“Come, come to the water
All who are thirsty
Come and be filled
Come, come to the river
Brothers and sisters
Come and be healed”
I remember standing in a worship service listening to the congregation sing these words.
ALL who are thirsty. Come and be filled.
The lyric, “all who are thirsty,” brought my mind to the story of the Samaritan woman found in John 4. I remembered the surprise displayed by the disciples when they saw Jesus interacting with a woman of Samaria. John writes in verse nine, “Jews do not associate with Samaritans”(4:9). This interaction that the disciples witnessed was unheard of. Jesus was breaking cultural boundaries that were never broken. However, there was something even more significant than the crossing of cultural barriers in this passage.
Jesus knew the Samaritan woman. He was not simply aware of her ethnicity or social standing. He knew her heart, He knew her sin, and He understood that she needed forgiveness. Throughout their conversation, Jesus uses water symbolism to teach the woman about eternal life and worship.
“Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (4:13)
By telling the Samaritan woman about His ability to grant living water (eternal life), Jesus is revealing His true identity and exposing her need for salvation (living water). Jesus identifies himself as the Provider – the only one who can fully satisfy her thirst.
I relate with the Samaritan woman because I too have been thirsty, longing for living water, and I have been satisfied. And because of this satisfaction I have recieved, I am able to rejoice like the psalmist who sings of the fulfillment that comes from the presence of the Lord.
“They feast on the abundance of Your house; You give them drink from Your river of delights. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light” (Ps 36:8-9).
As I reflect on this conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman, I am encouraged.
Encouraged because . . .
Jesus came to offer relationship to all people.
He knows us intimately.
He has given us the ability to, “come and be filled.”
A Journey Through the Gospel of John 
Ginny this is awesome!!
LikeLike
That song reminded me of Isaiah 55. “Come, all who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!…Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you…Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near…for he will freely pardon…you will go out in joy and be lead forth in peace…This will be for the LORD’s renown, for an everlasting sign, that will endure forever.”
I love this passage, the whole chapter. It’s message is similar to John four: God is the only one who can save us, we thirst and, and he abundantly fills us!
“Jesus knew the Samaritan woman.” It’s such a simple sentence. Yet, so profound. It for some reason reminds me that I really do not know myself, not like God does, anyway. So it follows, at least in my mind, that to get to know myself, or who I ought to be, I ought to get to know God. I imagine it’s that same way with the Samaritan woman. I mean, she knew she had had five husbands and Jesus knew. But I think when she realized and knew who Jesus was, she realized that she was more than the town and herself thought. She was more than just an outcast. She was more than just a Samaritan. Jesus gave her the title he has a right to give, Child of God. Can anyone aspire to more?
LikeLike
Ginny, all I can say is YES! I think of Isaiah 55 and also Psalm 63 right off the bat when I read your thoughts. The beautiful thing is, even if we are in a dry and weary land and we are in total poverty, Jesus gives us a light burden and a simple call to come. How beautiful it is that his steadfast love is better than life! Honestly, I forget that so easily. Instead of clinging to Jesus I attempt to find satisfaction in junk. Sometimes (like before I read your blog) I need to be reminded that Jesus knows me and broke boundaries far tougher than the relationship between Jews and Samaritans or men and women in order that we may be saved. He left heaven and became flesh in order to bring to life that which was dead. We were enemies! I can’t even handle the joy that I have knowing that ALL who are thirsty may come and be filled. I’m thankful tonight for your faithfulness and it brings me joy to see that you are moved by Scripture.
LikeLike
Jesus breaks all sorts of social and cultural boundaries on a daily basis. I love that about him, it’s really awesome because Jesus is God so he operates according to how the culture should be. I was reflecting on how outlandish it was for a Jewish male to be speaking to a Samaritan woman in that day. It reminded me of the importance to not uncritically accept the culture but be mindful and thoughtful about it. The disciples probably didn’t think twice about avoiding Samaritans because they lived in that culture. I don’t want to miss out on opportunities to interact with people in this day and age because of blind allegiance to social norms. The culture is worth thinking through. If our Lord Jesus is in the habit of breaking unhealthy cultural norms I think we should do the same. Thanks for the blog post, I appreciated it. -Matt Jollie
LikeLike