Take your Bibles this morning and turn to John chapter 4. John chapter number 4 this morning. And maybe some of you are thinking this, as a pastor took such a long time with the announcements, maybe his sermon will be shorter this morning. But John chapter 4 this morning, continuing on our series, Follow Me. I mentioned Sunday school. It's been about two weeks since I actually preached. It was actually two weeks ago this morning. that before I went away for a week and then we had revival so I haven't preached in the pulpit for about two weeks and So this might be a little bit long-winded message. I'm just joking. It shouldn't be but We're I was excited to preach this message been looking forward to getting to this point in our series going through the life of Christ and Now, we're not making every single stop along the way, but the important ones especially. And in John chapter 4 and verses 1 through 10, we see the account of Jesus and the woman at the well. And we're going to look at that this morning and look at some needs that are out there today. And a message entitled, The Need of Samaria. Now this morning, we're going to be looking at something that was unusual in Jewish culture. And that wasn't uncommon to Jesus. Jesus did that which was right in the God's sight, His Heavenly Father's sight, not always what was accepted culturally. He was counterculture, not in the way that you would think, but He was more interested in pleasing His Heavenly Father than He was in pleasing the Jewish culture around Him, which, yes, was founded in the law of God, but had changed and morphed into a rather pharisaical and sometimes proud religious system. And now, the account that we're about to read was unusual in the accepted cultural practices of that time, and we'll see that in a minute. And much like today, we as Christians, we need to make sure that we're obeying the voice of God. There are a lot of voices out there, and we need to be obeying the voice of God, not obeying the voice of our nation's culture, any nation's culture, or even the culture of our churches. We have things that are culturally acceptable in our churches. and the culture of church and religion that don't line up with God's Word. We need to make sure we're listening to the voice of God. And we're so thankful that we've come out of revival this past week, praise God. Had a wonderful meeting with Brother Crow and his family. And I pray that tonight we have our ears open. We're ready to hear the voice of God. And we see that here in the words of Jesus, beginning in John chapter number 4 and verse number 1. If we could stand out of respect for the reading of the Word of God. John chapter 4, beginning in verse number 1. I'll read down to verse number 10, but then we're going to be continuing on later on into the chapter. When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John, though Jesus himself baptized not but his disciples, he left Judea and departed again into Galilee. Now verse number four is important. and he must needs go through Samaria. Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus, therefore being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well, and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh the woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat. Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldst have asked of him, and he would have given thee living. Let's ask the Lord's blessing together this morning. Let us pray. Dearly beloved, we pray, dear Lord, that you, dear Lord, would speak to us this morning. That this passage is so full and so overflowing with your love and with the gospel. Now that this woman had come to draw water, but she found the Savior. Dear Lord, we pray that we would see the need of others as Jesus saw the need in Samaria. The need of this one woman, the need of this city, We pray, dear Lord, that you burn our hearts, and perhaps today, dear Lord, there are some here today that have needs, spiritual needs. They need the Savior. They need you, Jesus Christ. I pray that they would listen carefully today, and that, Lord, also for the Christian, that there may be some needs here, some hurts, some things going on in life. Oh, Lord, you give and are the only one who can give hope. You give blessing, you give peace, you give healing. All of these things, dear Lord, we seek for and I pray that you would use me today. Hide me behind the cross, dear Lord. I pray that your word would ring true in our hearts today and that, dear Lord, it would not return void but transform us. We pray your blessing this morning. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. You may be seated. The need of Samaria. this morning. There are many people who have needs out in our world today and all over the world, all over our nation. We have so many people that have needs. Now, Jesus, this was at the beginning of His public ministry. We saw Him already call some of His disciples. We've seen Him turn the water into wine at the marriage at Cana. We've seen many other things. But now, He was in Galilee and He was journeying And he was on his way there. Now, we saw in verse number three, he left Judea and departed again onto Galilee. Now, he was in Judea at different times, which is around Jerusalem. And he went back into Galilee. He wasn't from there, but that's where he called many of his disciples and where he spent much of his ministry, because his words and his teaching and his hope of the gospel was accepted there. It was not accepted very well in Judea. It wasn't accepted well in Nazareth, where he was from. But he would often go to Galilee. Now, from Judea to Galilee wasn't a very long trip. But in verse number four, we see something very important, and that's the point number one this morning, the need, the need. In verse number four, he must needs go through Samaria. Now Jesus was a Jew by birth. He was of the tribe of Judah He also he was brought up as a Jewish man and he observed the law and but he also was a son of God and that the Samaritans down there in Samaria and said and we saw in the passage here in verse number nine that this woman when Jesus came to talk to was very surprised that he was talking to her because the Jews had nothing to do with the Samaritans and that Jesus went through Samaria, even though he could have gone another way. Most people went the long way, went around Samaria, because they didn't even want to go into that land. It was in the southern part of the land, southeastern part. And it says here that the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans. Well, why is that? The Samaritans were considered half-breeds by the Jewish people. They had married, intermarried, they were half-Jewish, and many generations before, they had intermarried with the heathen people of the land, which God commanded them not to do, in Exodus 34. Let's turn over there, Exodus 34. They were half-Jewish and half-other nationalities. They had disobeyed the command of God to intermarry. Now, the reason for not intermarrying was not racial or genetically based. the master race or anything like that. It was religious. It was based on on religious beliefs. And so that false religion and gods would not infiltrate the nation. And that was the purpose of that in Exodus chapter 34 and verses 11 through 16. And so the Jews considered the Samaritans, though they should not have considered them to be ceremonial, ceremonially unclean people on that. They had no dealings with them. They would not even do business Dealings with them and really isolated them and also the Samaritans Many of them were not only been allowed to worship in the temple in Jerusalem So they were ostracized they were outcasts of the nation Exodus chapter 34 in verse number 11 Observe now that which I command thee this day behold I drive out before thee the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Hivite and the Perizzite and the the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hittite, and the Jebusite. Take heed of thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, whether thou goest. Let it be for a snare in the midst of thee. But ye shall destroy their altars, break their rimages, and cut down their groves. For thou shalt worship no other god for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and go a-whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice, and thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a-whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a-whoring after their gods, thou shalt make thee no molten God. So right here, this was the purpose, was to keep the nation of Israel true to God, and the Samaritans didn't do that. And so they were isolated in this area, and this place was in need of a savior. Now look back at John chapter four, we see something else very interesting, and the name of the city is called Sychar. That is an Aramaic interpretation of the word Shechem. Now, if you know your Old Testament, you know Shechem is a very prominent place, in Israel's history. Shechem was a place where the king was made the king of Israel. We see Rehoboam split the kingdom in Shechem. Even going back to the time of the judges, Abimelech got the men of Shechem around him and made him king, and they were judged for it. Some good things happened there and some bad things. But this was also the place that Jacob had bought from Shechem a place to bury his dead in a plot of ground. Jacob had bought it. This well that Jesus and this woman are at is the well that Jacob himself had dug. This was an historic place. This was a place that, this was the, and it's amazing if you think of it, that The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is now at Jacob's well, if you think of that for a moment. But there's a need here. Jesus knew the need. Jesus knew the need of this woman. Jesus knew the need of the city Sychar. And he said in verse number four, and he said this, he must need to go through Samaria. He had to. He had a mission. He had a purpose. He was obeying his heavenly father's will. He was on a mission to talk to this woman at the well and to the inhabitants of the city. And this is a great lesson for us to respond to the needs of others. There are people around us who are hurting. Amen. I mean, we just can't help but see it when we go out about our day. We see people are hurting and they present in different ways. Well, they don't say that they are. Maybe not. Maybe it's on the expression on their face. Maybe it's the way they talk. You know, sometimes we talk to people and they're just angry people. They're angry because they're hurting. Maybe it's through the numerous tattoos that they have or the piercings that they have to try and and fit in or not fit In as many times because they are hurting or maybe it's because the addictions they have the alcohol or to drugs or to immorality Whatever it is, they're hurting they have needs there are people who are suffering There are people who are lost in their sin and they need someone to go and tell them Amen And as Christians, followers of Christ, Christ didn't care what the cultural stigma was. He didn't care that they were considered ceremonially unclean. He didn't care what the other Jewish people thought of him. They needed to know the truth of the gospel. And he was sharing that with this woman. Some good things happen in Shechem and many more bad things. But now the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was now at the well, thousands of years later, to reach one person. And that's another message in and of itself right there. One person. Did he know that the rest of the city would come and be saved, many of them? Yes, in his foreknowledge he knew that, but his mission was he went to that well to talk to one person. And that brings us to the need that we see. Do we see the need of other people? We need to see that. We need to see their needs. We need to help them. Matthew 25. Look at Matthew 25 and verses 35 through 40. Jesus saw their needs. That's why so many people would flock to Him. He saw their needs. Some had physical needs and He healed them. But they all had a spiritual need. They needed a Savior. They needed someone to save them from their sin. The Bible tells us in Romans 3, 23, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Every single person that has ever been born has a spiritual need. Every single person that has ever been born has been in need of a Savior, and that Savior is Jesus Christ. And maybe you're here today and you have a need. You know that you're not saved. You know that you're not on your way to heaven. You're not at peace in your heart. You're hurting. You have so many hurts, maybe bitterness in your heart, maybe anger. It doesn't matter what it is. Maybe you have a need here this morning. Jesus Christ can meet that need. Matthew 25 and verses 35 to 40 Jesus tells us this the words of Jesus Peter said to him though I should die Sorry, that's Matthew 26 back one chapter there. Those are very good verses, but not the one I'm looking for 35 for I was a not an hungered and he gave me meat. I was thirsty and he gave me a drink I was a stranger and he took me in naked and he clothed me. I was sick and he visited me I was in prison and he came unto me then shall the righteous answer and and saying Lord when saw we thee and hungered and fed thee or thirsty and gave thee drink when saw we thee a stranger and took thee in or naked and clothed thee or when saw we thee sick or in prison and came unto thee and the king shall answer and saying and verily I say unto you and as much as he have done it unto the leap one of the least of these my brethren he have done it unto me That's serving Christ. That's meeting people's needs. Some people have physical needs. Should we just focus on the physical? No. Some people have spiritual needs. We should focus on that first, but also they have sometimes physical needs, emotional needs, other things on top of that. We need to say, well, I took care of them getting them saved, but we can't help them with anything else. That's not what Jesus did. Jesus helped people physically, even though what did he know that they would eventually age and die? Yes, but he did fix their need. They're not fixed. He healed their illnesses. He healed their physical maladies. He met their needs. Are we willing to do that as his people? Oh, pastor, I'm willing to go out witnessing, but I'm not willing to do other things for people. We need to be willing to meet other people's needs, no matter what they may be. But now we see the woman, look back at John chapter four, verse number seven. Then there come with a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, give me to drink. Now this was the custom. if a man was at the well and a woman came up that he any woman any man could ask a woman married or not to Ask her for a drink of water. That was a custom. So what he was doing was not unusual It was unusual because he was a Jew. She knew he was a Jewish man and that she was a Samaritan But also not only what she's Samaritan there was something else on top of that. Let's look continue reading on And the disciples were gone they were alone then Jesus then saith the woman of Samaria unto him How is it that thou being a Jew ask his drink of me? Which am a woman of Samaria for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans Jesus answered and said unto her 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 Now, verse 11, the woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep, from whence thou hast that living water. Verse number 12, art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Now, have you ever witnessed to someone, and they just fall right in? to give in the gospel. How many of you have someone do that? They just fall right into it. She's falling right into it. Are you greater than Jacob? Yes. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He is here. Amen? And so then he continues on. Verse number 13, Jesus answered and said unto her, whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. Now, this is a very similar back and forth that Jesus had with Nicodemus in chapter three. Jesus was speaking of spiritual things, but Nicodemus was stuck on physical things. Jesus was talking about the new birth of salvation, spiritual birth, but Nicodemus was thinking of being born a second time from his mother's womb physically. So here again, so he's explaining what he means in verse 13. Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again, but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst. But the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him." So right here, he is expressing what he wants to give in eternal life and the gift of the Holy Spirit as well. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. So here we see something. There was nothing extraordinary about this woman. She was like many women we would find today. She was a Samaritan She had lived in that city all of her life more than likely, but also we see something very important here in verse number 17 verse number 16 Jesus and there go call my husband and come hither the woman answered and said I have no husband Jesus said unto her thou hast well said I have no husband that was had five husbands and even thou now hast is not thy husband and in that settest thou truly." So not only was this woman a Samaritan, but this woman had been married five times and now was shacking up with someone who was not her husband. but have been committing immorality and fornication. We are not told if her husbands had died or if they got tired of her. It is not known. We don't know. But we do know this, that this woman was of loose morals. Now, you may notice something earlier on in the chapter, that Jesus was wearied from his journey. It says it was about the sixth hour. Now, this is very instructive to you in telling time in the Bible. The Jews told time from the time when the sun came up. So the sixth hour was around 11 to 12 o'clock. It was the hottest part of the day. And so Jesus was at the well. Why do you think that both of them were alone? Because no one came to draw water at this time of the day. The ladies would always come out and draw water in the evening, right before sunset, when it was cooler, and would bring in the water for that day, for the next day, and for that evening to cook, and also for the water for the rest of the next day. Or sometimes they would come out early in the morning and draw water before it got hot, and then they would draw in the evening. But in the middle of the day, no one was out that well. It was they would have even in Palestine to this day from 12 to 3 many shops closed I have what the week a siesta if you will they rest because it's super hot, you know when you live in a country It gets to 130 degrees. I think you want to take a rest during that time Amen, you know, it gets really hot during that time days This is the hottest time of the day, but why was she there at that time? because of her sexual sin she was an outcast even among her people and It was the middle of the day, that's when the prostitutes would come and draw water. That's when those who are known sinners come and draw water because the women would have nothing to do with her. And even at times when those women would come, those ones that were doing right, they would even take up stones and cast them at these people to keep them away from the water while they were there. So very, a very tough situation. A very desperate situation. She was coming. She was all alone. Not only was she an outcast among the Jews because she was a Samaritan, but she was an outcast among her own people. She was an outcast of outcasts, and that's who Jesus went to reach. Amen? He didn't go to the rich and famous crowd. He didn't go to the Jews, the Pharisees, the religious crowd. He went through Samaria to talk to her, the last person on the list that the Jews would think he would witness to. We find that he they would complain. Well, he he eats with sinners and he would witness to them He would not partake in their activities though. Amen. Remember that as a Christian don't partake to partake in their activities But yeah witness to them take time to spend time and witness to them That's important to do that. And so he went there and asked her to draw water She was shocked at that. But then we see something in verse number 12. I'm sorry verse number 12 15 now he is talking of living water the woman sayeth unto him sir. Give me this water that I thirst not neither And not neither come hither to draw so she was thinking he was speaking of physical water That this wow, this is great. He has this water that I can partake of I won't have to work so hard and come to this well and draw out this water I won't have to I will never thirst again. I She was thinking of it just like Nicodemus did, in a physical sense. She knew that Jesus was different, because Jesus spoke to her. Jesus was a Jewish man, yet he was speaking to her. He was a Jewish man, he was traveling through Samaria. Both of these were unusual. She quickly found out that Jesus had come to give her something, not to take something. He had come to give her something he had come to give her eternal life He had come to give her the offer of salvation and that's the same offer that Jesus offers to you today It's the same message hasn't changed over the thousands of years over 2,000 years the message hasn't changed that Jesus wishes to give you the living water the cleansing water the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ takes away our sin and He came to give her living water, and that brings us to number three. First, we've seen the need. Second, we've seen the woman. Third, we see the message. The message was simple, the message was clear, and the message is timeless. Jesus, in verse number 10, offered her the living water. And he would have, last part of the verse, he would have given the living water, verse number 13 and 14. Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again, but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. Their conversation had begun and revolved around physical water. Jesus was talking about her spiritual condition. She was talking about physical water. Jesus was revealing to her the need she had for sins to be forgiven. She desired a solution for her physical problem of thirst and verse number 15, but then Jesus quickly changed the discussion to that of her sin problem. He goes here. Now, he asked a simple question. In verse number 16, Jesus knows all things. He says this, Go call thy husband and come thither. Got her. Got her. He revealed that he knew about her sin. We see that. And she says, I have no husband. I have no husband. When Jesus said in a certain sense, that is true. In a particular sense. So you don't see that she's really offering here. What's going on? I have no husband And J said thou as well said I have no husband for thou has had five husbands and who he whom thou has is not thy husband in that saddest thou truly And then verse 19 This woman understood now the woman saith unto him sir. I perceive that thou art a prophet God could know that Only a prophet could be told by God all these things. So she thought he was a prophet not knowing that he was God himself He knew her sins go call my husband. It was revolving around a physical thing But now Jesus brought it into the spiritual brought it in her need brought in her sin Jesus did this for two reasons that we can clearly see. First of all, he did it to show her that what he was speaking of, he was talking about himself and his ability to take away her sin. Whenever we witness anyone, we must show them their sin and their need for a savior went over that Sunday school. And over for someone to accept the good news, they have to understand the bad news that there is sinner for all of sin and come show the glory of God. We've all done wrong against God. We're created by God and we have sinned against him from Adam. Adam and Eve sinning all the way down. We've all been born sinners all been born rotten to the core all in need of a Savior all in need of saving from a devil's hell a real place not a state of mind but a real place that Those who die without Christ and die in their sin are sent there But Jesus and God the Trinity God the Father God the Son God the Holy Spirit He does not desire for us to go there. He is not willing to Speaking of the father not that any should perish but that all should come to repentance And he did not want this woman to go and die in her sin in Samaria He wanted her to be saved and but he had to show her what her sin was and she knew what her sin was She knew it Even though the Samaritans were outcasts of the Jews. They still practiced Judaism. They still followed the law and They knew it was wrong. She knew what was wrong. She knew that she had broken the law of God, that she had loose morals, and that she was an outcast among her people. She knew what her sin was. And you know, maybe she was hoping that he wouldn't find out about it, but he knew already. But then he noticed something. Here, as I proceeded, thou art a prophet. And then she switches into the religious mode. And we'll continue on. She switches into the religious mode here. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain and you say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. So she's bringing up a controversy that was very common at the time. that the Jews said, well, the only place to worship is in Jerusalem. And that was true. That was the command of God at the time of the law of God. But their forefathers, ones that they had been cast out because they weren't allowed to come to the temple, they said, well, we'll worship in the mountains. They had a high place. They had Mount Ephraim. Now, Mount Ephraim in the Old Testament is a very interesting place, and I encourage you to do a study on that. But they would worship at Mount Ephraim, near Shechem. And so they would go and worship there, and worship God, and offer offerings. So now, she is bringing up a religious controversy. Oh, isn't that what people do sometimes? You know, they ask you all kinds of weird questions when you try to witness to them sometimes, right? Bring up. So well, where do we all come from? You can tell him well God created. Well, where did Where did Cain get his wife or where did these different things here? Oh, what about this? Well, how did Noah fit all those animals in the ark and well what happened here? What happened there and they bring out all these controversies, you know Jesus addresses it very quickly and he moves on he knows that here and we see your woman believe me the hour cometh when he shall neither in this mountain nor yet a Jerusalem worship the father and while she wasn't expecting this response. Because this goes against, not against, but once the law was fulfilled, we don't have to go to Jerusalem to worship God, do we? We worship God right here at Tabernacle Baptist Church here in Killeen, Texas. a long way from Jerusalem, right? I know we're not like the Muslims. We don't have to face our church in the direction of Mecca or Jerusalem, right? We don't have to do that. Why? Because Jesus completed the law, and we are saved by the grace of God, and we have free access to God through Jesus Christ, who is our intercessor. He is our high priest we can come before and call upon God a man worth a amen to that We don't have to go through a priestly system anymore. Jesus is our high priest and we can directly go before God Verse 22 you worship, you know, not what? So you have a religion, but you don't know what you're worshiping. You have some kind of knowledge, but you're not worshiping the true God Always not so many people today They're worshiping something but they don't even know what They worship God. They don't even know who God is. They worship Jesus. They don't even know that Jesus of the Bible. They don't know that Jesus can save them from their sin. If they trust in first there, he said, I am the way the truth and life. No man goes on a father, but by me, they don't realize they're religious, but they don't understand. He's telling her you have beliefs. You're religious, but you don't understand. Verse 23, but the hour cometh and now is when the true worshipper shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father seeketh such to worship Him. God doesn't want vain worship. God's not pleased with vainly sitting in the pew and punching a time slot. I went to church. God's happy with me. Oh, He's not pleased with vain worship. He is pleased with true worship from the heart, a true desire in spirit and in truth. He is pleased with that. For why? Verse 24, God is a spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. And verse 25, the woman saith unto Him, I know that Messiah's cometh. So they knew about the Messiah. They were practicing Judaism. They knew the prophecies of the Messiah. She heard Him speak this truth. She goes, this isn't just a prophet. And this is the, I get excited about this part, this part of the passage, okay? So bear with me for a minute. So I know that Messiah's cometh, which is called Christ. When he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus was speaking to her, telling her things that were gonna happen in the future, and she had brought to her mind the remembrance of the teaching that she had had Maybe when she was a girl or when she was older, but when she was a girl brought up Messiah is gonna come every Jewish child at this time from the time of the Old Testament all the way through Messiah will come one day and he will teach us all things and he'll be a great deal be the Son of God and we she remembered that and she heard him speak and she goes remember and she goes could it be could it be that This man is the one whom we have been waiting for, the Messiah, the Christ, the one who will take all away our sins. In verse number 26, Jesus says, I that speak unto thee am he. I am the Messiah. I am the one that you've been waiting for. I am the one that can take away your sin. I am the one, the promised one. Her hope, she dared to hope for a moment. She knew how dirty she was with her sin. She dared to hope for a moment that maybe the Messiah had come and spoken to her. She dared for a moment to hope, and her mind, just a fleeting moment, and Jesus saw it. He said, I am He! Praise God! She knew that her sins could be forgiven and Jesus and continue a verse way and upon this came his disciples and marveled that he talked with the woman him now Here's the culture coming in again. There's I will say whoa We're in Samaria. Why is he talking to a Samaritan woman? This is not no they didn't say it. They thought it Yet no man said, what seekest thou? Or why talkest thou with her? The woman then left her water pot and went her way into the city and saith to the man. I will continue on here in just a moment. But the message was that of salvation. She didn't fully realize who Jesus was, the promised Messiah, the one who would come and tell them all things. Jesus let her know that he was the one whom she had been waiting for. Maybe you're here today and you have a need, you have a spiritual need, and you've been waiting for something. You know something's missing. You know there's an emptiness in your heart. You know that the way you're living isn't the right way. You know the way you're going isn't right. You know there's something missing and you can't figure out what it is. And he said, there's a hope in my heart. I'm looking for God. I don't know where to find him. You found him today. The message, you found him. The message is that He wishes to take away your sin. Jesus lived a perfect life and He suffered and bled and died on a cruel cross, looked like this one, and He bled and suffered to pay for your sin and for mine. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. that whosoever believeth in him, believes in the Messiah, believeth in him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life." Jesus is the only way you can get to heaven. Jesus is the only way you can have peace. Jesus is the only way you can have salvation from your sin and not go to a place of eternal Burning in fire and torment in hell but go to the glories of heaven to be with Jesus But not only that but to be given a new life to be made a new creature All things are passed away. All things are become new you have found him today This is our Jesus Christ the Christ. This is our Savior. This is our Lord This is our God and that is why we are here today To worship him in spirit and in truth You need him today. You need Jesus. But this woman, she accepted the living water that Jesus offered her, accepted forgiveness of this sin. We don't know what happened before the disciples came up, but something happened to her because she had a change in her heart. She departed. She left her water pot. Now, that was a that was a big no, no. Your water pot was your life. They were extremely expensive. And so if you left it there, it's like leaving your car running in the Wal-Mart parking lot, running across the street, running back, you know, going back home, leaving your car in the parking lot. So this was a big deal. She was so overwhelmed and she was so joyous that she ran back into the city. And what did she do? And that brain that sees she accepted the living water, she accepted salvation, that brings his last point, number four. The revival that took place. The woman then left her water pot and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man which told me all things that ever I did. Is not this the Christ? Is it coming? He knows everything about me. He knows about my five husbands. He knows about my sin. He knows everything I ever did. But he forgave me, though. He gave me salvation. He saved me from my sin. He forgave it all. He washed it all away. Come and see him. Come and meet him. That's a true sign of salvation when you want to tell others. And it was real to her. She thought there was no hope for her. She was going to be outcast of the outcast forever and ever. And that that was it. And then she would just live her days like this in sin and in wretchedness and in shame. But Jesus took it all away. Jesus took her shame away. Jesus took her sin away. And she said, you can do it for you, too. He can do it for you. Then then they went out of the city and came unto him. He said, wow. She's different. He changed her. She's not the same wicked woman she used to be. She's different. It's true. And they went out and they wanted to see what happened to her. I mean, did someone knock her on the head or is someone what happened? He said, well, this guy must have something that's real. All that's what people look for is something real. Be a real Christian. Don't be a fake one. All the world has too many fake Christians in it today. Be a real one. Be a real Christ follower. People are gonna want to see hey, why are you you that way and we can say it's because of him It's not me. It's because of what Jesus did for me and the woman said it wasn't because of me It was because of the Christ the Messiah. He did it for me and Many came unto him Then went out of the city and came unto him in the meantime while his disciples prayed him and saying master eat and Imagine that. It's a master, you're hungry, eat. He's in the middle of a revival meeting. He says, take a lunch break. He goes, no. No, and what do you have here? Therefore said the disciples unto one another, or verse number 32, but he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples unto another, hath any man brought him out to eat? They didn't get it either. They didn't get the difference between the physical and the spiritual either. They were still learning too. I know not of you know, this is a mate. This is a good one for Christians as well. Verse 34. Jesus sayeth unto them My meat is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work It's not done yet There's men coming out from the city to see me. That's not done yet. It's not time to eat. It's time to work for God. I Verse number 35 say not ye there are yet four months and then cometh harvest behold us and you Interestingly enough interesting when we see this hole in context, don't we we see this passage a lot, but it's all in context There's a harvest coming out to meet me I send you to lift up your eyes and look on the fields for they are white already to harvest and he that reapeth receiveth wages and gather the fruit unto life eternal that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together herein is that saying true one soweth and another reapeth I sent you to reap that were to be bestowed no labor other men labored and you are entered into their labors So what's he talking about? He said quit forgetting about your stomachs and get your Bibles out. There's people that need to be saved They're coming in Don't say well, we've got they can wait a minute while you eat. He goes. No, I need to work. They're coming This is the reason I came I'm reaping you're gonna be reapers. I sowed the seed and you're gonna reap Verse number 39 and many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman was testified He told me all that ever I did Because of that phrase right there He told me ever I did he told he knew about my sin yet. He loved me He knew about my sin yet. He spoke to me. Yeah, did you know about my sin yet? He wanted to save me and if you're a sinner here today, he wants to save you He knows all about your sin He knows about mine He knows about everybody's in he knows everything you've ever done, but he still wants to save you today He knows everything you ever did. And you know what? That's what keeps some people from coming to God. You know what? The devil lied to him and said, well, God wouldn't take you anyway. They say, well, God couldn't love me. I've done too many bad things. God wouldn't love me because I've done too much wrong things. I'll tell you something, it was a sad truth. My aunt went to her grave believing that. But how many times you showed her and said, no, I've been too bad. I've done too many wrong things. I can't, Jesus wouldn't want me. But the truth is today, he does. He does want you. He does love you. He does want to save you. He does want to forgive you. And Christian forgive, and we should repent of our wickedness. Like, well, that person over there, they're too far gone. They don't need Jesus. Oh, we're tempted to think that way. The devil wants us to think that way. Well, I'll go over here, but I'm probably not gonna be fruitful. You know, if you want to put this on a fruitfulness scale, if you would go by the Jewish culture of the day, forget about Samaria, they're too far gone. Yet more people got saved in Samaria than any other place he went. Yet more people got saved in the outcast place than any other place he went and witnessed to because he had a lot of people following him until the message got unpopular. Then everybody else went away. Then Jesus turned to his disciples and said, will you also turn away? Will you also go away? Are you also going to go the other way? He says, who else can we go to? You have the words of life. They finally got it. They finally got who he was. They finally got it. And you know what? There are some Christians here today that maybe you're following, following after Jesus, but you never made him your savior. Come to church, read your Bible, you pray, but you don't know Jesus Christ. There's a difference between knowing about him and believing on him. There's a big difference. Maybe you're here today and you've never been here before. Or maybe you've been here a few times. Maybe you've been here for years. I don't know. And you know you need Jesus Christ. You know you need salvation. We tell you today, this might be your last chance. We're not guaranteed tomorrow. We're not guaranteed tomorrow. I'm not guaranteed tomorrow. I mentioned earlier, my uncle, he died on Friday. He was 89 years old. We kind of expect that for someone who's older. But I fully expected to talk to him next week. to call him up. I fully expected to be able to get to see him later this year. I expected that, but then I get a text message that said he passed away, just like that. He was in good health. He was doing fine, but it was his time to go. Well, he was older. Well, there's also a lot of other people. My niece, 13 years old, died of a brain tumor in two weeks. That was unexpected. And it's a comfort to know that she's with Jesus. At Thanksgiving time, my first time in seven years, I visited her grave. I remember the times I spent with her, but the comfort being I didn't sorrow and weep because I will never see her again, but because I will. It still hurts, but knowing there's a great peace and assurance knowing that I will see her again one day. But are there some in here that you have no such assurance? You can have it. right here, right now, today. Well, how, Pastor, how? First of all, you need to admit your sin. Admit that you're a sinner. Admit that you're worthy of death, for the wages of sin is death. Admit that you're worthy of death. Admit that you're worthy of hell. Oh, I'm not. Oh, the Bible says we are. God's law says we are. We are worthy of the pit because of our sin. And now we have no way of saving ourselves. No matter how hard you try, no matter how good you try to be, no matter how hard you try to do your good works, you'll still end up in the pit. It doesn't work. Salvation is not of works that man should boast. Realizing that Jesus Christ is the only way. There aren't many paths to heaven, my friend. There's only one. There's only one. There's only one mediator between God and man that is the man Christ Jesus only one one way one mediator one high priest and one who died for you and shed his blood for you and Accepting what he did for you We deserve to hang there and suffer for our sin and bleed and die and go to hell But he suffered and bled to pay for all the sins that we have committed All of them, wretched and vile they be. He died and became sin for us. Why? Because he loved you. Why? So you would not have to be in hell for all of eternity. He'd destroy his beloved creation, but so that you could be in heaven with him when you die. We're only passing through this life. The grave is not the end. Amen? The grave is not the end, my friend. Just blowing in the ground, that's it, that's all there is to life. They'd like you to believe that, but in our hearts we know that's not really true. All people try and console themselves with that thought, but God has put something in our hearts that we know there is a God, and we know that there is an eternal life somewhere, either in heaven or hell. There's nothing in between. It's not first class, last class, and middle class. There's heaven or hell, one or the other. And we can't earn heaven. We can't work our way to heaven. We can work our way into hell. That's fine. We can do that. That's what all men can do. But Jesus died on the cross and shed his blood so that we could be in heaven, have eternal life in him. Will you accept that today? Won't you come to him today? No matter what you've done, he can save you. Dear Christian, don't we see the need to go to them who are in need? There are people dying all around us that are lost in their sin. Just like the Samaritans, people that are the outcasts of society. Do we go to them? Religious Christian, will you go out in the highways and hedges and compel them to come in? Or will you treat them like the Jews treated the Samaritans? Oh, I don't want anything to do with them. The only thing to do with them, remember the good Samaritans. parable that Jesus gave that there was a Jewish man who was on his way to Jericho and he was beaten and robbed by the side of the road and The priest went by the religious man of the day the one who was interceding on behalf of other people Looked at him and passed him by didn't help him the Levite the one who was the Keeper of the temple and the servant of other people and the servant of God He looked at him. He passed by the other side like he wasn't there, but it wasn't a Samaritan that came by Showed compassion on him and took care of him and helped him have bandaged up his wounds and took care of him They truly followed the Word of God John 4 verse 8. I'll read this verse and I'm done this morning 1st John 4 8 says this he that loveth not knoweth not God God is love God is love If we say we're a Christian and yet we can't love another person enough to witness to them. The Bible says, you know not God. What does that mean, pastor? Double check and make sure you're saved. Maybe you are saved, but you haven't been in touch with God lately. You haven't been in touch with God in your prayer life. You haven't been in touch with God and his word. Oh, when we do that, we grow cold and we grow uncaring of other people. But if we're in touch with God, and we're close to God. We will love others the way He loves them. He knows all that you ever did, everything. Will you come to Him and let Him give you that living water, eternal life, forgiveness from sin. Won't you come to Him today? Let's pray. Most Grace, Heavenly Father, we come before you this morning and we pray of those that have a spiritual need, a need of salvation, that they would come to you today. Perhaps others have other needs in their life, maybe physical needs, emotional needs. Whatever it may be, Lord, you can meet every need. You know everything that's going on in our life. You know everything that we've done. You also know everything that other people have done to us, things that have happened to us, our past. You know it all, and you can heal us, Lord, and guide us. We pray, dear Lord, that you would guide and direct this invitation time, and I pray that those that don't know you, that are lost, that they would come to you today, and that you would use us to bring them to yourself. I pray, dear Lord, that you would guide and direct us this morning. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.