Women of God
The Woman at the Well: A Changed Heart
Before I began writing this, I was certain I knew everything there was to know about the Samaritan Woman from John 4. After all, I’ve heard the story many times throughout my life.
…Well, I only thought I knew everything about this chapter.
The amazing thing about the Word of God is the Lord CONTINUALLY teaches, strengthens, and changes our hearts. After reading John 4 again and again, seeking His Truth, He has revealed new, fresh wisdom. The Word is like honey—it never goes to waste–it’s always fresh. And while the Word never changes, as we dive deeper into studying scripture and engraving Truth within our hearts, we will CONTINUALLY grow more in love with our Savior and in our understanding of His perfect character.
When the Samaritan woman meets Jesus at the well, He seems nothing more than a Jewish man. But, as she would begin conversing with Him, Jesus would gently begin revealing Himself as the Messiah. He was always the Messiah and always will be the Messiah; He never changes. But her view and her understanding about this Jewish man was about to change; her heart and her life were about to be transformed.
The Samaritan Woman’s Role at the Beginning of John 4
She is treated as an outcast because of the sin in her life.
This woman has everything against her:
- She is a Samaritan, therefore she is already shunned from Jewish society (Racial outcast).
- She is a woman, already deemed as lesser than by other men (Physical outcast).
- She has a man who is not her husband, and she has had five previous husbands. What little good reputation she might have once had has already been shattered by her past choices (Social outcast).
Because she is an outcast, she comes to draw water from the well by herself at “the sixth hour” (vs. 6), which is most likely noon time, the hottest part of the day. Most all of the other women would have come to draw water and socialize together in the early morning or evening when it would have been much cooler.
When she arrives at the well, Jesus is already resting there, and not by accident (vs. 4-6). He’s been waiting for her to arrive.
How Does the Woman’s Knowledge of Jesus Change as John 4 Progresses?
Jesus starts out as a Jewish man. Jews certainly wouldn’t associate with Samaritans at this time, and, according to the article Jesus and the Samaritan Woman by Wayne Jackson, “Jewish men did not speak to women in public” (https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/282-jesus-and-the-samaritan-woman).
Jesus becomes a peculiar man, when, much to her shock, He not only speaks to her but asks her for a drink. He asks her to serve Him and goes on to talk about the ‘gift of God’ and ‘living water’ (vs. 10). Of course, we know Jesus is the gift of God because He is the Living Water.
- The Samaritan woman asks Jesus how He, being a Jew, can ask her, a Samaritan, for a drink (vs.9), because she can only see the outward circumstances.
BUT…
- Jesus tells 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” (vs. 10).
**Immediately, Jesus moves into a spiritual conversation. He looks inward. The outward circumstances (Him being a Jew and she being a Samaritan woman) clearly do not matter to Him.**
Jesus begins a Jewish man, becomes a peculiar man, and turns into someone who is, perhaps, a great man. The Samaritan woman asks Jesus where she can get the living water and says to Him, “Are you greater than our father Jacob?” (vs. 12).
**Do you see what is happening here? Jesus is drawing her to Himself while revealing Himself to her. We know “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10:17), and the Word is right in front of her!**
Jesus answers the woman by turning the focus on Himself. He says, “Whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst…the water I give him will become…a spring…welling up to eternal life” (vs. 14).
** What was the woman’s question? “Where can you get this living water?” (vs. 11).**
** What was His answer? “The water I give…”**
Ah, so now Jesus is GREAT! It is He who provides the Living Water.
And yet, she still doesn’t understand completely. In verse 15, she limits the water Jesus offers to physical water, which also limits Jesus’ power to man’s power, because she doesn’t know Jesus is fully God and fully man. She doesn’t understand that what God really means when He says, “The water I give…” is, “I give you Myself.”
Although the Samaritan woman may not fully understand who Jesus is, she still desires this Living Water. And Jesus, in His kindness, is about to reveal exactly who He is. But before one can come to accept Christ as Savior and Redeemer, one must first have eyes opened to the sin in his or her life.
When she asks for Him to give her the living water, He says, “Go, call your husband and come back” (vs. 16).
Uh-oh. Put yourself in her shoes. If I had been shunned from all society, and I mean, ALL society, my heart would have sunk. A lump would have formed in my throat. I would have thought, I’m an outcast, but this man is talking to me. He’s kind. He wants to give me this living water.
So why in the world would I want to tell Him I’m a sinful woman who has brought shame upon my life and family?
It comes as no surprise that the Samaritan woman tells Jesus only the surface area of her life. “I have no husband” (vs. 17).
JESUS’ CHARACTER
Jesus’ response to her is, “You are right…The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband” (vs. 17-18).
There are four things we can learn about Jesus’ character from His response:
- Jesus never sugar coats the truth, even when the truth stings.
- Jesus is personal. He doesn’t skim the surface of our lives, for He “formed [our] inward parts” (Psalm 139:13).
- Jesus is All-Knowing. He knows the subtext of everything we say; He knows our secrets, our desires, our motivations. Even when we try to hide something from the Lord, He knows our thoughts.
- Jesus still loves us even though we are sinners. While His response was an unpleasant truth, He did NOT say to her, “I know what you did; go away! I won’t give you the living water anymore.” No, He is our Savior! He rescues us from our sin when we repent and turn to Him, because His desire is for us. How merciful is He!
LET’S RECAP THE SAMARITAN WOMAN’S UNDERSTANDING OF WHO JESUS IS:
- A Jewish man
- A peculiar man
- A great man
And now, in her eyes, He seems to be a prophet (vs. 19).
**The fact Jesus knows what she’s done makes her quickly change the subject. What’s interesting is the topic she chooses to discuss.**
WORSHIP
She says, “Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place we must worship is in Jerusalem” (vs. 20).
**According to Wayne Jackson’s article, “there was a long-standing controversy between the Samaritans and the Jews as to where worship was to be rendered”** (https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/282-jesus-and-the-samaritan-woman ).
Jesus’ definition of true worship is simple: “True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks” (vs. 23).
Still, why does this woman suddenly bring up the topic of worship? Maybe, if He really is a prophet, He could explain this controversy to her.
But consider this:
Perhaps, she is already leaning toward the amazing possibility, the hope, that He is the promised Messiah. Maybe her statement in verse 25 is actually her heart’s way of asking, “You’re the Messiah, aren’t you?”
**In John 4:25, she says, “I KNOW that Messiah…is coming. WHEN He comes, He will explain everything to us” (vs. 25).**
Hmm…She brings up a controversial subject in hopes Jesus would explain it to her, and later, she chooses to declare her belief that the Messiah would “explain everything.”
I can’t imagine she would’ve even mentioned the Messiah unless she already believed, or, at the very least, hoped, He was the Messiah. He had already explained who He was—the Living Water—who she was—a sinner—and who true worshipers would one day be… Those who worship because the Holy Spirit resides within them.
ONCE MORE, WE’LL RECAP THE SAMARITAN WOMAN’S UNDERSTANDING OF THIS MAN AT THE WELL:
- Jesus is a Jewish man.
- He becomes a peculiar man talking to a Samaritan woman.
- He reveals He is a great man.
- He seems to be a prophet. And then, it is revealed that…
- Jesus is Messiah.
He confirms to her what He has already revealed to her heart when He declares, “I who speak to you am he” (vs. 26).
**In the book Twelve Extraordinary Women, John MacArthur says Jesus’ declaration in verse 26 “is the single most direct and explicit messianic claim Jesus ever made” (MacArthur, 149).**
Don’t you think this woman experienced indescribable joy? This strange Jewish man talked to her—her of all people—a sinner—an outcast! And then, because of her faith in the Messiah, she comes to understand Jesus is Messiah! The Coming Messiah is here!
A Changed Heart
Because of her faith, the Samaritan woman is changed from then on. So changed she cannot keep silent.
Read John 4:39-40.
The Samaritan Woman’s Role at the End of John 4
Her role may have begun as an outcast, but her role in the end is a forgiven woman because of her faith in the Messiah.
WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THIS WOMAN’S ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS THE MESSIAH?
- Yes, we are all sinners. The truth stings, because the Light exposes the darkness. And sometimes, the sin in our lives causes others to shun us. But Jesus came to die for our sins and offer forgiveness when we repent and trust in Him. He did not shun the Samaritan woman. He will not shun you.
- Have the kind of hope this woman had… “I KNOW that Messiah is coming” (vs. 25). She believed in Him. She did not shy away from stating her belief.
- When you have been moved and changed by Jesus, tell others! Our joy in Christ should overflow because His joy overflows in us.
He is, after all, “a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (vs. 14).