Salvation
is of the Jews
Jesus
tells this woman that the Samaritans worship what they do not know.
In other words, a man-made religion and confused, false truth. King
Jeroboam had changed the place of worship to Mount Gerizim and had
made two golden calves and set them in a high place in Shechem for
the people to worship. This was in direct disobedience to God who
had said they were to build the temple on the mount in Jerusalem.
Jesus
spoke the truth to this Samaritan woman. Salvation is of the Jews
because the Savior and Messiah came through the Jews to fulfill
scripture. The Savior of the world has His origin from God but
came through the Jews by God's grace. The Jews had a unique role in
God's plan of salvation just as Adam, Abel, Shem, Noah etc. did
before them. All before the establishment of the Jewish nation
through Jacob's sons were Gentiles. Even being chosen is by God's
grace alone because every human is a sinner. As God had a plan for
His people in the Older Testament, God has a unique role in His
Kingdom for every follower of Christ even though we are yet sinners.
Although Jesus came in human form, His Person transcends human perception. He is God in human flesh. He had none of the limitations that humans have because He had the fullness of the Father, the fullness of the Holy Spirit and the fullness of Truth within. Wherever Jesus was, He carried within the full consciousness of God's presence and power. Jesus experienced the feelings of humans in His flesh body, but He was Divine on the inside because He had no sin. Unlike all other humans, He was holy so no human can boast or think themselves better than any other.
In Spirit and in Truth
Jesus' Disciples Return
(to be continued next week)
Although Jesus came in human form, His Person transcends human perception. He is God in human flesh. He had none of the limitations that humans have because He had the fullness of the Father, the fullness of the Holy Spirit and the fullness of Truth within. Wherever Jesus was, He carried within the full consciousness of God's presence and power. Jesus experienced the feelings of humans in His flesh body, but He was Divine on the inside because He had no sin. Unlike all other humans, He was holy so no human can boast or think themselves better than any other.
The
Israelites were unfaithful and disobedient to God time and time
again. Psalm
78:41: Yes, again and again, they tempted God, and limited the Holy
One of Israel.
Jesus didn't limit God and His power as He walked the earth. Humans do because we have sin. Jesus, on the other hand, did only what the Father told Him to do and only spoke what the
Father told Him to speak. God knows the heart of man and the
weakness of flesh, and He knew that His chosen people would be
unfaithful. In spite of this, God honored the Jews by having the
Savior of the world – Jesus – come through them to forgive all
sin. God does not go back on His Word. God also knew that followers
of Christ would be unfaithful and disobedient time and time again.
This is why God saved both Jews and Gentiles by His grace and truth.
He knew man couldn't. We are all – Jew and Gentile – equally
guilty, equally loved and on equal ground at the foot of the cross
of Jesus Christ.
In the story of Nicodemus and the sinful, Samaritan woman, Jesus is showing that He is as concerned for this sinful Samaritan woman as He is the Jewish Nicodemus. They are both in need of His salvation and truth. He is also showing that He values women as much as men. And, He is showing that He has compassion upon all people regardless of gender, race or background.
In the story of Nicodemus and the sinful, Samaritan woman, Jesus is showing that He is as concerned for this sinful Samaritan woman as He is the Jewish Nicodemus. They are both in need of His salvation and truth. He is also showing that He values women as much as men. And, He is showing that He has compassion upon all people regardless of gender, race or background.
In Spirit and in Truth
Jesus
brought in a “new” way of worship. No longer will the earthly
temple be the place of worship. Now we will worship the Lord in our
hearts in Spirit and in Truth. God is Spirit and He is Truth, so He
must be worshiped in Spirit and in Truth. Our spirit is the deepest
part of us. God wants to reach deep into our spirit to teach us
truth. Jesus is the Truth and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth.
So, we need the whole Godhead to help us in our spiritual “new
creation.”
Worship is more than a song! It is a life! Jesus wants us to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to Him as He offered Himself as a Living Sacrifice for us.
Worship is more than a song! It is a life! Jesus wants us to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to Him as He offered Himself as a Living Sacrifice for us.
As
Jesus on earth was the walking Truth (Word),
walking Spirit and walking Temple of God, believers in Christ are to
also be these things. Jesus now works through His followers. We are
His temple who are to be full of the Truth and the Holy Spirit. True
worship is when the spirit of Man meets the Spirit of God. And we are
to speak the Truth, the whole Truth and nothing but the Truth.
Jesus
is awakening this sinful Samaritan woman's spiritual thirst. By
drinking His living water, this adulteress bride will become a
virtuous Bride of Christ through the cleansing water of the Holy
Spirit and Truth/Word. The Truth – the whole Truth -- is speaking
to this woman. He has helped this woman face the truth about herself;
now He will help her see that He is the Truth. The Truth (Word)
not
only reveals God, it reveals our true condition. If we have no sense
of our sin, we have no sense of our need for Jesus. The sense of our
own wretchedness must be first. We must accept that next to Jesus and
His holiness, we are filthy. Understanding our inability to be fully holy because of the weakness of our flesh is our first step to humility and growth. Jesus not only saw this Samaritan woman in all of her sinfulness, He was her
answer to forgiveness, healing, regeneration and restoration. He will
take who she “was” and help her “become” all that God
intended for her through His Son.
Revelation
of Jesus to this Woman
This
Samaritan woman is very close to accepting Jesus as her Savior and
Lord. She has confessed her sin and listened to His Word. She says
to Jesus, “I
know that Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When He comes, He will
explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to
you am He.” John 4:25-26 In
other words, she has recognized Jesus as a man of God, but she
doesn't know Him as Messiah – the Christ – the Anointed One of
God. Jesus has spoken six times to this sinful woman. On the seventh
time, He reveals who He is to her. He is the Messiah whom she has expected to come.
Jesus' Disciples Return
Right
after Jesus revealed that He is the Messiah that the Samaritans were
awaiting, His disciples returned. Given the attitude of rabbis about
talking to a woman in public let alone one of ill-repute, the
disciples were surprised to see Jesus talking with this woman but
they didn't say a word. They had learned through experience not to
question things that Jesus did. They had seen Him transform water
into wine! His ways were not their ways.
(to be continued next week)
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