John 4:1-26
September Memory Verse: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3 (ESV)
Read: John 4:1-26
Shame. What a terrible word. Our culture doesn’t treat honor and shame in the same way as many other cultures, and especially in the ancient culture of the Bible. However, that does not mean we don’t know shame.
There have been many moments in my life, that if Jesus showed up, shame would have crumbled me. In my sin, I did not feel the weight of shame until later—sometimes years later. I know for a fact that everyone reading this can relate because that’s what sin does. Many of us do not need to think long concerning that for which we’re ashamed.
As we step into John 4, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman in the consequences of her shame. She was an outcast—a societal reject. Shame isolates, pictured perfectly as this woman came to the well alone to draw water.
Every day, in the cool of the morning, women from the city traveled together to the well. They drew water together. They returned home together. Then much later, as the scorching sun rose, when she was sure to be alone, this woman would come to draw the water she needed. Every day, sweaty and alone—until the day a man was sitting near the well.
Like with the Samaritan woman, Jesus meets us in our shame. We could have never cleaned ourselves up enough to be approved by Jesus. That’s why Romans 5:8 is such a great verse, that “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
If you’re like me, you’ve read of this encounter many times before. For a long time, I’ve had a mental image of how this story meeting went. I love when I hear from others, read something, or see something that challenges that mental image. Well, just the other day, my wife and I watched the episode of The Chosen that covers today’s passage in John 4 of the woman at the well.
If you haven’t seen the show, The Chosen, I cannot recommend it enough. I’m a bit of a late-comer to the show so forgive me if this is old news. They definitely take some creative liberties, but it’s a TV show and still worth watching. Just make sure to test what you’re seeing according to Scripture. Ok, disclaimer aside, it’s a great show that (for me) reimagines so many of the stories in the Bible.
Watch the 8-minute clip of this encounter.
Read: John 4:1-26
Shame. What a terrible word. Our culture doesn’t treat honor and shame in the same way as many other cultures, and especially in the ancient culture of the Bible. However, that does not mean we don’t know shame.
There have been many moments in my life, that if Jesus showed up, shame would have crumbled me. In my sin, I did not feel the weight of shame until later—sometimes years later. I know for a fact that everyone reading this can relate because that’s what sin does. Many of us do not need to think long concerning that for which we’re ashamed.
As we step into John 4, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman in the consequences of her shame. She was an outcast—a societal reject. Shame isolates, pictured perfectly as this woman came to the well alone to draw water.
Every day, in the cool of the morning, women from the city traveled together to the well. They drew water together. They returned home together. Then much later, as the scorching sun rose, when she was sure to be alone, this woman would come to draw the water she needed. Every day, sweaty and alone—until the day a man was sitting near the well.
Like with the Samaritan woman, Jesus meets us in our shame. We could have never cleaned ourselves up enough to be approved by Jesus. That’s why Romans 5:8 is such a great verse, that “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
If you’re like me, you’ve read of this encounter many times before. For a long time, I’ve had a mental image of how this story meeting went. I love when I hear from others, read something, or see something that challenges that mental image. Well, just the other day, my wife and I watched the episode of The Chosen that covers today’s passage in John 4 of the woman at the well.
If you haven’t seen the show, The Chosen, I cannot recommend it enough. I’m a bit of a late-comer to the show so forgive me if this is old news. They definitely take some creative liberties, but it’s a TV show and still worth watching. Just make sure to test what you’re seeing according to Scripture. Ok, disclaimer aside, it’s a great show that (for me) reimagines so many of the stories in the Bible.
Watch the 8-minute clip of this encounter.
Since I became a girl dad, I get weepy more easily than before. I’ve read this story probably hundreds of times, my eyes never misted over the way it did watching this scene play out. First, the guy that plays Jesus has a great way to get his eyes moist on command. Second, and far more importantly, watching this woman struggle to take the grace that Jesus is trying to offer as he meets her in her shame, that hits home.
Jesus knows the deepest darkest corners of my heart and mind—and he loves me anyway. He loves me so much he died so that I might know him personally. How often do we sit and settle in that truth, God knows me fully and loves me completely? There are a lot of great things to unpack in the exchange of Jesus and this woman, but today I just feel like this is something we need to hear. God loves us in our imperfection—He doesn’t intend that we stay there—but that is where He meets us.
By: Tyler Short
Jesus knows the deepest darkest corners of my heart and mind—and he loves me anyway. He loves me so much he died so that I might know him personally. How often do we sit and settle in that truth, God knows me fully and loves me completely? There are a lot of great things to unpack in the exchange of Jesus and this woman, but today I just feel like this is something we need to hear. God loves us in our imperfection—He doesn’t intend that we stay there—but that is where He meets us.
By: Tyler Short
3 Comments
"But the free gift is not like the trespass..." Romans 5:15.
"It's better, says Paul. The free gift is much much better." Romans 5: 16-ff (KJV, Korbet's Jive Version)
Thanks Tyler! I haven't seen The Chosen yet, so you aren't the only one living under a rock apparently. Haha. But I'll have to check it out for sure.
I like how you ended. "God loves us in our imperfection-He doesn't intend that we stay there-but that is where He meets us."
We don't have to clean ourselves up to come to God. But at the same time, after we meet Jesus our lives should begin to change. Good stuff!
Love "The Chosen" series! I am anxious for season 3! That is how I also pictured Jesus meeting the woman at the well. 🙂 What I love about this scripture is that many of the Samaritans believed that Jesus was the Savior. What a wonderful testimony!