“If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water.” John4:10
In what seems to be occurring at the beginning of the ministry of the Lord Jesus, we find him in Samaria, in a city called Sychar. Jacob’s well was located there, so He came with His disciples to drink of its water. To some extent the history of the world changed at that well that day, not so much because of its relationship with Jacob, but because of a very needy woman, whose thirst for reality and satisfaction of soul was at its peak. It would be there, as Jesus sat on the edge of the well, that He asked the woman for a drink of water. This posed a problem momentarily for the woman, for she was a Samaritan, and Jesus was a Jew, the two peoples having “no dealings” with one another. However, it would be in this discreet, and very simple meeting that God in Christ would reveal a gem of truth to the world for generations to come. Christ would use the water of Jacob’s well to speak to the woman about living water, a water that came from heaven, and which was eternal. He would point out that the water of the well was meant for the physical needs of the body, but which would not, and could not, meet the deep thirsts of the soul. In His conversation with the woman, in that brief meeting, Jesus would reveal to the woman a matter of truth that would not only change her life, but the lives of countless thousands who like her had come to the physical wells of life, only to leave thirsting again. Christ was the truth she was seeking.
The Lord Jesus, knowing that the woman was a Samaritan, and most certainly having a different understanding concerning worship, would simply say first to her: “If thou knewest the gift of God.” Just this one phrase would open the door for the woman to understand that the one and true living God was a giver of gifts, desirous and willing to give to her, and to all. Then Jesus would add to the essential knowledge of this gift the fact that He was the Messiah, the very Giver by which this gift was dispensed. He would add to her knowledge that she did not know, who it was who was speaking to her, the only and certain one who could give her living water. There are two things that this unnamed woman must know, the first of which is that God has a gift for her, desiring to reveal what it is. Secondly, she must know WHO it is who is speaking to her, for He is the One whom God the Father has chosen by His power and authority to give that gift. If this woman, weighed down with sin and the weight of her ignorance concerning true forgiveness, cleansing, and the receiving of the Spirit of Life, is to live, then she must know these truths, for then she will call upon Christ to save her.
The Lord Jesus goes on to enlighten the Samaritan woman by speaking of “…water that I shall give him,” which would quench an eternal thirst. He would speak of this water, this spring, being as a well within her heart, ever being the source of living, life-giving water from which to drink. The Samarian woman would then ask for this water, not knowing that she was not yet able to receive it. She was still drinking from the well-water of this world, where its waters could not relieve her thirst. Christ alone could satisfy her thirst. Five different husbands did not provide her the security and satisfaction that she was seeking. It is when Christ reveals Himself to her as the Messiah, that the woman is brought face to face with eternal means and power by which she can truly live.
Dear Father, Give us Living Water. In Jesus’ name, Amen.