Jesus and his disciples are travelling from Judea, north to Galilee. While in the area of Judea, Jesus
encounters Nicodemus, and he’s baptized by his cousin John in the Jordan River
who points to Jesus as the one sent by God. Seeds to Jesus’ identity are being
planted and Jesus is getting noticed. The Pharisees hear about all the people
being baptized by John and by Jesus’ disciples; they believe Jesus is doing the
baptizing. When Jesus learns that the Pharisees are getting interested in him,
he leaves Judea and heads north to Galilee, taking the road through Samaria
rather than the way by the sea or the trade roads to the east of the Jordan,
both longer routes, but then there’s no need to encounter any of the hated
Samaritans. Most Jews preferred the longer routes, but Jesus chooses to take
the direct road that passes right through the heart of Samaria.
Even when you take the direct route through Samaria, it takes a while to get where you’re going because
walking was the normal way of travelling. It was about 137 kilometers from
Jerusalem to the area of Nazareth, not something you walked in one day. This
means that Jesus and his disciples knew they would need to stop overnight
somewhere, as well as purchase food and find water. John records that they
reach the town of Sychar, an old town connected with the patriarch Jacob and
his sons. They stop at a well outside of town and Jesus rests while the
disciples go into town to buy food, and while they’re in town, Jesus meets a
Samaritan woman who shows up to draw water for her family. Jesus engages her in
conversation.
Jesus recognizes that the Samaritans are ripe for
believing in him as the promised Messiah.
After a deep conversation about living water, where to worship God, ending with
Jesus revealing to her that he’s the one they’re waiting for, the disciples
return. The woman, in her eagerness to share the good news with her
townspeople, leaves her water jar behind as she rushes back into town. The
excitement and eagerness to share who Jesus is with others, is always so
exciting to see in new followers of Jesus. It’s a reminder of the power of the
gospel news and the hope it offers! The scholar David Brown notes, “The
living water was already beginning to spring up within her; she found that man
doth not live by bread nor by water only, and that there was a water of
wondrous virtue that raised people above meat and drink, and the vessels that
held them, and all human things. In short, she was transported, forgot
everything but One, and her heart running over with the tale she had to tell,
she hastens home and pours it out”
The disciples now encourage Jesus to eat, but Jesus responds with a puzzling answer, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Imagine
the disciples’ response, they had gone into town to buy food, so where did
Jesus get other food? Now Jesus had turned water into wine earlier, could he
have done something similar here? Could someone else have brought him food?
Jesus overhears them, “My food is to do the will of
him who sent me and to finish his work.” Jesus says something similar in
his response to Satan’s temptations in Matthew 4:4, “Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man
shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of
God.’” Jesus is pointing them to the main reason he’s
come, why God has sent him; Jesus has come to draw people to himself as the
Messiah, to take our sin on himself so that we can have new life, be nourished
with his living water.
Jesus is helping the disciples to see how what’s
happened with the Samaritan woman, how his
time spent helping her see him for who he really is, how he’s offered her
living water, filled her heart and soul with his wisdom, offering her his love
and acceptance, gaining her soul for the kingdom of heaven, and inspiring her
to go and gain more souls for the kingdom, is all part of laying the foundation
for a great movement of faith in Samaria and the world.
Jesus goes on and tells them, “Don’t you have a
saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and
look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws
a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may
be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent
you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and
you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” This is a message just as
important for us today, as it is for Jesus’ disciples, to open our eyes and see
just how many people are primed by the Holy Spirit to hear the good news of who
Jesus is, who are thirsting deeply for something that our world and culture
simply can’t offer: belonging, meaning in life beyond our physical lives, an
identity that is unshakeable and rooted in the eternity and glory of belonging
to Jesus.
Jesus recognizes that the Samaritans are ripe for believing in him as their Messiah. The Samaritan
woman is his first missionary, going to her own people. Who are our people who
have not yet accepted Jesus as their Messiah, as their saviour? This is a good
starting place; we know them and they know us. If we’re truly living our faith,
we can be a powerful witness to them. There’s something about seeing someone
living in a way that matches the descriptions of Jesus’ focus and dedication to
his calling, to making the peoples’ lives better, offering hope, that makes us
want to read the Bible again to see what we’ve missed. We can offer what Jesus
offers them in the empty places that they’re seeking and searching to fill by
showing them Jesus.
Jesus shows us a basic method to engage people. He begins by having conversations with people,
showing them that he sees them and values them; showing he wants to know them
by showing an interest in them. In a world that’s increasing self-focused,
showing interest in you as a person is powerful. Jesus approaches the Samaritan
woman seeking help, a favour that only she in the moment can help him with.
Jesus pays attention to what she has to offer, he sees her water-jar, but he
also listens closely to the things she says, asking more questions each time
she speaks. Jesus then shows how it’s the often-simple things in our daily
lives that point to spiritual and soul needs and desires. Simple water becomes
an image for spiritual and heart thirst for God and spiritual nourishment.
Jesus then points her to God, to worship and an invitation to worship God, and
become a disciple of Jesus.
In Christianity, disciple describes a
person devoted to following Jesus. In the ancient world, a disciple was a follower of a rabbi. In the
ancient biblical world, the disciple would dedicate themselves to imitating the
life and teaching of the rabbi or teacher until they looked and sounded just
like their rabbi. It’s like an apprenticeship where the disciple is
slowly transformed into a living copy of the master. James Vander Laan writes,
“According
to scripture, the essence of being a disciple of the rabbi is forgiveness,
humility, service, and servanthood — and this applies especially to those who
would be leaders. But notice, also, that Paul tells us to do this “so that [others] may be saved.” His evangelism
strategy is seeking the good of others.”
Here are some things to think about as you look out with the eyes and heart of Jesus at
the fields of people ready for harvest. Think about people who make you feel
loved. What about them makes you feel this way? I can almost guarantee that
they ask good questions and listen well. David Augsburger, a pastor and
theologian writes, “Being heard is so close to being loved that most people
cannot tell the difference.” A person who asks questions and listens, makes
people feel known and loved. Unfortunately, this is an increasingly rare gift.
As Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People wrote,
“Most people don’t listen with the intent to understand; they listen
with the intent to reply.” Most people don’t actually listen, instead they’re
waiting for you to stop talking so they can talk.
Here are 4 guidelines to help you “reap the fields ripe for
harvest”
1.
Be Curious: The beginning of asking good questions is being
genuinely curious about the person to whom you’re speaking.
2.
Follow Up: Once the other person finishes talking, try to repeat what
they said in your own words something like, “So, you’re saying….?”
Making a habit of asking this follow-up question will help you learn to listen
well.
3.
Ask Leading Questions: Think about the
kinds of questions that you normally ask someone. Do they regularly inspire
discussions that lead to praise and gratitude? Or do your questions inspire gossip
or complaining?
4.
Communicate Love: challenge yourself to ask more
questions than you answer. This goes a long way in making the other person feel
valued—and it’s one of the most powerful ways to communicate the character and
love of God.
God has called you at this time for this moment of
harvest time. May the Lord bless your
harvesting!
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