John 4:3-10

Scripture records that the next encounter Jesus had was with a woman from Samaria. It is important to understand that, by custom, Jewish men would not speak to a woman unless she was a family member. Furthermore, Jews had no dealings with Samaritans. As this conversation implies, this woman is quite surprised that Jesus is speaking with her. He asks her for a drink of water, and she questions why He is even talking to her—a Samaritan woman.

This begins an amazing exchange that will forever change not only this woman, but her city as well, which we will unpack over the next couple of days.

Jesus’ response to this woman’s question was more than she bargained for: “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” I don’t know about you, but that would certainly pique my interest. “God has a gift for me?” “Who are you?” “And what is this living water? I want some!”

I love how Jesus interacts with people. He knows exactly what they need before they ask, and He has a purpose for every encounter. For Nicodemus, as we discussed over the last few days, Jesus addressed the matter closest to his heart. Though Nicodemus was a respected religious leader, he still saw something in Jesus that he knew he lacked despite all his learning. Here we have a Samaritan woman, simply going about her business as she would on any other day, and Jesus meets her right where she is and speaks with her.

There is also speculation about who this woman was. There is a reason she was coming to the well at noontime, in the heat of the day. Most women would go in the cooler hours, yet some have speculated that she was something of an outcast, choosing to go when she was less likely to encounter anyone.

Not today! This was a “chance” encounter that would forever change her life, challenge what she thought she knew, and compel her to share her story with everyone she knew.

More to come tomorrow.