Good News
Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” They came out of the town and made their way toward him. (John 4:28–30)
In our verses for today the woman at the well goes from miserable to missionary as she scurries from the well anxiously desiring to share her good news of Jesus with others. From apostate to apostle, this woman shows how concerned she was to have her friends and neighbors acquainted with Christ. What a delightfully proper response from a heart that has been touched by our Lord!
When we encounter Jesus, our earthly duties pale in light of our heavenly ones! This woman rushes off with her good news, leaving behind her initial reason for being there. She has a story to tell and she is not going to be hindered. There is nothing more convincing than one’s own testimony. How can anyone argue against our own experience? In her haste, she leaves her water jar behind. Perhaps she left it in kindness to Jesus that He may have something to drink with His dinner; perhaps she did not want to be encumbered in her as she went out to tell the town of Jesus; perhaps she was not longer concerned worldly things and was simply focused on things above. Whatever the reason, she left on a different mission than the one she had come with.
I am reminded of Jesus’ words to His disciples:
What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven. (Matthew 10:27–33)
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus describes proper priorities in the following way:
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:31–34)
This woman’s testimony was a plain and simple one: “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did.” Jesus has told her what only God and her conscience had known. She was affected by the extent of His knowledge and by the power of His words to her. This woman had secret sins, sins she was reluctant to even admit. Jesus knew all about her lifestyle, leaving a great impression on her. He loved her even having full knowledge of her. Is there anything quite as beautiful, or peaceful, or winsome, as unconditional love? Do we not all seek such a love? This is exactly what God offers to us! His love is demonstrated to us through His precious Son Jesus:
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
–Proverbs 3:5–6
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
Inviting the town to come and partake of the living water so that their insatiable thirst may also be quenched, this woman is a wonderful example of explosive evangelism. She simply shares her testimony. Prior to her encounter with Jesus, she would have been embarrassed to even have whispered in the dark. But the good news of Jesus is that He makes all things new!
Take It to Heart
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17)
