THE WELL

In Sychar, Samaria, some 2,000 years ago, a wearied savior walked through the town, bereft of company.

The story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman is quite prominent among modern Christians as well as non-Christians. But the truth that this seemingly ordinary and inconsequential ‘event’ unravels is profound.

Let’s carefully consider this.

        This woman had never met Jesus. Only that she knew he was not from around town. So Jesus thirsty, pleaded for her to give him a drink. She objected. So he told her what he was capable of giving her. She objected saying something like, “Apparently, you are the one who needs water. And from where I stand, you don’t have what it takes to get it”.

Jesus was talking about something much deeper than water. It was eternal life. The uncreated life. The woman thought she had all she needed-a well and a drawing bucket. But Jesus wanted to give her more. He always gives more.

The woman asks, “How can you offer better water than Jacob did?” This question challenges the relevance and influence of Jesus’ life then. And it still does now.

 Jesus is placed side by side with prominent individuals who have shaped the course of history. What does he offer that others haven’t? So you’re asking, “What would a man so ‘moderately’ dressed possibly offer to a fast-paced generation like mine, or an enlightened individual like me?”

        The Samaritan woman thought she had a well. Even that couldn’t satisfy the longing of a broken heart. Compared to what Jesus was offering, the woman had a ‘hole’. Holes. They’re our enterprises, investments, life savings, accomplishments, wealth and entitlements; things that give us a sense of worth and security. They take our time and energy, they take and take and take; but Jesus, who is the well, gives us a life that is full-“…a fountain welling up to eternal life”. (Jn 4:14)

What Jesus is offering-even as the world drifts into darkness-is infinitely more than what we can think to ask.

So the woman of Samaria thought she was standing by a well talking to man, but she really was standing by a hole in the ground talking to The Well.

Inspired by ‘The Well’ Casting Crowns 2012.