“Come See a Man” (Part 2 of 4)

Very ordinary day became ordinary encounter for an outcast woman who was drawing water from a well, I was at the Jesus physical thirst because this woman's spiritual birth to eventually be quenched today on the life Alister Meg explains how one woman's face-to-face meeting with Jesus satisfied her deepest knee continue in the Gospel of John chapter.

Chapter 3 if you like in the story of the religious man makes clear that no one can ever be so good that they do not require a Savior. Chapter 4 conversely makes clear that you can never be so bad as to be beyond the saving bounds of Jesus, which is really terrific. Good news is that our son mechanisms for change in your life that demand a certain standard of certain intellect, certain capacity and if you fit that framework, then the possibility of assigning up and going on is there.

However, if you don't meet those standards, then it's just nowhere for you it's all whereas the comprehensive story of the gospel.

Verse 50 and again of chapter 3 is that everyone who believes will have eternal life. Whether you are a religious person unorthodox and devote or whether you are an irreligious person having made a hash of things I beginning to imagine that if there is salvation anywhere. It is a salvation that is presumably good for everybody else except you. And chapter 3 in chapter 4 tackle Samaritan woman meets Jewish man Jewish man says, could I please have a drink very natural beginning is wonderfully straightforward and also just an expression of Jesus need he appeals to her sympathy. He seeks a favor from her and in doing so communication is established, the striking impact of the opening statement by Jesus is made clear in verse nine the Samaritan woman again the emphasis you see Samaritan woman not just the woman Samaritan is important. The Samaritan woman said to him you're a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you asked me for a drink and then parenthetically an explanation for Jews do not associate with Samaritans by the very fact that Jesus addresses her in this way, across all those normal taboos and boundaries, and causes her to ask this question. Jesus does not answer her question. You'll notice that, but instead he supplies a second question, and in verse 10 he says essentially if you find that surprising that I would ask you for a drink of water.

Being a Jew and a man, and so on. If you find that surprising, then, wait to you consider this thought that he says if you knew the gift of God and who it is that asked you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water. Humidity raises the conversation to a different level.

She assumes herself to be in the position of providing what he needs.

She's about to discover that she is actually the one in need of what the stranger is able to provide sheathing she's in the position to provide what Jesus needs only to discover that she is actually the one who needs what Jesus provides everything when you come to an event like this that you might be doing what Jesus needs that he sort of need you to come here. He needs to know that he's liked needs to know there are few people left in Cleveland that actually care about God or care about the Bible or care about Jesus and that's sufficient motivation for you to come you perhaps all the passion he said what a shame the people treated Jesus like that. I don't want to treat Jesus like that. I'm going to be nice to him if he has got any events that are going on, I'll go to help them and then you come here and you discover that what you thought you came to provide for him is nothing really to do with the subject at all. It's all about what he has come to provide for you know your reaction may be very similar to the reaction of the lady he says if you'd asked me if you'd asked this individual. He would have given you living water and she said verse 11, you got nothing to draw with in the well is deep. Where do you get the living water.

You greater than our father Jacob. He gave us the well he drank from it and once again Jesus sidesteps requested he doesn't answer the question again, why is this not the issue is a red herring amine is not irrelevant. The questions are said RRR of interest but he doesn't get into the Jewish Samaritan debate, nor does he get into the question of the historicity of Jacob and whether he is a greater person than Jacob. There will be time for that kind of conversation. But for now he wants to address the issue. When I go to discuss with which well is the best well whether Jacob's well has living want to rent the house. Jesus answers verse 13 probably pointing to the well everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst for just a moment the woman's whole focus to this point is about water.

The reason she's at the well is because the well has water the reason she has a part is because you going to fill the part of the job with water as you going to get back to use the water. She understands this and Jesus as everybody who drinks this water will thirst again but the anyone who drinks the water that I give will never thirst.

Indeed, the water I give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

What Jesus is doing here is simply applying the Bible because the Old Testament uses this metaphor frequently. We need go back through it. You can take my word for it in check. Later, the psalmist often talks about thirsting for God and the prophet Isaiah speaks about the day that will dawn, when with joy. Men and women will draw water from the wells of salvation. One of the loveliest invitations that God issues is in Isaiah 55 come you are thirsty and come to the waters and in Jeremiah chapter 2 God speaks to the people through his prophet and he says I have two things against you, number one, you've turned away from me, and number two you have sought to dig wells of your own making turned your back on the living God and sought to go about business on your own which is exactly the description of the human predicament was not Pascal who said that there is within each of us a God shaped void trying to give expression to the notion of that's search for satisfaction which is true for every person in humanity and in the same way that the people in Jeremiah's day could be seen as aware, metaphorically digging out cisterns in the hope of finding satisfaction in the wells that they were digging so a congregation like this has been marked by this throughout the week that is passed if were honest, some of us have lived this all week aware of the fact that our lives are marked by unsatisfied longings, unsatisfied longings, longings which we thought when we were younger would be assuaged as a result of our success but our success is not address the long or that marriage in their spouse we would find the answer and it hasn't been the answer or in the acquisition of possessions or in the experience of what ever gives us a high and Jesus is aware points to it all and he says everybody tries this stuff will be thirsty all over again.

But anyone who drinks the water that I give will never thirst again.

Of course the lady doesn't get said that she all she says. I'd like for some of that water so I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.

This is a pattern now in John in chapter 2, John had John records how Jesus had said destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it again and the Jews replied, it is taken 46 years to build this temple and you're going to raise it in three days. Jesus is speaking about his body. He speaking in spiritual terms.

They they understand it in physical terms you going to chapter 3 Jesus says to Nicodemus, you must be born again. Nicodemus says born again. How can somebody be born again. Can you when you're all enter a second time into your mother's womb, Jesus says no I'm not talking about physical birth. I'm sorry about spiritual birth you come to John chapter 4. He says whoever drinks the water that I give him will never thirst against his or give me some of that water because I'm sick of coming out here in the middle of the day to go to the well. He taps into her search for satisfaction.

Did any of you see the biographies this week on Jessica Lange. As I watched her and listen to the story of her life. I remember that in my little book. I had a quote from her and I went and found it in this weather quotes that I wasn't surprised to find this court again after I listened to the biographical piece. The main thing that I remember from my childhood was this inescapable year earning that I could never satisfy this inescapable year earning that I could never satisfy. Even now she says at times I experience on inescapable loneliness and isolation but and with this, we will move towards her clothes. Jesus is not content simply to tap into her awareness of her need for satisfaction. Jesus is now about to address himself to her conscience to her conscience and he does that by issuing an invitation to her to go and call her husband, and come back. Verse 16 go, call your husband and come back really asked her to do what she couldn't do see if there's going to be a transformation in this lady's life. It's not enough that she has a sense of wanting satisfaction. She needs to be brought face-to-face with her own sin and genuine Christian experience always and everywhere demands this is he is not very difficult to get people to agree that they would like something to fill their lives. I mean, do you have anything can help me. I've tried blues. I tried wine women in song I've tried*five trite houses. I've tried vacations to have an American fill this emptiness.

That's why Pascal statement is helpful, but only up to a point because you can get people to sign up for something to fill the gap in their life, but without ever seeing them confronted by the real need in their life which is not for a whole to be filled but it is for sin to be cleansed and to be forgiven and Jesus in a masterful and in a kind and in a lovely way puts his finger on the area of this lady's life. She must be made to confront her need and how carefully he shows her her desperate need for personal forgiveness and for salvation. How does this come across I. I have no husband. She replied and then listen Jesus at your you're right when you say you have no husband.

The fact is you have had five husbands and the man you now have is not your husband what you have just said is quite true. While while we met a lot of people on the bus on the train on the plane and the station in the Starbucks early out. We find all kinds of conversations but we've never we've never had somebody do this to his every we've never had somebody sit and look at us and say yes I know everything about you because there is no other human being that knows everything about us and that's the significance you see on the statement that the lady made when she went into the town. She went into the town instead common see a man who told me everything I ever did seem a little thin at first does not mean we might want those of us who've been Christians for a while. We might want to going to the town is a common see Jesus the incarnate son of God, the Savior of the world, the one who is the fulfiller of the promises of the Old Testament, Jesus Christ, prophet, priest and king. On their way go. That's the kind of thing we like that sort of clarity, but she does entities is common. See somebody who told me everything I ever did, but it isn't thin is fantastic.

What is she saying who can tell you everything you ever did. Who knows everything you ever did. Only God, she realizes that when she clasps eyes with this man who asked her for a drink of water in the unfolding dialogue she has met the living God.

Some hundred and 39 all Lord you search me and you know me you know when I sit down when I stand up. You know the words of my mouth before I even speak.

Come see a man who told me everything I ever did is fantastic to that Jesus does not dismantle her.

He doesn't destroy her even despise her in any shape or fashion at all while you get your husband I have I have no then he doesn't say: let's just talk about why it is that you don't have much to start from the beginning. I let's get it out.

Let's go begin noise very graciously fills in the blanks for them because this woman everything to say I have no husband. I don't think for a moment she said I have no husband if she got it out of she said I have no and graciously Jesus says that's right, honey, you don't have a husband you've had five and you've got one just know these know you that's why I'm telling you about my living. What see her sense of inadequate satisfaction speaks to her real need. I would be at all surprised if we admit that lady on that day. Not that day couple of days before same well and we had a conversation with her and said how you doing I don't know I'm not doing so good. My relationships are a mess and so on. And is it what what what you think your problem is what you know I think I think that I didn't have a very good background and you know I didn't make good choices and the first one was a real jerk. The first husband was a complete full and he he annoyed me and messed me up. The second one while you want to talk and so long as we listen to her talk. She just describes how all the problems are all outside of her. All of these things that happen to her. All of the things that she is no control of that of messed up her life from the outside in. Alexander, how are you planning on fixing this as well. I'm going to look within myself and I think somewhere inside you know I can. I'll be able to fix this all sorted out. I read a great book the other day that told me, you know, if you look within to your power source and you plug into the real you saw as a contemporary ring two exits on every afternoon on the TV. The same stuff here.

We are willing to talk to Mrs. so-and-so today what your problem my husband and my uncle and my grandmother and my job circumstances my DNA in my everything.

Well don't you worry honey because you just use look within yourself. I want you to know that you have it all within you just you just plug in finder source and we will be on our way and then cue the applause and the music and chatted off to a commercial break and then back and will talk to Mrs. X again.

What the lady discovered was that the absolute reverse was true right which is what you and I need to discover that the problem is actually all within me and the answer is all outside me. It is not the things that go into amended to file a man Jesus, that is, the things that come out of them. The problem is within, and the answer is without so she brings her empty life to the wonderful supply of living water. She brings her sinful past to the cleansing supply that Jesus provides. She brings our hopes and possibilities for the future and later from messed up pass to the one who knows everything about and who loves her just to say enough to spend this time talking at the well so that she might never ever thirst again overthrew the let me finish. In this way, if you read John's Gospel and if you haven't read the Bible. John would be a wonderful place to start if you read John's gospel. You would be struck almost immediately by the very clear lines of demarcation that John describes for us. He describes how Jesus is the light and he has come into the darkness but the darkness is not understood it. He describes Jesus as being the life and that life is the light of men. But men and women are spiritually dead, and he describes on the one hand, the rejection of Jesus on the other hand, the receiving of Jesus to as many as received him, then he gave the power to become the sons of in other words, John's Gospel as good as any other gospel makes it very clear that each of Isaac needs to come to know Jesus in a personal saving way and until we do, we are under God's wrath and judgment. It is very solemn. This God has every legitimate right to a poor sin. That's what makes so amazing his grace whereby given the extent of his wrath. He would provide such a salvation and his son so that religious Orthodox leaders in the community might come to trust in Jesus and so unschooled and despised Samaritan women may come to about the very same place wonderful reminder of God's amazing grace listing to Truth for Life Alastair back with a message called come see a man Alastair will close with prayer in just a minute, so please keep listening as Alastair mentioned, the Bible makes it clear that each one of us is in need of a Savior. That's why teaching God's word is at the heart of all we do here Truth for Life. Our mission is clear. We teach the Bible with clarity and relevance so that all who listen will understand exactly what the Scripture says and what it means.

That way unbelievers can hear the truth of God's word and come to saving faith in Jesus Christ. We been learning about Jesus encounter with those who were lost in a series called a light in the darkness and the salvation. Jesus offers does bring dramatic change. Yet when it comes to sharing the good news with others. Often we are hesitant we want to speak up we know we should we just don't know where to start were intimidated. If you find that description fits you. You want to request a book or recommending today is titled facing a task unfinished. Most books on the topic of evangelism are more in the how to category this is a book that's different that we chose this book at the start of a new year because it's a year-long devotional that helps you look to God and helps you to share the gospel with more confidence facing the task unfinished will guide you through 52 brief weekly devotions. Each one draws from Scripture and him lyrics and includes space for you to journal your own personal prayers. Roger Carswell is the author of this book. He has a passion for telling others about Jesus. He also recognizes that many of us struggle to find the courage to initiate a conversation about our faith. He has carefully assembled these weekly devotions so we can pray and ask God for help request your copy of facing the task unfinished when you give today by tapping the image in the mobile app or by visiting our website Truth for Life.org/donate or you can call 888-588-7884. Now with the weekend here. I want to remind you, you're invited to watch Alastair teach from Parkside church. Whenever the services being streamed live to find out if Alastair is teaching this weekend. You can check the schedule go to Truth for Life.org/live that hears Alastair to close with prayer God our father, thank you for this wonderful description of your son Jesus and the way in which he deals with individuals that there's no experience of our lives that we can go through that is unknown to him that he does know the worst about us and yet he lives with an everlasting life will make me understand.

Help me to take it in what it meant for the holy one to bear away my sin and may the grace of the Lord Jesus and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit impressed upon and remain with each one who believes now and forever more about Lapine having restful, refreshing, relaxing weekend.

Hope you can join us Monday. Alastair continues his message come see a man Bible teaching of Alastair beg is furnished by truth for lying where the Learning is for Living