INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• We live in a time where may feel a high level of hopelessness and worthlessness.
• For some, life is not good, for some, rejection is a way of life.
• Today, we are going to look at a familiar story in the Gospel of John, the story entitled the Woman at the Well.
• Jerry and I have preached on this story in the recent past, but today as we continue with our Spring into Life series, I want to put our focus on what happened with this woman after she had her encounter with Jesus.
• This message is important both to those who feel a sense of worthlessness or hopelessness because of how life has been for them so far and to those for whom life has been good.
• We are all broken vessels, but some of us feel like we are more broken than others.
• Many folks feel like they are beyond broken, to the point that they are shattered and cannot ever be used or fixed.
• This causes one to spiral down into the throes of depression and frustration.
• From the conversation that Jesus has with the woman at the well, one could picture this woman as feeling as though life has no hope for her.
• After all, from the woman’s answer to Jesus’ request for her to get her husband, one can see that life has been hard on her and that she was morally corrupt.
• Yet, here is Jesus, talking to this woman, a woman who was a Samaritan, a person a Jew would not normally strike a conversation with.
• I mean, as we have talked about before, as a Jew, Jesus should not have even been in Samaria.
• SLIDE #2
• For those for whom life has been good, we need to know that God wants us to take the message to those who are broken vessels.
• I hope that as we examine the story that it will help us all to see that no one is so broken that God cannot fix them and use them for His glory!
• Jesus gave His time to those that society would not give the time of day too. Zaccheus, the man born blind, and today, the Samaritan woman at the well.
• So that you will have the context to where we will be in today.
• Jesus’ group was making and baptizing more disciples than John the Baptist and the Pharisee’s had taken note.
• So, Jesus and his disciples were leaving Judea to head to Galilee and Jesus took the unusual route through Samaria.
• They came to the town of Sychar near Jacob’s Well. The disciples went into town to get some food and Jesus stayed at the well and a woman of Samaria came to draw some water from the well.
• Jesus asks her for a drink, she is shocked that a Jew would speak to her, and from there, Jesus continued a conversation with her.
• During the conversation, the woman started to realize something was different about this man.
• She perceived Jesus was a prophet. They had a discussion about living water, her current living situation, as well as the subject of worship.
• Then in verse 25, she asked the question about the Messiah! Jesus told her HE was the one, the Messiah!
• Now the disciples come back, and they are astonished that Jesus was talking to this woman, of course, none of them said anything to Jesus about it!
• So, what did the woman do, the broken vessel?
• SLIDE #3
• John 4:28–30 (CSB) — 28 Then the woman left her water jar, went into town, and told the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They left the town and made their way to him.
• When this woman had contact with Jesus, she was different, she left her water jar and headed straight for town to do something.
• I find a couple things amazing about what was about to take place. First. Jesus did not tell her to go back into town and do what she was going to do.
• She did this all on her own. What she does is a natural response to bringing Jesus into one’s life!
• The second thing that impresses me is that she cared enough for her fellow citizens to drop what she was doing to tell them about Jesus!
• Let’s turn to verse 39
• SLIDE #4
• John 4:39 (CSB) Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of what the woman said when she testified, “He told me everything I ever did.”
• SLIDE #5
SERMON
I. She had a testimony to share.
• This Samaritan woman leaves her water jar and heads to town.
• The first thing she did was to give a testimony to the people concerning how Jesus touched her life.
• It is interesting to think that this woman, without any leading from Jesus, shared her testimony with the people.
• Up to this point, we really do not even see the disciples doing this. This woman packed a great deal of faith into town with a powerful testimony to draw people in.
• Because of this woman’s testimony, a great number of people came to faith in Jesus.
• These people did not witness any miracle or even hear Jesus teach as of yet, but here we are according to verse 39 many Samaritans had come to believe in Jesus because of the testimony of one broken vessel.
• The faith this woman gained from her personal interview with Jesus radically changed her life, and that led to her giving her testimony.
• A testimony can be a powerful tool. Why do you think advertisers use testimonials of famous people, or even not so famous people?
• People are moved by testimonies.
• If you desire to witness to people, you have to have to be equipped with more than some awesome bible passages, you need you be able to articulate WHAT Jesus has done for you.
• If we just hit people with biblical facts, that alone will most likely not move them.
• When Jesus dealt with people, He left them with something to share.
• Jesus did not hand them a fact sheet pamphlet, He got into their world and touched their hearts.
• Our message is a fact-based message that is also an appeal to the heart!
• What has Jesus done for me, without that, the message falls on deaf ears.
• People today are not looking for religion, they are looking for answers!
• This woman came to town with a simple message and not a ton of theology. Theology is IMPORTANT, but if you do not have a testimony, then the theology will fall on deaf ears.
• What is your testimony? If someone were to ask you what Jesus has done for you, what has He done to make life better, what would you say?
• For those who have been in the faith a long time, you should have a lot to share, for those who are new, you should have a lot to share! This woman came armed with her testimony!
• Look at verse 40-41 with me.
• SLIDE #6
• John 4:40–41 (CSB) — 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. 41 Many more believed because of what he said.
• SLIDE #7
II. She was focused on and driven by Jesus.
• Back in verse 28, when the disciples came back to Jesus, this woman, who came to fill her water jug, left that jug and went immediately into town.
• Jesus did not tell her to do this, He did not tell her to leave without water, she was focused on Jesus and she was driven by what she knew about Jesus to leave it all and to go tell others.
• She DROPPED her jug, she GOT herself into town, she BROUGHT a testimony concerning Jesus, and she BROUGHT a town full of people with her!
• She was so convincing because of her conviction concerning Jesus that when the people came to Jesus, they begged Him to stay with them!
• Many were brought to believing by this woman’s testimony, now these people were going to have the opportunity to hear Jesus Himself!
• Now because of her focus and drive, these people were going to no embark on a journey to get to know Jesus themselves!
• They were going to get two days of Jesus!
• The change in this woman had to be apparent, or else these folks would have never been led to Jesus.
• We need to see something very important here. These people were now going to develop their faith by their own investigation.
• When we lead people to Jesus, we have to help them get to the point where they are excited enough to study Jesus for themselves!
• Verse 41 tells us that many MORE believed because of what Jesus said.
• In other words, not everyone believed in Jesus from the woman’s testimony, but rather, she got them interested enough that they came to see and hear for themselves!
• Note the growth in recognition of Jesus by the woman of Samaria as this chapter 4 in John unfolds; she addressed him as Jew (v. 9), lord (sir) (v. 11), prophet (v. 19), Messiah (v. 29), and (with her fellow townsfolk) savior of the world (v. 42).
• Note further that in this chapter three very practical issues were addressed and resolved (or at least progress was made with them): (1) racial prejudice, (2) gender prejudice, and (3) the guilt of sin. (College Press Commentary Series)
• Jesus broke the stereotypes in all three of these areas!
• He approached and then spent time with Samaritans, He treated a woman as an equal by talking to her, and He also addressed sin, but in such a way to tell us that our sin does not disqualify us or crush us enough to where God cannot use us!
• Jesus liberates is from racism, sexism and sin!
• Let’s look over at verse 42!
• SLIDE #8
• John 4:42 (CSB) And they told the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, since we have heard for ourselves and know that this really is the Savior of the world.”
• SLIDE #9
III. She fulfilled a mission for Jesus.
• Verse 42 says it all!
• They did not degrade her testimony when they said “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know … .” They confirmed her testimony.
• Even more Samaritans came to believe in Jesus when they saw and heard him, but this Gospel will say later that such is not the highest kind of faith (20:29). The conclusion of the Samaritans about Jesus was, “we have heard for ourselves and know that this really is the Savior of the world.”
• This woman, if you will, let the horses to water and they decided to take a drink and oh was that some drink!
• She did what she needed to do, she brought people to Jesus, even if they all rejected Him, she did her job, she motivated them to want to come to meet Jesus!
• Why did Jesus come to Samaria? By chance? By accident?
• In my view, He came by design!
• Something to think about. In Acts 8 after Stephen was martyred, and Paul was persecuting the church, the church finally started to spread out of Jerusalem.
• So the evangelist, Philip is led to go into Samaria and preach the gospel!
• It is possible, but by no means certain, that the ‘city of Samaria’ that Philip evangelized a few years later (Acts 8:4–8) was Sychar or perhaps nearby Shechem.
• The quick acceptance of Philip’s message might then find some explanation in the preparatory work accomplished in this visit by Jesus and his disciples.
CONCLUSION
• We are all broken vessels. Some of us are shattered beyond recognition; however, none of us are too shattered to be used by Jesus.
• If you feel that you are, YOU ARE NOT!
• And for the rest of us, never withhold the gospel from someone because you THINK they are too broken to be restored and raised in a newness of life through Jesus Christ!
