She left her water Jar
I love good conversation. Most of us do. Conversation helps fill our lives with meaning -- it is a way that we connect with others and connecting with others is a way we find fulfillment. With some people you meet conversation flows naturally; with others you struggle to find things to talk about. Communication happens in many ways — with those we are most comfortable with, words may not always be needed and there are other ways we communicate, facial expression, gestures, body language.
But conversations are important. For we cannot read each other minds and we must use words to communicate to others who we are; what we believe, and what things are important to us. It is how we get to know each other.
The Gospels are full of conversations that Jesus has with his disciples while he is here on earth and with others. The recorded conversations are how we learn about Jesus, who he was, and what was important to him.
The conversation that Jesus has with the Samaritan woman at the well is the longest conversation that Jesus has with anyone that is recorded in the Gospels. It is a give and take conversation — with neither Jesus nor the woman doing all of the talking. It is what makes a good conversation. Not just one person talking but a give and take, each expressing themselves, each moving deeper into the conversation.
A little background is helpful to fully understanding and appreciate this passage. We have all heard the phrase, location, location, location, and location really does matter here. The verses right before this passage in John 4 tell us that Jesus left Judea, where people were being baptized, and went back to Galilee, and that he had to pass through Samaria. Which isn’t exactly true. In fact, a good Jewish man, as Jesus was thought to be a this time or it was at least inferred, would not “go through Samaria” to get to Galilee. They in fact more than likely choose to go all the way around the Dead Sea and go back up beside the Jordan River, or cross the Jordan River, rather than have to go through Samaria. For Samaria you see was full of Jewish people who had intermingled with and intermarried with Gentile people at the time, those who had been left from the great Diaspora. They were considered and called “half-breeds” by the Jews. They had built their own temple, which the Jews thought was pagan. They were despised by dedicated Jews.
So for Jesus to say that he “had to pass through Samaria” — he wasn’t going through Samaria necessarily because it was his only option, but by going through Samaria, Jesus is making a strong statement to his disciples and to others. It was necessary theologically for the disciples to see Samaria.
It was necessary to go through Samaria to show Jesus’ followers who He was and what He stood for. That he, the Messiah, had come, that Jesus was indeed him, and that he had come to tear down barriers that had previously existed. Social prejudices would no longer be tolerated — they were not important in God’s kingdom.
This conversation between Jesus and the woman at the well, didn’t have to occur - Jesus wanted it to occur. He sat by the well at noon. He spoke to a Samaritan woman. By doing so, Jesus broke down social dividers. Three significant ones.
The first, was that he was a man, speaking to a woman. A Jewish man would not be so bold to just speak to a woman and ask her to draw him water — it would have been viewed as improper. The second, that he was a Jew, asking a Samaritan for a drink. And not only did he ask her for a drink, he had a conversation with her.
The third was that she may well have been a woman of some ill repute. So Jesus was not just speaking to a woman, he was speaking to a woman who may well have been on the outside of society.
The Gospel tells us that it was noon. It was a little bit strange that the woman was there at noon. Most women would go early in the morning to draw water from the well for the day, for their daily activities. That this woman was there at noon was peculiar -- maybe she didn’t want to be seen by the other women — maybe she was outcast and not accepted in their circles. Regardless, Jesus spoke to her.
They go back and forth in their conservation -- it was reciprocal. Belonging, feeling comfortable with another is about reciprocity and trust. Mutual reciprocity is at the heart of what relationship is supposed to be; including our relationship with God.
She tells her truth to Jesus when pressed, “Go, call your husband”. “I don’t have a husband," she replies. And then Jesus lets her know that he sees; he knows more than is humanly possible for him to know about her.
And then he tells her this, “I am he.” I am the Messiah that you have been looking for.
The disciples came and were astonished that Jesus was speaking with a woman — and the woman, left her water jar behind we are told and then went to the city.
She left her water jar. This Lenten season, we often speak of what we are going to “give up” for Lent. We may stop eating chocolate, or sugars, or meat, or whatever. But this season maybe we may think about we need to leave behind, not give up, but just leave behind to lean in more to the Lord. Maybe this season is about us leaving behind something we have been carrying and we realize it no longer serves us.
Faith is not about having all the answers. The Samaritan woman didn’t have all the answers when she finished her conservation with Jesus. When she went back and told the people in her city, “Come and see… He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” The Greek is actually, negative, “Surely he cannot be..” When she went to proclaim she didn’t have all the answers — she wasn’t sure about a lot of things, she was beginning her journey but she was questioning, “…Maybe this is the Messiah?”
Jesus showed up to the Samaritan woman where she needed him and was able to meet him and see him and it is the same for us. Jesus shows up where we can best encounter him for ourselves.
We are told that many from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony. She told what she knew of him. It attracted others and Jesus stayed there two days we are told. And they didn’t believe because of what the woman said, they came and heard for themselves, but it was her testimony, her witness, that brought them to Jesus.
She left her water jar.
Often we hold on to things that keep us from drawing nearer to God. Past belief systems — things we were taught in our childhoods that may have served us then but maybe as we have grown, we have outgrown them. Maybe we have an addiction, or hatred, or just plain ole complacency that keeps us from God. Things that maybe would serve us best now by setting them down; leaving them behind.
This Lent maybe try something new and leave your water jar. What would it be like to be so excited to be in Jesus’ presence — to feel his love for you and for the world that you just leave that which no longer serves you? Or to realize that maybe there is something else more important to be thinking about? What would it be like to drink of the living water that Jesus offered to the Samaritan woman? That he offers to you and I?
Come let us sing to the Lord; let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God,
And a great King above all Gods. (Psalm 95: 1-3)
Amen.
But conversations are important. For we cannot read each other minds and we must use words to communicate to others who we are; what we believe, and what things are important to us. It is how we get to know each other.
The Gospels are full of conversations that Jesus has with his disciples while he is here on earth and with others. The recorded conversations are how we learn about Jesus, who he was, and what was important to him.
The conversation that Jesus has with the Samaritan woman at the well is the longest conversation that Jesus has with anyone that is recorded in the Gospels. It is a give and take conversation — with neither Jesus nor the woman doing all of the talking. It is what makes a good conversation. Not just one person talking but a give and take, each expressing themselves, each moving deeper into the conversation.
A little background is helpful to fully understanding and appreciate this passage. We have all heard the phrase, location, location, location, and location really does matter here. The verses right before this passage in John 4 tell us that Jesus left Judea, where people were being baptized, and went back to Galilee, and that he had to pass through Samaria. Which isn’t exactly true. In fact, a good Jewish man, as Jesus was thought to be a this time or it was at least inferred, would not “go through Samaria” to get to Galilee. They in fact more than likely choose to go all the way around the Dead Sea and go back up beside the Jordan River, or cross the Jordan River, rather than have to go through Samaria. For Samaria you see was full of Jewish people who had intermingled with and intermarried with Gentile people at the time, those who had been left from the great Diaspora. They were considered and called “half-breeds” by the Jews. They had built their own temple, which the Jews thought was pagan. They were despised by dedicated Jews.
So for Jesus to say that he “had to pass through Samaria” — he wasn’t going through Samaria necessarily because it was his only option, but by going through Samaria, Jesus is making a strong statement to his disciples and to others. It was necessary theologically for the disciples to see Samaria.
It was necessary to go through Samaria to show Jesus’ followers who He was and what He stood for. That he, the Messiah, had come, that Jesus was indeed him, and that he had come to tear down barriers that had previously existed. Social prejudices would no longer be tolerated — they were not important in God’s kingdom.
This conversation between Jesus and the woman at the well, didn’t have to occur - Jesus wanted it to occur. He sat by the well at noon. He spoke to a Samaritan woman. By doing so, Jesus broke down social dividers. Three significant ones.
The first, was that he was a man, speaking to a woman. A Jewish man would not be so bold to just speak to a woman and ask her to draw him water — it would have been viewed as improper. The second, that he was a Jew, asking a Samaritan for a drink. And not only did he ask her for a drink, he had a conversation with her.
The third was that she may well have been a woman of some ill repute. So Jesus was not just speaking to a woman, he was speaking to a woman who may well have been on the outside of society.
The Gospel tells us that it was noon. It was a little bit strange that the woman was there at noon. Most women would go early in the morning to draw water from the well for the day, for their daily activities. That this woman was there at noon was peculiar -- maybe she didn’t want to be seen by the other women — maybe she was outcast and not accepted in their circles. Regardless, Jesus spoke to her.
They go back and forth in their conservation -- it was reciprocal. Belonging, feeling comfortable with another is about reciprocity and trust. Mutual reciprocity is at the heart of what relationship is supposed to be; including our relationship with God.
She tells her truth to Jesus when pressed, “Go, call your husband”. “I don’t have a husband," she replies. And then Jesus lets her know that he sees; he knows more than is humanly possible for him to know about her.
And then he tells her this, “I am he.” I am the Messiah that you have been looking for.
The disciples came and were astonished that Jesus was speaking with a woman — and the woman, left her water jar behind we are told and then went to the city.
She left her water jar. This Lenten season, we often speak of what we are going to “give up” for Lent. We may stop eating chocolate, or sugars, or meat, or whatever. But this season maybe we may think about we need to leave behind, not give up, but just leave behind to lean in more to the Lord. Maybe this season is about us leaving behind something we have been carrying and we realize it no longer serves us.
Faith is not about having all the answers. The Samaritan woman didn’t have all the answers when she finished her conservation with Jesus. When she went back and told the people in her city, “Come and see… He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” The Greek is actually, negative, “Surely he cannot be..” When she went to proclaim she didn’t have all the answers — she wasn’t sure about a lot of things, she was beginning her journey but she was questioning, “…Maybe this is the Messiah?”
Jesus showed up to the Samaritan woman where she needed him and was able to meet him and see him and it is the same for us. Jesus shows up where we can best encounter him for ourselves.
We are told that many from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony. She told what she knew of him. It attracted others and Jesus stayed there two days we are told. And they didn’t believe because of what the woman said, they came and heard for themselves, but it was her testimony, her witness, that brought them to Jesus.
She left her water jar.
Often we hold on to things that keep us from drawing nearer to God. Past belief systems — things we were taught in our childhoods that may have served us then but maybe as we have grown, we have outgrown them. Maybe we have an addiction, or hatred, or just plain ole complacency that keeps us from God. Things that maybe would serve us best now by setting them down; leaving them behind.
This Lent maybe try something new and leave your water jar. What would it be like to be so excited to be in Jesus’ presence — to feel his love for you and for the world that you just leave that which no longer serves you? Or to realize that maybe there is something else more important to be thinking about? What would it be like to drink of the living water that Jesus offered to the Samaritan woman? That he offers to you and I?
Come let us sing to the Lord; let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God,
And a great King above all Gods. (Psalm 95: 1-3)
Amen.