The Gospel of John. Loving the Unlovable ~ Part 1 John 4:1-30, 39-42

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1 The Gospel of John Loving the Unlovable ~ Part 1 John 4:1-30, A FTER THE PASSOVER Jesus and his people traveled north again, taking a route through Samaria since he would with equal passion speak to Samaritans as to Jews. They spent a night in Sychar, where the citizens received the entire company with gladness and hospitality and a noisy faith. They ate meat that night, unusual in the diet of common folk and itinerants because it was so expensive and people did better to shear a sheep than eat it. But the Samaritans of this place had met Jesus nearly a year ago and had placed a sacred trust in him ever since then. His returning gave them the perfect reason for a party. Moreover, there was a woman here whose affection for Jesus was so grandly dramatic that none could not laugh and dance within the sphere of her jubilation. You! she bellowed the moment she noticed him coming toward the city. It s you! she cried, and she started to run. She was a human of formidable proportion. She was a globe, an earth, a maker of her own weather. Jesus stopped, half raising his arms in helplessness. The disciples shrank backward. It looked like the convergence of worlds! The woman came layered in paints, green at the eyes, rouge on the cheeks, henna in her hair, orange henna on the palms of her hands. Yoo-hoo! Teacher! Master! She waved her great arms over her head, gathering speed. Jesus stood completely alone. His eyes grew large. His jaw sagged. Oh, Lord, it s so long since I ve seen you! Just a year ago this same woman was known as an eater of men. Every husband she had married died. Five of them. And none dared to be the sixth. Therefore, the man she lived with wouldn t marry her, and the people of Sychar wouldn t talk to her. But one day Jesus of Nazareth appeared at the city well, and in spite of everything her race, her reputation, her outrageous size and dress and behavior he talked with her as though she, too, were a daughter of the kingdom. Then she it was who trumpeted to the city the marvel of this man, she who brought believers to him by her own massive transformation and her booming green-and-red-andhenna witness: Come and see a man who told me all that I ever did! Can this be the Messiah? And so it was that the celebration had already begun, laughing and dancing and the eating of meat though Jesus said that for him the better food was ever to do the will of his Father, to accomplish his work. Sir, the woman had said at their first encounter, I perceive that you are a prophet. Then she put to him the question that most divided Jews and Samaritans: Our ancestors worshiped on Mount Gerizim. But your people say that Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship. Who had the right religion? People killed and people died because of this question. But now an itinerant teacher gave a gaudy woman its final answer: Woman, Jesus said, the hour is coming indeed, it is already here when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. God is spirit. Those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. The woman had fallen silent then. All her cosmetics became ineffectual. Honesty opened her eyes and made them beautiful: a human soul begging life. I know that Messiah is coming, she said. When he comes, he will show us all things. And Jesus, steadfastly returning her gaze, said, I who speak to you am he. 1 1 Wangerin Jr., Walter; The Book of God, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, 2010, p

2 VII The Christ Revealed to Israel Chapter 2:1-12:50 F. Christ and the Samaritans Chapter 4 1. Going to Galilee Verses Crossing a Line Verses 7-30 a. Samaria An Introduction b. A Woman s Need Verses 7-15 c. A Woman s Problem Verses d. A Woman s Response Verses A People s Response Verses Introduction: We have seen in these early areas of Jesus ministry examples of the many types of lives He would, and still is, affecting. We have seen those in the Jewish leadership threatened by Him. But at the same time, with Nicodemus, there were those in positions of authority who were open to God showing them something promised of old that was new. We have seen the beginning of this transitionary period, moving from God s way of dealing with Israel in the Old Testament, specifically represented by John the Immerser, the last of the OT prophets. We ve even read John s record of John the Immerser s own statement of this transition. Now a discussion arose between some of John s disciples and a Jew over purification. And they came to John and said to him, Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him. John answered, A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him. The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. He must increase, but I must decrease. (John 3:25 30 ESV). And, though Jesus came to the Jew, even here God presents a truth found through out the Old Testament, that His gift of salvation was to all, the downtrodden, the rejected, even the Gentile. And with the Samaritan woman we see all three, a woman, a Samaritan, and even worse than a Gentile, a mixed breed, of course to some extent this was from the Pharisaical point of view. But first 1. Going to Galilee: One again we see a natural flow and transition of events, here at the end of Chapter 3 and the beginning of 4. In fact, as previously seen, an unnatural break in that we see the flipside of the events portrayed at the end of 3. There we saw John s disciples who appeared to be jealous regarding Jesus increasing successes and John s declining recognition. Well apparently the Pharisees had picked up on the same truth. And for whatever reason, Jesus wasn t happy about their attention. This may have been due to the desire to avoid conflict with them this early on in His ministry And/or Jesus may have wanted to prevent any negativity between His and John s ministries. After all, they were both carrying out God s call and it appeared as if it was getting messy. ) 96 (

3 Finally, there may be another factor involved with Jesus leaving the area. This move most likely would have been shortly after the events recorded in Chapter 3. About this time John would have been taken into custody. Jesus had His own calling. Consequently, it would have been inconsistent with that purpose to have been caught up in the events surrounding John s imprisonment and death. Therefore He needed to leave. As with most of us, the underlying causes of our actions can be complicated. Whatever the case, Jesus picked up and along with the disciples left the area to return to Galilee. So Jesus and the disciples backed up to head back to Galilee. There were two ways to go from Judea to Galilee. The long way and the short way. Observant Jews would go one and everybody else would to the other. Guess which was which! Through Samaria was the most direct route from Judea to Galilee, but strict Jews, wishing to avoid defilement, bypassed Samaria by taking a longer, less direct route. This involved crossing the Jordan River and traveling across from Samaria on the eastern side of the river. 2 The trip through Samaria was three days. The other, considerably longer. But before getting into the issue of Samaria and the Samaritans, one other point needs to be made regarding this trip. And that is seen in verse 4. We are told Jesus had to pass through Samaria. This can be understood that to get to Galilee He was forced to go this way. The problem with this interpretation is, it isn t true, as we already noted. Observant Jews avoided Samaria. So how should be understand this verse? I believe the best way to understand it, is that Jesus was divinely compelled to go this way. The Father had a purpose for His entering Samaria. Actually, as I believe we ll see over the next couple of weeks, there were a few purposes to this trip, none of which related to getting to Galilee. Now going back to Jesus movements, as He and the disciples entered into Samaria, they arrived in the vicinity of a town called Sychar. And this area had significance for the Jew in that this was land given by Jacob to Joseph and therefore it was were one of Jacob s wells was located. It was deduced from Genesis 48:21-22 and Joshua 24:32 that Jacob gave his son Joseph the land at Shechem which he had bought from the sons of Hamor (Gen. 33:18-19) and which later served as Joseph s burial place (Ex. 13:19; Josh. 24:32). 3 Then Israel said to Joseph, Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers. Moreover, I have given to you rather than to your brothers one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow. (Genesis 48:21 22 ESV). As for the bones of Joseph, which the people of Israel brought up from Egypt, they buried them at Shechem, in the piece of land that Jacob bought from the sons of 2 Blum, Edwin A. and Jeremy Royal Howard, eds., HCSB Study Bible: Holman Christian Standard Bible, Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, TN, Köstenberger, Andreas J., Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, Vol. 2, John, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, 2002 ) 97 (

4 Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money. It became an inheritance of the descendants of Joseph (Joshua 24:32 ESV). And Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, on his way from Paddan-aram, and he camped before the city. And from the sons of Hamor, Shechem s father, he bought for a hundred pieces of money the piece of land on which he had pitched his tent (Genesis 33:18 19 ESV). Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here. As for the bones of Joseph, which the people of Israel brought up from Egypt, they buried them at Shechem, in the piece of land that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money. It became an inheritance of the descendants of Joseph (Exodus 13:19; Joshua 24:32 ESV). The reference to Jacob s well and the later mention of Mount Gerizim (4:20) places Jesus encounter with the Samaritan woman within the framework of holy geography, which Jesus is shown to transcend. Holy sites were and still are of great importance in Jewish and Samaritan life, as they are in all major world religions. Apparently, Jacob s well was a convenient stop for pilgrims travelling from Galilee to Jerusalem or vice versa. 4 And as Jesus arrives we see just how human He is. Having been traveling for about thee days, He is exhausted. So, He sits down, probably on the low wall surrounding the well. It is about noon, the heat of the day. He sees a woman there at the well. He opens His mouth to speak But first, I want to focus on the background to this communication. a. Samaria An Introduction: Jesus going through Samaria wouldn t have endeared Him to the powers that be. Though of course nothing would. The Jews were overtly hostile to the Samaritans. In fact it was that very hostility that cause Jesus to use a Samaritan in His account of the Good Samaritan, an oxymoron if they ever heard one. First, Jesus was going through the region of Samaria because we are told specifically that He can to a town called Sychar within the region. So we are told regarding the region that it lay, as you can see on the map between Judea and Galilee. This is why going around was a reflection of prejudice rather than necessity. Was the problem Samaritans, or rather what they represented? Here I am quoting the Archeological Study Bible. The Samaritans believed themselves to be the descendants of the northern tribes, who had been exiled in 722 B.C. by Assyria. In 2 Kings 17, however, the Samaritans are described as a mixed group, composed at least partly of pagans whom the king of As- 4 Ibid. ) 98 (

5 syria had brought into the land from other nations. In Ezra 4 the Samaritans appear as troublemakers for the Jews who were seeking to reestablish themselves and their temple in the land following their return from exile. This group did not identify itself with Samaria so much as with Mount Gerizim, near Shechem, which its members claimed was the place God had chosen for his sanctuary (see Dt 12:5, 11, 21, 26; 14:24 25; 16:6; 17:8; 18:6; 26:2). They believed that Israel had become apostate as soon as the sanctuary had been moved away from Shechem, during the time of Eli, the priest. The Samaritans rejected Jerusalem s special place in God s plans, and the ongoing tension regarding the proper place for the sanctuary of God is evident in John 4:20. Samaritans believed in the God of Israel, acknowledged Moses as his prophet and the Pentateuch as his revelation, and looked forward to the day when he would send the prophet like [Moses], as he had promised (Dt 18:18). They did not accept or acknowledge any Old Testament writings beyond the Pentateuch as canonical. 5 There is a bit of disagreement as to who these people were, thought the hostility of the Jews is obvious. Here is another quote, in this case from Easton s Bible Dictionary: SAMARITANS: the name given to the new and mixed inhabitants whom Esarhaddon (B.C. 677), the king of Assyria, brought from Babylon and other places and settled in the cities of Samaria, instead of the original inhabitants whom Sargon (B.C. 721) had removed into captivity (2 Kings 17:24; comp. Ezra 4:2, 9, 10). These strangers (comp. Luke 17:18) amalgamated with the Jews still remaining in the land, and gradually abandoned their old idolatry and adopted partly the Jewish religion. After the return from the Captivity, the Jews in Jerusalem refused to allow them to take part with them in rebuilding the temple, and hence sprang up an open enmity between them. They erected a rival temple on Mount Gerizim, which was, however, destroyed by a Jewish king (B.C. 130). They then built another at Shechem. The bitter enmity between the Jews and Samaritans continued in the time of our Lord: the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans (John 4:9; comp. Luke 9:52, 53). Our Lord was in contempt called a Samaritan (John 8:48). Many of the Samaritans early embraced the gospel (John 4:5-42; Acts 8:25; 9:31; 15:3). Of these Samaritans there still remains a small population of about one hundred and sixty, who all reside in Shechem, where they carefully observe the religious customs of their fathers. They are the smallest and oldest sect in the world. 6 There is an important cultural point that needs to be made here. As in many areas there is a danger in generalization. There is a distinction between how the Judean Jews and the Galilean Jews perceived the Samaritans. Understanding this can impact how one understands Jesus interaction. Card notes As Jesus makes his way to Galilee he must pass through Samaria. It is sometimes said that his willingness to go through the despised country of the Samaritans was a mark of Jesus compassion. While there is absolutely no question whatsoever in regard to Jesus compassion, the truth is that Galileans routinely passed through Samaria, according to Josephus. This misunderstanding is a result of superimposing Judean Judaism over Galilean Judaism. There were significant differences. Besides the fact that Judean Jews looked down on their neighbors to the north, Galilean Jews were known to consume meat and milk products at the same time, something a strictly observant Jew would never do. It seems Galileans also observed the traditions of the diaspora community as well, celebrating Passover on Thursday instead of Friday night. Olive oil from Galilee was considered unclean in Judea. In later years Galileans were not allowed to perform the public readings of Scripture in Judean synagogues. On the whole the Galileans were considered more lax in their observance. 7 Conclusion: Reality being what it is, sometimes God calls us to move for His own purposes, rather than where we want to go. When I was fairly young, I said, having visited the Sacra- 5 Archaeological Study Bible, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, Easton M.A., D.D M.G., Easton s Bible Dictionary, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN, Card, Michael, John: The Gospel of Wisdom, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 2014, p. 68. ) 99 (

6 mento area a number of times, The last place I want to live is in the valley. After all, I was a third-generation San Franciscan. But God had His own ideas of what He wanted me to do. And so here I am. Now we are told that Jesus had to go to Galilee by way of Samaria. God had specific tasks for Him to carry out. Keeping in mind that Jesus was only going to the Jews, God sent Him to quite a few Gentiles, and this is what we have to consider the Samaritans. God had His own agenda. Maybe Jesus had to go this way because it was the fastest route and while He didn t know it, He had an appointment with an official in Capernaum. For that matter,he had an appointment with a woman in Samaria. And so off He went. John also has a purpose, and that is showing that all need to be born again. Class, race, social acceptance, morality, none of this matters if one hasn t accepted God s call to salvation. It is no accident that having presented an interview with Nicodemus, he now goes on to present a contrasting one as Jesus interacts with the Samaritan woman. The Bible Knowledge Commentary makes this comparison between Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman this way. The Samaritan woman contrasts sharply with Nicodemus. He was seeking; she was indifferent. He was a respected ruler; she was an outcast. He was serious; she was flippant. He was a Jew; she was a despised Samaritan. He was (presumably) moral; she was immoral. He was orthodox; she was heterodox. He was learned in religious matters; she was ignorant. Yet in spite of all the differences between this churchman and this woman of the world, they both needed to be born again. Both had needs only Christ could meet. 8 I believe this is a vital truth for us to remember, not because when we meet the Samaritan we don t acknowledge their need for the Lord. But, truth be told, we can fall into the trap of judging from outward appearances and think that Nicodemus has a lot more to offer God than the woman does. Have you ever said, If that person would come to the Lord, I know they d have a lot to offer., as if the one would be a better Christian than the other, or as Peter put it: Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him (Acts 10:34 35 ESV). We are to minister to whomever God calls us. We are to see all as God sees them and not fall into the trap Samuel warns against. man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7 ESV). And there is a danger of falling into this same trap within the church. My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay atten- 8 Blum, Edwin A., The Bible Knowledge Commentary, John, Victor Books, Wheaton, IL, 1983 ) 100 (

7 tion to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, You sit here in a good place, while you say to the poor man, You stand over there, or, Sit down at my feet, have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called? (James 2:1 7 ESV) So let us pray that we follow Jesus example and where God sends us a Nicodemus or a Samaritan woman, we minister to both equally. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body, that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body, that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need of you, nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together (1 Corinthians 12:14 26 ESV). ) 101 (

8 The Gospel of John Loving the Unlovable ~ Part 1 John 4:1-30, VII The Christ Revealed to Israel Chapter 2:1-12:50 F. Christ and the Samaritans Chapter 4 1. Going to Galilee Verses Crossing a Line Verses 7-30 a. Samaria An Introduction b. A Woman s Need Verses 7-15 c. A Woman s Problem Verses d. A Woman s Response Verses A People s Response Verses Introduction: (John 3:25 30) 1. Going to Galilee: (Genesis 48:21 22; Joshua 24:32; Genesis 33:18 19; Exodus 13:19; Joshua 24:32) a. Samaria An Introduction:

9 Conclusion: (Acts 10:34 35; 1 Samuel 16:7; James 2:1 7; 1 Corinthians 12:14 26 Personal Application: Is there someone God has called you to that you perceive more as a Samaritan woman rather than a Nicodemus? Why? What needs to change? Prayer for the Week: Lord help me see all as Your creation, in need of Your salvation. In Jesus name, amen.