In the Gar\u00adden of Eden, harm\u00ado\u00adny and abun\u00addant hap\u00adpi\u00adness reig\u00adned. Unfort\u00adu\u00adna\u00adte\u00adly, huma\u00adni\u00adty cho\u00adse to find hap\u00adpi\u00adness on its own path. Sin des\u00adtroys rela\u00adti\u00adonship and crea\u00adtes sepa\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon. Exem\u00adpli\u00adfied by the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman in John 4, by offe\u00adring her living water at Jacob\u2019s well, Jesus res\u00adto\u00adres peace bet\u00adween God and peo\u00adp\u00adle of all races and clas\u00adses. Just as cen\u00adtu\u00adries ear\u00adlier Abraham\u2019s ser\u00advant crea\u00adted the con\u00addi\u00adti\u00adons for the mar\u00adria\u00adge bet\u00adween Rebe\u00adkah and Isaac at a well, Jesus now does the same for the rela\u00adti\u00adonship bet\u00adween God and man.<\/p>\n
Almost exact\u00adly three years ago, a group from see\u00adtal chi\u00adle tra\u00advel\u00adled to Isra\u00adel. Among other things, we visi\u00adted a church in Nab\u00adlus (form\u00ader\u00adly Sychar) \u2013 in the midst of Mus\u00adlim Pal\u00ades\u00adti\u00adni\u00adans. The priest of the Ortho\u00addox Church the\u00adre holds up the flag of Chris\u00adtia\u00adni\u00adty in the city. In his church, a stair\u00adca\u00adse goes down to Jacob\u2019s Well. It is the well whe\u00adre the mee\u00adting of Jesus and the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman is said to have taken place. So, as a group, we stood devout\u00adly around the well and read the sto\u00adry from John 4. After\u00adwards, the priest bles\u00adsed me and gave me a small sou\u00adve\u00adnir jug fil\u00adled with water from this well stee\u00adped in history. \tWhy did Jesus go the rou\u00adte through Sama\u00adria and not around it as usual? In the Gar\u00adden of Eden, harm\u00ado\u00adny and abun\u00addant hap\u00adpi\u00adness reig\u00adned. Unfort\u00adu\u00adna\u00adte\u00adly, huma\u00adni\u00adty cho\u00adse to find hap\u00adpi\u00adness on its own path. Sin des\u00adtroys rela\u00adti\u00adonship and crea\u00adtes sepa\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon. The Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman in John 4 is an exam\u00adp\u00adle of this. By offe\u00adring her living water at Jacob\u2019s well, Jesus estab\u00adlishes peace bet\u00adween God and peo\u00adp\u00adle of all races.\u2026<\/p>","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":7035,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[23],"wpfc_sermon_series":[81],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[12],"class_list":{"0":"wpfc_preacher-matthias-altwegg","1":"wpfc_sermon_series-creatio","2":"wpfc-sermon-single","3":"post-3936","4":"wpfc_sermon","5":"type-wpfc_sermon","6":"status-publish","7":"has-post-thumbnail","8":"hentry","11":"wpfc_service_type-gottesdienst"},"acf":[],"sermons_blog_filters_topics":"\t\t\t\t
\nHis\u00adto\u00adric fountain
\nAt that time, the time of Jesus, a woman known only as the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman approa\u00adches Jacob\u2019s well. The unna\u00admed woman is alo\u00adne with her water jugs at mid\u00adday. Nor\u00admal\u00adly, the women do not do this work under the hot\u00adtest desert sun, but eit\u00adher in the ear\u00adly mor\u00adning or at dusk. Alt\u00adhough it is a rigo\u00adrous job, the women enjoy doing it. It is an oppor\u00adtu\u00adni\u00adty to have a litt\u00adle chat on the way or sit\u00adting on the edge of the well.
\nWhy does this woman walk such a lonely path? We find the ans\u00adwer in John 4:16\u201318. The name\u00adl\u00adess woman has had five hus\u00adbands and the man she is now living with is not her hus\u00adband. She has given hers\u00adelf to five men and five men have put her out on the street. Five times she hoped for hap\u00adpi\u00adness in her life, five times she was dis\u00adap\u00adpoin\u00adted. How emp\u00adty, how used, how hurt and wort\u00adhl\u00adess she must feel! Five times she had hope, a home, food and pro\u00adtec\u00adtion; five times she was put asi\u00adde. For the men, she is not\u00adhing more than a brief pit stop. Pro\u00adba\u00adb\u00adly, she thinks, she is not worth it.
\nBecau\u00adse she can no lon\u00adger stand the glan\u00adces and whis\u00adpers behind clo\u00adsed doors about her wort\u00adhl\u00adess\u00adness, her infer\u00adti\u00adli\u00adty and her ina\u00adbi\u00adli\u00adty to have a rela\u00adti\u00adonship, she sepa\u00adra\u00adtes hers\u00adelf from the other women. Yet she wants not\u00adhing more than to quench her thirst for hap\u00adpi\u00adness and mea\u00adning in life. She remains emp\u00adty. So this per\u00adso\u00adna non gra\u00adta approa\u00adches Jacob\u2019s well, but ins\u00adtead of the soli\u00adtu\u00adde she was loo\u00adking for, she meets a Jewish man. Jesus was tra\u00advel\u00adling with his disci\u00adples from Judea to Gali\u00adlee. \u00abBut he had to tra\u00advel through Sama\u00adria\u00bb (John 4:4 LUT<\/span>). Jesus had to tra\u00advel through Sama\u00adria, alt\u00adhough the Jews basi\u00adcal\u00adly took the alter\u00adna\u00adti\u00adve rou\u00adte to avo\u00adid mee\u00adting Sama\u00adri\u00adtans. Jews and Sama\u00adri\u00adtans were bit\u00adter enemies. It was in 722 BC<\/span> that the nor\u00adt\u00adhern king\u00addom of Isra\u00adel was sacked by the Assy\u00adri\u00adans and the inha\u00adbi\u00adtants disper\u00adsed throug\u00adhout the Assy\u00adri\u00adan empire. In return, they sett\u00adled peo\u00adp\u00adle from other are\u00adas with other gods in Sama\u00adria. This resul\u00adted in a reli\u00adgious mish\u00admash. The Jews who remain\u00aded vio\u00adla\u00adted the Mosaic Law by inte\u00adgra\u00adting the gods of the new inha\u00adbi\u00adtants. This made them enemies for the Jews who kept the Law. The big\u00adgest dif\u00adfe\u00adrence was in the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan belief that Mount Gari\u00adzim, not Jeru\u00adsa\u00adlem, was the place to wor\u00adship God. For cen\u00adtu\u00adries the\u00adre were vio\u00adlent clas\u00adhes bet\u00adween Jews and Sama\u00adri\u00adtans. That is why the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman was so sur\u00adpri\u00adsed when the Jew Jesus addres\u00adsed her.
\nWhy does Jesus nevert\u00adhel\u00adess take the rou\u00adte through Sama\u00adria? As Jesus approa\u00adches Sychar with his disci\u00adples, they go shop\u00adping in the vil\u00adla\u00adge. Mean\u00adwhile, Jesus sits down by Jacob\u2019s well, despi\u00adte the hot mid\u00adday sun. Three times Jacob, the name of the arch-father, is expli\u00adcit\u00adly men\u00adtio\u00adned in the text. What hap\u00adpens now is of out\u00adstan\u00adding his\u00adto\u00adri\u00adcal signi\u00adfi\u00adcan\u00adce. The name\u00adl\u00adess woman repres\u00adents a cross-sec\u00adtion of eth\u00adnic groups and life on the mar\u00adgins of society.
\nJesus opens the con\u00adver\u00adsa\u00adti\u00adon with four words: \u00abGive me to drink!\u00bb (V.7 LUT<\/span>). The\u00adse words must remind the ori\u00adgi\u00adnal lis\u00adte\u00adner of a sto\u00adry recor\u00added in Gene\u00adsis 24. Abra\u00adham sends his ser\u00advant to find a wife for his son Isaac. The ser\u00advant ful\u00adfils his mis\u00adsi\u00adon at a well. When Rebe\u00adkah came to the well, his first words were, \u00abPlea\u00adse give me some\u00adthing to drink from your jar!\u00bb (Gene\u00adsis 24:14 NLB<\/span>). Rebe\u00adkah later beco\u00admes Isaac\u2019s wife.
\nWhen Jesus asks the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman to give him water, he sets the stage for mar\u00adria\u00adge. When Jesus waits at the well and asks for water, the God of all crea\u00adtures cros\u00adses space and time to make an offer to huma\u00adni\u00adty. By asking a Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman, Jesus show\u00aded that God\u2019s love is not limi\u00adt\u00aded to one eth\u00adni\u00adci\u00adty, gen\u00adder or social standing.
\nThe woman repli\u00aded, \u00abYou are a Jew and I am a Sama\u00adri\u00adtan. Why do you ask me to give you some\u00adthing to drink?\u00bb (V.9 NLB<\/span>). In other words, you can\u2019t be serious. You can\u2019t want to be with me becau\u00adse no one wants to be with me! But Jesus ans\u00adwers: \u00abIf you knew what gift God has in store for you and who he is who says to you, \u00abGive me to drink,\u00bb you would be the one to ask him, and he would give you living water\u00bb (v.10 NLB<\/span>).
\nCra\u00adcked cisterns
\nAgain, about seven cen\u00adtu\u00adries befo\u00adre this foun\u00adtain event, God alre\u00ada\u00addy spo\u00adke about living water through the pro\u00adphet Jere\u00admi\u00adah. The\u00adre, the con\u00adnec\u00adtion bet\u00adween con\u00adju\u00adgal love and water alre\u00ada\u00addy emer\u00adges. God reminds the Israe\u00adli\u00adtes that they are his peo\u00adp\u00adle and com\u00adpa\u00adres their rela\u00adti\u00adonship to that of bri\u00adde and bri\u00adde\u00adg\u00adroom (Jere\u00admi\u00adah 2:2). In human terms, the\u00adre is no grea\u00adter love than love in the con\u00adtext of mar\u00adria\u00adge. It is the hig\u00adhest com\u00admit\u00adment, the uni\u00adon of two into one. Two peo\u00adp\u00adle, two fami\u00adlies, two kinds of dreams, of voca\u00adti\u00adons, of suc\u00adces\u00adses, of pro\u00adblems, of memo\u00adries, of humour beco\u00adme one. A mar\u00adria\u00adge has the poten\u00adti\u00adal for hea\u00adven on earth and at the same time for deep hurt. From the deepest attach\u00adment comes the ter\u00adror of the deepest loss. The break-up of a mar\u00adria\u00adge feels like the break-up of one\u2019s life. If this is alre\u00ada\u00addy so pain\u00adful bet\u00adween two peo\u00adp\u00adle, how much worse is the brea\u00adking apart of the rela\u00adti\u00adonship bet\u00adween crea\u00adti\u00adon and crea\u00adtor. Our enti\u00adre exis\u00adtence depends on God. God\u2019s breath, the Ruach, makes us living beings. God\u2019s ima\u00adgi\u00adna\u00adti\u00adon brought us into being and God\u2019s hands for\u00admed each of us in our mother\u2019s womb. To be who\u00adle is to be in a loving rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God.
\nThe descrip\u00adti\u00adon of the Gar\u00adden of Eden offers us a glim\u00adpse of man\u2019s loving rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God and of living water. It gus\u00adhes from a spring and spreads in four direc\u00adtions over the who\u00adle earth. The water pro\u00admo\u00adtes lush land\u00adscapes, secu\u00adri\u00adty and suc\u00adcessful work. Then came the break. Adam and Eve ate from the fruit of the tree of the know\u00adledge of good and evil. They did not trust God and cho\u00adse their own path to hap\u00adpi\u00adness. This is exact\u00adly what the term sin means. Sin means trus\u00adting some\u00adthing other than God. Later, God enters the gar\u00adden to check on his bel\u00adoved peo\u00adp\u00adle. Adam and Eve hide becau\u00adse they are unsu\u00adre what God has in mind for them. The rup\u00adtu\u00adre takes its toll. In one fell swoop, all the rela\u00adti\u00adonships that God has declared \u00abvery good\u00bb are bro\u00adken. Man\u2019s bro\u00adken rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God is the fun\u00adda\u00admen\u00adtal cau\u00adse of all other frac\u00adtures. Becau\u00adse all crea\u00adti\u00adon is inter\u00adcon\u00adnec\u00adted by God\u2019s love, the brea\u00adking of one rela\u00adti\u00adonship means the brea\u00adking of all others.
\nSin sepa\u00adra\u00adtes and des\u00adtroys rela\u00adti\u00adonships. When sin ente\u00adred the world, it sepa\u00adra\u00adted human beings from life its\u00adelf, from each other, from the rest of crea\u00adti\u00adon and from God. Death is the ulti\u00adma\u00adte form of sepa\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon. In Gene\u00adsis 3 the\u00adre were three win\u00adners: death, sin and sepa\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon. The peo\u00adp\u00adle were dri\u00adven out of the gar\u00adden so that they would not still seek out the tree of life and eat from it. For then they would have lived fore\u00adver in the wor\u00adsened cir\u00adcum\u00ads\u00adtances. Sin\u00adce that time, man has been on a long search for living water.
\nThe Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman seeks hap\u00adpi\u00adness and peace in male rela\u00adti\u00adonships. She reaps sepa\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon and iso\u00adla\u00adti\u00adon. Other peo\u00adp\u00adle drink from the well of suc\u00adcess, sta\u00adtus or wealth. They remain emp\u00adty. The pro\u00adphet reproa\u00adches the peo\u00adp\u00adle of Isra\u00adel, God\u2019s bel\u00adoved bri\u00adde: \u00abFor my peo\u00adp\u00adle com\u00admit a two\u00adfold sin: For\u00adsa\u00adking me, the living foun\u00adtain, they make them\u00adsel\u00adves cis\u00adterns, which yet are cra\u00adcked, and hold not the water\u00bb (Jere\u00admi\u00adah 2:13 LUT<\/span>). Every human being tri\u00ades to quench his thirst for peace and happiness.
\nLiving water
\nJesus pro\u00admi\u00adses the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman: \u00abBut whoe\u00adver drinks of the water I will give him will never thirst again. The water I give him will beco\u00adme a never-ending spring in him, flowing unce\u00ada\u00adsing\u00adly to eter\u00adnal life\u00bb (John 4:14 NLB<\/span>). Jesus as the bri\u00adde\u00adg\u00adroom crea\u00adtes pre\u00adcis\u00ade\u00adly the basis for the \u00abmar\u00adria\u00adge\u00bb bet\u00adween God and human beings. The event at Jacob\u2019s well is Jesus\u00bb offer to all peo\u00adp\u00adle to come back into loving com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adon with God. It is the res\u00adto\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon of rela\u00adti\u00adonship, of shalom, with God. When Jesus began his minis\u00adtry in this world, he was tempt\u00aded to quench his thirst from cra\u00adcked cis\u00adterns. He strug\u00adg\u00adled against the tempt\u00ada\u00adti\u00adon to satis\u00adfy his own hun\u00adger, to usurp power and to doubt God\u2019s abili\u00adty to give life (Luke 4). In the end, Jesus cho\u00adse God\u2019s way to peace and the rever\u00adsal of the Fall began.
\nDo you belie\u00adve that Jesus has over\u00adco\u00adme all bar\u00adriers to love you and be with you? Have you said YES<\/span> to Jesus? If not yet, what is still hol\u00adding you back?
\n
\nQues\u00adti\u00adons for the small groups
\nRead the Bible text: John 4:1\u201330<\/p>\n
\n\tWhy might the per\u00adson of the Sama\u00adri\u00adtan woman have been important for the mes\u00adsa\u00adge of res\u00adto\u00adring rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God?
\n\tThe pre\u00adre\u00adqui\u00adsi\u00adte for the mar\u00adria\u00adge of Rebe\u00adkah and Isaac was also laid at a well (Gene\u00adsis 24). Why does Jesus make this asso\u00adcia\u00adti\u00adon at Jacob\u2019s well?
\n\tWhat is sin and what does it do?
\n\tThe epi\u00adso\u00adde at the well stands for the res\u00adto\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon of peace bet\u00adween God and man. What is your atti\u00adtu\u00adde towards this offer?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"