Timeless Truths: The Woman at the Well - Part 1

Woman at the Well – Backstory

Now[Jesus]had to go through Samaria. 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 noon. 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.)

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.)

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.”

“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 livestock?”

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.”

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.”

He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

“I have no husband,” she replied.

Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

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

“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet 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. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

John 4:4-24

The passage above set up one of the main foci of the entire story, which continues on to verse 42 in John 4.

Journey with Jesus: Woman at the Well

The location: The well of Sychar, a major Samaritan city.

The time: Around noon.

The situation: Jesus, a Jew, has been conversing with a Samaritan. That in and of itself is considered a sin by the Jewish religious establishment. Jews and Samaritans never associated—to the point of going out of their way to avoid each others’ nations while traveling. Add the fact that Jesus partner in the conversation is a woman . . . 

If you can’t feel the tension in the air, you’re not trying very hard.

Before we continue with the storyline, it’s time to introduce the cast of this drama.

Read carefully,

There will be a quiz.

Main Characters

Woman. A broken, multiple divorcée living with a man who’s not her husband. Actually she’s so much more than a divorcée. She had five husbands. The Bible doesn't tell us why she had five husbands. It could have been they all died. What is central to the story is the heartache and rejection the Samaritan woman lived with every moment of every day. She was not popular—particularly among other women. One tough cookie that is overwhelmed by daily tasks. She’s looking for a quick fix.

Jesus. Not afraid to cross religious or cultural barriers. John says that Jesus “had to go through Samaria.”

Disciples. They were taking care of business in town. We will see in the next scenes that they were concerned about Jesus reputation—and probably their own reputations as well. They also want Jesus to stay healthy—for the Jews back in Galilee.

Townspeople. Their hearts are opened because of the woman’s testimony. However, they are bewildered by Jesus’ words.

Who are you in this story?

·      Think about that.

·      Read the rest of the story.

·      Next week we’ll see how well you self-cast your part in this drama.

Special thanks to Pastor Beverly Cook for the primary teachings used in this post. You can read more of Beverly’s thoughts in her blog at beverlystantoncook.wordpress.com

  

Next Thursday's Timeless Truths Series: Journey with Jesus: The Woman at the Well – Conclusion

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