’s well was there. Even so, Jews hardly visited the well due to the reason that the well was in Samaria.
Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. His disciples had gone into the village to buy some food. He was alone at the well. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her,
“Please give me a drink.” (John 4:7b)
The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans as talked about above. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?”
Samaritans never liked Jews either because Jews treated Samaritans very poorly. Thus, it was plainly expected that no Jew would ask a Samaritan woman anything, because Jews had to separate themselves from Samaritans to keep them clean. Yes, it was sad, but it was a cold reality at that time. Both Jews and Samaritans were trapped in their own boxes of haterism and resentment. Does this sound familiar to us? Even today, there are many conflicts between person to person, family to family, people to people or nation to nation, while being trapped in their own boxes of hatrerism and resentment, while upholding their own positions for their own reason regarding to traditions, history and just small emotional conflict prior. This undermines both persons, both families, or even both nations. The fruit of this conflict is void of peace and harmony, but haterism and resentment. Goodness, mercy and love never grow on a soil of broken relationship. Jesus, the source of mercy and love, was fully aware of this deeply rooted issues, and He came to Sychar to meet the Samaritan woman full of resentment. From the onset, Jesus gave out His love first.
Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” (John 4:10)
Jesus touched the very source of her resentment against Jews and her life pain hidden from the plain view. He offered “living water”, which would renew her by watering her bone-dry inner heart. However, she still had not understood what Jesus really offered.
“But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?”
The Samaritan woman looked around. Jesus was empty-handed. He had nothing to draw water from the well. The well was also deep. To her, it was a nonsense – giving her water without a rope or a bucket. Additionally, the well was dug by Jacob, one of the most famous ancestors to both Samaritans and Jews. She thought in her heart, “By the way, we are also the descendent of Jacob. You and I have the same ancestor, Jacob. Then who are you? You are a Jew, and a descendent of Jacob. You cannot be greater than Jacob, who is your proud ancestor. By the way, this very well was dug by Jacob and given to us. We have been drawing water from the well many generations.”
Then she asked, “Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob?”
Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” (John 4:13-14)
Jesus opened up the Gospel of saving Word of eternal life, and made her never thirty again. However, the Samaritan woman could not understand the meaning of what was told by Jesus. She thought about the water from the Jacob’s well, but Jesus talked about the living water from the above, which would make her satisfied forever having an eternal life.
“Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.”
Still she thought that Jesus was talking about the water from the well. In fact, the Samaritan woman did not want to come to the well. She was avoiding other Samaritan women. This was the reason why she came to the well noontime, which was the least popular time among the other Samaritan women to come to the well for water. For her, it would be ideal if she could get water without coming to this well. She did not want to hear anymore gossips about her bad reputation from Samaritan women.
Jesus knew her heart pain. Taking about her heart pain was the last thing that she wanted at the well. She had room at all in her heart to hear yet another criticism. Then Jesus surgically opened up her wound in her heart.
Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her. (John 4:16)
She was really shocked because Jesus asked about her husband. In fact, because of this very reason, she avoided other Samaritan women. She hid her problems before Jesus.
“I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied.
Hiding seems the best way to avoid heart pains in our lives. She did same. She always hid her heart pain. Surely, if Jesus were a mere human, it would have worked. There would be no more discussion about her husband because she said she had no husband. However, hiding does not solve our heart pain, which will continue going deeper into our hearts to even a bigger pain. Jesus exactly knew this. Jesus could not let her continue living her life in deception and denial.
Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband— for you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!” (John 4:17b-18)
Jesus did embrace her answer first rather than reputing it. Then Jesus quickly revealed the truth to her: her complete secrete was exposed to the strange Jewish man at the well. Jesus was not a mere mortal, and He was God, who knew everything in her heart. Jesus opened up her heart, and told the truth in her heart. She had five husbands before, and for her, the current man living with her was not a real husband either. She was just living with another man. Her secret was completely exposed. The woman had no more place before Jesus. She felt the extra-ordinary power of Jesus, and thought that Jesus must have been a prophet. Thus, he could see through her heart. Then she realized that it was the time not to run away, but to confess her sins, and ask forgiveness from God. She asked Jesus what to do.
Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?”
She was seeking. She was searching for the way to go to God. However, her knowledge was limited. As she learned since young, she thought that he had to physically go to God and give sacrifice for forgiveness of her sins. Jesus corrected her by telling the Good News, the Saving Truth!
Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:21-24)
Jesus carefully explained the Truth to her. God, Our Father, did not reside in any physical place, neither the mountain where the ancestors worshiped nor the Jerusalem temple. Instead, God was looking for a person who approached to Him with contrite spirit and authentic heart (i.e. repenting heart and mind without hiding but revealing all sins before God). God of mercy and love would hear the Samarian woman despite of all sins of her past and at the present. Jesus opened her heart, and she began to see the light. She had been in darkness for many years while living in her past with five husband and one man now. In fact, none of them was her real husband. The pressure of her sins was so heavy that she was hiding and avoiding other Samaritan women. She often got up in the middle of night. Jesus, then, gave His saving message. Her heart was filled with light and hope. She really wanted to be whole again. She directly asked about the Messiah so that she can meet the Messiah who would liberate from her sins.
The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
She was fully ready and really wanted to meet the Messiah. There was no hiding. Instead, she desired to have God’s mercy and forgiveness and His love.
Then Jesus told her, “I AM the Messiah!” (John 4:26)
Jesus plainly answered. He was the Messiah. She finally met the Messiah, who would forgive her sins, and freed from the bondage of her sins. This truth did not come easy. It took quite a long conversation between the woman and Jesus. Jesus had never given up on her. Jesus patiently guarded her till she got the saving truth.
Jesus loved one Samaritan Woman, who had sinned for many years. Due to the sins, she had to avoid other Samaritan women. She had to hide her sins, which was always a heavy burden in her heart and the load was only getting to heavier day by day. In fact, she got to the point where she could not bear the weight of her sins anymore. Why did Jesus travel through Samaria? Because Jesus loved the Samarian woman. Jesus came to Sychar to meet, forgive, save her, and give her eternal life.
The amazing truth is that the same Jesus loves us. He comes into our lives, and talks about our heart pains inflicted by our own sins, especially hidden sins. What do we have to do then? Like the Samaritan woman, we should not hide our sins anymore before Jesus, but confess every sin in our heart, and receive His mercy and forgiveness. Jesus is love. Please remember that His love is bigger than any sins that we had and might have in future also. Come to Jesus, who is merciful and full of compassion and love. Then we will find a new life in Him.
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17)