Sermon Tone Analysis

In today’s text we find Jesus once again in conversation.

In the preceding chapter Jesus was engaged in a midnight conversation with a devoutly religious Jew and a learned theologian named Nicodemus.

Today’s text, , is a conversation with an uneducated and immoral Samaritan woman.

The contrast between these two characters is meant to establish a truth concerning Jesus ministry.

There is no one beyond the need of grace ().

There is no one beyond the reach of grace (John 4).

What is also striking about the two dialogues is Jesus’ remarkable ability to be ‘at home’ with each and to present the good news of salvation in a way that spoke to their individual universal need.

She was lost in her rebellion and he was lost in his religion.

Jesus’ revelation of Himself to this woman demonstrated that God’s saving love knows no limitations; it transcends all barriers of race, gender, ethnicity, and religious tradition.

In contrast to human love, divine love is indiscriminate and all-encompassing (cf.

3:16).

The story of the Lord’s encounter with the woman at the well unfolds in three scenes: the encounter, the exchange, the experience.

It is the longest recorded conversation Jesus has with anyone.

Jesus encounter with the Samaritan.

Jesus pursues Samaritan.

§ He is not hindered by his physicality.

(v. 6)

The phrase “had to” shows that Jesus pursues Samaritan’s.

John frequently used the verb (had to) to speak of Jesus fulfilling the mission given Him by the Father (3:14; 9:4; 10:16; 12:34; 20:9).

He had to because it was the Father’s will,

John 4:34; 5:30; 17:4; ).

On His return to Galilee, Jesus had to; the Lord was compelled to pass through Samaria and stop in a certain village because He had a divine appointment there.

He had to pass through because Jesus seeks those who are lost.

He had to pass through because it is not right for living water to be withheld from those who are thirsty.

he had to pass through because this woman’s name had been penciled in the Savior’s divine appointment book in eternity past.

On His return to Galilee, Jesus had to; the Lord was compelled to pass through Samaria and stop in a certain village because He had a divine appointment there.

He had to pass through because Jesus seeks those who are lost.

He had to pass through because it is not right for living water to be withheld from those who are thirsty.

He had to pass through because this woman’s name had been penciled in the Savior’s divine appointment book in eternity past.

He is not hindered by her locality.

Notice that Jesus is not hindered in his pursuit.

Scripture tells us that “he had to pass through Samaria”.

His had to was compelled by her need.

He is not hindered by her nationality.

Jew’s, Jesus nationality, hated Samaritan’s to degree beyond anything we can imagine.

The road through Samaria was shorter (3 days) than the coastal road or the road on the east side of the Jordan (6 days), which is why many Jews traveled on it, especially at the time of the major religious festivals.

But so great was their disdain for the Samaritans that the stricter Jews avoided traveling through Samaria altogether.

Jesus was not repelled by her nationality but compelled by her need.

He is not hindered by his physicality.

Jesus was not hindered by her locality or nationally nor was he hinder by his physicality; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well.

It was about the sixth hour.

Jesus did withdraw for times of rest but here we have an account of Jesus giving us an example of Paul’s writing to the church at Galatia when he said “and let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up ().

The stage was set; Jesus was in the right place at the right time for an encounter in God’s will.

He was in reality keeping a divine appointment that He Himself had made before the foundation of the world.

This divineness of this appointment is seen in the facts

Jesus is setting at the well.

Men did not go to well’s, this was a woman’s job, except to meet women.

This truth is learn from Jacob meeting both his wives at a well.

Women drew water in the cool of the evening.

We know this from Moses writings in

We know this from Moses writings in ; And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water.

; And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water.

And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water.

This encounter does not occur without divine appointment.

There is not enough randomness in the world to bring this together.

This woman came at high noon, perhaps because of her desire to avoid public shame.

What was also unusual was that this woman came from such a long distance to this well when there were other sources of water closer to the village.

Here situation was so severe that she would rather walk the extra distance in the hottest time of the day than face the hostility and scorn of the other women at the closer well later in the day.

Jesus’ exchange with the Samaritan.

Jesus makes a PROBING statement.

Jesus uses a universal physical need to address a universal spiritual need.

Jesus begins His exchange by making a probing statement.

The Lord’s simple request, “Give Me a drink,” was in that culture a shocking breach of social custom.

Men did not speak with women in public—not even their wives.

Nor did rabbis associate with immoral women (cf.

).

Most significant of all in this situation, Jews customarily wanted nothing to do with Samaritans.

But Jesus shattered all of those barriers.

(The word translated dealings in John’s explanatory note literally means “to use the same utensils.”)

But Jesus was the infinitely holy God in human flesh.

He could not be defiled by a Samaritan water pot.

Whatever He touched—even corpses () or lepers ()—did not taint Him, but instead became clean.

Jesus used a universal physical need to address a universal spiritual need.

Jesus continues to use Old Testament imagery of water to explain salvation.

God refers to himself in

as; “the fountain of living water”.

Jeremiah also tells us in (17:13) that “those who forsake the fountain of living water shall be put to shame.”

The Lord in () invites everyone to “come, come everyone who thirsts, come to the waters.”

Jeremiah also tells us in (17:13) that “those who forsake the fountain of living water shall be put to shame.”

The Lord invites everyone in

1 to “come, come everyone who thirsts, come to the waters.”

Jesus doesn’t offer her a well but a spring.

Wells must be dug.

They are man made.

Jesus is not a well.

He is a spring/fountain.

A spring/fountain requires no work.

They are natural.

They are free.

Water must be drawn from a well.

Fountains freely flow.

There is no drawing only drinking.

Jesus had spoken to her about the water of eternal life, and she seemed willing to accept it, but no conditions had been stated.

As with any lost sinner, this woman needed to understand two crucial issues before she could receive the living water of eternal life—namely, the reality of her sin and His identity as Savior.

In these last two points; Jesus addressed both of those issues.

Jesus makes a prophetic statement.

Jesus exposes her sin.

§ Jesus expounds her sin.

(vv.17-18)

§ She seeks to Experience salvation through religious ritual (vv.

19-20)

§ Jesus Extends to her salvation from her sin through personal repentance and relationship with God the Father.

(vv.