The Samaritan Woman

John 4:1-8

The Pharisees heard that Jesus was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John, although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. When the Lord learned of this, he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.
Now he had to go through Samaria. So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?" (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

So Jesus is in Samaria (hostile territory), sets down at a well while the disciples find food (inconspicuously). All is good. Then Jesus asks for a drink (he's thirsty).

John 4:9

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.)

Surprised by Jesus' request, she pegs him as a Jew, and is curious about his interaction.

John 4:10

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."

My favorite phrase ever, in classic third person, Jesus says, "Do you know who I am? Cause if you did YOU would be asking ME for LIVING water."

John 4:11-13

"Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?"

Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

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."

So the little question, "can I have a drink?" turned into something so much more. Jesus always manages to do that. I wonder if he ever got his drink.

Amongst other paraells with my life at the moment, God spoke to me about one in particular. Jesus asked the Samaritan women for something, she was cautious, then Jesus told her she should have asked Him for some living water so that she wouldn't have to draw water from the well.

Obviously, she had the wrong idea. Is wasn't that she wouldn't have to keep coming back to the well for water, but that whatever Jesus was offering was spiritually so much better than her earthly needs. She could be spiritually fulfilled, while still carrying out her earthly tasks.

So example, looking for a new job. A friend of mine really wants this new job, and I have been praying that God would give them the new job. After I read this passage though, I thought for a moment about the requests Jesus makes of us and the requests that we should be making of him.

Jesus called us to "go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation." (Mark 16:15) Imagine that this is the well side conversation:

Jesus: "Can you to go into all the world and preach the good news?"
Us: "Hmm...why are you asking me that, isn't that a little much? I am just trying to find a job right now."
Jesus: "Humph. If you knew who I was, you would be asking me for a way in which you could fulfill the call I've put on your life and I would give you a LIVING JOB."

Okay, maybe something like that. The analogy isn't perfect. But the idea is that, perhaps, instead of making requests about seeming earthly tasks, we should be focusing on far more important spiritual fulfillment. Instead of asking for water, ask for living water. Instead of asking for job, ask for a living job. It's not like we would stop looking for a job, but we would be spiritually fulfilled while carrying out our earthly tasks.

Essentially, asking Jesus (because we know who he is) for things like jobs are fine. But he is begging us to ask him things like "help me find the place, area, mission that is going to fulfill Your call on my life." That request allows God a much wider box in order to do His work. (I would love to get rid of the box all together, but one step at a time.) He was essentially saying, take care of the spiritual stuff, and the rest of things will fall into order. Weather that be physical needs, like water, or societal needs, like a job. God rejoices in giving out living water by the cupful. I am sure he would be just as joyful, if we kept a more spiritual perspective on other requests.