COME and SEE

 MARCH 7, 2023

John 4:5–42

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.”

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

23 Jesus replied … a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”


39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.

42 They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”


After explaining to Nicodemus, a known teacher of the scriptures and law, that God loves the world (John 3:16), Jesus travelled to a new area called Samaria, he expanded the neighborhood of his ministry we might say (John 4:4). So, in Samaria. Jesus shows an unnamed woman unconditional belonging, Jesus shows her the kind of love that extends to a person who is known very well, as we see in our account today, Jesus did know her story quite well. Even with a rather messy story Jesus accepts this women and calls her to a deeper experience of grace.

The thirsting of her soul was satisfied, when Jesus asked her to fill his cup. We never learn this woman’s name, but we do know she brought an entire community to faith in Christ. Her method was to simply invite everyone to come and see Jesus, a person who knew her so well that he recounted “everything she ever did.”

The text doesn’t say she composed arguments to prove that he was the Messiah he claimed to be. I believe, she trusted God to do in her neighbors, what God had done in her. She just told her story to her neighbors. May we, who have encountered Jesus, likewise show others the way to Jesus, beginning with our story of encounter and acceptance, and reconciliation.

LET US PRAY

God who satisfies our thirst for a deeper experience of grace, remind us that it is in giving that we receive, we ask today, that you might use us to be the answer to someone else’s prayers and their longing for a drink of living water. Help us to tell our stories of encountering Jesus in ways that invite the whole neighborhood to seek you. Amen