Intimate meeting number 11

It's been a little while since we've had an intimate meeting and the topic we picked and discussed went so perfectly with the day!

The Bible story we studied and discussed was The Samaritan woman at the well with Jesus

Amazing preaching of this story by Robert Madu: 

Read from John 4: 1-30.

Let's quickly summarise this story:

1) Jesus had been travelling far and was tired, so took some rest at a well in Samaria whilst his disciples went to buy food. This well was usually a place where women of Samaria would go to draw water. 

2) A Samaritan woman came to draw water. By speaking to this woman, Jesus broke 3 Jewish customs; a) he spoke to a woman b) she was a Samaritan woman* and c) he asked her to get him a drink of water, which would have made him ceremonially unclean from using her cup.

3) Jesus asking the woman for water at the well shocked her. Jesus then went onto say that He could give her living water so that she would never thirst again. Jesus used the words living water to refer to eternal life, the gift that would satisfy her soul's desire only available through him. The Samaritan woman became immediately defensive, highlighting the fact that He a Jew, dared to ask her for water.

4) Although they had never met before, Jesus revealed that he knew she had had five husbands and was now living with a man who was not her husband. Jesus now had her attention! As they talked about their two views on worship, the woman voiced her faith that Messiah was coming. Jesus answered, "I who speak to you am he." (John 4:26, ESV)

------------PAUSE------------

Let's discuss! (As we did in the meeting)

- This woman didn't have a clear vision when meeting Jesus as her perspective was deluded by past experiences. She probably thought that Jesus was another man trying to make a pass at her, since only women gathered at that well.

- Let's do the math. She had 5 husbands and lives with a man she's not married to. Jesus was the 7th man she met. What does number 7 mean? Completion, divine perfection, and something that is not finished. *goosebumps*!

- We must stop prejudging situations based on past experiences. This will limit your growth with God!

- What well are you drinking from? EVERYONE gets thirsty but the real question is; how are you going to quench your thirst? Your looks? Social status? Relationships without purpose? There is a level of fulfilment you may get from these - but for how long?

5) The woman then believed in Christ and spread the word! Excited by what the woman told them, the Samaritans came from Sychar and begged Jesus to stay with them. So Jesus stayed two days, teaching the Samaritan people about the Kingdom of God. When he left, the people told the woman, "... we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world." (John 4:42, ESV)

By reaching out to the Samaritans, Jesus showed that his mission was to the entire earth, not just the Jews. In the book of Acts, after Jesus' ascension into heaven, his apostles carried on his work in Samaria and to the Gentile world.

We need to start drinking from the well that will never run dry!

YOU are the water carrier in your generation.

Questions to pray about:

Can you depend less on the things of the world and more of God?

How will you train yourself to not let your past delude your perspective of the present or future?

How can I learn to strengthen my growth with God?

Our human tendency is to judge others because of stereotypes, customs or prejudices. Jesus treats people as individuals, accepting them with love and compassion. Do you dismiss certain people as lost causes, or do you see them as valuable in their own right, worthy of knowing about the Gospel?

Such a rich meeting with so much food for thought! I don't think any of us want to have the mindset of the woman from the well. We want to meet Jesus with a clear mind and heart. Let us walk more in faith and not by sight.

God bless fellowship!

#LadiesWhoFellowshipInTheCity

#LWFITC

*

Why were Samaritans despised by Jews?

Because of their defective devotion to Judaism and their partly pagan ancestry, the Samaritans were despised by ordinary Jews. Because the Samaritans were sometimes hostile, and also the fact that a Jew believed that he could become contaminated by passing through Samaritan territory, Jews who were traveling from Judea to Galilee or vice versa would cross over the Jordan river and avoid Samaria by going through Transjordan, and cross back over the river again once they had reached their destination.