Today’s Gospel is a very dramatic or unique exchange of words between our Lord Jesus Christ and the Samaritan woman. The idea of a Jew talking with a Samaritan woman is already offensive in the eyes of Jews as they are considered “Ritually impure”, but our Lord Jesus Christ really wanted to show to his disciples that God looks at the hearts of men or women; after all, we are all brothers in Christ. In short, the Jews hating the Samaritan people didn’t bother him at all. You can read this story in John 4: 5-42 (or 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42).
“5[Jesus] came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there. Jesus tired from his journey, sat down there at the well. It was about noon. 7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8 His disciples had gone down into the town to buy food. 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” (For Jews use nothing in common with the Samaritans.)
10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” 11[The woman] said to him, “Sir, you do not even have a bucket and the cistern is deep; where then can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us this cistern and drank from it himself with his children and his flocks?”
13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; 14 but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” 19 I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you people say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”
21 Jesus said to her, “Believe me woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You people worship what you do not understand; we worship what we understand because salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth; and indeed the Father seeks such people to worship him.
24 God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship him must worship in Spirit and truth. 25 The woman said to him, “I know that the Messiah is coming, the one called the Anointed; when he comes, he will tell us everything.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking with you.”
39 Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him. 40 When the Samaritans came to him, they invited him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. 41 Many more began to believe in him because of his word, 42 and they said to the woman, “We no longer believe because of your word; for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.”
The more famous encounter with our Lord Jesus was about the Good Samaritan in Luke 10: 25-37, but he doesn’t have the story of the Samaritan woman, which only the Evangelist John writes in today’s gospel. Doesn’t this story tell you something, that while our Lord Jesus was very clear when he told the Samaritan woman, “You people worship what you do not understand; we worship what we understand because salvation is from the Jews” which really means that Jesus was sent by his Father for the salvation of the Jews, the first born people of God. But in this story, you will notice that he was giving importance to the Samaritan people.
Obviously the Samaritan woman and Jesus were speaking on different planes… the woman was speaking of getting drinking water so she wouldn’t have to come to Jacob’s well every time, while our Lord Jesus was offering her living water where anyone who drinks from it shall no longer thirst. Jesus was speaking of life eternal, which the lowly Samaritan woman couldn’t comprehend because she only knew about earthly things.
Then the Samaritan woman spoke of the coming of the Messiah, saying, “I know that the Messiah is coming, the one called the Anointed; when he comes, he will tell us everything.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking with you.” Very early in John chapter 4, our Lord Jesus already makes reveals himself… not to a Jew, but to a Samaritan woman. Then the woman returned to her town and told her kinsmen that the one who is the Messiah is with them and they came to invite him into their town where he stayed for two days. And they listened to his words and believe that this man Jesus is truly the savior of the world. Now we ask, when will you invite Jesus to your home? The Samaritans did, and I hope you will too!
* * *
Email: vsbobita@mozcom.com