Sermon: Sunday, 1st June, 2025
Speaker: Geoff Murray
Scripture: John 4:1-26
We’re going to come today to the story of Jesus and the Samaritan Woman in John chapter 4 to think about this interaction Jesus has with a Samaritan Woman. A woman who, it is clear from the context, is a nobody in society.
She goes to the well at the height of the day to collect water because she is a societal outcast and similarly her relationship history says that either she has been passed around from pillar to post by different men or she has been involved in a number of affairs. Either way her story is a very sad one and yet who intercepts her story but Jesus Christ?
The kind of wonder and awe there is of one as mighty as Jesus stooping so low to someone like the Samaritan woman is a bit like seeing photos of Princess Diana during the aids crisis with aids patients showing not just humility but compassion. She was not so important that she did not also have time for the broken and lost. It is even more so by Jesus. The one who in very nature God comes down to dwell with the broken.
‘Jesus weary as he was from the journey sat down by the well.’ (John 4:6)
As an aside, it can be easy to think of Jesus as not fully human, yes he became flesh and bones but not truly human because, well, he is God. But this is a reminder that Jesus is fully human. The fact he gets tired and weary we perhaps don’t think much about because we are human and we get weary and tired, we get thirsty and so it’s easy to gloss over this.
But if you think about Isaiah 40:28 for example, it tells us that the Lord is the everlasting God who doesn’t grow faint and weary. The consider John 1, Jesus, called ‘the Word’ is the one who was there in the beginning, who is God, who created all things but yet we read, ‘… the word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.’ (John 1:14))
The infinite God became finite as the creator entered into his creation and part of entering into his creation and becoming one of us is that he took upon himself the very realities of what it means to be human. It is to grow tired and weary, it is to become thirsty or hungry, even as he asks, ‘Will you give me a drink?’ it is to be needy and dependent upon others.
And you think of what humility it is on the part of Jesus to have never been in need for all eternity as the all-sufficient God. To enter into the experience of being needy, of being hungry, of being thirsty, of being tired. We think of the humility of Jesus in passages like Philippians 2 but you think of how far down Jesus had to come to become our Saviour. He had to the God who is independent of all his creation became dependent upon his creation.
For us, with our skewed view of the world and hierarchies and pride of wanting to be something greater, to take such a demotion would never happen. But Jesus, free as he is from sin, that was not an issue for him. No, he willingly humbled himself and became nothing. And he willingly became nothing so he could enter into creation as our saviour.
Only someone fully human could enter into this role of being saviour of humanity yet no human could carry it out. It is what propelled Jesus forward in love to save his people. It is what propelled him into a moment like this with the Samaritan Woman. He isn’t there on a social venture, he’s there to offer her the most important thing possible, the unspeakable joy of knowing him in the power of the Holy Spirit, what is called ‘living water’.
1. Confusion (Verses 1-12)
In verses 5 and 6 we read that Jesus comes to Sychar near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son, Joseph. A place where Jacob’s well was. All of this forces us to go back to Genesis to the patriarchs to Genesis 33 where Jacob buys a plot of ground where he pitches his tent and then in Genesis 48 on his death bed, Jacob passes on the land to Joseph. There is no mention of the well there either when Jacob purchases the land or when he passes it on to his son, but a number of Bible commentators are sure that the land that Jacob purchased is where Jesus is just now with this Samaritan woman.
‘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)’ (John 4:8)
Bruce Milne : ‘The reasons were historical, dating back to the division of the kingdom after the death of Solomon (1 Kings 12:1-24) and the annexation of the northern territory by the Assyrians in 722-721 bc. The Assyrians resettled the area with foreigners which meant a loss of both racial and religious purity from a jewish perspective. The religious divide deepened when the Smaritans built their own temple in Mount Gerazim around 400 BC.’
Here is something we probably overlook in 21st century Scotland. Here is a Jew engaging with a Samaritan and John helpfully includes, ‘… Jews do not associate with Samaritans.’
They were sworn enemies, theyhated each others guts. If you were a Jew, there was no world in which you would be seen dead with a Samaritan and vice versa.
• It is the staunchest Rangers fan with the staunchest Celtic fan.
• It is the biggest Scottish nationalist and the biggest defender of the Union.
• It is, in this climate, a Ukranian and a Russian or an Israelite and a Palestinian.
This is one of the things which makes the story of the Good Samaritan so shocking. Who is it that helps out the injured man on the road to Jericho? It is a Samaritan, hence the name of the parable. A Samaritan, helping out a Jew.
There would be no world in which they would want to be in each other’s company. But it’s more than that, it’s not just that a Jew is in the company of a Samaritan, think of what is going on. Jesus is asking her for a drink of water. Here a Jew is in the humiliating position of asking his enemy for something, being in need and depending upon his enemy. Imagine how shocking this is at the time.
And though John particularly makes mention of the Jew-Gentile dynamic there is also the male-female dynamic. Rabbinic tradition; ‘It is forbidden to talk to women on the street because of the potential for town gossip. When the disciples come back they don’t ask, ‘Why are you talking to a samaritan? but rather, ‘Wwhy are you talking with a woman?’ (See verse 27)
So this woman appears at Jacob’s well in the middle of the day to get her water and Jesus asks her for water because of his thirst and she pushes back for reasons we’ve already touched on briefly, he is a Jew and she is a Samaritan. And he responds, ‘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.’ (John 4:10)
The Samaritan Woman then totally misses the point of what Jesus is saying, ‘Sir, you have nothing to draw water with and the well is deep.’ (John 4:11)
She misunderstands what Jesus is saying much like Nicodemus in John chapter 3, but her confusion at least makes sense. Nicodemus is a teacher of the law, here we have a woman which, by default in her day, means she is uneducated, she also is not an Israelite, she would hold to the first five books of the Old Testament only.
As he said, ‘If you’d known who was speaking to you, I’d have given you living water.’ she is just thinking in terms of the water from the well, how are you going to get living water if you don’t have a bucket? The well is deep, how are you going to get water?
And then she asks, ‘Are you greater than our father Jacob who gave us this well and drank from it himself as well as his sons and livestock?’
I’m not normally one to harp on about the original Greek in sermons but there’s a way of asking questions in Greek that assumes a certain answer depending on what word the question begins with. This one begins with the Greek word ‘μή’ and that is the word you use if you’re assuming the answer is going to be ‘no’. It’s more like she’s asking, ‘You’re not suggesting you’re better than our father Jacob, are you?’
Jacob is a hero of the Old Testament, he is one of the Patriarchs, it is he who is renamed Israel and who fathers the twelve men who would carry the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. So you can imagine this Samaritan woman is scratching her head as she tries to grapple with this – apparently – ordinary Jewish man in front of her who is saying, ‘If you knew who I was you wouldn’t be coming to this well for a drink, you’d come to me and I’d give you living water.’ What it seems to be is arrogance if Jesus is an ordinary man. Who is this man?
This isn’t the only time in John’s Gospel that Jesus compares himself to one of the patriarchs and claims he is greater than. ‘Before Abraham was, I AM.’ (John 8:58)
‘I AM’ is one of the ways that God reveals himself in the Old Testament. Basically before Abraham existed 2,000 years before Jesus’ birth. But Jesus is not claiming to be over 2,000 years old and predate Abraham, by calling himself ‘I AM’ he is saying he predates the world and is none other than God.
Another way God reveals himself in the Old Testament is as the fountain of living water. Jesus claiming himself to be the fountain of living water that never runs dry is saying he is none other than God in the flesh. (See Jeremiah 2:13)
In response to her question, ‘Are you greater than our father Jacob?’ You better believe it! One greater than Jacob is here, one greater than Abraham is here! And that is the whole basis upon which Jesus can go ahead and make this statement that he can offer her something greater than Jacob did. He is the eternal God of all the universe and he comes to this Samaritan Woman and offers her living water.
2. Clarity (verses 13-24)
Notice now, Jesus does not answer her question; rather he keeps going, speaking of this living water, describing it to her. Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 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.’ ( (John 4:13-14)
What is this living water? It is this joyful rebirth by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is this reality of having the Holy Spirit living within you giving you a change of heart, a change of mind concerning God whereby instead of being indifferent or hostile to God you know him and love him and want to serve him.
Jesus is offering this woman a new reality, a new experience of walking with Jesus, of knowing Jesus, of loving Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. There is a liveliness to it, unsurprising as the end is eternal life. ‘The water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’
‘The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you —they are full of the Spirit and life.’ (John 6:63)
So this living water is a new birth, a new life in Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit. There is a quality too to this living water which is unique and distinct. ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.’ (John 4:13–14)
The water of this well, good though it is, nourishing though it is, iconic culturally though it is, has its limitations. Jesus says if you drink this water you’ll just become thirsty again. Every day you need to come to the well to draw water because yes the water satisfies your thirst but it is only temporary because you just become thirsty again.
This is contrasted by the living water that Jesus offers which, when drunk, leads you to never thirst again. Jesus is the one who satisfies our souls, who gives us unending joy and lasting peace. New life in Jesus is a life that satisfies! Yes the Christian life can be challenging, yes there can be bumps in the road, but it is a life of unspeakable joy no matter what the circumstances are.
Immediately there will be people who think about occasions where we feel dissatisfied as Christians, the Evil One will have a field day saying, ‘This guy is talking drivel.’ How can he say we are satisfied in Jesus when my constant cloud of depression will not lift? How can he be speaking about joy in Jesus when I have a tricky home life, what on earth is he talking about?
The Apostle Paul says this: ‘sorrowful, yet always rejoicing…’ (2 Corinthians 6:10)
It’s possible, it is even likely, that we can have sorrows and tears in this world we can have joy at the same time. That sounds daft and naive, it sounds careless and trite as if we’re saying, ‘Cheer up!’ But it’s not.
The reason we can be satisfied in Jesus while at the same time being dissatisfied with our lives is this: Our joy does not depend upon our circumstances, our joy is settled because it is based upon Jesus’ giving his life for us that we can be forgiven, known and loved by God. The life that Jesus offers is not a life free from suffering, free from pain, free from grief and loss but is a life of joy and peace in the Holy Spirit even in the midst of pain.
Even in those moments when we find our Christian lives a challenge and are tempted to throw in the towel we ultimately come back to Simon Peter’s words, ‘Where else would we go? You alone have the words of eternal life!’ (John 6:68)
The nature of the dissatisfied life is one which cannot sit still, which is restless, always looking for something or someone else to fill this void. By contrast, the satisfied life is one which may be tempted to look around sure, but which ultimately returns to the same place; ‘Where else would we go? You alone have the words of eternal life!’
Nobody else loves you like he does.
Nobody else can grant you forgiveness of sins.
Nobody else can bring you peace with God.
Nobody else is as committed to your good and flourishing as he is.
There is no one like our God! There is nobody else to go to, there is nowhere else we can go. Are you downcast and in the depths of suffering? Go to him and be anchored, be rooted in a peace which transcends all understanding.
Are you tempted to leave Jesus behind? Where else are you going to go?
Who else satisfies? Who else gladdens your heart?
Who else brings you joy even as you are brought low?
Who else supplies a peace that goes beyond our circumstances?
Truly there are none like him, none that can satisfy, none that gladden our hearts, none that bring us eternal life. You go anywhere else or to anyone else and you will be like the woman going back to the well day after day. It does not satisfy!
Friends, Jesus is enough!
Jesus is enough to satisfy your souls,
Jesus is enough to gladden your hearts,
Jesus is enough to carry you through the ups and downs of life,
Jesus is enough as you battle on in ill health,
Jesus is enough as you face relational strife,
Jesus is enough when you feel at the end of your rope,
Jesus is enough.
He’s unfailingly good,
he’s unendingly gracious,
he’s unfathomably merciful,
he’s unbelievably loving!
Delight yourself in the Lord, follow him through doubts and tears and you will not ever once be disappointed. To whom else can we go? He alone has the words of eternal life!