One of my favorite stories in the Bible is the story of Samaritan woman at the well. When we meet her in chapter 4 of the book of John, one will quickly see this woman was a lowly social outcast who was living in shame and enslaved to her own sin. She did her best to avoid others by making her daily trips to the well for water during a time of day when others would not be present. Yet, amongst her attempts not to be noticed,  on this particular day an unknown man was standing near the well resting from his travels and asked her for a drink. She was taken back, surprised actually that this stranger, a Jewish man, would even speak to her let alone ask for assistance in providing water because it was rather well known around town that the Jewish people refused to have anything to do with Samaritans.

She questioned him by asking, “Why are you asking me for a drink?” and he stated that if she knew the gift God had for her and who she was speaking to then she would ask him and he would give her living water.

Living water?

What is that?

Knowing this particular well was the only source of water nearby, and, in fact, it was the well given to them by their great ancestor Jacob, she questioned him as to where one would get this living water he was talking about. After all, knowing how deep the well was in addition to noticing that he did not have a bucket or rope on hand to fetch water, she was rather confused.

This man continues to share with the Samaritan woman that anyone who drinks this water will become thirsty again, but those who drink the water that he gives will never be thirsty again and the living waters he is referring to would become a fresh, bubbling spring within them giving eternal life.

“Oh please sir, “ she excitedly replies, “give me this kind of water so I’ll never be thirsty again and I won’t have to keep coming here to get water everyday!”

However, then the man asks of her to go and get her husband.

“But sir,” she replied, surprised by his request, “I don’t have a husband.” Agreeing with her, he stated, “You are right because you have had five husbands and the man you are currently living with you are not even married too.”

How can this be?

How does this strange man know?

The woman said, “Surely you must be a prophet, sir, and if indeed that you are then tell me why it is that the Jews insist Jerusalem is the only place of worship?”

“Believe me, dear woman, a time is coming, and is here now, when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth,” the man continued, “the Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.”

“I know the Messiah is coming,” said the Samaritan women, “and that He is the one who will explain everything to us.”

Then the man replied, “I am the Messiah.”

As the woman’s eyes were opened, she was able to see that the Savior, Jesus Christ, was standing right before her. In totally amazement she dropped her water jar beside the well and immediately ran into the village to tell the men.

“Come see this man,” she exclaims, “by the well who knows everything about me! Could he not be the Messiah?”

So intrigued by her story, as well as of this unusual encounter that she has just experienced, the men could not help but to go seek out this man for themselves to find out who he was. After spending time with him, hearing his message, as well as remembering the woman’s testimony they BELIEVED in who he was.

 What a precious story!

I love how Jesus was waiting just for her. He saw her coming to the well and already knew all her sorrows, struggles, shame, and sins. Yet, because of who He is, and what He does, our Lord Jesus Christ met her right where she was. He already knew exactly what, or better yet, WHO she needed.

She was in need of refreshment that only comes from living waters, her Savior and Messiah, Jesus Christ!

The Samaritan woman in this story gets a pretty bad reputation because she was an adulterer. She had been labeled by her sin, deemed worthless by others, and lived in shame and bondage to it. Yet, Jesus chose her and approached her to not only reveal himself to her, but also with the hope she would go and tell others about him as well.

Sadly, it can be so easy for us to fall into a habit of justifying, or maybe even categorizing sins, from little white lies all the way to adultery, stealing, and murder. According to the Bible, however, all sins are considered equal in the sight of our God since apart from Christ, there is nothing good or righteous in any of us. Consequently, NOT A SINGLE PERSON is immune from or has not sinned.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

Therefore, are we all not the Samaritan woman?

Don’t we all need living waters to be refreshed, renewed, and restored?

Thankfully, when Christ’s blood was shed on the cross it was sufficient to cover all the sins of all mankind forever. Like the tide of the ocean that washes over the shoreline, it completely saturates, engulfs, and washes away the debris.

What encouragement there is for us today to know that it does not matter who you are, what you have done, or where you are in your walk of life because being refreshed by the living waters of Jesus Christ is available to anyone at any time.

As children of God, we are like the beautifully created sponges in the ocean that are living and breathing because of the all-sufficient, perfectly made water that completely soaks and fills each and every one of our pores. The water is what maintains the sponge’s survival and growth. And only in the ocean is where it lives out its purpose. This beautiful creation by God can be taken out of the water onto land to be shared with others, and the water will remain in it, but if taken out of the water too long, the sponge will eventually begin to dry up and become hard.

Our Sovereign God created the magnificent ocean, and His Son, Jesus Christ, is our refreshing all-sustaining water. We are His sponges. We survive and thrive because we have the waters of Jesus running through us.   When we live in Him and make our entire bodies available to Him, He fills and saturates each and every one of our pores with His unconditional love, forgiveness, and grace. Therefore, when we fully depend on His waters, He provides our needs and when taken out of the water, He remains in us. 

Today sweet friends, I am so GRATEFUL for the refreshing and reviving waters of our living God!

Aren’t you?

Those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them giving them eternal life. John 4:14

From my nest to yours,

Chris