John Chapter 4:15-23

One thing I found you know you'll find people that will argue theology, doctrine in times advance eschatology they will argue all these things but you know there's one thing that people can't argue with. And that's what God is done in your life to that's why your testimony is such a powerful thing and then whether you were involved in unit with drugs and alcohol and sexual misconduct are maybe you were just lonely and unfulfilled. But God change your life. You filled you with a love that you didn't have before. He felt he filled you with the forgiveness that you didn't have before you know what you can testify that and people that they can doubt it if they want to, but they won't argue with you about because you can say you know I know I know what Jesus my Jesus is done in my life and this lady says you know what if this is the deal with this is Christianity I want welcome to cross the bridge with David McGee. David is a senior pastor of the bridge in Kernersville, North Carolina today yesterday to continue teaching through John chapter 4 with the message. Give me a drink, but also excited to have the studio with this DA Brown, one of David's associate pastors welcome brother Bob. God wants us to be so excited about what he is doing in our life that it overflows and encourage us to tell other people about what he's doing and how exciting it is and they can have two now here's David McGee with part three of his teaching.

Give me a drink work dealing with the Samaritan woman at the well and Jesus is saying, you know whoever drinks of this water will thirst again but whoever drinks of the water that I want to give them will never thirst again and is ministering to this woman and there's just so many great truths in the verse 15 the woman said them sir, give me this water that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw that we seen before this that the woman tries to be divisive and she's going to try again, but you notice that Jesus avoids this stuff and wants to minister her and meet her where her need is when he offers us living water. It appeals to her she says I want this living water.

I think sometimes I'm a witness and sometimes were talking to people about the Lord and they say no.

I think they said no to the wrong question. We've asked them if they can try harder with asking if they can do better with ask them if they can clean up their life so they can come to God and they honestly say no can't do that so we haven't really presented them with the good news and one thing I found you know you'll find people that will argue theology, doctrine in times advance eschatology they will argue all these things that you know there's one thing that people can't argue with. And that's what God is done in your life to that's why your testimony is such a powerful thing and then whether you were involved in unit with drugs and alcohol and sexual misconduct are maybe you were just lonely and unfulfilled. But God change your life. You filled you with a love that you didn't have before. He felt he filled you with the forgiveness that you didn't have before you know what you can testify that and people that they can doubt it if they want to, but they won't argue with you about because you can say you know I know I know what Jesus my Jesus is done in my life and this lady says you know what if this is the deal with this is Christianity I want and I wonder sometimes that we misrepresent the Lord in this mantra harder thing. I think we do if we let people know you know what you can be forgiven by turning to the Lord and he will begin the change your life. So often we say what you know you change your life and then come to the Lord is not the gospel and maybe you shouldn't go well yeah but in this just semantics and details. No, absolutely not, because unless money is empowered by the Holy Spirit, they can't change their life. That's like you know the what whatever analogy want to use you know you don't you don't clean fish before you got your right you catch the fish and then you clean up, or my favorite is you don't get cleaned up the shower right please say you don't. If you do call the church will try to help but laugh because the shower cleans you see when you come to God begins to work in your life. God begins to change your life. God begins to clean your life, but not before in this appeals to the lady she's probably anxious. She's dissatisfied and that's the way the world is there anxious and dissatisfied simply by walking in loving contentment. You understand what a witness that is how that appeals to people if you live out your life in front of them like that will be like will there's some different about you. What is I want to gives an opportunity because this lady was looking first. She'd never been satisfied. Not really satisfied, she probably had moments of physical satisfaction because you can't find spiritual satisfaction and physical acts just didn't happen.

I know the flesh cries out for all sorts of things that hurt you, but it never brings lasting satisfaction see this is what we need to be telling people about how Jesus has changed us how dissatisfied and discontented. We were before we met. That's what we need to be speaking to him about and how awesome it is to walk with the Lord so often about our first life lesson we need to tell people how awesome it is to walk with Jesus you know sometimes what happens as we begin the talk to people about how messed up her churches about this about that about the other about, you know, why does the pastor have to wear weird shirts, like he does whatever you think is and then we go to tell about Jesus and in their looking analyzing on you know what you you don't sing happy or worship some of the testimonies I've heard were guys go well, you know, before you came to the Lord was making six figures working on Wall Street and had everything laid out all sorts of my stuff and then God got a hold of me and I lost it all and I hope I make it through my long and miserable life.

Praise God. Don't you want to join me lighten don't think so appreciated. Again, their sin no to the wrong questions. I mean, what, when I hear a testimony like that.

I think you know what part of hell and death and bitterness and anger. Do you miss I don't miss any of it.

I'm glad of been born again. I'm glad I got a fresh start. Verse 16 Jesus said to her go, call your husband come here. Jesus had to present this question to her.

Jesus knew he had to present the question to her because it led it led to the sin issue. He had to present the sin question and see that something that's necessary because if somebody is not convicted that can't lead him the salvation but God's conviction is done marvelously by the Holy Spirit. And I think sometimes people get carried away and they use a sledgehammer when a feather would do. I know I've been guilty of, but he does present the problem and seek God's will must be honest, I was born and raised in the South. My families been here 280 years in this area, but the South is religious.

There's a lot of people that are very religious. They don't know Jesus and their bitter and their curtain and they think they're okay and that makes it even more important to present this sin question to them to view data exit polling churches this morning, a lot of people exiting the church.

He said hey are you going to have an all you batch it will how do you know that well because I'm basically a good person. The Scripture says there's no good people.

Romans 310. Romans 323 off Most of the 10 Commandments you demigod graves on grades on a curve kind of thing now. I don't think so. See, there's a standard sinless perfection were all under that even on your best day friend, you don't hit sinless perfection and neither do and that's the bad news and that's what we need to realize that we need to present to people and and and it's interesting because the only time this is an issue is with religious people say I never went to witness to somebody coming out of a concert with the rise all red and dazed in them.

So that really centered. They know the person I have argued and discussed it with people coming out of churches, sadly enough. And so Jesus has to deal with this and he interacts with her and interact notice his sensitivity he interacts with this woman very differently than he did with Nicodemus in the chapter before and I think today still probably the biggest enemy of the reality of Jesus Christ is the emptiness of religion and if it breaks my heart to think that people all over the tribe or sit in churches where they're not coming here.

The salvation message. Think of what it does to God's verse 17, the woman answered and said I have no husband. Jesus said to her, you will said I have no husband for you have had five husbands and the one whom you now have is not your husband that he spoke truly. So this woman had been married five times and was presently living with a man who wasn't her husband. But it's interesting to see in these verses what Jesus does and what Jesus does not do you see this is the end of him discussing her sin. Whether it's that brief. She knows she knows he knows and that's enough said. Notice he doesn't go well yeah five husbands well us. Let's talk about the first when his name was Sam.

I see what you did wrong there so we might learn something from your mistakes, as is probably going to be about a five week process as we go and dig up all the dirt and everything that you've done wrong so we can sift through it and examine it posits forgetting those things which are behind us and if God's word says that how dare anybody try to dredge up, much less find answers in the past were you've made mistakes not know this flies in the face of a lot of even Christian counseling where they want to go back and see why you were messed up when we save a lot of time allotment or a lot of energy and money and then also to think you messed up because you are a sinner. I mean, you may want to blame somebody else. But that's the reality of the situation. Now the good news is you don't have to be tied down and in bondage to that you can be set free, but something that happened with this woman. And with that one statement Jesus said you know what I know, I know you don't have to tell me I know he saw into her life. He sold it probably is a little girl she dreamed about, you know her Prince charming, her husband and live in a awesome wife with the family and something went wrong.

Something happened her first husband probably didn't love her as he shouldn't.

She probably didn't love him and she shouldn't and it failed. She took some of those failures into the next relationship and into the next relationship instead of kind words. There were bitter words. Loving looks were exchanged for hateful glares, things just kept falling apart and getting worse. Pretty soon she probably had so many scars was hard to feel anything at all. She probably got to the point where her she just heard she was walking in pain.

And certainly we talked about. She was in the desert at midday at the well when she knew nobody else would be there because she didn't want to see anybody else. She gotten tired of the exchange with anybody now would imagine that probably her popularity with the men made a very unpopular with the women anyway who would be at the will and somehow the stranger that was at the well see and understand seem to know that here at the well in the hot midday sun when she thought nobody was going to be there. She finally found the man she was looking for that had the love and the understanding and the compassion you know, I may have just described some ladies in here this morning. You've been through a lot of pain. You've been to a lot of suffering you've been through a lot of dissolution. You've been disappointed to know what you can meet the man this morning that you really need in your life more than any other man here found the man will be right back with more from David McGee on cross the bridge right now there's a word from associate pastor DA Brown hey Bob were excited be here. Listen to the teaching want to pray for some people in our listening audience today. Specifically, the cities in California ring con real Linda Salinas sent heart of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara God, we thank you for the people in the cities today we pray that they would tune in and be encouraged in your word. Lord help and have an open heart that you want to speak directly to them God that you want to forgive them of all their sins.

Lord you want to use them to be a blessing to other people so others could be forgiven to in Jesus name, amen, amen. Thank you brother and now get back to David McGee as he continues teaching verse by verse, verse 19. The woman said to her, Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship so she recognize that Jesus has this gift in Jesus use the gifts for what for ministering to the woman and noticed something how quietly and without any sort of flamboyance to use the gift it unsay started shaking it unsay he's fell to the ground. It doesn't say he will you know his eyes rolled up in his head as he said I'm getting some to quietly use the gift to minister to the lady and you know what I believe that's the proper use of spiritual gifts right there see so often we think spiritual gifts against the Holy Spirit for this flamboyant display and certainly have seen some in my days, but the for the ministering to the body of Christ, and when their use in that way. It's a beautiful thing when their views with this access and flamboyant. It makes people run from any sort of experience with the Holy Spirit, which is sad and Jesus didn't use this gift to validate his ministry to prove to somebody or show to somebody how spiritual he was used it to minister to this lady and I love what Donald G said he said the Holy Spirit is like the steam in a train. A lot of people think the steam is for the whistle seems not for the whistle. The steam is what drives the train, so she tries to start an argument starts another argument stir up trouble, but notice in the next verses, Jesus completely avoids the controversy. This is this is this is really good for me to hear. To be honest because I'm at a point in my Christian life were you know somebody says something about Scripture. I have the God-given ability to whip out my two-edged sword, and to whittle them down to a toothpick. But that's hardly ever the thing that I'm supposed to do is to minister to them and love was to tell him and show him the truth and shown that they can be forgiven.

They can know love and I would suggest that you see the same thing in this case she's digging up an argument had been waging for 700 years.

That was a discipline Samaritan people worshiped in Mount kerosene and the Jewish people worshiped in Jerusalem and so she knew she was gone for pretty hot argument and I remember and have shared it before but I want to encourage you guys. You know there was a time I started witnessing to a God he was right on the verge and then we also start talk about prophecy. A few minutes later he walked off older man standing there said you know you had him right at the edge of saying a prayer and you lost it because you want to win the argument, I learned something that day was a painful lesson but I learned to notice.

She tries this pickup. This religious argument to smokescreen or sin. Aren't you glad none of us ever do anything like that. A manner only know we do that we do that all the time we would much rather talk about these weird deep things in then what were dealing with in our life, even as pastor. You know I enjoy some of the deep theological author pink sovereignty of God and all these other two, but you know what I'm still working on that love thy neighbor thing.

It's the simple things that we need to pick up and remember, and she will select listen to. Do not let your religious arguments keep you from dealing with your sin, you know, one way that we run from our sin discussed things are slow but by finding something wrong in the church. Somehow we think magically that just takes away all our problems like you not. I used to go to church but found that there were there were hypocrites in their what did you expect me. Did you really think you were going to go into a building where everybody was perfect emasculation beginning a build like that, they certainly wouldn't have let me in this morning if that's what was going on here we come up with these religious excuses's because we don't want to do with her scent and when were discussing with other people. They want to mention these things to but don't be.

Don't be persuaded, don't be distracted and realize something guys. You know what I must be honest, it's scary for me when I come face-to-face with a holy God with my imperfections and it's meant to because in that moment of fear.

I realize I need a Messiah I need a Savior and understand when you're talking to someone about the Lord is going to be us every moment in that conversation for them as well as they realize that God is holy God is righteous and they're not. Verse 21 Jesus said to her woman.

Believe me the hours coming when you will neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

Worship the father you worship what you do not know. We know what we worship for salvation is of the Jews. Now again this woman wants to start a religious argument. Jesus just cannot. Do you think Jesus could have blown her away with his scriptural knowledge, all you batch did he know because we need to learn a lesson from we need to see that and he says salvation is of the Jews all, why would he say such a thing. It's the truth. You see, sometimes we forget and and certainly in my ringing in religious environments. They failed to mention some of these things.

I was probably in my 20s before I realized that I was at the Jews killed Jesus. The Jews killed Jesus.

It was late in life.

I realize Wayman Jesus was a Jew. I mean, that may sound funny to you, they are you may be going yeah was this was a Jewish Messiah from the Jewish homeland with Jewish disciples fulfilling the prophecies of the Jewish Hebrew Scriptures. Salvation is of the Jews praise God inner you can read Paul's writings and Romans were grafted in, but we also should not boast against the branches that were pruned. We should pray we should pray for Israel. We support missionary organizations. There, but did not understand the Jewish roots of Christianity is to walk in ignorance.

You really need to discover what the Hebrew Scripture say what the Old Testament says somehow hurts him. Christians arrogantly say we don't need the Old Testament. Why do we carried around in our books that and why does that passage say all Scripture is given then say the New Testament skip this is all Scripture is given the benefit us to help us to mature up in the body of Christ. Now do let me go ahead and and mentioned am I saying that we are to embrace Jewish people are we to pray for Jewish people, you betcha Jewish people saved if they reject Messiah no they are not. They need Jesus. Just like everyone else, but a lot of damages been done by Protestants and by Christians in the name of Jesus to these people.

Verse 23 says, but the hour is coming and now is when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the father is seeking such to worship him. What an awesome concept. Jesus is he saying you know what were going to do away with this whole Jerusalem thing. So this Jerusalem. There is something to be a nonissue. But what the Lord is looking for is for people to worship him in spirit and in truth. Now, I believe firmly were supposed to come together as an assembly fellowship with one another in Hebrews chapter 10 verse 25 tells, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching. So inner stay in fellowship. This doesn't mean that you worship outside of the body of believers that you're committed to think you're supposed to be committed to a body of believers joined the easiest things that you can do to give you strength in your spiritual life worship in spirit and in truth, realize, worship doesn't require music and require music.

I got a good friend Richie for Ray. He's in the rock 'n' roll Hall of Fame Hall of Fame luncheon and details as it's a beautiful story. Years ago he was at a pastors conference and sit in there and pastor Chuck Smith, Chapel Costa Mesa looked at him and said, Richie, would you lead us and if you saw and and Richie looked around. He said pastor Chuck I don't I don't have a guitar with me and pastor Chuck this, looked at it and leaned his head back and started singing so we don't need music to worship music is helpful to worship.

If you don't have worship CDs you need to get some and Plam in your house claim in your car because they can help you to refocus and worship the Lord. Look at this father is seeking such to worship friend you know for sure that your sins have been forgiven. You can know right now only Jenna short, simple prayer simply telling God you're sorry and asking him to help you to live for him.

Please pray this prayer with me out loud right now. Dear Jesus, I believe you died for me that I could be forgiven and I believe you were raised from the dead that I can have a new life not done wrong things I have sent and I'm sorry.

Please forgive me of all those things. Please give me the power to live for you. All of my days in Jesus name, amen it friend of you prayed that prayer according to the Bible you've been forgiven you've been born again. Jesus said he would not turn anybody away who comes to him and he came for those people who knew they needed forgiveness. Those who were sick, not the righteous to congratulations bring you just made the greatest decision that you will ever make. God bless you, if you pray that prayer with David for the first time we'd love to hear from you.

You can visit cross the bridge.com to receive our first steps package with helpful resources to help you begin your walk with Christ. Or you can write to cross the bridge at PO Box 12, 515 Winston-Salem, NC 27117 and share how God is working in your life will DA before we go.

What are some ways that we can bless our listeners each day. You can wake up with encouragement from Pastor David to the word of God with his email devotional life lessons to consider a daily reading plan and a thought to meditate on throughout your day. From the heart of David McGee.

That sounds good pastor day and again. It's been great to have you with us on the program today but tell us what else can a listers find on cross the bridge.com. If you're not able to make it to your home church this Sunday.

Why not join us for our lifestream at 10 AM Eastern time or on Thursday night at 7 PM Eastern time. This visit, cross the bridge.com and click on our lifestream link. There you will experience a live service from David's home church. The bridge in North Carolina again.

That website is cross the bridge.com. Thanks again for listening and join us next time. As David McGee continues teaching verse by verse in the gospel of God