Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?
This sounded amazing, and the woman said, “Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.”
Jesus explained that the physical could never compete with the spiritual. “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.”
This sounded amazing, and the woman said, “Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.”
To this, Jesus replies with a awkward request, “Go, call thy husband, and come hither.”
She hung her head, “I have no husband.”
Jesus had known this. “Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.”
What was Jesus doing? Was He being cruel? Not at all. In order for the woman to be ready to receive the “living water” she needed to recognize that she needed it.
This prick to her conscience sparked a religious zeal in the young woman. “Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”
She was starting an old debate about which religion was best. What church was better? Which religious practices were most beneficial. She knew she was already guilty before God's perfect law, but her desire to justify herself was too strong.
Jesus pointed out that the location was not important, “Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.”
He continued, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
The woman accepted this. She knew religion couldn’t change who she really was. She knew what she needed was the Promised One - The Messiah. The One who God had promised would save His people from their sins.
In an almost resigned dejection she replied, “I know that Messiah cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.”
There was good news - Jesus said to her, “I that speak unto thee am he.”
In excitement the woman leapt up, and ran back to the city, leaving her water pot behind. Breathless and exuberant she exclaimed, “Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?”
What do we learn from this story? What was Jesus offering? Everlasting life! The living water is a new life. Not a temporary religious fix to a guilty conscience. Jesus is offering a permanent solution.
But you might say, like the woman, “I'm a good person, I'm religious.” The question is, “Are you good enough?”
The Bible says that we have all fallen short of the glory of God. If we compare our good deeds to the moral law of God we all fall short. The good that we do could never outweigh the bad that we’ve already done. The requirement is perfection, and nobody is perfect.
This is why Jesus pointed the woman to the law of God in asking about her husband. Until we agree with God about our sin we won’t be ready to receive God’s solution to our sin. If we think we can justify ourselves with our religious deeds we will never be ready to receive the living water.
The Bible says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
Here’s the good news: “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23).
God still loves you. “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). When Jesus died on the cross He took the punishment that you deserved.
Like the woman at the well the only thing you need to do to receive this eternal life is ask for it. You can ask to be saved right now!
What must you do to receive God’s free gift of eternal life? “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” (Romans 10:9).
Are you tired of trying to be good enough? Are you tired of not knowing how you’ll do on the day of judgement? Are you tired of being afraid of death?