FRANgelism (Part 5 of 5)

In a day when were alert to issues of political correctness.

It's interesting to see how Jesus was willing to cross a cultural boundary and speak to a Samaritan woman in public today on Truth for Life. Alistair Begg concludes his five day study in John chapter 4 will discover how this unconventional encounter provides a model for our day. Alister is titled the series friend journalism we resume our studies here in this fourth chapter in the 27th R's, 26, 27th, where it is recorded for is that the declaration of the Messiah ship of Jesus has just been made very, very clear to this individual nameless lady in many ways from a human perspective, a strange individual to be on the receiving end of such a bold and point-blank declaration something that has not occurred very often to this point in the gospel record. But Jesus has declared to her that while she had an expectation of the Messiah coming and explaining things he said I speak to you in the very one you anticipate now the disciples had gone into the town. You will recall from the opening verses of the chapter to buy some food.

It was around lunchtime when they had left Jesus and now they return they arrived back in verse 27 not too soon to interrupt what's going on north too late to miss what is actually happened. We were told by John that they were surprised at finding Jesus talking with this woman that may even be a surprise to wise. Why would he they be surprised at such an encounter. In such a conversation while the culture of the day was a very different indeed there was a rabbinical rule to the effect and I quote, let no one talk with a woman in the street.

No not with his own wife biked in the context was such that the disciples knowing Jesus to be a rabbi and teacher were intrigued and perhaps more than a little confused that Jesus would be addressing the lady in this way. However, their reverence for the master superseded their surprise and John tells us that none of them were bold enough to ask the question what did you want to know what you want of the lady had they done so, Jesus would have said, I just wanted a drink of water, nor did anyone ask why are you talking with her, for if they had asked the question, Jesus would straightforwardly have let them know the reason. He spoke with her was in order that he might offer to her living water and in passing. We have a wonderful example of the true emancipation of women in the fact that Jesus speaks to this lady concerning her soul a matter of far greater import than the cultural configurations that apparently made it impossible for such a conversation to take place. Now it is with this concluding section up in Taveras, 42, that we will spend the remainder of our time first then we consider the woman's invitation in verse 28, leaving her water jar.

The woman went back to the town and said to the people I want you to come and see a man who told me everything I ever did. Do you think that this might be the Christ, our invitation to them. We may spend just a moment thinking about this water jar. It is interesting that all this time. If you if you have any first about your tall in reading this record your intrigued to find out if Jesus ever get a drink of water because of me going on a long time since he asked.

I did and I got a drink of water were not well into the thing and apparently there's no drink of water in the matter of what was going on here with the water is not insignificant.

Nor is the question why did the lady leave her jar was. It has some of suggested that when she arrived at the well before she had occasion to draw any water.

She was interrupted by the question from Christ.

The conversation then followed, as it is recorded for us. There was no water drawing and there was no water drinking and widely she finally hearing the news concerning the nature of her condition and the need for her response. She suddenly and all of her excitement went away into the time leaving the water part empty. Behind her is one possible explanation. Another possible explanation, which I tend to favor although will have to wait until heaven to find out what the true answer is something of conjecture.

In any case, is this the lady came to draw water.

She drew the water filled it up to the brim set it down and just as she said it down. Jesus looked across at it and said to the lady to think I could have a drink of that water.

She looking back and realize that he had nothing to draw water weapon so if he was going to have a drink of water. She would have to be the writer in this instance. But instead of responding to his request. She follows it up with a series of questions which begins the conversation, and as the conversation proceed. She hears the message of her true condition. She is convinced of the nature of person they presence of the Messiah and as a result of that, she leaves the water part behind. She proceeds to go to the town because she has more significant business now to care for than that of simply returning with the water. Furthermore, since Jesus had made it clear to her that this discrepancy between Jew and Samaritan. This racial overtone. If you like was completely obliterated when men and women understood what it means to worship in spirit and in truth it may well be that the lady left the jar knowing she was returning for it, and recognizing that Jesus could drink from it in her absence because he was the one who had declared that this divergence between them racially was irrelevant in light of the message that he bring. We can be certain as to the nature of her motives.

One day will get the chance to ask her and find out, but it seems at least possible now. What was this invitation that she offered to the townspeople when she saw the you'll find it in verse 29 common CMN I just stop there for a moment let's know where she stops, but imagine that you are in the town prosecutor trades person. It's not a particularly large community. Everybody knows everybody else and it would be unlikely that this lady would have been able to move about on a daily basis without actually being identifiable because after all, as we said, she was probably a social outcast. She was probably in the well at this time of day because of her checkered history and indeed when the people began to hear her walking back into the community is presumably she did. I can imagine that she went from person to person.

She maybe did a combination of both, but the chances are that she began to walk in amongst the crowd and she began to see come see a man you can imagine the response of some of the cynics in the group. After all, this lady had been seeing a lot of men and the people probably say to one another. Goodness gracious. I can't believe she blown the next one out.

She's on number seven. What is she talking about today and then he began to listen a little carefully know she's not seeing just come see a man. This man is a different man she saying come on and see a man who told me everything I ever did as a pardonable kind of exaggeration here on the part of the woman because the profound impact of Jesus insight into our life whereby he is aware peeled back the layers of an existence and show to her that he knew what insight made her feel as though this man had just actually laid whole existence.

Bear and he had told her everything about herself.

You notice the way in which he gives this invitation. She doesn't see each of the people I have met the Christ, and I want you to meet him, although she might surely have said so because that is clearly the conviction of her heart, but she puts it in a negative way. Hoping for a positive response. She says to them, do you think that maybe this is the Messiah. Interesting that she would approach it in that way, when you say after all, is not just what Jesus had done some moments before he intrigued to remember that point you think this late lady was a smart lady.

I think she was she not only got a hold of the message. I think she got a hold of his methodology. I think she understood his approach instantaneously. Sheila she realized he drew me in Jan me he me. Some of us are experts jamming big wheelbarrow full of biblical information dropped on the poor souls we go to visit somebody in the hospital. Now the lying on their backs will will give them everything here, try this and this and this for the last of press the button for the emergency nurse groaning under the weight of all this literature she's as you think this might be the Messiah. It was enough to entreat him enough for them to say what happened to this lady was something that we better go and find out what is going to speak to people about Jesus. Salt makes people see and when were salty people get thirsty when were so hopeless. People get sick or just a nuisance but so creates a thirst tying about misleading or to have a time about our life's time, which comes from the Masters touch. Now what invitation was no great shakes in many ways, it was clear it was concise. It was convincing and as a result of that verse 13 says that they came out of the town and they made their way towards him as that happened.

I sat some are another spirit of God, accompanied the spirit of God proceeded the spirit of God and live in her life and spoke through her words in such a way that I normally woman with all ugly words was extraordinarily I love this.

You see, I love this about Jesus all the Pharisees are expecting that they're going to his house for dinner some little scars one gets to bring him home. He's been cheating forever. Jesus is coming through Samaria. The people presumably thinking I think shows up. We can probably have them over to our home in the lady that comes into the town to tell him that they should come and meet Jesus is a lady with a checkered past, will give is the idea that God is on the side of the religious establishment spend all our energy trying to establish religion in the continental United States places full of religion, it's absent of Jesus. I will can we learn from this we can learn. I think from the ladies unashamed enthusiasm. Presumably that was it.

There is no record of Jesus sending her she just went there was no time for her to go through a course on the foundations of the faith. No time for her to be trained in discipleship no opportunity for her to be schooled in personal evangelism.

She just went and she said I met a man I think you had a meeting her approach was straightforward, straightforward, I will need a common see this. That's what our task is not. I want you to come and encounter religion. Certainly not. I want you to come and experience spirituality were allowed to speak about. I suspect you're about a ghost or about Phoebe but we going to speak about an historical Christ. This is the message of Christianity were not up there on the stage with the multiple religions of the world offering our wares. We have a simple mandate. We need unashamed enthusiasm and we need a straightforward approach, come on. I like you to meet this man was a song years ago in the coffee bar scene in England. The groups used to sing it. I have met the master warn you, and meeting to was based right out of John four that's enough on that. Let's go to Jesus explanation.

Meanwhile, his disciples urged him, Rabbi, something that we don't know whether they were motivated, we must assume they were motivated by a desire for his well-being but they may also be motivated by the fact that they just walk her dusty little feet down the road and back up and brought the stuff and how they did appears that he didn't even want the stuff he went to get an essay, I need that stuff I knew it all away down. Therefore, the deal was you stay here you get a drinking arrest we go down there we have the stuff we bring about some woman's ear. She takes off. Now you leave on the phone you thing the disciples ever spoke like that. That's because you seem to many of these pictures of Jesus hanging in shrines you want in a glass barking outgoing in a glass box no time know how he was an ordinary man extraordinarily in June. He was 100% man and 100% God and they did speak to him like that is why Jesus turned on one this is Peter behind me Satan. Rabbi sandwiches, Jesus says now I'm good for doing that you don't know about.

Now we all think because we read the whole story that we would have immediately said all yes spiritual for Jesus is real thing were really bright. As we read the end of the story buys be honest you go away expressly to get food.

You come back. He says he doesn't want the food because he's a fun doing that. We don't know about when you say putting in the foot did the woman given food did one of those vans you know that the workmanlike stuff from today and then come back to presume we had those things. A couple of camels and we don't diet Pepsi hanging on the site. I mean, what once again with this wonderful wonderful dog Sunday and irony that pervades the whole of John's Gospel, Jesus brings about water.

The lady misses the point. Jesus speaks about the people miss the point, says Jesus. Let me tell you my foot is to do the will of him who sent me, and to finish his work and in that statement, he declares his mission, his devotion and his ultimate satisfaction what your mission why we Jesus is my mission is really clear. I can tell you it in a phrase it's to do the will of him who sent me is to finish his work.

That's why by the time you get to John 17 Jesus says father I have given you the glory that was due your name and I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do and he was looking forward into the very face of the cross from the cross, he would cry out in one word completed finished catalyst obedience to the father's will was for Jesus's major concern. And so in his explanation he provides us with a lesson and priorities and he also provides us with a lesson in Christian service. This little piece here about the harvest is quite wonderful. And if you were brought up in farming communities will know that in the realm of nature.

It is possible that somebody may reap where another has shown is actually quite likely that I may so whenever we I may so and as a result of illness or as a result of death. I never, never be around to reap the harvest and so I so do all the hard work and I'm never there to reap but says Jesus, here's the wonderful thing when we deal in the spiritual realm. It is the usual pattern that one reaps where another has shown today in all of our life's.

We are reaping the benefits of those who have labored in the past, and indeed, one of the great challenges for us at a time like this is that we realize that God may have chosen to make this period of time, a punitive sewing rather than a period of reaping and I do see is one of the great dangers of buying into the numbers game, and even jelly go Christianity, believing that success will always be quantified by the numbers involved.

What were saying that is that we must always always be adding and reaping when a quantified history reveals that there are significant periods in time what it's all about sewing and here's a thought is focused as we are on the now it may be the generations that are presently in the nursery who will be those who reap the benefits of the work of these days, the implications are clear. The reapers need to remain humble and the sores should not be discouraged. Some others are suffering from what I call the sore syndrome. Woe is me. I don't see anything happening I just go out there and I so when I so it's kind of discouraging me tell you this, keep sewing, keep sewing because when the harvest is gone it will be the source, who did the hard work who will lead the procession.

Those who are apparently first will be last, and those who had apparently lacks will be forced to leave Jesus. I don't one point life that only time to mention the people's affirmation. Verse 42 in response to the woman he said, listen, we no longer believe just because of what you said you start our hearts we came out to see but not with her first 40,000 that he actually earned Jesus to stay with them for two days and as a result of the two days of hearing his word. That's interesting because of his words because of his miracles. It was because of his awards and it is because of his words that people believe is why we preach why we teach is why we set forward the Scriptures so these people's lives were changed. He broke the chains that bound them to their past.

Give them power to live in the present and joy to face the future and why was there this great affirmation from the townspeople because of the impact of one like this one life, one of the great lies of the devil you see is to say to us you know what you really can't do much and fight what you do is so insignificant you are to just start doing it altogether. You feel like that the Anglican Bishop put it in this way, I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything that I can do something.

What I can do. I ought to do and what I ought to do with God's help, I will you prepare this morning to go out and say to people, CM father, we thank you for the way you worked in that lady's life and changed all of her distractions to a whole new focus and gave her an undivided heart. Will you give us 12 for your namesake.

Amen.

This is Truth for Life over the past five days we been listing to a brief series from Alistair Begg called French realism. Today's message is the final one in that's out if you missed any of the previous programs or if you'd like to share a particular study with a friend. You can access all of Alister's teaching for free online@truthforlife.org and then as God has used the French realism series to stir in you a new willingness to start conversations with friends about Jesus, we want to recommend that you request two books we've packaged together for you. The first is a book called have no fear. It's designed to help you get past whatever barriers make you reluctant to share the gospel.

The second is a book called the word 1 to 1 and were sending two copies of the second book one for you and one to share this book is presented in a way that allows you to take a friend to John chapter 1 it has questions that are great discussion starters even provides answers to eliminate the threat of any embarrassment you can take a look at the format of this book on our website at Truth for Life.request the three book bundle when you give today@truthfor.org/donate or you can request by calling 888-588-7884 again. The set includes have no fear, and two copies of the second book, the word 1 to 1. Now with the weekend coming up. I want to remind you, you're invited to watch Alister as he teaches log from the pulpit of Parkside church on Sundays when the service is being streamed live to see if Alister is teaching this weekend. You can check the schedule@truthforlife.org/live on Bob Lapine for Alistair Begg and all of us at Truth for Life. Hope your weekend is relaxing and refreshing and then hope you can join us Monday as we begin a series rooted in the book of Hebrews titled fix our eyes on Jesus, today's program was furnished by Truth for Life for the learning is prolific