Looking for Other Wells

Jews and Samaritans bitter enemies. Samaritans were looked upon as half-breeds.  Part Jew, part Syrian.  The could trace their ancestry back to Jacob as their father, but the sons of Jacob had also taken some wives of the land, and some of their offspring now occupied this slice of land which lay right between Judea and Galillee.  Since they were not “pure” Jews, they were despised.  And since the Jews despised them, they, in turn, despised the Jews.  Jews would only trade with them if they absolutely had to. A Jew would not borrow from a Samaritan, nor receive a kindness, not even a morsel of bread or a cup of water.  They would pay their own way.   Only in meeting a necessity would a Jew stoop to trade with a Samaritan.  Disciples felt that this was a case the Pharisees would approve of and went in to town.

Jesus alone at the well.  Thirsty in His humanity.  So close to water…no way to get at it.  Stuck waiting on a person to meet his needs.  Closed eyes. head resting against the well.  Heard movement.  Woman coming in the heat of the day.   Ad lib.  Ashamed.  Embarrassed. Tired of the comments from the others who came in the cool of the morning or evening.  She came not suspecting anything.  Now she has to contend with this Jewish man.

You can read the story in John 4.  But especially notice verse 7.  John 4:7 Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”

Jesus asked her for a drink.  Such a favor no Oriental would withhold.  In the Middle East, water was called a “gift from God.”  To offer a drink to the thirsty traveler was held a sacred duty.  The hatred between Samaritans and Jews prevented the woman from offering Jesus a drink.  Jesus knew that she would never offer a kindness, and that, likewise, she would never accept anything from Him.  But in seeking her heart, Jesus asks a favor that she can’t refuse.  And in this act of trust, He awakens trust in her heart.

But Jesus doesn't stop there.  John 4:9    The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?”
v10    Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”
A Jew talking to a Samaritan.  And a Samaritan woman?  If you knew who you were talking to you would have asked Him and He would have given you a drink.

She’s puzzled, but now intrigued with the conversation.   You have nothing to draw with.  Are you greater than our father Jacob who gave us the well?

In her mind she compared Him with the honored Patriarch Jacob and she cherished the feeling that no other well could be equal to that which had been theirs for generations.  She was looking both backward to her heritage, and yet forward to the Messiah’s coming while she sat their talking to the very one she was looking for and didn’t know it.

Some things never change.  Many of us today are so close to really knowing Jesus, but we keep looking for other wells to satisfy our thirst.  And often, they are good wells.  Wells that have watered us for generations.  But if we are ever to find a fountain springing up into everlasting life, we must look to Jesus.