Sermon Central
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If Any Man Thirst
Contributed by Mike Schmelzer on Aug 31, 2014 (message contributor)
Summary: Jesus satisfies the spiritual longing in the heart of individuals like nothing in this world is able to do, and he longs to be able to do just that!
John 4:5-14 KJV Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. 8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
Introduction
Anyone who has children will probably relate to this story.
A small boy is sent to bed by his father. Five minutes later....
"Da-ad...."
"What?"
"I’m thirsty. Can you bring me a drink of water?"
"No. You had your chance. Lights out."
Five minutes later: "Da-aaaad....."
"WHAT?"
"I’m THIRSTY. Can I have a drink of water??"
"I told you NO!" If you ask again, I’ll have to spank you!!"
Five minutes later......"Daaaa-aaaad....."
"WHAT!"
"When you come in to spank me, can you bring a drink of water?"
Jesus was helping the woman at the well realize that there was a deeper thirst that she was missing.
There are two kinds of thirst
• Flesh
• Spirit
No matter how much you attempt to satisfy the thirst of your flesh, your spirit will never be satisfied without being filled with the Holy Spirit.
• We long to feel loved:
o But no matter how many relationships we have with people we still feel a need for a deeper love relationship.
Parents, kids, spouse, friends
• We long to have purpose:
o We try to determine what we REALLY enjoy doing and then pick a career to match it.
College, career, wealth
o But no matter how successful we become, we still feel that we are not fulfilling our purpose.
• People thirst for true joy:
o They take vacations
o Get involved in sports and every activity they can find
o Yet there remains this longing inside
Most people are in a desperate search to satisfy the thirst of the spirit.
• They drink up what everyone around them calls love
• They pursue what their neighbors call happiness
• They read magazines and books to help them improve their quality of life
• They try to find meaning and significance as defined by…
o Dr. Phil
o Oprah
o YouTube
o Myspace
o Facebook
The result is often an even greater thirst that seems to never be satisfied.
It’s like being stuck on a raft in the middle of the ocean. Water is all around you. The sun is beating on your head and you are dying of thirst, so you do the natural thing and drink some of the endless supply of water that’s all around you. Unfortunately, it’s salt water, and the more you drink the thirstier you get.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that there’s no benefit trying to improve
• Your life
• Your marriage
• Or your career
But doing all of those things cannot satisfy the thirst of the spirit.
You can do all of those things and yet, something is missing!
Jesus explained to the woman at the well how to REALLY get your thirst quenched.
The woman at the well was looking for something…
• The religion of her father, mother and all those before her left her looking for more
• What she had been taught was not entirely wrong. However, the focus of her religious beliefs were incorrect.
John 4:19-20 KJV The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
