The Book of John_Day 4
There’s only one way to heal your pain
Read – John 4
Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at a well and asks her for a drink. Awed by what Jesus had to say, the woman brought everyone from town to meet Him. From there, Jesus traveled to Galilee and healed a government official’s son.
Jesus wasn’t concerned about hanging with the “in” crowd. In John 4, Jesus initiates a conversation with a highly unlikely character — a Samaritan woman who had five husbands. Her gender made her culturally inferior, her race labeled her as one to be avoided and her lifestyle choices marked her as one to be condemned. But Jesus ignored all the social barriers meant to separate them because His concern wasn’t for appearances; His concern was for people. All people. Hurting people. Searching people. People who make bad choices. Empty people. Because that’s all of us, right?
In John 4:15, the woman refers to the hassle of returning to the well so often to quench her thirst. In the same way, she has repeatedly returned to the well of failed relationships to fill her emptiness.
“Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14).
While we stuff ourselves on what the world offers — money, success, relationships, possessions, entertainment — the satisfaction is momentary at best. Jesus offers us peace, joy, love and a relationship that is fulfilling. Jesus alone satisfies our every need, quenches our every thirst, lasts forever, and never disappoints. He approaches us in our current state and offers to meet our greatest need — the need for a Savior.
How have you tried to fill your own emptiness with the things of the world? Just like the woman found herself returning to the well to try and fill her thirst, what sins do you find yourself returning to in an effort to fill the void in your heart? How have you experienced Jesus’ peace, joy or love in your own life recently?
