5 Lessons We Can Learn From the Woman At the Well

I don't always get to share everything I'm thinking nor everything I've discovered in a passage when I preach through it on Sunday morning. Never has this been more true than in our current series in the Gospel of John, "Light In the Darkness". Yesterday's sermon, "The Gospel Comes to Samaria" was on the last half of chapter 4 which deals with the Samaritan woman at the well, verses 27-42. 


John's gospel is rich in theology, rich in its depiction of God's redemptive plan and rich in practical application, as well. In chapter 4 we see the sovereign, omniscient nature of God in how Jesus knew about the woman's life (John 4:17-18). We also get a glimpse of God's plan of redemption for all mankind being rolled out to the world in that Jesus was sharing His truth with people other than the Jews. We find practical application in seeing that all the events in the lives of all the players in this scenario converge on this little well in an obscure town, demonstrating that God's plans and purpose are the anchors and guides in our lives. We can trust in Him and in His promises. 

Still, there are lessons to be learned about sharing the gospel as well, at least 5 of them:

There's never a bad time to share the gospel

Jesus was in a hostile area in the presence of an undesirable person. While I would not recommend that any man witness to a woman in any inappropriate context, looking at this situation for what it is, Jesus was in a wide-open public place and maintained an attitude of respect and compassion when many would have turned up their nose. Folks need to hear the truth, whenever possible, in the most kind and loving way. 

Everyone, all people, need to hear it

Chapters 2 and 3 of John prove it. The Jews, who thought they didn't, the Samaritans who were despised by the Jews,

the woman, who was despised by the Samaritans, the lowest of the low and the highest of the high all need to hear the gospel. In our time, that means atheists, Muslims, Hindus, serial killers, even members of the opposite political party. No one is beyond redemption. No one is unworthy of the truth. 

There is no way to tell how much impact our sharing will have

We may never see it. Our call is not to see the results. It is to share the message. No doubt, the disciples were surprised to see the townspeople coming toward Jesus (John 4:35). It didn't stop with the woman (John 4:39). It didn't stop with the original group that came out to the well (John 4:41). It's still going on today. The message is eternal. That's why it's so powerful.

We all have a part in how the gospel goes forward

This is the beauty of the sower/reaper analogy (John 4:36-38). It takes teamwork with everybody pitching in. In an actual crop field (at least back in the 1st Century), there were sowers, cultivators, many who watered, many who weeded, some who watched over the field at night, some who guarded it from predators and many hands involved in the harvest right on in to storage and distribution. This is why God assembles us in church families. Every member is important. Every member has a gift and a job to do (1 Cor 12:12-26). 

Wherever you are, that's your mission field

The disciples could easily have missed the opportunity in Samaria, thinking their goal was Galilee (John 4:3). We can make this mistake of believing all the important work of evangelism is in some far-away, foreign land or in the inner-city. It's also easy for us to consider John 4:35 to be an end-times directive and miss that the harvest is right now, right here! There is much to be said for the idea that a sovereign God has placed us where He wants us to be. Our mission field is right here, right now. Look around you, what do you see?

John 4 is an important building block in John's case for establishing Jesus as Messiah for all people, and us as those who are called to proclaim that truth.