Conviction Precedes Conversation

I'm going to ask that you turn in your Bibles this morning to John chapter 4 and we're going

John 4 · chapter mention

! to multitask. What I'm going to do is ask that as I read the passage that you pray with your eyes open.

Can you do that? How many of you pray while you're driving? I'm just kind of check with me. So I'll just say how many of you do that. Okay, you drive and pray. So you can probably listen to me.

A little bit and pray. And here's what I want you to pray. I want you to pray that the Spirit of God would use his word to touch our hearts with the glory and the supremacy of Christ. That our affection and our interest would be in the Lord Jesus this morning.

And so as I begin reading and I'm going to pick up in verse 4 and read forward. Are we okay? Okay. And I don't mind stopping at all.

We are going to stop and pray for something else. I don't know anything about how faith is at this time, but let's pray together for her well-being.

Precious Father,

we are so thankful that you know us.

As the psalmist says, you know our down-sitting and our uprising.

You know our thoughts before we think them.

There's not a moment of our life that is not weighed carefully by your loving hands.

And you, loving us as you do,

have given to us all that we need for life and godliness.

And our hearts this morning are quiet before you as we

we pray for faith, our sister and friend.

We pray for Greg and Connie and the family.

Lord, that faith would be okay.

That whatever is the momentary affliction would pass

and that you would strengthen and encourage her at this time.

Thank you for those that

are present

to provide practical medical care.

And we pray, Lord, that she receives the attention that she needs

to allow for a quick recovery.

So thankful, Lord, that we can pray together

and that our hearts are knit together in oneness.

For the fact that in the midst of the uncertainties

and the troubles that sin has brought into the world,

that we who know the Lord Jesus Christ

have the abiding confidence

that our story because of Jesus ends well.

And, Lord, we ask that this morning,

as we think about the woman at the well,

that we would be overcome

with the sweetness of a Savior

that loves broken people

and we're all broken

and loved us enough to come to this earth

and live and die on the cross and rise again.

That we, who know Christ,

have no need to be afraid

of anything.

And so let Christ be the one that is glorified

in our moment of uncertainty

as we consider the power

and the promise of the gospel.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Ah, Kleenex.

I had planned to read from verse 4

all the way through to 19

and I'm going to amend that just for a moment

and remind you that in verse 4

what it tells us is that

Jesus in his journey to leave the area

that he was in there

in the proximity of Jerusalem

and go up to Galilee,

that it says there in verse 4

that he had to pass through Samaria.

And it was at Samaria

or in Samaria

at the well in Sychar

that he stopped

and had a conversation with a woman

who had come at noon

to draw water.

And so I want you to pick up with me

if you will

in verse 13

Jesus says this

everyone who drinks of this water

will be thirsty again.

But whoever drinks of the water

that I will give him

will never be thirsty again.

The water that I will give

will become in him

a spring of water

welling up to eternal life.

The woman said to him

Sir, give me this water

so that I will not be thirsty

or have to come here

to draw water.

Jesus said to her

Go, call your husband

and come here.

The woman answered

him and said

I have no husband.

Jesus said to her

You are right in saying

I have no husband

for you have had five husbands

and the one you now have

is not your husband.

What you have said is true.

The woman said to him

Sir, I perceive

that you're a prophet.

As we look at this passage

this morning

and we are going to take

our time to study it carefully

we find a very, very important

Bible truth here

that we can't overlook.

It is something that

is at the foundation

and at the base

of all of our conversions.

As we were singing this morning

I couldn't help but think

of the day

when as a young boy

in the process

of our family devotions

I remember being

completely overwhelmed

with the reality

of my sin.

I knew

I was a sinner

that had offended

the holiness of God

and I stood

justly condemned

before him

and I had every reason

to fear

what the prospect

of my eternity

would be.

and I remember

breaking down

and beginning to cry

as I thought

about the reality

of my condition

and my mom

said to me

hey

what's wrong?

I said

I just feel bad

about me

and she had the wisdom

to say

why don't you come

with me

and we went into

another room

and she refreshed

the gospel truth

in my hearing

and I remember

praying

and asking Jesus

to save me

and I was

wonderfully delivered

from the burden

and the curse

of sin

and I was given

a new home

and I was given

a new hope

and as we look

this morning

we recognize

here in this story

that what we find

here is that

there's really

no hope

of true salvation

apart

from coming

to the grips

with the reality

of sin

and that's

what takes place

in this part

of the story

of the woman

at the well

so as we

pay attention

to this evangelistic

account

and I want you

to understand

that it's not

the first evangelistic

effort that Jesus

was engaged in

actually

the first one

was with Nicodemus

and Nicodemus

really didn't get it

in this case

we find a woman

meets with Jesus

and Jesus

ministers to her

by drawing attention

to what her

real need

was

but as we

work our way

through this

there are a couple

things that I want

you to zero in

on and understand

first of all

we just don't

get it

and what I mean

by that is that

mankind has a

sin problem

and really

doesn't know

it

if you would

talk with most

of the people

that you bump

into

the truth of

the matter

is that

they are really

not overly

sensitive

and aware

of how serious

the sin problem

is in their

life

I mean

they understand

that some people

sin

and most of the

people that

they're concerned

about that sin

are other people

because it

affects them

and so I want

you to understand

that as we look

at this passage

we find here

that Jesus

in working

to bring

the sweetness

of the gospel

into clear focus

in this person's

life

wants us

all of us

to understand

the nature

of the human

heart

and really

what is

at risk

in this issue

I want you to

look just for a

moment if you

would at verse

15

Jesus is there

at the well

and having this

conversation

with the woman

and just imagine

the scene

here she is

she's a little

curious

because after all

here is a Jew

a man

who's having

conversation

with her

and she finds

it

intriguing

at least

if you go back

you look there

in verse 15

it says

the woman said

to him

sir

give me this

water

so that I

may not be

thirsty

or have to

come here

and draw

water

her heart

was not

the least bit

touched

with the

reality

of what

her spiritual

condition

was

in the

presence

of Christ

there he

was

the one

who was

promising

her

living

water

namely

the indwelling

spirit

that is

the gift

to a

believer

and she

had no

idea

of what

was going

on

if you

look back

just for a

moment

to verse

9

the Samaritan

woman said

to him

how is it

that you

a Jew

asked for

a drink

from me

a woman

of Samaria

and if you're

wondering

what really

was going

on in her

life

you'd have

to say

that what

she understood

was that

she thought

Jesus was

hitting on

her

and she

was finding

it a little

entertaining

what are you

doing

talking to

me

a woman

and a woman

of Samaria

and asking

me for a

drink

you see

in that

day

men

just

did not

strike up

conversations

with women

they did

not know

and she

was picking

up on that

and playing

it for all

she was

worth

even after

Jesus

pushed back

a little

bit

in verse

10

Jesus

answered

and said

if you

knew

the gift

of God

and then

again

in verse

13

where he

speaks

about

the fact

that he

was the

one

who had

the ability

to give

to her

the gift

of eternal

life

and the

spirit

in particular

in both

cases

she didn't

get it

the truth

of the matter

is that

that woman's

thinking

was not

the least

bit

on

spiritual

matters

and she

certainly

wasn't

thinking

that her

sin

was a

problem

how do

we know

that

you look

there

at verse

11

and her

conversation

is all

about

physical

things

that really

were not

at the

heart

of the

issue

in verse

11

she says

hey

you're

talking

about

water

but

she says

you don't

understand

you have

nothing

to draw

water

with

and the

well

is deep

75

some

feet

and how

in the

world

was he

going to

get water

without

a rope

you find

out that

her response

really is

focused on

nothing other

than her

personal

comfort

and she

really

didn't

understand

what

was at

risk

and yet

Jesus

made that

statement

I'm going

to give

you living

water

and you

won't be

thirsty

again

and she

said

well

okay

let's

do

that

thing

give me

the water

that you

speak

of

so I

don't have

to come

hiking

down here

and get it

and as you

stop and think

about this story

the thing that I

trust is very

very clear to you

is that this

woman

in the midst

of this

conversation

with the

Lord of

glory

with the

creator of

the universe

in no way

shape or

form

understood

what was

going on

there she

was in the

presence of

the only

one who

could make

a difference

the only

one who

could do

anything about

the mess

in her

life

and yet

she was

entirely

dead

spiritually

to what

was taking

place

and as a

matter of

fact what

we find in

this passage

is an

indication

of the

reality that

all mankind

is spiritually

dead by

nature

we're all

spiritually

dead

apart from

grace

and the

Samaritan

woman wasn't

the only

person who

didn't get

it

we shouldn't

be surprised

because apart

from the grace

of God

the truth of

the matter

is is that

the Bible

is very

very clear

on the

condition

of the

person

who has

not come

to faith

in Christ

and there

is a clear

recognition

that apart

from God

doing something

spectacular

we're dead

let me have

you look at

a couple

passages

so that this

is not just

kind of

hearsay

evidence

but you

can see

it with

your own

eyes

take your

Bible

and turn

in it

to Ephesians

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2

how bad

off is

anyone

prior to

conversion

prior to

the grace

of God

getting a

hold of

a person's

life

and bringing

them

to that

point

where they

recognize

they're

convicted

of the

reality

of the

darkness

and the

blackness

of their

heart

Ephesians

Ephesians 2:1

chapter 2

verse 1

let me read

it to you

it says

this

and you

were dead

in the

trespasses

and sins

I

as a

pastor

have spent

many years

well for one

growing up in a

medical home

where my father

was a surgeon

and I saw

death firsthand

in India

but then as a

pastor

I've been at

the graveside

and in funeral

homes

and one of the

things I've always

found a little

troubling to me

is when a person

says standing

at the casket

oh doesn't she

look good

I have

never seen

any corpse

that look

good

now

pancake

makeup

and some

other things

may make it

tolerable

but the fact

of the matter

is dead

is dead

and here

is the

bible

telling us

that prior

to conversion

individuals

are dead

Colossians

Colossians 2:13

chapter 2

verse 13

we find a

very similar

statement

and I want

you to turn

there if you

would

Colossians

Colossians 2:13

chapter 2

verse 13

it says

this

it says

and you were

dead

you were dead

in your

trespasses

and in the

uncircumcision

of your

flesh

God

made

alive

together

with him

in 2nd

Corinthians

chapter 4

verse 4

and I'll just

make the

reference

and draw

the piece

out of it

it speaks

of the fact

that prior

to conversion

we're blinded

we're blinded

I mean

it's bad

enough

to stagger

around at

night

when you

think you

know your

environment

and you've

got a

night light

right

we all

want to

be sure

that we

don't

get tripped

up by

something

left on

the floor

but blind

is blind

blind people

can't see

what's in

front of

them

and what's

really

going on

I want

you to

turn

furthermore

back to

John

John 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

19 and

20

and understand

that this

business

of the

condition

of the

person

prior to

conversion

is not

just a

matter of

dead

and blind

but it

also is

one of

a clear

rejection

of what

gives

hope

John

John 3:19

chapter 3

verse 19

and this

is the

judgment

the light

has come

into the

world

and people

love the

darkness

rather than

the light

because their

works were

evil

evil

listen to me

and I

want you to

pay attention

to this

when people

are doing

something that

is wrong

and you

turn on the

light

they do

what

they react

against it

hey

turn that

off

don't bother

me

don't let

me know

what's going

on in my

life

don't tell

me that

that's wrong

because I've

decided it's

what I want

to do

and Jesus

says this

hey don't be

surprised

they hate

the light

because their

deeds are

evil

verse 20

for everyone

who does

wicked things

hates the

light

and does

not come

to the

light

lest his

works be

exposed

you know

I think

Christians

in many

cases are

just flat

irritating

by

not living

godly

holy lives

and the

thing that

is irritating

is that

we go

around and

talk about

the fact

that we

are his

examples

and his

illustrations

but people

got it

figured out

that we're

not really

what we

say we

are

on the

other hand

when you

live a

godly

holy life

guess what's

going to

happen

surprise

people are

not going

to like

the fact

that you

make the

truth

clear

so you

have a

choice

being

disliked

by the

world

for being

hypocritical

on your

faith

or being

disliked

by the

world

because you

are what

you say

you are

as you

look at

this woman

going back

to john

John 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

i want you

to understand

that when i

make the

statement to

you that

she didn't

get it and

for that fact

all men

apart from the

grace of god

don't understand

the sinfulness

of their heart

we should

recognize that

the bible is

very very

clear

that all

have sinned

and come

short of

the glory

of god

men

women

boys

girls

stand

condemned

before a

holy god

because they

have chosen

willfully

live in

sin

and rebellion

against god

the very

easiest

doctrine

in the bible

to prove

is the

doctrine

of the

depravity

of man

do you

understand

that

you don't

have to

look very

far outside

your own

heart

to recognize

that hey

sin is a

nasty

and unbelievable

problem

and it's

one i can't

solve myself

and yet we

see this woman

at the well

and that's what

i want you

to recognize

she had a

problem in her

life that was

greater than

her physical

thirst

and the truth

of the matter

is she

really didn't

get it

when jesus

was there

present

with her

so how is

jesus going

to draw her

to faith

well i want

you to

recognize

second the

law and the

truth is what

helps us

when jesus

instructed

there you

are in

john chapter

four i want

you to look

at verse 16

she makes

that statement

hey i'll take

that water

i don't have

to make this

hike i'd

appreciate having

that jesus

then makes a

very little

interesting statement

that opens up

the door and

brings conviction

in her life

and what is the

statement

she he says

this go call

your husband

and come here

now question

was jesus

uncertain

about her

marital state

and what's

the answer

no we

know

in fact all

you would

have to do

is kind of

look back

to john

John 2:25

chapter 2

verse 25

where it

says this

that he

knew the

hearts of

all men

he knew

exactly what

her condition

was

he knew

the sordid

details of

all that had

taken place

in her life

and so when

he asked

her this

question

he knew

exactly

what she

was going

to do

next

it's very

interesting

if you kind

of read

between the

lines here

this woman

who prior

to this

moment

had been

quite

chatty

now what

do we

mean by

chatty

you know

jesus said

give me a

drink

and she

kind of

launched

off on

hey

yeah

what are

you

doing

smacking

on me

and do

you know

how deep

the well

is

blah blah

blah

and when

he says

go call

your husband

she's

right to

the point

I have

none

I don't

have

one

I'm

done

let's

step

away

from

this

how many

of you

ever found

that to

happen

when you're

witnessing

somebody

and you're

just kind

of carrying

on a

conversation

and lo

and behold

something

related to

the subject

of sin

comes to

the table

and by

accident

you stumble

into something

they're

struggling

with

and it's

like

oop

let's not

talk about

that

I'll never

forget the

moment I

was out

here on

the south

on the west

side

helping

a guy

unload lumber

for a project

we were

going to be

involved in

here at the

church

and as

you can

imagine

a pastor

I was

there in

blue jeans

and that

kind of

thing

and helping

this guy

and we

were unloading

the lumber

and stuff

like that

and we

get in

conversation

and I

ended up

talking about

you know

what I talk

about right

gospel

opportunity

and we're

talking about

so what's

going on

in your

life

and he

was telling

me he

was a

pretty good

person

and he

went so

far as to

tell me

that he kept

the ten

commandments

I mean

he figured

that anybody

that was

helping at

a church

probably had

some relationship

with it

and so

he you know

smack talk

with me

and we're

doing pretty

good

and as

this thing

kind of

plays out

I kind

of let it

pass

and we're

going on

about lumber

and other

things like

that

and I

said so

what's

really

happening

and he

said well

my girlfriend

and I

we're living

together

and we're

having

trouble

and that

just

dawned

on me

they told

me

they kept

the ten

commandments

and he

was living

with this

girl

suddenly there

here's

Jesus

he says

to this

woman

hey

go call

your husband

I don't

have one

so in

directing

this woman

to call

her husband

what Jesus

did was

actually put

her on the

spot

with her

sin

and I

want you

to recognize

that as you

look at

Jesus'

ministry

what you

understand

is this

is before

we see

our need

of salvation

we have

to see

our need

of sin

we have

to understand

that sin

is the

problem

in our

life

you see

the reality

of the

matter

was

in this

particular

case

with this

Samaritan

woman

she had

a long

history

of trading

her sexuality

for security

that's what

she'd been

doing

the sin

of sexual

relationships

apart from

that

monogamous

relationship

in marriage

between a man

and a woman

a covenant

something that

God had

clearly

defined

as an

offense

against

his

holiness

and here

was this

woman

who by

virtue of

whatever the

circumstances

were

had decided

that it was

appropriate for

her to play

the situation

to her own

advantage

and so here

she was

middle of the

day

when most

other women

did not come

down to draw

water

and she showed

up to draw

water

to kind of

avoid the

crowd

probably the

rest of the

girls didn't

like her

and so

there she

was

now we

find out

and look

at verse

17

the woman

answered him

and said

I have no

husband

Jesus said

to her

you are

right in

saying

I have no

husband

now I

bet you

she'd

wish that

he'd

left it

at that

but he

does

for you've

had five

husbands

and the

one

you now

have

is not

your

husband

I want

you to

recognize

that what

Jesus did

at this

point

was draw

her

attention

to what

God's

view

of her

behavior

was

you see

I want

you to

understand

that marriage

is not

just a

social

convention

or something

that culture

stumbled upon

and decided

that it

might not

be a bad

idea to

try this

kind of

relationship

no

the fact

of the

matter

is

that

marriage

is

something

God

had

ordained

and she

had

violated

God's

plan

and

God's

law

God

ordained

marriage

to be

the union

between

one man

and one

woman

for life

I want

you to

see this

actually

in the

Bible

so that

you don't

take it

on

hearsay

evidence

but you

can kind

of put

your finger

on it

and say

that's

what

God

has

decided

turn in

your

Bible

if you

would

keep

your

finger

there

in

John

because

we're

coming

back

but go

to

Matthew

Matthew 19 · chapter mention

chapter

19

Matthew

Matthew 19:4–6

chapter

19

verse

4

through

6

let me

give you

the

background

a large

crowd

had been

following

Jesus

because

he was

doing

these

miracles

and

healing

people

and

the

Pharisees

came up

to him

and

tested

him

now

what

they

were

trying

to

do

was

kind

of

drive

a

wedge

between

Jesus

and

the

crowd

that

was

paying

attention

to him

and

was

interested

in

his

ministry

they

they

hoped

that

they

would

catch

Jesus

on

the

horns

of

a

dilemma

so

to

speak

and

they

came

to him

and

say

is it

lawful

to

divorce

one's

wife

for

any

cause

and

that

statement

any

cause

kind

of

played

into

one

of

the

kind

of

the

flavors

of

Jewish

thinking

at

that

time

where

a

man

could

divorce

his

wife

for

really

any

reason

that

he

found

and

women

in

that

culture

were

not

given

the

prerogative

of

divorce

more

or less

the

man

decided

well

tired

with

this

one

I'm

moving

on

and

they

came

and

it

was

very

popular

it

happened

a lot

they

come

to

Jesus

and

say

hey

is

this

appropriate

very

interesting

how

Jesus

responded

instead

of

getting

into

the

nitty

gritty

of

what

their

answer

was

he

drew

their

attention

back

to

what

God's

plan

was

where

did

this

start

what

was

God's

plan

he

answered

have

you

not

read

that's

kind

of

like

a

slap

in

the

face

to

the

Pharisees

have

you

not

read

he

who

created

them

from

male

and

female

what

was

God

saying

at

that

point

marriage

is

something

between

a

man

and

what

a

woman

that's

God's

that's

God's

word

that's

not

mine

that's

his

plan

he

says

man

God

made

them

this

way

and

he

says

he

made

them

male

and