What Jesus Sees

It's great to be with you guys this morning, and it's great to watch as God is moving in

this church and through you guys and to be here in this locale and to see so many faces

that are new to me, maybe not new for you, but new to me, and it's hard to keep up actually.

It was just, what, seven years ago when we sent out the plant here to Cambridge, to East

Cambridge, and it's just been wonderful to watch God at work in and through you guys.

It's wonderful to celebrate with you as well.

Matt's ordination, having your second elder, your second resident elder, that means a lot.

I've been serving, as Matt said, as a provisional elder along with Dan Rocha from Crossway Franklin.

It's been our privilege to do that, but we're looking forward to you guys working us out

of a job as God raises up elders from your midst.

That's our prayer, and I know that's Sean and Matt's hearts as well.

But it's been great to be a part of what God's doing here and to watch.

I'm excited for you, for what God has for you in your future, and I'm excited to see God

continue to work through you guys to bring people to Jesus.

It's especially exciting when growth is through new believers in Jesus, and I know you guys

have seen that, and you've had baptisms, and I trust that there'll be more and more opportunities

in that way, that God's going to use you to bring his good news and to, in that good news

and the power of the Holy Spirit to see lives transformed.

The reality is, though, in order for that to happen, we need Jesus.

We need more of Jesus.

We need his life.

We need his power.

We need his truth.

We need to see things as Jesus sees, and that's the topic of the message today.

I want to dig in with you to John chapter 4 to see what Jesus sees.

John 4 · chapter mention

We all see people, and we all see reality.

We all see our reality in certain ways.

There are all sorts of sunglasses, if you will, that you can wear, and how you see things.

There are different perspectives, perhaps, and situations that can cloud our view and influence

how we interpret our world, how we see other people.

We can see, perhaps, our world in terms of what's wrong with our world.

Now, this is easy today because the news makes its living off of bad news, mostly.

And so, if you follow media, you hear bad news.

And it's really easy to have the glasses of bad news on all the time and to see this world

in terms of what's wrong, the bad things, what's wrong here, what's wrong there.

It's what you hear continually.

That can be one way you see the world.

Related to that, you might see the world in terms of safety and security.

So, always looking out and perceiving others in terms of safety and security.

Is this a safe person?

Am I safe with them?

Am I going to be safe?

How can I maybe avoid the ones that are unsafe and pursue those that are safe?

We can look at people in terms of safety and security.

Often, that can be because there's hurt.

There's hurt in our lives.

We've been hurt by others.

We've been hurt in adverse circumstances, perhaps.

And we can have those glasses on, the glasses of hurt.

And so, we interpret others.

We look at others in those ways.

There's probably thousands of ways we can see things.

And I know the Lord wants to meet us in those incorrect ways.

He wants to minister to us.

But most of all, He wants to transform us that we might see as Jesus sees.

And His Word is adequate to do that in the power of the Holy Spirit.

So, let's pray and ask Him to minister to us that He actually is interested this morning here in this place with us in changing us.

And changing how we see others, how we see this world.

And He wants to do that through the Word.

So, let's ask Him to do that.

Lord, we thank You for Your Word.

We thank You for who You are, Your glorious goodness, Your wisdom, Your presence.

And we ask You now, as we dig into the Word, as we look at these truths, would You help us to see as You do?

To be changed by You, by Your Word and by You, Holy Spirit.

Thank You, Father, for Your goodness and Your love and Your plans for us to form us into the image of Jesus.

And we ask You to do that this morning in a profound way, Lord, even in our lives.

That we might see as Jesus sees.

We ask in Christ's name. Amen.

Follow along with me.

I'm going to be reading from John chapter 4, verses 1 through 42.

John 4:1–42

This is the story of Jesus and the woman of Samaria.

And it says,

Jesus answered her,

Sir, if you knew the gift of God and who is it that is saying to you, give me a drink,

you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.

The woman said to Him,

Sir, you have nothing to draw water with and the well is deep.

Where do you get that living water?

Are you greater than our father Jacob?

He gave us the well and drank from it Himself as did His sons and His livestock.

Jesus said to her,

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 Him 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,

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 are a prophet.

Our fathers worshipped on this mountain,

but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.

Jesus said to her,

Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.

You worship what you do not know.

We worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

But the hour is coming and is now here when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.

For the Father is seeking such people to worship Him.

God is spirit and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.

The woman said to Him,

I know that Messiah is coming, He who is called Christ.

When He comes, He will tell us all things.

Jesus said to her,

I who speak to you am He.

Just then His disciples came back.

They marveled that He was talking with a woman,

but no one said,

What do you seek?

Or why are you talking with her?

So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people,

Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did.

Can this be the Christ?

They went out of the town and were coming to Him.

Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Him, saying,

Rabbi, eat.

But He said to them,

I have food to eat that you do not know about.

So the disciples said to one another,

Has anyone brought Him something to eat?

Jesus said to them,

My food is to do the will of Him who sent me,

and to accomplish His work.

Do you not say there are yet four months,

then comes the harvest?

Look, I tell you,

lift up your eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest.

Already the one who reaps is receiving wages

and gathering fruit for eternal life,

so that the sower and reaper may rejoice together.

For here the saying holds true,

one sows and another reaps.

I sent you to reap that which you did not labor.

Others have labored,

and you have entered into their labor.

Many Samaritans from that town believed in Him

because of the woman's testimony.

He told me all that I ever did.

So when the Samaritans came to Him,

they asked Him to stay with them,

and He stayed there two days.

And many more believed.

Because of His word.

They said to the woman,

it is no longer because of what you said that we believe,

for we have heard for ourselves,

and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.

God's word from John chapter 4.

John 4 · chapter mention

What an amazing story we have here in John 4.

A wonderful story that is full of truth

that helps us understand the nature and character of God Himself,

God the Son here,

demonstrating what God is like.

I want to take some time reflecting on the story.

I want to kind of enter into the mind and heart of Christ,

and I want in that to help us see what Jesus sees.

The bottom line here,

I would submit to you,

is that we must see as Jesus sees.

So let's take a look at this passage

and see what Jesus sees.

I'll tell you ahead of time,

three observations.

First, Jesus sees with compassion.

Second, Jesus sees His glory.

Third, Jesus sees the harvest.

Jesus sees with compassion,

sees His glory,

sees the harvest.

So first, Jesus sees with compassion.

As we read through this text,

it overflows with compassion,

with Jesus' compassion.

Notice how it starts.

Jesus and His disciples are walking from Judea to Galilee.

The fastest way to get from Jerusalem, Judea to Galilee,

is to go through Samaria.

Yet most of the Jews of that day

didn't want anything to do with the Samaritans,

didn't want to even set foot in Samaria,

this land between Galilee and Judea.

And so many of them actually would walk around.

They would head east,

then go up on the side by the Jordan,

and then come back into Galilee.

They wouldn't go through Samaria.

This was because the Samaritans

were a group of people

that were a mix of the people

that were left after being exiled.

So the Old Testament people of God

had sinned,

and they were disciplined by God in exile,

and some of them were left there.

And those in that northern area,

in Samaria,

ended up mixing in with other people,

not non-Jewish people,

and mixing together in many ways

the truth of the Scriptures,

the truth of the Pentateuch,

with other things.

And they ended up forming

kind of a corrupted version

of the truth,

the faith of the Old Testament.

And there was rivalry,

and this was an insult to the Jewish people,

and there had been rivalry,

and different things that had gone on,

and so there was this standing hatred

for the Samaritans,

and their compromise,

and what they had done.

And so the Jewish people

stayed out of Samaria

as much as they could.

But not Jesus.

Jesus didn't see people

and cultures

with that sort of prejudice

and disdain.

He acknowledges

and actually talks to the woman

about the corruption

of the Samaritans,

so he has no trouble

in acknowledging the fact

that they were following

a corrupt truth.

Salvation is not from the Samaritans,

it's from the Jews,

he says later on.

He has no trouble

with facing the facts

and the reality

that these people

had twisted things

and there was a problem there,

but that's not

his predominant perspective.

His predominant perspective

in relating to this woman

and relating to the Samaritans

is one of compassion.

Notice what it says

in verse 4.

It says,

he had to pass

through Samaria.

Did he really have to pass

through Samaria?

No.

There are other ways

to get to Galilee

from Jerusalem

and many Jews

went around Samaria.

What does it mean then?

He had to pass

through Samaria.

Well, I think there's more

to the story

than geographical expediency.

He had to pass

through Samaria

because he sees lost people

with compassion

and he sees the mission

and he determined

to go into Samaria

for the sake

of this Samaritan woman

and her whole village.

While other Jews

only saw the corruption

and compromise

of Samaria,

Jesus sees Samaritans

with compassion

so he goes on mission

into Samaria.

He had to pass

through Samaria.

It's amazing.

It really is amazing

because this is Jesus.

This is God in the flesh.

This is the Holy One

incarnate.

He knows the corruption

of Samaria.

He knows the problems there.

If anyone had a right

to avoid Samaria,

to scorn Samaria,

it was Jesus himself

and his holiness

for they had violated

the clear terms

of the covenant,

the clear terms

of the Word of God.

If anybody had the right

to ignore them

and bring judgment

on them,

it was Jesus

and yet Jesus marches

right into Samaria

to this town

of Sychar.

Jesus sees

with compassion.

Compassion

towards undeserving

Samaritans.

So they head

into Samaria,

comes to this well

dug out by Jacob

almost 2,000 years earlier.

Jesus, the man,

is tired

and hot

in the middle

of the day.

He sits down

by the well

and rests

as his disciples

go into town

to get some food

and drink.

And this Samaritan woman

comes along

to draw water.

It's profound

that it's a Samaritan woman

for Samaritans

were considered

unclean

and Samaritan women

especially

were considered

perpetually

unclean.

Now,

I don't mean

they needed

a shower.

I mean

spiritually,

ceremonially unclean

for the Jews

of the day

and their observance

of the law.

And so to come

in contact

with a Samaritan

and especially

a Samaritan woman

was to be

defiled

spiritually

and ceremonially.

And especially

if you

drank from her

water bottle,

you were defiled

and contaminated.

And this woman

comes along

and Jesus

is there

by the well

and this is

a Samaritan woman

and she's coming

in the middle

of the day,

the heat of the day.

That part of the world

in the summer months

it can average

100 degrees

in the middle

of the day.

It's hot.

People don't go

to the well

in the middle

of the day.

The only people

that would do this

are people

who are trying

to avoid others

because others

would have gone

in the cool

of the morning

or the cool

of the evening.

So here comes

a Samaritan woman

but it's not just

any Samaritan woman.

It's a Samaritan woman

with a history.

And everyone

in that culture

would have understood

that.

This is a woman

who has something

that she's deeply

ashamed of.

She's been

dishonored perhaps

and shamed

in that culture

of that village

and so she hides

from them

and she has to come

out in the middle

of the day.

So it's a Samaritan woman

and it's a woman

of shame

coming to Jesus.

And Jesus

knows all this

just through

cultural perception

but he knows

more as well.

We see in verses

16 through 18

that the woman

had five husbands

and now has a man

not her husband.

this woman

is possibly

we don't know

the details

she's possibly

a serial adulterer

or perhaps

more likely

she had a series

of bad husbands

and had given up

on marriage

with this latest guy.

But notice

in the story

how Jesus

uses this information.

He knows

this all about her.

She's a Samaritan woman

she's coming in shame

and he knows

that she

has had five husbands

and she's now

living with a guy

who's not her husband.

And how does he

use that information?

Does he use

that information

to condemn her?

To point out

her inferiority?

Does he go

after her sinfulness

in some sort

of bold direct way?

No.

He uses that information

to reach her heart.

He's there

he's communicating

with his conversation

with her.

this is a safe person

to talk to.

I'm doing the unusual.

I'm engaging you.

And you and I

both know

who you are

to some degree.

And then he ups

the ante.

He says

in the middle

of the dialogue

as she's pushing

back on him

he calls her bluff

and says

go get your husband

come on back

and I'll give you

the living water.

He calls her

and exposes her.

And then when

she's honest

with that

he commends her.

and yet

it's used

in a way

to draw her

into himself

to draw her

into the truth.

It's used

in a compassionate way.

So even this

information

as raw

as it is

Jesus is using it

in a way

to reach her.

He's using it

redemptively

not in a condemning way.

Jesus sees

with eyes

of compassion

and he wants us

to see the same.

notice too

Jesus' presentation

of himself

to the woman

is not

immediately

here I am

to solve

all your problems.

He

in his humanity

is tired

and thirsty

and weak

and his engagement

of her

is

give me a drink.

I ask for a drink.

It comes across

as impolite

but in the culture

that they didn't

have to say

please give me a drink.

So he asked her

for a drink.

He's inviting her

to meet his need.

He's exposing

his own weakness.

He knows everything

about this woman

right?

He knows about her

ahead of time

and he could have

come on strong

but instead

he invites her

to come and meet

his need.

He condescends.

He humbles himself

in his weakness

in humanity

and then requests

of her

a favor

to help him

and so he

dignifies her.

He's lowering

himself

humbling himself

and dignifying

this woman

with a request

to help him.

Think about it.

This is God

the infinite one.

He could make water

and drink it

on his own.

He could do anything

that he's pleased

to do.

This is God almighty

in the flesh

and yet he humbles

himself under this woman

presents himself

as the weak

and needy one

and dignifies her.

It's amazing

and all this together

as we read this story

I think

communicates to us

this reality

that Jesus sees

with compassion.

Compassion is what

drives him

in so many ways.

It's what propels him

to act this way.

His compassion

for this woman.

His compassion

for the lost.

His compassion

for those

who need help.

His sunglasses,

his glasses

are tinted

the color

of compassion

and when he looks

out at people

he sees through

eyes of compassion.

What color

are your glasses?

How do you look

at those around you?

Do you look

at those

who are without Jesus

as sinners

and rebels

to avoid

or broken people

hiding behind

a facade

desperately

in need

of Jesus?

When you're driving

and somebody

cuts you off

do you see

with eyes

of compassion

what's going on

in this guy's life

this person's life

why would they

feel that that was

important to do

how can I pray

for them today?

When you see

someone who seems

like they have

it all together

do you see

them as a rival

or someone

who's proud

and to be avoided

instead of seeing

them with compassion

as they really

are a broken

human

who needs

the only

answer

Jesus

what color

are your glasses?

Secondly

Jesus sees

his glory

Jesus sees

with compassion

he also sees

his glory

this is an

important aspect

of this story

an important

truth for us

to acknowledge

as well

as he comes

to this woman

he sees

her brokenness

and need

and he longs

to fill it

with himself

with his

own glory

the very best

thing that he

can give

to this woman

or give to

any of us

is himself

and his goodness

and glory

he sees this

he knows

this reality

he doesn't

deny or diminish

this reality

in any way

he presents

himself boldly

in a way

that none

of us

should ever

as the

living water

as the one

who is

the answer

to her thirst

he sees

his glory

he knows

he is

the glorious

one

this is not

pride

this is not

egotism

of some sort

this is truth

God alone

is glorious

and good

and he would

not be loving

to us

if he withheld

himself

from us

if he didn't

present himself

as the answer

God has no

need of our

affirmation of

his glory

by the way

but in his

glory and goodness

and love

he wants to

share it

with us

and give us

the very best

thing we could

ever have

and so Jesus

says to her

if you knew

the gift of

God

and who it

is that is

saying to you

give me a drink

you would have

asked him

and he would

have given

you living

water

he knows

that he

himself

is the

only source

of true

living water

the woman

doesn't quite

understand

at first

thinks that

he's talking

about literal

water

so he goes

on

everyone who

drinks of

this water

speaking of

the well

will be

thirsty

again

but whoever

drinks of

the water

I will

give him

will never

be thirsty

again

the water

that I

will give

him

will become

in him

a spring

of water

welling up

to eternal

life

now

she's still

not getting

it

and Jesus

is presenting

himself

in this

way

and she

says

sir

give me

this

water

so that

I do

not be

thirsty

or have

to come

here

to draw

water

so she

thinks

that this

guy is

you know

like not

in touch

with reality

here

and going

to push

back on

him

and she

is sparring

with him

in a battle

of wits

and that's

always a

dangerous

thing

by the way

to spar

with Jesus

in a battle

of wits

now thank

God he's

good

and merciful

and full

of compassion

because as she

pushes back

on him

he pushes

back on her

and says

go get your

husband

and he cuts

right to the

heart

this is the

core of the

woman's shame

and her

sin

her life

and the

brokenness

she's

experienced

in life

five

disappointing

marriages

and now

a guy

that she

doesn't

marry

and she

lives

in this

place

and Jesus

cuts to the

heart

and all

this

sparring

of wits

he wants

to go

to her

heart

he wants

to get

to her

and help

her understand

I am

who I

am saying

I am

and I do

have

really

this living

water

for you

he wants

to show

her

that it's

true

what I'm

saying

is true

I'm not

just some

guy

who's

deluded

here

I am

actually

the deliverer

the giver

of living

water

and he's

trying to

drive her

to realize

her need

and find

her need

met in

the one

who gives

living

water

he knows

that all

true life

comes from

him alone

he knows

this

Jesus sees

his glory

and this

metaphor

of living

water

and water

we see

throughout

scripture

Jeremiah

2

13

for my

people have

committed

two evils

they have

forsaken

me

the fountain

of living

waters

and hewed

out cisterns

for themselves

broken

cisterns

that can

hold

no

water

he alone

is the

fountain

of living

water

that's

the only

place

where life

is found

true

life

he's

going to

say in

John

John 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7

whoever

believes

in me

as the

scripture

has said

out of

his

heart

will flow

rivers

of living

water

to have

Jesus

in us

to run

to Jesus

for life

feeds us

with living

waters

in ways

that the

waters

overflow

from our

lives

he knows

this

he knows

that he

is the

source

of all

glory

and goodness

all life

and joy

comes from

him

all love

and truth

all faith

and faithfulness

all greatness

and wonder

come from

the father

through Christ

Jesus

is the

fountain

of living

water

he sees

his own

glory

he sees

clearly

he sees

according

to the

truth

he's not

deceived

he's not

drawn

into

false

glories

he knows

that he

alone

is the

answer

to our

true

needs

and our

legitimate

desires

he's never

thinking that

this woman

is all

set

he's never

thinking that

this woman

will be

alright

somehow

she'll

get by

he's never

thinking

she's kind

of pushing

back

so I guess

she doesn't

want to

hear what

I have

to say

he knows

that he

is her

only

answer

he sees

his glory

and we

must see

Jesus'

glory

too

we must

see clearly

his glory

we see it

in creation

for through

the sun

all things

were created

the glory

of God

is shown

to us

in creation

there are

all sorts

of ways

to see

his glory

in creation

we were

recently

in South

Asia

the Himalayan

mountains

are just

amazing

they're as

high as

thunderheads

on a

summer day

they're

glorious

giant

mountains

these

demonstrate

the glory

of God

we see

his glory

in the

ocean

and roaring

seas

we see

his glory

in glorious

galaxies

incredible

intricate

and complex

beings

unfathomable

mysteries

of the

subatomic

and astronomic

all these

things

show us

the glory

of God

but that's

only part

of it

that's

only a

taste

of his

glory

the apex

of his

glory

is shown

in Christ

himself

in his

life

in his

compassion

like in

this story

his wisdom

his truthfulness

his love

his genius

his love

for all those

around him

his intense

and faithful

perfect love

for his

father

never

never

falling

short

of that

love

you and

I have

fallen

short

and we

fall short

all the

time

Jesus

never

fell

short

of loving

his

father

with all

of his

being

all the

time

and he

loved

others

as himself

he's

loved

his

bride

from

eternity

past

he

was

willing

in

his

love

for

the

father

and

for

people

to

go

to

the

cross

we

see

his

glory

and

his

deep

humiliation

there's

no one

no one

no one

ever

more

humble

than

Jesus

he

humbled

himself

under

you

he

died

in your

place

he

took

your

sins

he

took

my

filth

my

dirt

my

sin

my

shame

on

himself

he

didn't

just

wash

the

disciples

feet

he

lowered

himself

lower

than

that

and

gave

his

life

his

holy

glorious

life

for

his

disciples

for

all

those

who

would

receive

his

amazing

gift

we

see

his

glory

in

this

atonement

this

perfect

and

final

and

full

atonement

he

said

on

the

cross

it

is

finished

it's

done

it's

paid

for

sins

are

atoned

for

you're

forgiven

you're

free

you're

purchased

your

mine

should

you

believe

in

me

his

atonement

his

victorious

resurrection

his

victory

over

sin

and

death

Christ

is

alive

he

rose

from

the

dead

he's

alive

forevermore

he

ascended

he's

reigning

he's

returning

he's

glorious

he's

good

he is

the

fountain

of

living

water

Jesus

sees

his

glory

and

it's

amazing

in this

story

he

wants

this

woman

to

see

the

glory

he

wants

this

woman

to

know

and

so

he's

bringing

her

to

that

place

he

pushes

back

for the

sake

of

drawing

her

in

and

when

she

says

well

you know

she

acknowledges

that he's

a prophet

perhaps

even

the

prophet

but

she's

not

quite

sure

and

he

says

she

says

to

him

I

know

that

when

Messiah

comes

they

believed

in

the

Messiah

from

the

Pentateuch

I

know

that

when

Messiah

comes

he'll

explain

all

things

and

Jesus

in

one

of

his

rare

moments

says

to

her

literally

the

one

speaking

to

you

I

am

he

reveals

his

glory

to

her

he

sees

his

glory

he

sees

with

compassion

but

he

sees

his

glory

and

he

knows

the

best

thing

for

this

woman

is

to

give

her

himself

and

he

does

Jesus

sees

his

glory

and

we

must

see

it

too

his

glory

his

truth

the

riches

of

who

he

is

and

the

living

water

he

gives

is

the

very

very

best

thing

we

could

ever

give

to

someone

else

and

when

we

see

with

eyes

of

compassion

and

when

we

see

glory

we

understand

that

and

that

changes

how

we

relate

to

others

certainly

we

want

to

love

others

in

the

ways

that

are

important

to

them

we

want

to

communicate

our

genuine

love

and

respect

and

care

for

to

present

to

them

the

fountain

of

living

water

the

glorious

one

so

don't

believe

people

when

they

present

a

facade

to

you

that

things

are

okay

and

that

they're

all

set

maybe

they

actually

genuinely

believe

they

are

but

they're

not

they

are

and

all

of

us

are

impoverished

without

God

we

are

all

made

by

God

himself

for

a

vital

relationship

with

God

a

dependency

on

God

in

every

moment

of

life

and

in

all

things

a

vital

dependency

where

we

are

to

be

filled

up

with

this

living

water

at

all

times

and

find

ourselves

renewed

and

refreshed

and

empowered

in

all

the

situations

of

life

in

our

hardest

moments

and

in

our

greatest

triumphs

we

need

God

we're

made

for

that

and

to

live

apart

from

that

is

to

be

impoverished

to

be

dead

that's

the way

it's

described

it's

spiritual

death

to

not

live

in

a

vital

relationship

with

God

and

though

someone

may

appear

to

be

okay

and

they

may

have

things

going

well

in

some

way

for

them

they

are

without

Jesus

we

all

are

without

Jesus

impoverished

and

dry

and

thirsty

even

though

we

may

not

know

it

and

so

the

best

thing

we

can

ever

give

somebody

is

Jesus

we

must

see

with

compassion

we

must

see

Jesus

glory

and

not

evaluate

people

from

a

worldly

point

of

view

how

do

you

see

people

how

do

you

see

others

do

you

see

as

Jesus

sees

finally

Jesus

sees

the

harvest

Jesus

sees

with

compassion

Jesus

sees

his

glory

Jesus

sees

the

harvest

this

amazing

interchange

with

the

woman

we

see

as

we

follow

the