“Who is the Messiah, the Son of God?” is the fundamental question of John’s Gospel. Today, we know the answer to this question: Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Son of God. However, two thousand years ago, Israel (and the world) was still waiting.
In John chapter four we read about the first of only two occasions when Jesus actually states that He is the Messiah. A truly incredible moment that occurs where you would least expect it.
Samaria.
But why is this location so important? To understand this we have to look at 1 Kings 12 and the split of Israel into two kingdoms: Israel and Judah. Rehoboam inherits the throne of Israel from his father, Solomon who worked the people hard. The first thing the people ask of their new king is to lighten their load. Understandably, Rehoboam goes looking for advice on what he should do. He asks the elders who tell him to do as the people ask and make their lives easier but Rehoboam rejects this advice and instead speaks to the young men he grew up with. They tell him to do the exact opposite and Rehoboam agrees with them. This causes a huge division in Israel. Ten of the twelve tribes split from Judah and Benjamin to appoint their own King, Jeroboam. Jeroboam leads Israel down a dark and sinful path.
Over nine hundred years later we have Samaria and Judea and the people of these two regions hate each other. The Jews viewed the Samaritans as being ritually unclean and would not even speak to them.
The divide was massive. But Jesus, following the will of His Father, bridges that divide with a simple question to a Samaritan woman: “Will you give me a drink?” (John 4:7). Knowing the history helps us to understand the woman’s surprised response: “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan. How can you ask me for a drink?” Jesus is purposely breaking away from societal norms in order to reach a woman who would be despised by His own people, along with being actively avoided by her own. How do we know this? She’s drawing water at noon, in the heat of the day, whereas all the other women of her village would have drawn water in the cool of the morning.
What is wonderful here is that while Jesus is literally thirsty, He ignores it in order to offer her something better. He prioritises her spiritual need over His physical one.
In verse 10, Jesus says to 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.” He’s not referring to physical water, He’s offering her salvation and eternal life. However, she still thinks they are talking about literal water even going as far to enquire how He intends to draw this water and what makes Him so special that He can produce water of better quality than what Jacob used. Her question goes directly to the heart of the divide. It almost appears that she is wary of Jesus as a Jewish man and is choosing to politely challenge whether or not He considers Himself superior to her. Unlike most Jewish teachers, Jesus actually gives her an answer as though they are equals.
“Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” (Verses 13-14).
Naturally, she asks Him to give her the water He is talking about, still expecting Him to give her literal water. To help her fully understand what He is offering her, Jesus dives in and addresses her sinful lifestyle by telling her to go and get her husband. To which she responds that she does not have a husband. Jesus then reveals that He knows exactly how many husbands she has had and that she is living with a man while unmarried.
“You are right! You don’t have a husband – for you have had five husbands, and you are not even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!” (Verses 17-18).
After giving her the opportunity to be honest, Jesus’ lack of condemnation of her lifestyle does two things: firstly, she at last begins to recognise Jesus as a teacher and a prophet. Secondly, it seems to encourage her to take their conversation further and discuss a key aspect of the divide between the Jews and the Samaritans: their places of worship. Samaritans worshipped in a temple on Mount Gerizim where Moses first commanded the Israelites to proclaim the blessings of the Law. Whereas Jews believed that the only place God should be worshipped is in the temple in Jerusalem.
In a truly shocking statement, Jesus actually tells her that the time is coming when anyone can worship God anywhere.
“But the time is coming – indeed it is here now – when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship Him that way.” (Verses 21-23).
The woman immediately recognises that Jesus is referring to the Messiah and is clearly looking forward to His arrival because then all questions will be answered. Especially the ones that divide the Israelites. In response to her hope and anticipation of the coming Messiah, Jesus finally tells her who He is.
“I am the Messiah!” (Verse 26)
This incredible and extremely unusual conversation marks the beginning of Jesus’ Ministry. The woman’s confession, guided by Jesus, who laid bare her sin without condemnation (Romans 8:1), opens the door of revival for the whole town. Through gentle omniscience, He produces powerful faith in her – a social outcast – who then rejoices before the whole town who are then drawn to the well to meet Jesus.
Leave a Reply