“Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4 : 13
When you open your eyes in the morning, are you mindful of the Lord’s presence? Are you confident that His Spirit is leading and guiding you in all situations that you are walking into and with the people you are going to meet? Or are there times you would prefer to hide in the shadows? Do you find there are moments when you wear a mask to stop people from seeing the real you? Many people today are going through life with walls built up around them. They have become so hurt and let down by people that their only way to cope is to shut everyone out and live life inside a prison of their own making.
The lady that Jesus searches out in this story knows all about keeping a low profile. She is so used to being on the outside that she is almost hostile towards Jesus’ request for a drink. We need to understand the context to fully grasp how audacious Jesus’ actions truly are. He is a Jewish Rabbi. She is a Samaritan woman. The Jews would have seen the Samaritans as being “unclean” and they would have avoided mixing with them at all costs. Not only that but this woman was an outcast within her own community. She was seen as immoral and was rejected by her own people.
Used to hearing negative comments and slights about her character she had become accustomed to taking on a defensive stance. Jesus comes in love, but she is too afraid to let him in, too fearful of the consequences. She has learnt that she must protect herself from the scorn. And yet Jesus doesn’t give up. Jesus understood her deepest need. He knew that she longed to be loved by the Father. He came to introduce her to the living water- the Holy Spirit as he reveals in John 7: 38-39. Only He can fill the emptiness and the ache she feels inside. He comes to give her the gift of God. This is not something that she could ever earn by her performance or good works. There is no moral standing that qualifies her. Her qualification is in fact her brokenness, her need for a saviour. His love finally breaks through the hardness in her heart.
I love the verse in Psalm 42:2 where it states, “Deep calls to deep.” There is a yearning and longing inside everyone of us that will never be satisfied by material things. We have a deep thirst that only Jesus himself can quench. Like the woman’s, our human needs can be great, but the riches of God are so much greater! Her situation might have appeared hopeless in her eyes but for Jesus it was an opportunity for him to demonstrate his lavish love to all people. What’s more an encounter with Jesus is not a temporary high or a momentary lift. His refreshment is lasting. The water that Jesus supplies is not from a cistern that is static it is living water from a source that never runs dry. His Holy Spirit dwells in us, seals us and fills us 24/7.
Take a moment now to meditate on the well within you. Pray in the spirit and activate the flow in your life. Jesus has empowered you to live a life of freedom and victory today. You don’t have to hide in the shadows or protect yourself from pain. He is the fountain within.
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Who Do You Say I Am Series – Exchange Church Belfast 2020