Episode 30: 3/09/09

Readings:

Psalm 64
Jeremiah 1:11-19
Romans 1:1-15
John 4:27-42

Sermon:

Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did."
John 4:39

In today’s Gospel reading we see the aftermath of Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, in which He sorted through her tangled relationship history and offered her the cup of Living Water. This so impressed the woman that she not only came to believe in Jesus as the promised Messiah, but she then ran to tell her friends, who also came to believe.

In the passage prior to today’s reading, we see the woman reacting defensively to Our Lord’s request for a drink of water, a seemingly simple encounter, but one which violated deeply rooted social and religious conventions: a Jewish man speaking to a Samaritan woman at a time when Samaritans were looked down upon as dogs, and women as even lower. Though we would find nothing scandalous in this innocent interaction, it is worth noting that in some parts of the world today, such “improper mingling” is punishable by prison and flogging.

While the woman makes excuses why she cannot fulfill Jesus’s request, Our Lord listens patiently to her objections, but refuses to argue point by point, instead using the occasion to illustrate a deeper point. While she may not fully understand His teaching, it is enough for her to step out in faith that He is indeed the Messiah who has been promised, and to spread the good news to her neighbors.

In this chance encounter, we see several points which should encourage us in our efforts to spread the Gospel message among our friends and neighbors. How many times do we see someone who obviously needs the good news in their lives, but we are reluctant to speak? Maybe we look down on them as someone unworthy of our attention, or on the other hand, maybe we are intimidated by their status or position in society. Our Lord made no such distinctions, offering the same invitation to both rich young rulers and hard-living Samaritan women. To Him, the only distinction is between those who answer His call to follow Him, and those who refuse.

We also see that the Samaritan woman correctly assumed that the good news Jesus gave her was something of immediate interest and value to her neighbors. We often think that the Gospel message is too personal to share with others, that while we are thankful for the salvation given to us by Our Lord, that it would be somehow imposing to tell someone else. Just think for a minute of all the other kinds of good news we love to tell our friends about: our romantic relationships, our favorite recipes, movies, music. We join social networks so we can make sure that not one detail of our personal life is kept secret from our friends, and yet we may hide the most important detail of all, our relationship with the Living God.

Of course all the preaching in the world is useless unless our friends can see evidence of a changed life that bears witness to this relationship. We need not be perfect, but we should be thankful for the presence of Christ in our lives and show it by the growth and ripening of the fruits of the Spirit. Our love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control speak much louder than our words, and create an atmosphere in which our words are more likely to listened to and heeded. As St. Francis of Assisi famously said, “Preach the Gospel always, and use words if necessary.” May the words of our mouths and the testimony of our transformed lives draw all those near us to the spring of Living Water, so that they may drink and never thirst again.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.