Worship In Spirit And In Truth

So great to be back this morning to worship with you all.

I missed you guys last week.

And it's, as Steve was saying, and we're just,

and he preached about actually last week,

we're just like groomsmen or all the servants of God

watching on as Christ is united to his church, his bride.

So that's why it's okay for me to not be here

and the church goes on because the church doesn't belong to me.

It belongs to God, right?

And so I was sad, but I'm eager because I'm also one of his sheep

and this is the group that I've covenanted with.

It's the church.

I'm excited and there's joy for me as I worship with you.

And as we turn to this passage,

I want you to think for a moment with me

about your greatest unfulfilled desire.

Just think about it for a moment, what it might be.

Maybe it's a dream job that appears far-fetched at the moment

or a big breakthrough in your career.

Maybe it's a spouse.

You really longed for a spouse, a husband or a wife,

to spend the rest of your life with.

Maybe it's just getting really rich

and you fantasize about all the things you might be able to do

with that much money.

Or maybe you're just a little more hedonistic.

You'd rather live, eat good food, drink, and be merry.

Or maybe you're one of those simple folks

who just want to enjoy a stress-free life with your loved ones.

Whatever that may be, what if I told you right now

that I can tell you exactly how you can attain those things?

Then I can guarantee you that the number of attendees

at our church services would swell astronomically.

Because desire is a powerful motivator.

People do things that they seek.

And who would be foolish to refuse such an offer?

And you'd think that in this passage,

Jesus here taps into the desires of the Samaritan woman

in a similar way.

But he doesn't stop there.

He doesn't offer her what she seeks.

But he peers into her very soul

and peels back the layers of self-protection

that she had propped up against other people

to hide her sin and shame.

And then by doing so,

Jesus exposes the woman's deepest,

most fundamental need and desire.

And that, namely, is eternal life.

And so it says, this passage teaches that

we can enjoy eternal life

through the spirit and truth of Jesus Christ.

That's the main point of this passage.

And I'm going to talk first about the promise of eternal life.

And then secondly, the condition for the eternal life

that Jesus tells us about.

So this unusual encounter occurs in Samaria

in a town called Sychar.

Verse 1, he tells us that Jesus learned

that the Pharisees took notice of Jesus' increasing popularity.

Now that's an ominous sign

because the Pharisees are already watching John the Baptist

because he was so popular

and well-regarded by the people.

And so they saw him as a threat

to their own authority and popularity.

And they're noticing now

that Jesus is attracting even more people

than John the Baptist.

So they feel threatened.

And so Jesus perceiving this

and recognizing that his hour,

the hour of his death is not yet,

doesn't want to prematurely end his ministry.

So he moves away from that place.

He had already had a conflict

with the Pharisees and the religious rulers

in chapter 2 at the temple complex.

So he leaves Judea and departs again for Galilee,

he says in verses 3 and 4.

And in order to do that,

he had to pass through Samaria.

That's the normal route that you go through.

And it says in verse 6

that Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey,

was sitting beside the well.

It was about the sixth hour.

And that's not an extraneous detail

because Jews count their hours

beginning with, not at midnight,

but beginning with sunrise.

So if you count from sunrise,

this is probably approximately noon,

which is the hottest part of the day.

So Jesus, understandably,

is wary from his journey.

He's tired and he's thirsty

as he sits under the heat of the sun.

And then, so he stops because he's thirsty

and he rests at the well.

And this woman is there.

So read verses 7 to 9 with me.

A woman from Samaria came to draw water

and Jesus said to her,

Give me a drink.

For his disciples had gone away

into the city to buy food.

The Samaritan woman said to him,

How is it that you, a Jew,

ask for a drink from me,

a woman of Samaria?

For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

A woman from Samaria.

That's a significant detail

because as it tells us in verse 9,

Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

That's a slightly erroneous translation.

It doesn't actually mean

that the Jews have no dealings with Samaritans

because as you see in verse 8,

the Jesus' disciples are dealing with Samaritans.

They're going into a Samaritan city

and they're buying food.

So it's not saying that the Jews

have no dealings with Samaritans,

but the word that means have dealing with

is more commonly translated

as to use together with.

So it's referring to using the same utensils,

using the same vessels.

So here it better be translated as

Jews do not use the same cups

or vessels with Samaritans

because they believe that

that caused ritual impurity.

So they didn't want to do that.

And in order to understand

this animosity, hostility

between Jews and Samaritans,

we have to delve a little bit

into the history of Israel.

And I'll be brief in this,

but Israel was divided into two kingdoms,

the northern kingdom

and the southern kingdom.

And the northern kingdom

was invaded by the Assyrian kingdom.

And they defeated Israel

and then they exiled all Jews

basically of any kind of substance

or means or importance

to their country, their kingdom.

And after having exiled them,

they settled, resettled the land

with their own people,

with foreigners.

This was about 722 BC.

Second Kings talks about this

in chapters 17 and 18.

And so because of that,

after these foreigners came in,

the Jews that remained,

they're intermarried with them

and produced what would be

basically a syncretized religion,

a syncretistic religion,

not a true Judaism,

not a true faith in God,

but a syncretized,

it's an intermixed religion.

So from this,

because of this,

Jews saw Samaritans

not only as political rebels,

people who basically paid allegiance

to the Assyrian kingdom,

but also as racial half-breeds

because they are not pure Jews.

And then thirdly,

also as religious outcasts

because they were not holding

to the true religion of the Jews.

So there is religious,

political,

and racial tension,

hostility, animosity.

I mean,

that tension that existed

between them,

you know,

makes the divisiveness

of the current presidential election

like, you know,

child's play, right?

This is a serious animosity.

And the Samaritans

only accepted the Pentateuch,

which is the first five books

of the Bible as scripture.

And so that led to different ideas

about how worship should happen.

And the chief among the differences

was where worship should take place.

And the Jews believed

that the temple in Jerusalem

was the place

where they ought to worship.

But because the Samaritans

didn't accept the portions

of scripture that talked about that,

they believed that they were

supposed to worship God

on Mount Gerizim.

And that there,

they erected their own rival temple

around 400 BC.

And then that temple,

just about two centuries later,

was destroyed by a Jewish ruler.

So there's a lot of conflict

and tension going on.

And so she's shocked

that it's remarkable

that Jesus is asking

the Samaritan woman for a drink.

And in order to do so,

he would also have to share

the same vessel,

same cup.

And not only is Jesus asking

for a drink from a Samaritan,

he's also asking for a drink

from a Samaritan woman.

Within a generation of Jesus' life,

Jewish leaders would codify a law

in the Mishnah

that reflected long-standing

popular sentiment

and prejudice

towards Samaritan woman

in particular.

And in fact,

it says this,

it's a quote,

the daughters of the Samaritans

are menstruants

from their cradle

and therefore in a perpetual state

of ceremonial uncleanness.

So this is what they believed.

Jesus has no regard

for the sexism of his day.

Right?

And this Samaritan woman

who had apparently grown accustomed

to being ignored

and overlooked

and disrespected

is shocked that Jesus

would approach her

and speak to her

and ask her for a drink.

But she doesn't realize

that instead of being

ceremonially defiled

by contact with Samaritans,

Jesus purifies

everything he touches,

everyone he comes

into contact with.

But at this point,

she doesn't know this,

so she's probably really

thinking to herself,

man,

this man must be

really parched.

He must be desperately thirsty,

really dying of thirst.

if he's asking me,

a Samaritan woman,

for a drink.

Yet,

in the next response of Jesus,

we see that him

reverse this situation

and to show her

not that she,

he's not the one

that really needs a drink,

but rather she's the one

that desperately needs

a drink of a different kind.

So verse 10,

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.

The woman was at first shocked

that Jesus would approach her,

speak to her.

Now she's confused,

right?

So she replies

in verses 11 to 12,

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.

So her logic

is basically this,

even the great patriarch Jacob

had to dig his own well

in order to provide water

for himself and his family.

And who are you,

basically,

to be able to provide

this living water

when you have nothing

to draw water with?

So the confusion

might be a little bit

difficult to understand for us

because right away

when we hear living water,

we think of spiritual living water.

But living water,

the same phrase,

is used to refer

to fresh running water

in the language

of these people.

So she's probably thinking

like fresh running water,

so that's why she's confused.

And so Jesus explains,

tries to explain this to her.

And it's typical

in the Gospel of John

to have these double meanings,

right,

of a deeper spiritual meaning

that underlies

the physical meaning,

the concrete meaning

at the top.

So the water

that Jesus has in mind,

of course,

is not physical water.

So he responds

in verses 13 to 14.

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.

And the background

for this living water

is the Old Testament.

In Jeremiah 2.13,

God had declared

to an idolatrous people,

his own people

who had been idolatrous.

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.

So God says

that he himself

is the fountain

of living water.

He is the source of life.

He is the source

of this living water,

just an ending supply

of fresh running water

for his people.

But instead of him,

his people have forsaken him

and they've turned

to cisterns,

the stagnant water

of cisterns.

And not just a cistern,

but a broken cistern

that can't even hold water.

That's the idols

of the nations

that Israelites

were going after.

And that language

of living water

is picked up

by the other prophets

and it really comes

to a climax

in Isaiah 55

where God invites

his people,

come,

everyone who thirsts,

come to the waters

that your soul

may live.

That's the living water

that he has in view

that wells up

into eternal life.

It's not water

to parch our thirst,

it's to slake our thirst,

but it's water

for the withered

and dried soul.

But the Samaritan woman

still misunderstands

Jesus.

And she thinks

that he's offering her

some kind of miracle water

that's going to permanently

satisfy her physical thirst.

So she says in verse 15,

Sir, give me this water

so that I will not be thirsty

or have to come here

to draw water.

And it's understandable, right?

I mean,

if you could find such water,

I would want some too.

I'd never have to drink again,

never have to look

for a water fountain again,

never have to give up

your water

at the airport again,

and you never have

to drink again, right?

So she wants it.

But this is,

this is a problem

because what Jesus

is offering

is so much better

than that miracle

of physical water.

She's settling here

for water

that will merely

quench her physical thirst

when Jesus is offering

something that's far greater.

And so often,

that's how we respond

to God's grace,

his offer

that he gives us.

And C.S. Lewis

puts it this way

in his famous essay,

The Weight of Glory.

If we consider

the unblushing promises

of reward

and the staggering nature

of the rewards

promised in the Gospels,

it would seem

that our Lord

finds our desires

not too strong,

but too weak.

We are half-hearted creatures,

fooling about

with drink and sex

and ambition

when infinite joy

is offered us.

like an ignorant child

who wants to go on

making mud pies

in a slum

because he cannot

imagine what is meant

by the offer

of a holiday

at the sea.

We are far

too easily

pleased.

The problem

of the Smyrton Movement,

our problem,

is not that our desire

for joy and pleasure

is too strong.

That's not why

we neglect God.

We neglect him

because

and seek satisfaction

and other things

because our desire

for joy and pleasure

is too weak.

We are far

too easily pleased.

When God

offers us

supreme joy,

he offers us

supreme satisfaction,

life to the full,

abundant life,

instead we settle

for lesser joys,

lesser pleasures,

lesser satisfaction,

a lesser life.

And I asked you

in the beginning

to think about

what your greatest

unfulfilled desire

might be.

And if that's

anything other

than perfect,

uninterrupted communion

with our God,

then we're settling

for something less

than what he intends

for us.

So let's not settle

for water

when living water

is offered to us

or for wealth

that we can't keep

beyond death

when eternal treasures

are offered to us.

Let's not settle

for love

and prestige

of this world,

of men,

when eternal love

and esteem

of our heavenly Father

is offered

to us.

So Christ offers

us eternal life.

This is the promise

of eternal life.

My first point,

but what must we do

to attain

eternal life?

And that's

what Jesus now

turns to,

the condition

for the eternal life.

Look with me

verses 16

to 18.

So Jesus sees

that the woman

has still

misunderstood him

yet again.

So Jesus changes

course

and now he

peels back

the layers

of this woman's life

to expose

the sin

and the past

that she's hiding

in order to

expose her true need

and heal her shame.

So look at verse 16.

He tells her

abruptly,

go,

call your husband

and come here.

And the woman

responds

in a kind of

curt,

defensive manner.

She says in verse 17,

I have no husband.

Well,

she's evading

Jesus' command here

because her statement

that she has no husband

is formally true

but it really doesn't

reveal half the truth

because she's been married

five times.

She's had

five husbands.

So Jesus responds

in verses 17 to 18,

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.

Jesus gets

right to the heart

of the woman

need

because we learn here

not only was this woman

a Samaritan

but she was also

promiscuous.

The claim that she

has no husband

is not true.

She's been married

to five husbands

which means

either she got divorced

or the husband's

passed away.

There's probably

a mix of both in there

and so she is seen

by her community

people as

a woman

with failed marriages

five times

and not only that

she's not cohabiting

with another man

who is not even

her husband

which is

condemned

throughout

the Old Testament.

So Jesus

gently pushes back

the curtain

to reveal this

and this is

the real reason

we find

now that

she came

to the well

alone

because it was

typical of the time

for the woman

to come together

in groups

to the well

to keep company

and for safety

but she comes

in isolation

she comes alone

and this

was the reason

why she came

at the sixth hour

at the hottest part

of the day

noon

when typically

women would come

to draw water

in the morning

or in the later afternoon

in the cool of the day

she comes

at the hottest part

of the day

to avoid

being seen

avoid

in isolation

in shame

and other women

in the community

no doubt

saw her

as a threat

to their own marriages

because here's this woman

who's now living

with a man

who's not her husband

and all the other husbands

and as the women

look on their own husbands

they see her

as a threat

because they see

that she's available

they see that she's

promiscuous

so she is shunned

she's a pariah

an outcast

and I think

John

intentionally

juxtaposes

the encounter

of Jesus

with Nicodemus

and the Samaritan woman

because Nicodemus

was learned

he was influential

respected

and theologically

orthodox

right

he knew all

the right answers

the Samaritan

was unschooled

without any influence

despised

and theologically

heterodox

Nicodemus

was a man

a Jew

and a ruler

and a ruler

among them

the Samaritan

was a woman

she was a Samaritan

and a moral

outcast

and they both

needed Jesus

they both

received Jesus'

gracious invitation

they both

were objects

of God's love

and mercy

and Jesus'

insight into

this woman's

life

so touches

her to the

very core

later in

verse 29

she tells

people

come see

a man

who told

me

all that

I ever

did

can this

be the

Christ

but at this

point

she's not

won over yet

right

because

with her

past

and present

sins

all of a

sudden

exposed

before this

stranger

that she

just met

she abruptly

changes

subject

and she

brings up

the point

of theological

contention

between Jews

and Samaritans

perhaps that's

just a way

of evading

this

and trying

to reestablish

some kind

of distance

between her

and Jesus

or maybe

that's her

way of

trying to

show that

she does

have some

religious

sensibilities

she knows

what's going

on

and so

she asks

this question

in verses

19 and 20

sir I

perceive

that you

are a

prophet

our fathers

worshipped

on this

mountain

but you

say

that in

Jerusalem

is a

place

where people

ought to

worship

now but

Jesus

doesn't let

her derail

this

conversation

and she

he does

answer

her question

he does

disabuse

her of

her false

notions

because

the salvation

is from

the Jews

right

because the

Samaritans

rejected the

rest of

God's

revelation

in the

Old Testament

they did

not have

a proper

view of

God

did not

know

God

as they

ought to

while the

Jews

did

however

imperfect

their

worship

was

however

misguided

their

worship

was

Jews

did

know

who

God

was

so

he

says

in

verses

21 and 22

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 notice

that he

prefaces that

statement by

first saying

that there's a

new age that

is coming

when this

debate about

the proper

locale for

worship

will not

matter

anymore

the Jews

who had a

privileged status

before God

up to this

point

that will no

longer be the

case

the worship

will be

open

that will be

given

before all

nations

for all

peoples

and so

Jesus says

the hour is

coming when

neither on this

mountain nor

in Jerusalem

will you

worship

the father

and he

continues

verse 23

and 24

read with

me

the hour

is coming

and is

now here

when the

true

worshipers

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

as those

of you who

have been

with us

since the

beginning of

our series

the gospel

of John

know by

now

whenever he

says

the hour

that's kind

of cue

for the

hour of

Jesus

death

because

when the

word is

used in

an unqualified

way in

the gospel

of John

it always

refers to

Jesus'

death

resurrection

and ascension

that complex

of events

that leads

to Christ's

exaltation

and the

nations

coming to

him

so that's

what he's

talking about

and this

oxymoron here

that the

hour is

coming

and is

now here

already

powerfully

demonstrates

that this

new age

has decisively

dawned

but waits

to be

consummated

because the

reason

for that

is because

Jesus is

the one

who brings

about this

new age

and Jesus

is already

here

it's as if

if you take

an hourglass

and it's been

turned over

and set down

decisively

and the sand

has begun

to trickle

down

and it's only

a matter of

time before

the hour

comes in

fullness

right

indeed the hour

is already

in a very real

sense

here

so the hour

is coming

and is now

here

it's present

in Jesus

and in

this new

age

the true

worshippers

will not

be Jews

or Samaritans

but the true

worshippers

will be all

those who

worship the

father in

spirit

and truth

and the

reason that

he gives

for that

is that

God is

spirit

what does

that mean

it means

that

I mean

it doesn't

mean that

God is

one of the

many

spirits

it means

it's talking

about

his

nature

unlike

us

whose

flesh

God

is spirit

which means

that God

is not

confined

to time

space

continuum

he's not

confined

like we

are

it also

means

that he

doesn't

change

or decay

as we

do

because he's

spirit

he's not

flesh

it means

that God

is powerful

not weak

like flesh

because he

is spirit

because

according to

the Bible

spirit

is a

stronger

reality

than

materiality

and that's

sometimes

we don't

think about

it that

way

we think

things

you can

see

feel

and touch

that's

more

real

to us

than

spiritual

things

but the

Bible

turns

that

view

upside

down

in

Isaiah

31

he says

God

says to

this

to his

people

woe to

those

who go

down

to Egypt

for help

and rely

on horses

who trust

in chariots

because they

are many

and in

horsemen

because they

are very

strong

but do

not look

to the

holy

one

of Israel

or consult

the Lord

and then

he says

the reason

for that

is the

Egyptians

are man

and not

God

and their

horses

are flesh

and not

spirit

and when

the Lord

stretches

out his

hand

the helper

will stumble

and he

was helped

will fall

and they

will all

perish

together

the spiritual

reality

is more

real

than

material

reality

and the

spirit

is more

permanent

and powerful

than flesh

God

is spirit

and that's

why true

worshipers

must worship

in spirit

and truth

and what

does that

mean

what's spirit

and truth

and that

should really

have the

definite article

before the

word spirit

it should

say in

the

spirit

the definite

article

isn't there

in the

original text

in the

Greek

but that's

usually the

case

even when

the noun

is definite

if the

noun

is an

object

of a

preposition

and especially

if it's

an abstract

noun

like truth

and spirit

so it's

by grammatical

rule

it's the

usual way

you should

translate this

is to say

in the

spirit

and the

truth

not in

spirit

and truth

and you

see this

confirmed in

John chapter

John 3:5

3 verse

5 of the

ESV

same bible

he says

unless one

is born

of water

and the

spirit

he cannot

enter the

kingdom of

God

same word

the article

is not

there either

but the

translators

here render

that correctly

they put

the

before the

spirit

so what

that means

then

what

Jesus

is referring

to

here is

the

holy

spirit

the spirit

the spirit

of God

the very

presence

of God

he is the

one that

mediates

our worship

he is the

one through

whom we

must worship

in the

spirit

of God

but not

just in

spirit

but the

true

worshipers

also

worship

the

father

in

truth

this

also

refers

to a

specific

definite

truth

the

truth

and in

the

context

of the

gospel

of John

this is

very clear

because

in

John 6

Jesus

says

that he

is the

true

bread

in

chapter

10

he says

that he

is the

true

shepherd

chapter

10

and 14

he says

that he

is the

true

son

and in

chapter

11

he says

he is the

true

resurrection

and the

life

in fact

John 15

he says

he is the

true

vine

given this

context

in the

gospel

of John

truth

can be

nothing

other than

Jesus

Christ

himself

the

message

he

embodies

the

power

that he

imparts

as

the

son

of

God

and

he

makes

this

explicit

in

John

John 14:6

chapter

14

verse

6

he says

I am

the

way

and

the

truth

and

the

life

no

one

comes

to

the

father

except

through

me

so

to

worship

in

the

truth

is

to

approach

and

worship

the

father

by

the

means

of

Christ

according

to

the

revelation

of

Christ

through

Christ

that's

what

it

means

for

us

to

worship

God

in

spirit

and

truth

because

Jesus

who

replaces

the

old

temple

as we

saw

in

chapter

2

is

now

the

new

focal

point

of

worship

he

is

the

one

through

whom

we

worship

and

that's

why

when

Jesus

tells

this

to

the

Samaritan

woman

she

says

in

verse

25

I

I

I

I

know

that

Messiah

is

coming

he

was

called

Christ

when

he

comes

he

will

tell

us

all

things

she

has

enough

knowledge

of

the

messianic

expectations

Jewish

messianic

expectations

know

that

this

kind

of

change

cosmic

change

this

kind

of

new

age

could

only

come

when

the

Messiah

comes

when

the

promised

Christ

comes

so

that's

why

she

says

this

to

him

and

Jesus

says

something

really

remarkable

he

turns

to

her

I

who

speak

to

you

am

he

I

who

speak

to

you

am

he

Jesus

embodies

and

imparts

to us

the

very

truth

of

God

the

saving

purposes

of

God

and

that's

in

the

gospel

of

Jesus

Christ

that

we

proclaim

week

in

and

week

out

because

when

humanity

sinned

against

God

by

doubting

his

promises

and

violating

and

obscured

the

truth

of

God

and

a

dark

fog

dawned

it

descended

upon

the

earth

upon

the

world

and

we

became

cloaked

in

ignorance

but

God

sends

the

son

who

is

the

light

of

the

world

John

says

he

enlightens

us

so

that

we

can

see

in

the

darkness

he

comes

as

the

truth

to

point

us

in

the

right

direction

to

show

us

the

way

to

God

and

he

does

this

ultimately

in

a

climactic

way

on

the

cross

when

he

dies

for

our

sins

because

we

cannot

make

our

own

way

to

God

we

cannot

find

our

own

way

to

God

but

Christ

shows

us

the

way

when

he

dies

and

makes

that

way

paves

that

path

by

paying

the

penalty

of

our

sins

and

bringing

us

lifting

us

with

him

to

have

fellowship

with

the

father

that's

why

if

you

believe

it

the

lowliest

among

us

can

have

communion

with

the

most

high

God

that's

why

if

we

believe

it

the

most

sinful

among

us

like

this

Samaritan

woman

can

have

communion

with

the

most

holy

God

we

can

enjoy

the

eternal

life

we

can

enjoy

eternal

life

through

the

spirit

and

truth

of

Jesus

Christ

and

that

is