Does Jesus have something for someone like you?

In John 4, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at a well and responds to a royal official whose son is close to death. Their circumstances are different, but both encounters reveal the Messiah’s invitation to believe.

In Come and See the Messiah, Part 4 of our series through the Gospel of John, we explore how Jesus crosses barriers of prejudice, offers living water, and speaks truth that changes lives. His conversation with the woman opens up questions about our deepest needs and what it means to worship in spirit and truth. The royal official’s response challenges us to take Jesus at His word.

Together, these encounters invite us to consider who Jesus is, trust Him with our needs, and share His good news with people we might otherwise overlook.

Scripture: John 4

For reflection: What would it look like to take Jesus at His word this week?

Click here to donate to the program

Click here for more sermons

OC Church of Christ

Dr. Gregg Marutzky:

2

Well, good morning, church Good morning.

3

It is great to be together to worship.

4

It is great to be together with you

as brothers and sisters in Christ,

5

as disciplers, disciples, and

followers of our Lord Jesus Christ.

6

Don't ever take worship for granted.

7

Don't take for granted the privilege

of coming together with other

8

believers and taking communion, and

this, the, the importance of the

9

profundity, how important it is.

10

And thank you so much,

Ian, for leading us.

11

You led me to a good place this morning.

12

Yeah.

13

Really good place.

14

I, I got choked up and teared up as

I was taking my bread and my cup.

15

And so thank you, brother.

16

You made it come alive for us.

17

Mm.

18

And I pray that I can do the

same for the whole congregation,

19

all of you this morning.

20

As we look at a familiar passage, and

any time you look at a familiar passage,

21

you gotta be careful you don't tune out.

22

Yeah.

23

"Oh, I've heard this sermon.

24

Oh yeah, I've read this so many

times, probably thousands of times.

25

I mean, what can he say

that I haven't heard?"

26

Well, I, I, I think the Lord said

some things to me this week from this

27

verse that I'd never heard of- Wow

28

and I'd never thought of.

29

Yeah.

30

And I think the Lord spoke

to me in several ways.

31

I was at a scholars conference

this week in North Carolina.

32

Our churches put this on every year.

33

And I went there to gain some depth,

some real deeper truths of the scripture,

34

and all I heard were testimonials And I

thought, "This is a different conference."

35

But it was so profound, and I'll

share a little bit of that as

36

we get into the sermon, but I

thought, "This is different."

37

But it helped me, it helped my

heart, and it spoke to me in

38

what to say to you this morning.

39

And the more I went through the

conference, the more I thought, "Oh, I

40

don't know if I wanna preach this week."

41

'Cause I'm gonna be getting in

late, I was supposed to get in

42

at 10:00, I got in at 11:30.

43

Don't you love the airlines

always being right on time?

44

You know?

45

And yet I think I'm prepared because

the Lord's always discipling all of us.

46

Amen.

47

He's always working on our lives.

48

He's always speaking to us.

49

And so this morning we're gonna come

and see the Messiah, the Anointed One,

50

the one spoke about for the ages, that

they were looking forward to, to come

51

and save them, to bring them the answers

to life, to bring them salvation,

52

to help this little bitty country

that was just a gas station in life.

53

I mean, Canaan and the, the Promised

Land was really just a highway for

54

the power countries of the world at

that time, for Babylon, for Assyria,

55

for Egypt, for Rome, for Greece.

56

It was a country that was not

respected, that was not honored.

57

They were a people that had been nomads.

58

They had been desert dwellers.

59

The Hebrew, that's what it literally

means, means tent dwellers, all right?

60

The He- Hebrew people were

just nomads without a home.

61

And sen- then God gave them the

Promised Land, but it was just a

62

place that people passed through

going to one of the big countries.

63

All right?

64

And so the Messiah was

gonna make them somebody.

65

And, you know, I g- I always try to

do some work on the plane and, and I

66

always try to reach out to the people

around me, and, uh, I, I tried to do

67

that, and once I mention I'm a minister,

people seem to put on their headphones

68

And so I put on my headphones

and I watched a great movie.

69

It's called Flamin' Hot, and

I'd never heard of it before.

70

All right?

71

And, and you know, I'd, I'd wa- I'd

seen everything else they were offering,

72

you know, at least the cl- you know,

the, the, the ones I wanted to see.

73

So I thought, "I'll try this."

74

It, they said it's his, uh, Hispanic

h- Appreciation Month, and so

75

being, uh, part Hispanic, I thought,

"I'm gonna, I'm gonna watch this."

76

And it's about a guy named, uh, Richard.

77

Uh, and let me get his

name right, all right?

78

Had to look it up again

this morning, okay?

79

But, uh, uh, Richard Montañez, and he

was a janitor for Frito-Lay, and he's

80

really glad to get that job because

he, he couldn't get a job for a long

81

time and he went into doing drugs and

pushing drugs and that kind of thing.

82

Got in all kinds of troubles.

83

Then he ha- he, he, he had a baby, and

he married his wife, and they had a baby,

84

and he wanted to turn over a new life,

so he, he, he got a, finally got a job.

85

One of his buddies helped him get a job

at Frito-Lay in, uh, Rancho Cucamonga.

86

And, uh, he loved the job.

87

He really worked hard.

88

But he was a thinker, and his dad had

taught him how to fix engines and fix

89

things, and so he was always trying

to learn what, what the process was

90

and w- w- how they were making these

chips and all that kind of thing.

91

And, and the, the, the, the f- the

chip industry went up and down and up

92

and down, and people were getting laid

off, and he was always fearful of his

93

job, and, but he worked so hard he

always was able to keep it, but all

94

of, a lot of his friends got laid off.

95

And so he was thinking, "How can

we be more successful as a plant?"

96

And they were competing against

the Bakersfield plant, all right?

97

So it's pretty cool, all these places

right here in Southern California

98

that, that I relate to, you know?

99

And so I'm getting into this movie,

and, uh, uh, he, uh, he finally

100

figured out that they weren't

making chips for Hispanic people.

101

Because Hispanic people would go to

their picnics and their family gatherings

102

and stuff and put all this hot salsa on

their chips, on the Cheetos and all the,

103

all the, the tortilla chips and stuff.

104

And he says, "They're

not making any for us.

105

Maybe that's the market.

106

If we get into that market,

we can save Frito-Lay.

107

We can save the country, the

company, and we won't get laid off."

108

And so, so he, he watched a video from

the president of Frito-Lay from, I think

109

he's in Atlanta, a guy named Enrico.

110

All right?

111

He was an Italian guy.

112

And, and, and, and he said in that,

that video, "Think like a CEO."

113

And so Richard decided, "I'm

gonna think like a CEO."

114

So he started looking around the plant,

thought, "How can we improve this?"

115

And, and so he talked his wife into,

to, to coming up with this, this recipe

116

for Chi- uh, Flamin' Hot Cheetos.

117

And he, and he, and he, and

they had their little son.

118

He looked like he was about two or three.

119

Well, he could talk, so he was

probably about four or five years

120

old, and he would be the taste tester.

121

And he would eat it and said,

"No, no, not hot enough."

122

You know?

123

And he'd eat it and he, "Oh, too

hot, too hot, too hot, too hot."

124

You know?

125

And he was the taste tester.

126

So they ma- they, they refined

this, this recipe and the rest

127

of the story I'll finish it.

128

I ex- e- elongated it there a little bit.

129

Is he called up the CEO, and you could

see the secretary's like, "Who's this?

130

You're the vice president of

marketing for Southern California?"

131

"No.

132

No, I just, I work at the plant."

133

"Are you, are you the plant manager?"

134

"No.

135

No, uh…"

136

"Are, are you one of

the directors of the…"

137

"No, no."

138

And she go, he goes, "What do you do?"

139

He goes, "I'm the janitor, but I'm

gonna save the country- company.

140

I'm gonna save it.

141

I'm f- I'm gonna save Frito-Lay.

142

Let me talk to him."

143

And she's like, "I'm gonna

put this guy through."

144

Put him through to the president.

145

The president listened to him, came

and visited him, tasted it, let

146

him make it there at that plant,

and at first it wasn't selling

147

'cause nobody knew about it.

148

So then he got all the neighborhood guys

to start eating it and ga- he gave away

149

all, everything that didn't sell initially

for free, and then it just exploded.

150

And he, he moved from janitor

to a marketing director.

151

Oh.

152

And he retired at, like, 59 years old.

153

Is that cool or what?

154

I, I mean, I got teared up.

155

I'm like, "This is a great story.

156

Way to go, Richard."

157

And the reason that he told Enrico that

he had to do it is because he cared about

158

his, his neighbors, and he was not gonna

be denied 'cause he was not a loser.

159

He had been made to feel like a loser

all his life, and he knew he wasn't.

160

And the story we're gonna look at

today, guys, is about a couple of, of

161

losers, people at least thought they

were, and Jesus told them they weren't.

162

So pray with me and let's look

at the scriptures together.

163

God and Father, please bless us

this morning as we read your Word.

164

Father, may it change our hearts.

165

May we meet Jesus at the well.

166

Father, may we clear our minds

of all the distractions and all

167

the things that pull us away from

your truth and from your Word.

168

And Father, may it show us some

things that we need to see.

169

Thank you, Father.

170

In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

171

Amen.

172

And so I'm giving you the

reference that we have.

173

You know, if you wanna read that, you

wanna look at it, uh, it, uh, will help

174

you go deeper into the Book of John.

175

But, uh, re- to remind you of the theme,

it's in John 21, "Jesus did many other

176

signs and miracles that are not written

in this book, but these are written that

177

you might," you and me, "might believe."

178

Believe that Jesus is the Christ,

the Son of God, the Messiah.

179

And so I don't want us

to ever forget that.

180

In all these lessons, He's

trying to feed our faith.

181

He's trying to get our faith to grow,

to get our faith to be stronger.

182

What's wrong with most people is they've

had a crisis of faith at some point

183

in their life, and they've lost faith.

184

Right.

185

Why have we lost members?

186

Crisis of faith.

187

Yes.

188

God disappointed them in some way, the

church disappointed them in some way,

189

and they're looking for a different

place where they won't be disappointed.

190

We gotta look at the right place

to build our faith, and we're

191

gonna, we're gonna look at the

well this morning to see Jesus.

192

But this is the, the

poster, and I'm afraid to…

193

A little bit afraid to, to recommend

this movie or this TV series,

194

'cause it's got some bad language.

195

Old Roy can't, can't,

can't clean up his mouth.

196

All right?

197

But Ted Lasso is, i- i- is,

is, is a soccer football show.

198

He's a coach, so I, I, I watched

it during COVID, and now I'm

199

back into watching a little bit.

200

And this is the, the sign

he has in the locker room.

201

And I'm not gonna ruin the f- the season

finale for you, but they added to this

202

sign, and it's the right addition.

203

Let me just say that.

204

It's gonna come out in the

sermon a little bit, all right?

205

So we gotta believe.

206

But we're looking at who

is Jesus this morning.

207

And in this chapter, in verse

29, the Samaritan woman, and

208

we're gonna call her Samantha.

209

All right?

210

We're gonna personalize this.

211

We're gonna get practical and real

with it, so let's call her Samantha.

212

All right?

213

I have a bro- a dad named Samuel.

214

We called him Joe.

215

You know, I had a brother named Sammy.

216

We called him Sam.

217

And so Samantha, we'll call Samantha.

218

All right?

219

'Cause we're gonna call the

nobleman in this story Sam.

220

So we're gonna talk about Sam

and Samantha this morning.

221

And usually, when you preach John

chapter 4, it's such a long chapter,

222

nobody talks about the nobleman.

223

But there's an important point

what, that I wanna make about the

224

nobleman, but we won't go long.

225

All right?

226

Co- But she said, "Come and see a man

who told me everything I ever did."

227

Do we really like truth tellers?

228

Do we really like people that

tell us the truth about ourselves?

229

Or would we rather be in denial?

230

You know, I, I think a

lot of us, we vacillate.

231

"Yeah, tell me the truth.

232

Ooh, not, not, not that mu- not that way."

233

Yeah.

234

"Be nice about it."

235

Right?

236

Or they start telling us and

we're like, "That isn't true.

237

I don't agree with that."

238

And then we have to be told older, over

and over some things before we ever get it

239

But the special thing about Samantha

is what Jesus said to her, I…

240

If you read it, it's very blunt.

241

It seems harsh.

242

It seems shaming.

243

It really does.

244

And yet she loved it.

245

Because Jesus later on in the book

says, "The truth will set you free."

246

Yeah.

247

That's right.

248

And we've got to always remember that.

249

Right.

250

That anything less than

truth will not set you free.

251

Right.

252

And so even though sometimes the

truth is hard to, to hear, and the

253

truth hurts, and I know it had to

hurt this woman a little bit- Yes

254

it set her free.

255

She said, "Come and see a man that

told me everything I ever did.

256

Could he be…?"

257

She thinks he is, but she's

still doubting a little bit.

258

Could he be the Savior, the Messiah?

259

And Messiah means the

Anointed One, the Chosen One.

260

It's from the Hebrew word Mishkayah, M-

Mishkayak, and then the Greek Kristos.

261

And so, uh, we need to do a little review

though before we get into this chapter.

262

You always gotta get the context.

263

Don't proof text the scriptures, guys.

264

And don't believe what you believe

just because you pulled a verse out

265

of context and it sort of confirms

your already predisposed beliefs.

266

All right?

267

All right.

268

Look at the context.

269

So let's look at the context

of John chapter four.

270

And if we review what we've looked at

in chapter one, two, and three and four,

271

there's this character, John the Baptist.

272

What's the main thing

about John chapter one?

273

The incarnation.

274

God with us.

275

The Logos has come.

276

And then all these people witness

in John chapter one that Jesus

277

came full of grace and truth.

278

But he, he's saying the

world is in darkness.

279

There's empty souls out there.

280

And so all of a sudden this thought

came to me this week that, you

281

know, John is trying to tell us how

to have abundant life, full life.

282

Why?

283

Because he sees a bunch of emptiness,

a bunch of people that don't feel good

284

enough or have enough or just feel empty.

285

In John chapter two, the

jars run out of wine.

286

The jars are empty.

287

And so Jesus turns water into wine.

288

That's his first miracle, and

his mother asks him to do it.

289

And then he clears the temple,

and he says he didn't want…

290

God doesn't want empty worship.

291

"Don't make my house of prayer

a house of robbers, a house

292

of deceivers and charlatans."

293

And that, then chapter three, Nicodemus.

294

Nick at night-

295

He came at night

296

And he's an empty soul.

297

He's, uh, got an empty spirit.

298

And so what does Jesus say to him?

299

"I wanna fill your spirit.

300

I want you to be born again,

born of water and spirit, water

301

and wine, grace and truth.

302

You've gotta be born again or

you're gonna stay empty, Nicodemus."

303

And then he meets the Samaritan woman and

the noble official in John, chapter 4.

304

The noble official at the end of

the book is desperate because his

305

son is dying, and so many of us

as, as parents relate to this.

306

We're so concerned about our kids,

and you never stop being a parent.

307

And I have a angst every day about

one of my children, you know?

308

And I, um, a lot of parents in this

audience, we have angst over our children.

309

We have concern.

310

And so we'll relate to him, and

we, I need to preach him today.

311

And then the Samaritan woman,

it's this person that she's

312

having a crisis of faith.

313

How could she have a crisis of faith, Dr.

314

Craig?

315

She, she doesn't have any faith.

316

She's given up on God.

317

No, people without faith

have crisis of faith.

318

They want faith, they just know

they don't have it anymore.

319

And what has she got?

320

She's got an empty heart.

321

She's been looking for love in

all the wrong places Urban cowboy.

322

Some of you remember

country music back then.

323

John Travolta, you know, looking for

love at Gilley's in Houston, right?

324

Yeah.

325

Most of you have never been there.

326

But it is a sweet song.

327

It's a true song.

328

People look for love in all the wrong

places, and that's what Samantha did.

329

And so that's where our

story begins this morning.

330

And Jesus always contrasts…

331

There's always a contrast in all

of his lessons between f- And

332

here in John, it's always almost

always gonna be full and empty.

333

Are you full or are you empty?

334

Are you full or are you empty?

335

Do you have life or do you not have life?

336

It says in John 10:10, "The thief comes

only to steal and kill and destroy.

337

But I've come that you may have

life, and have it to the full."

338

Now, I'm not saying

today you have full life.

339

By the time you get to heaven,

you'll have full life, all right?

340

Amen.

341

So I'm not gonna promise you

something that I can't promise you,

342

but this is what God wants for you.

343

This is what Jesus wants for you.

344

And you may not have it right now, but

this is the promise of the Savior, of the

345

Messiah, that I can make your life better.

346

I can fill the void.

347

Right.

348

Amen.

349

I can fill the emptiness.

350

And even I, though I can't change

all of your circumstances, 'cause

351

life isn't fair in this life.

352

That's why we're going to heaven, and

that's why we look forward to heaven.

353

But I'll even help you to

redeem the circumstances so the

354

circumstances don't kill you.

355

Yes.

356

So you can survive them, and

even be full and be happy in this

357

life, even with the challenges.

358

Amen?

359

Amen.

360

So now let's get into our passage, John 4.

361

"Now Jesus learned that the, the

Pharisees had heard that he was gaining

362

and baptizing more disciples than

John, although in fact it was not Jesus

363

who had baptized but his disciples.

364

So he left Judea and went

back once more to J- Galilee."

365

Where's he going?

366

He's going home.

367

Why is he going home?

368

Now he had to go through Samaria,

and so he came to a town in Samaria

369

called Sychar, near the plot of ground

Jacob had given to his son, Joseph.

370

See, and you remember the story of Jacob.

371

He bought this land so when he went

to Egypt, he could be brought back

372

so he could be buried in his home.

373

All right?

374

Jacob's well was there, and

Jesus, tired as he was from the

375

journey, sat down by the well.

376

It was about noon.

377

And I, I started studying this

passage this week, and I got stuck.

378

Why'd he go?

379

Why'd he leave Judea?

380

Why'd he go back to Galilee?

381

Oh, because he didn't want the

competition with John the Baptist?

382

'Cause, you know, he didn't want

John to feel bad that he was

383

bap- his group was baptizing and

growing faster than John's group?

384

I don't think that was it.

385

I don't think he wanted

competition with John.

386

He knew John's purpose and destiny

to prepare the way for him.

387

I think he wanted John to be able

to finish his work, and so he didn't

388

want that kind of competition,

so he got out of the way.

389

I think he went back to Galilee

to get out of the way 'cause

390

his time wasn't right yet.

391

He w- he didn't wanna go to

Jerusalem, stay in Jerusalem.

392

He knew what was gonna

happen in Jerusalem.

393

He was gonna get crucified in

Jerusalem, so he wanted to go

394

back home for a little while.

395

But he also knew when he goes home, a

prophet is not at home in his own country.

396

He's not honored.

397

And so Jesus' actual home

was in heaven, just like us.

398

We're just strangers in a strange

land wherever we are, just like Jesus.

399

All right?

400

But I think he went back home for

the same reason that yesterday at

401

the Denver Airport I bought this

402

And I had to weigh the decision.

403

It cost $6.98

404

And I thought, "I don't

need another keyring.

405

I don't need another keychain.

406

I have plenty."

407

But I wanted it.

408

And why did I want it?

409

'Cause this is my home.

410

Not now.

411

Won't ever be again, 'cause I don't

have any grandkids there, right?

412

And Cathy has informed me we're

gonna live in California or Texas.

413

We're not moving back to Colorado.

414

And when you're married,

you do what your wife says.

415

If you're a smart husband.

416

Yeah.

417

Especially when they don't give you…

418

They gave you, gave me, she gave

me a choice, so I chose here.

419

All right?

420

But the last time I was in Colorado about

five years ago, I bought a keychain.

421

Says Colorado on it.

422

Just a little bit of home.

423

And I didn't buy a cheap

one that would break.

424

I wanted a metal one that

might last a little while.

425

All right?

426

Jesus wanted to go home for a little while

427

But it also says, gives me some

insight, that he didn't baptize.

428

His disciples were baptizing.

429

And that reminded me, that

was an echo of another verse.

430

And we know that verse in,

in 1 Corinthians 1:13-17.

431

It says, "Is Christ divided?

432

Was Paul crucified for you?

433

Were you baptized in the name of Paul?

434

I thank God I did not baptize any of you

except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one

435

can say that you were baptized in my name.

436

Yes, oh, also I baptized, uh,

the household of Stephanas.

437

Beyond that, I don't remember

everybody I baptized."

438

Why?

439

"Christ did not send me to baptize."

440

Oh yeah, I thought he

sent us all to baptize.

441

"Go and make disciples, baptizing

them in the name of the Father, Son,

442

and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to

obey everything I've commanded you.

443

And lo, I will be with you always,

to the very end of the age."

444

That's the response

445

He really sends us to

go preach the gospel.

446

Right.

447

The start of every gospel, it says,

"Jesus began his ministry preaching the

448

good news about the Kingdom of God."

449

Yes.

450

Preaching the good news

about the Kingdom of God.

451

Preaching the good news

about the Kingdom of God.

452

Preach, guys, the

gospel, not the response.

453

You'll get the response.

454

Right.

455

And the response is this next slide,

believe, confess, repent, and be baptized.

456

You will get baptisms, but you

won't by telling people, "Get bath.

457

Get a bath.

458

You need a new bath.

459

You need to get dunked in water.

460

You need immersed."

461

Don't tell them to have

a religious ritual.

462

Right.

463

Tell them to fall in love with Jesus.

464

Amen.

465

Tell them to accept the good

news, the gospel, and then

466

they a- well, how do I do that?

467

And then you tell them, "Repent."

468

Believe, confess, repent, be bapt-

But if you don't believe Jesus

469

is the Son of God, the Messiah,

the Chosen One, why get baptized?

470

Right.

471

You don't have faith in the Messiah.

472

So it all begins with belief.

473

If Tad- Ted Lasso knows

it, we should know it.

474

That's true.

475

That's what I think, right?

476

Right.

477

Believe.

478

Believe Jesus is the Son of God.

479

Confess him.

480

Repent.

481

But preach the gospel.

482

And so that's why w- we're in

this book, to d- to understand,

483

to embrace the gospel.

484

And so this story starts in John

4:6, "Jacob's well was there.

485

And Jesus, tired as he was from

the journey, sat down by the well.

486

It was about noon."

487

And I did get something from

the conference about wells.

488

I went to a class about clear the debris.

489

Now, what is that about?

490

And Steve Staton and his daughter Talia

taught a great class that what they would

491

do when they'd conquer a people is they'd

fill in their well with dirt, and that

492

would kill all the crops, and that would,

that would create famine in the land, and

493

it would, it would destroy the people.

494

And so when you're rebuilding and

trying to revive the land, you

495

have to dig out the well again.

496

You have to dig it out.

497

And I've been to Jacob's Well.

498

I've been to Sychar.

499

Kathy and I went on a Holy Land tour

years ago, and I've been there, and I

500

even bought some water from Jacob's Well.

501

And I took it back, and I

thought, "I'm gonna use this

502

for a sermon at some point."

503

And so I, I kept it for about a year, and

then I preached John chapter four, and

504

I put my, my, my clay jar on the podium,

and I opened it, and it smelled so bad.

505

I had to put it back

506

So that's why there's no

clay jar up here this morning

507

But what happened at a well?

508

When you're a desert people, when you

live in a dry land, water is everything.

509

Yeah.

510

Where would they get married?

511

By the well.

512

Where would they get engaged?

513

By the well.

514

Where would they announce the birth?

515

By the well.

516

Everything big happened at

the well, especially love.

517

Love.

518

Oh, and we love a love story, don't we?

519

Yes.

520

Don't you like to h- t- tell

us about how you fell in love.

521

Don't we love it?

522

I go over to people's

house, "How'd you guys meet?

523

Who liked each other first?"

524

"Was it love at first sight?"

525

I always put them on the spot.

526

When you're older, you do that.

527

Okay?

528

And so at the well,

Jesus spoke to the woman.

529

And so let's, uh, uh-

530

Go to the next one here.

531

John 4:7.

532

When a Samaritan woman came to

draw water, Jesus said to her,

533

"Will you give me a drink?"

534

We know this story.

535

The disciples had gone

into town to buy food.

536

The Samaritan woman…

537

And I want you to notice the questions.

538

John uses questions to keep

our attention in this passage.

539

The first one, "You're a Jew

and I'm a Samaritan woman.

540

How can you ask me for a drink?"

541

You know?

542

Just like, "Oh, Richard Montanez,

how can you provide a marketing

543

strategy for this huge multinational

corporation when you're just a janitor?"

544

Because you haven't tapped into the

market of my people, and that's how he

545

convinced him Prejudice, discrimination.

546

Who do we associate with?

547

Who do we not?

548

I don't want this church to become an

all-white church, an all-Hispanic church,

549

an all-Black church, all-Asian church.

550

But it could be if we're prejudice- Yep.

551

Yeah … if we have discrimination,

if we don't love everybody.

552

We need to love everybody.

553

That's right.

554

Right?

555

Jesus did.

556

He loved everybody.

557

Verse 10, "Jesus answered her, 'If

you knew the gift of God and who it

558

is that asks you for drink, you would

a- you would have asked him and he

559

would have gave you living water.'"

560

Here's her second question.

561

"'Sir,' the woman said, 'you have nothing

to draw from, and the well is deep.

562

Where can you get this living water?

563

Are you greater than our father Jacob?'"

564

Are you gonna create a well here?

565

You know, she's mocking

him a little bit, okay.

566

"'Who gave us this well, and drank

from it himself, as did his sons?'"

567

Jesus was a barrier breaker.

568

You need to be a barrier breaker.

569

That's right.

570

You know?

571

Right now, there's so much tribalism

in our country and in our community.

572

I hope your best friends

aren't all your same race.

573

See, that what was great about being an

athlete, you didn't choose your teammates.

574

I mean, you just got put together with

people, uh, who could play, and you didn't

575

care what color they were, you didn't

c- care about the food they ate, you

576

didn't care about the- their background

or their accent, because they were your

577

teammates, and you became a brotherhood.

578

And the- and I- that's why I

encourage k- k- kids, get on teams,

579

and get on g- good teams, you know?

580

Because on the good teams, there's gonna

be people of all different flavors.

581

All right?

582

But deep down in us, deep down

in every one of us, is a bias.

583

We understand ourselves, we

think, and we're more drawn

584

sometimes to people like us.

585

But with the Holy Spirit, we should be

transformed to be drawn to everybody.

586

Amen.

587

And I'm gonna go after this factionism,

and I'm gonna go after this cliquey

588

mentality Yeah And our church

isn't gonna be full of that kind of

589

worldliness and that kind of garbage.

590

Yeah.

591

All right?

592

We're gonna be barrier breakers.

593

Yeah.

594

And we're gonna love everybody.

595

Jesus loved this woman.

596

He wasn't surprised by her question.

597

She was like, "Hey, another

man trying to hit on me."

598

I mean, there must have been something

going for this, this woman because

599

she'd been married and divorced five

times and, and still got another man.

600

So she- I'm thinking she was

probably attractive if she

601

could keep getting a man.

602

All right?

603

Now, she was hard to live with, I think

604

I don't know.

605

I don't wanna read too much.

606

I don't wanna be judgmental.

607

All right

608

But according to 1 Timothy 1:5, the goal

of this command, Paul told Timothy, and he

609

tells me, "Which comes from a pure heart,

a good conscience, and a sincere faith."

610

That's the only way we're gonna not

be prejudiced and factious, to have

611

these three things, a pure heart.

612

When my heart's hard, I'm

probably pretty biased, you know?

613

If you don't like my sports team,

I don't like you But when I have

614

a good heart, I like everybody.

615

I'm sorry your team lost, 'cause I know

how it feels, 'cause my teams lose a lot.

616

Right?

617

So I'm not gonna rub it in.

618

Comes from a pure heart,

a good conscience.

619

When we have guilty conscience, we're

mad at the world, we're defensive,

620

we don't wanna be found out.

621

But when you have a clear

conscience, you love everybody.

622

Amen.

623

All right?

624

And when you're s- have a sincere faith

that you're trying to do what's right

625

even though you may f- not, you may

be indoctrinated a bad way or raised a

626

different way, you have a sincere faith

and you're trying to love everybody.

627

That's the way we'll be barrier

breakers, brothers and sisters.

628

And he goes on in verse 46, "Once mor-…"

629

Who else did he associate with?

630

We're gonna jump to the last story.

631

"Once more he visited Canaan

in Galilee, went home, where he

632

had turned the water into wine."

633

So here comes a second sign.

634

"There was a certain royal official

and s- his son lay sick at Capernaum.

635

When this man heard that Jesus had

arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went

636

to him and he begged him to come and

heal his son who was close to death.

637

'Unless you people see signs and wonders,'

Jesus told him, 'you will never believe.'

638

The royal official said, 'Sir,

come down before my child dies.'

639

'Go,' Jesus replied,

'your son will live.'"

640

And what did he do that

you and I need to do?

641

The man took Jesus at his word.

642

The man took Jesus at his word.

643

He believed.

644

Because Jesus said so, he believed.

645

"And he departed and while he was still

on the way, his servants met him with

646

the news that the boy was living."

647

See, Jesus was a barrier breaker

and he was a bridge builder.

648

He cared for the powerless

and the powerful.

649

I am so tired of hearing sermons that

Jesus only came for poor people, that

650

he only came for marginalized people,

that he only came for desperate people.

651

He came for all people.

652

Amen.

653

All people, rich and poor,

good and bad, man and woman.

654

Come on.

655

He came for everybody.

656

And that's the gospel, folks.

657

Right.

658

And if we preach any other gospel,

then we're going to not be preaching

659

the go- It won't be good news.

660

That's right.

661

Wow.

662

It won't be good news.

663

Right.

664

And this movement was

started by good news.

665

Right.

666

And that's why it's so diverse.

667

How'd you get here?

668

Because a bunch of upper middle class

white kids in pretty good schools created

669

a diverse movement that went around

the world to save the whole world.

670

A bunch of Southerners from Florida

671

A bunch of rednecks.

672

And I knew Chuck Lucas.

673

I'm gonna have to just stop

right there, all right?

674

I mean, these were Floridians, guys,

that went all over America and started

675

campus ministers, ministries, and

I was second generation, not first.

676

I was converted at Boulder.

677

I mean, why would a bunch of Southerners

go to Boulder, a hippie school, you know?

678

Because we, they didn't care.

679

They're out to save the world, everybody.

680

And let's not lose that.

681

Amen?

682

Amen.

683

And I'm not putting down the poor.

684

I came from poor

685

My family was poor.

686

Came from nothing.

687

Came from trailer park.

688

That's why I liked Richard's

story, 'cause I could relate.

689

I was embarrassed when my

mom dropped me off at school.

690

I'd rather walk to school.

691

How many of you know what a Studebaker is?

692

That was our family car, a

green army-colored Studebaker.

693

When we'd drive downtown, I'd get in the

backseat, and I would slump down and hide

694

I was a low rider

695

Because I was embarrassed

696

I know what poor is.

697

I came from poor.

698

Why was I so driven to go to school

and to live a different life?

699

'Cause I didn't wanna be poor

700

And that's why many of us were.

701

But let's be big bridge builders.

702

This was a nobleman, this was

a rich man, this was a Galilean

703

And he was powerful, but

he was also desperate.

704

Everybody is desperate.

705

This conference that I went

to just described that.

706

Jesus associated at the wedding party

with his neighbors, his friends.

707

He loved his friends.

708

God cares.

709

But Nicodemus was of the party that

was always attacking him, of the

710

ruling religious party, and he, so

he could be considered an enemy.

711

But what did Jesus do?

712

He loved him and told him the truth.

713

This Samaritan woman was powerless,

and marginalized, and poor, and an

714

outcast, and a s- sinner, divorced

many times, and Jesus forgave her.

715

And the nobleman was powerful and

rich, but he could not fix his son.

716

He could not heal him, and God heals.

717

God and Christ are for everybody because

he loves everybody, because at some point

718

in all of our lives, we get desperate

719

What was so great about

this scholarly conference?

720

No scholarship hardly at all.

721

They, they did quote some

theologians in every lesson,

722

but they gave their testimony.

723

First guy gave his testimony.

724

He says, "I, I don't know why I'm in

the ministry and I don't know why I'm

725

a teacher, 'cause I'm an introvert and

I hate standing up here and speaking."

726

I hate it

727

And I don't know why I'm in the

ministry, because I hate people

728

Oh, I love persons.

729

I love persons, but I hate people and

I hate crowds and I hate being here.

730

But this is the only conference

I come to, 'cause this is the

731

conference for the introverts

732

And I thought, "What

am I doing here then?"

733

Because that's not me And

then the next guy gets up and

734

he goes, "I'm an introvert."

735

And I go, "Boy, I don't

feel at home," you know?

736

And then I thought, you know, I helped

start this conference, and they, somewhere

737

along the line, 'cause I got sick and I

got cancer, I sort of dripped it off the

738

committee, and I never got asked back on

739

And so they started excluding the

extroverts and the evangelists.

740

And in our movement, we've got teachers,

elders, evangelists, and I'm always

741

trying to pull everybody together.

742

'Cause I've been each.

743

I've been an elder here in LA

on the west side, and in Dallas.

744

I'm a teacher, and I'm an evangelist.

745

The teachers think I'm an evangelist,

so they don't care what I say.

746

The evangelists think I'm

a teacher, they don't…

747

They do care, but I, I

don't wanna overstate it.

748

Let's be br- realders, amen?

749

Amen.

750

Because Jesus loves everybody.

751

Sam and Samantha, you get the point.

752

You're way ahead of me.

753

You're smarter than that.

754

But these questions, something

was said at the conference.

755

There's always something

behind a question.

756

There's always something

be- behind a question.

757

When the Samaritan woman asked Jesus,

"Why are you asking me for a drink?"

758

She's really asking , "You

don't accept me."

759

You know?

760

And especially the more they talked and

the more she found out he was a prophet,

761

she's like, "Yeah, you're the, you're

the guy that condemns me to hell."

762

You know?

763

But he was still talking to

her, and somehow how he came

764

across to her drew her in.

765

It drew her in.

766

And then when she said, "How are you

gonna give me this living water?"

767

She wanted water.

768

She'd love pipes and not

have to walk and carry jars.

769

I love living in the 20th century.

770

I, I'm glad we don't have to go to wells.

771

I like turning on my faucet, right?

772

But this was a different kind of water.

773

This was the Holy Spirit inside.

774

And then later she says,

"Are you greater than Jacob?"

775

She's starting to get it.

776

If you're promising this, then you

must be somebody, somebody wealthy.

777

Don't make me f- promises.

778

Men have been making me promises my

whole life, and they've not c- delivered.

779

That's why I keep discarding them

and looking for somebody else.

780

All right?

781

She's the Zsa Zsa Gabor of

the first century, right?

782

And if you don't know

who that is, Google her.

783

All right?

784

But so she's asking, "You're

making me this gra- grand

785

promise," like churches do.

786

We make grand promises, don't we?

787

Well, we can't deliver it, but Jesus can

788

But she's sort of asking,

"Are you greater?"

789

And he is.

790

And then later on in this story, she

asks, "Where should I go to church?

791

We Samaritans say we

worship on Mount Gerizim.

792

You Jews say we should worship

on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

793

Where should I go to church?"

794

And Jesus is saying, he says to her,

"There's gonna be a time where, after I

795

die, where you go to church is more about

where the Spirit is than the place."

796

Right.

797

"And more about you than the place.

798

Because the kind of worshipers the Father

seeks are those that worship in spirit…"

799

Listen to me now, this is the point

of the whole sermon, "Those that

800

worship in spirit and in truth."

801

That's good.

802

In spirit with the right heart, the

right posture, the right humility.

803

Amen.

804

Not consumers.

805

What can I get out of it?

806

Is it worth it?

807

I'll only get, contribute

as much as I get.

808

Uh, it's this quid pro quo.

809

No, that isn't worshiping

in spirit and in truth.

810

Worshiping in spirit and in truth

is coming to give yourself to God.

811

Amen.

812

And God, speak to me.

813

I'm your servant, speak to me.

814

Yeah.

815

I'll do whatever you ask.

816

True worshipers.

817

And then the woman gets…

818

She says, "Hey, I hear there's a Messiah

coming, gonna give us all the answers."

819

And Jesus says, "That's me."

820

That's me.

821

I wish people today were

looking for truth that way.

822

On the plane back, two

women sat next to me

823

They were Samanthas.

824

The first one had lost her

husband tragically, quickly.

825

One of those widow-maker heart attacks.

826

They were at his reunion, the 20th

or 30th Colorado football reunion.

827

He played football, defensive

tackle in the Orange Bowl.

828

They won, 1976.

829

He was, he was, he was a famous

athlete c- in my home state.

830

I'm sitting there a seat away from his

wife, and she says, "Yeah, we went.

831

We got to Boulder and he died."

832

He was only 56 years old

833

And then come to find out he was

roommates with Pete Cyphers, who was

834

the quarterback on my ri- the rival

high school team that I played against.

835

And I worked for Pete's

dad at the Hertz car lot.

836

I washed cars for Mr.

837

Cyphers.

838

And she goes, "Oh, was that,

you know, George Cyphers?"

839

I go, "I don't know his first name.

840

I was a kid.

841

It was Mr.

842

Cyphers to me," you know?

843

And so it's a small world.

844

We're all connected

845

And I f- I felt bad 'cause then all of

a sudden, another woman came and sat

846

between us, and they started talking.

847

And I tried to get in there.

848

I thought, "You know, gotta

share my faith," you know?

849

And they asked me, "So,

so what do you do?"

850

And I go, "I'm…

851

You know, I do a lot of things.

852

I'm a minister.

853

I'm a professor, you know?"

854

And, and first thing the woman

that sat right next to me says

855

is, "Oh, I'm not religious.

856

I'm not religious."

857

Samantha.

858

She wasn't religious.

859

And so they got talking, and so I

started watching the SC football game.

860

And then I felt bad.

861

I felt guilty that I didn't

even tell the lady who'd lost

862

her husband I'm sorry he died.

863

I'm a chaplain.

864

I should have said that.

865

And so the, the hostess comes by

and, and asks us for, if we wanna

866

drink anything, and I got two f-

free drink cards when I checked in

867

I'm special

868

I just fly on Southwest a lot.

869

And I didn't want them.

870

I had a tummy ache, and I didn't wanna

drink any alcohol, and, you know,

871

well, yeah, I just didn't want to.

872

So I gave them…

873

I said, "Would you guys like these?"

874

And then all of a sudden they like me.

875

Oh, yeah, and they ordered the

same thing, and then they turned

876

towards each other and ignored me.

877

All right?

878

But this morning, as I'm preparing,

praying about this, I'm thinking

879

I missed an opportunity.

880

A couple of Samaritan women.

881

Should have shared the gospel.

882

And I told them I was preaching.

883

I told them even what I was preaching,

but they didn't seem that interested.

884

I gotta figure out a better way to talk to

people, and I've been trying for 40 years.

885

So don't give up trying is the point.

886

Don't give up trying

887

There's always something behind it.

888

The last little bit here, John 4

889

It talks about the five husbands.

890

We've already talked about that.

891

Talked about word of worship,

we've talked about that.

892

And then Jesus declares He's

the one, we talked about that.

893

And then this whole thing of both in.

894

And that's what we gotta believe.

895

We gotta believe that

Jesus is Lord and Savior.

896

Amen.

897

Amen?

898

Amen.

899

For us personally.

900

Yes.

901

He will help our life be full.

902

Thank you for your patience.

903

Thank you for listening.

904

I hope you've enjoyed going

to the well this morning.

905

It's helped bless me

because we're all pilgrims.

906

And I know I said some strong

things, but they're truth.

907

Amen.

908

Amen.

909

It's gospel.

910

God bless you.

911

Amen.