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Scripture Reading: John 4:3-21, 23-26, 28-29, 31-32
John 4:3-21, 23-26, 28-29, and 31-32 say, “He [Jesus] left Judea and...had to pass through Samaria. So He came to a city of Samaria... and Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from the journey, sat thus by the well; it was about the sixth hour. There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, Give Me something to drink. For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. The Samaritan woman then said to Him, How is it that You, being a Jew, ask for a drink from me, who am a Samaritan woman? (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered and said to her, If you knew the gift of God and who it is who says 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 no bucket, and the well is deep; where then do You get this living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well...? Jesus answered and said to her, Everyone who drinks of this water shall thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall by no means thirst forever; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life. The woman said to Him, Sir, give me this water so that I will not thirst nor come here to draw. He said to her, Go, call your husband and come here. The woman answered and said, I do not have a husband. Jesus said to her, You have well said, I do not have a husband, for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly. The woman said to Him, Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain, yet you say that in Jerusalem is the place where men must worship. Jesus said to her, Woman, believe Me...neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father...The true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truthfulness, for the Father also seeks such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truthfulness. The woman said to Him, I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when He comes, He will declare all things to us. Jesus said to her, I, who speak to you, am He...Then the woman left her waterpot and went away into the city, and said to the people, Come, see a man who told me all that I have done. Is this not the Christ?...In the meantime, the disciples urged Him, saying, Rabbi, eat. But He said to them, I have food to eat that you do not know about.”
In the previous chapter we saw a moral person. In this chapter we will consider an immoral person. The condition of the immoral person in John 4 differs greatly from the condition of the moral person in chapter 3. The moral man was an orthodox Jew. The immoral woman was a Samaritan, a person of mixed race. He was a ruler. She was a commoner. He was moral, reputable, respectable, and admirable. She was immoral, dishonorable, despised, and contemptible. He was a moral man, whose name was recorded in the Bible. She was an immoral woman, whose name was not recorded in the Bible. Nicodemus had a desire to see the Lord. The Samaritan woman had no desire to see the Lord, but the Lord met her. Nicodemus came to see the Lord secretly at night. The Samaritan woman met the Lord in an open area during the day. Nicodemus discussed the truth with the Lord indoors. The Samaritan woman was contacted by the Lord outdoors.
This racially mixed and immoral woman had had five husbands, and the one she was with was not her husband (v. 18). Her behavior ruined her standing as a woman. She was scorned, rejected, and held in contempt, but the Lord Jesus did not reject her. She had no desire to seek the Lord, but He came to seek her. She had no heart for the Lord, but He had a heart for her. She did not know the Lord, but He knew her. The Lord knew where she was, and He knew her kind of living. The Lord knew she would go to the well at that time to draw water. Therefore, He went there to wait for her. This was not a coincidence; this was the Lord’s particular seeking of the immoral woman (v. 23).
The Lord Jesus came from heaven to the earth in order “to seek and to save that which is lost” (Luke 19:10). The more a person is lost, the more the Lord seeks him. The more a person sins, the more the Lord wants to save him. Most people misunderstand the Lord. They think that He wants good people, not bad people, and that He delights in moral people but rejects immoral people. They do not know that the Lord Jesus has come to seek even bad and immoral people, just as He did in this case.
No one is so corrupt that the Lord would reject him, and no one is so immoral that the Lord would refuse him. The Lord is seeking and wants to save those who sense that they are corrupt and are ashamed of their filthy condition, because the Lord needs sinners.
We think that sinners need the Savior. We do not know that the Savior needs sinners. Sinners definitely need the Savior, but the Savior needs sinners more than they need Him. Therefore, John 4 presents the need of two parties, that is, two thirsty parties.
The picture in John 4 presents a Savior, a sinner, a well, and water. The Savior and the sinner met in front of the well and conversed with each other concerning water. The Savior sat by the well and waited in order to ask for water to drink. The sinner came to the well to draw water in order to quench her thirst. A thirsty Savior met a thirsty sinner by the well. Therefore, this picture shows the thirst of two parties in the universe: the Savior and the sinner.
The Savior was thirsty and asked the sinner for water to drink. According to John 1, this Savior is the God who created all things. He is the Lord of the universe, but He is also thirsty. He is thirsty because He lost man. Man is His delight and satisfaction. He created the universe in order to gain man. However, man sinned and became lost, and the Savior became thirsty. The Savior is thirsty to gain man. Only man can quench His thirst. He has no satisfaction apart from man. Thirst is a need within man that can be quenched by water. Within God there is also a need that can be quenched only by man. God needs man; man is the water that can quench God’s thirst.
God became flesh and lived on the earth among men because He was thirsty to gain man. He “had to pass through Samaria” because He had to gain the immoral Samaritan woman. He disregarded His weariness from the journey and the hot afternoon sun and sat by the well, waiting for the Samaritan woman. He was a Jewish man, but He was bold to ask a Samaritan woman for water to drink because He wanted to gain her. He wanted to drink from her, not the water she drew from the well. Only a sinner such as she could quench the thirst of the Savior. This is what the Savior wanted.
The Savior was thirsty to gain sinners when He came to the earth. If there were no sinners on earth or if He could not gain sinners on earth, His thirst would not be quenched. Many people think that the Savior will not accept sinners like themselves. They do not know that they are exactly what the Savior needs; they are what the Savior wants. Without them the Savior is not satisfied, and His thirst is not quenched. They are the water that the Savior wants to drink. The Savior needs sinners like you and me. The Savior wants you to quench His thirst; He wants you to give Him water to drink. He is still thirsty today. He is thirsty to gain you.
In John 4 the Savior is thirsty, and the sinner is also thirsty. The thirsty Savior asked the sinner for water to drink, and the thirsty sinner came to draw water from the well. The universe is a place of thirst, in which there are a thirsty Savior and thirsty sinners. Who is not thirsty? Who is satisfied with his human life and feels no lack? Regardless of whether a person is rich or poor, noble or base, he is dissatisfied and discontent. The human life is a life of thirst, and human history is a record of thirst. Every human culture is a reflection of an attempt to satisfy thirst.
People in every part of society are thirsty. People thirst for knowledge, position, money, fame, a spouse, and children. There is no one who does not thirst, and there is no one who does not want to quench his thirst. Some people study, work, conduct business, or become government officials because they are thirsty and want to quench their thirst. Everything that man does, including his striving and struggling, is governed and driven by his thirst. The thirst within man pushes him to be busy night and day and to run everywhere, both physically and mentally. Man is busy because he wants to quench his thirst.
Man is busy doing many things because of his thirst, and he also sins because of his thirst. Man seeks amusement and entertainment to quench his thirst. Amusement and entertainment have led countless people astray into sin and have trapped countless people in the deep pit of sin. People are trapped in sin because they want amusement and entertainment to quench their thirst. Moreover, many people do not hesitate to sin in an attempt to quench their thirst. Many sins are derived from man’s thirst and from man’s desire to quench his thirst. A man who is satisfied, not thirsty, does not commit sin. Every sinner is thirsty, not satisfied. People lead a dissolute life by indulging in eating, drinking, fornication, adultery, gambling, and smoking because they are thirsty and dissatisfied. They want to quench their thirst and be satisfied.
Some people go to movie theaters because they are thirsty. Some people go to dance halls because they are thirsty. Some people are involved in fornication because they are thirsty. Some people gamble because they are thirsty. Even though all these activities are poisonous, people drink this poison in order to quench their thirst. They are driven by their thirst and disregard the terrible consequences because they hope that such activities can quench their thirst and satisfy their empty feeling.
Man is thirsty because he does not contain God. Just as God needs man, man also needs God. Man is God’s satisfaction, and God is man’s satisfaction. Without man God is thirsty, and without God man is thirsty. Man’s existence is for God because God created man for Himself. If man does not gain God and does not exist for God, man cannot find his proper place or fulfill his function. People feel that their human life is empty, because they have not gained God; their life is not for God.
Without man God has a great lack, and without God man has a great void. In order for God to be satisfied, He must gain man; and in order for man to be satisfied, he must gain God. Man is for God, and God is for man. In order for God to be satisfied and to quench His thirst, He must gain and enjoy man; and in order for man to be satisfied and to quench his thirst, he must gain and enjoy God.
The Samaritan woman is an example of thirst. She represents every thirsty person. The Samaritan woman brought her waterpot under the hot sun at noon to draw water. How could she not have been tired or thirsty? It was the custom during that time for women to go in groups to draw water at dusk, or at sunset, when it was cool. Drawing water was a tiring task, but going as a group and chatting together made it pleasant. This woman, however, had an immoral living and was held in contempt. She dared not go with others to draw water, because she was ashamed of her filthy living. In order to avoid being mocked, she went alone to draw water at noontime, when the sun was hot and everyone was resting at home. Under such circumstances, how could she not feel lonely? How could she not be thirsty?
This woman had had five husbands, and the man she was currently with was not her husband. This proves that she was dissatisfied and discontent with her human life. She had her first husband because she was neither satisfied nor content. She was not satisfied or content with her first husband, so she had a second one. She was not satisfied or content with the second husband, so she had a third one. She was still not satisfied or content after the third husband, so she had a fourth, fifth, and sixth husband. Such a dissatisfied life speaks of the empty sense in her spirit and shows her great thirst.
The Samaritan woman was thirsty in every respect. She was thirsty physically, she was thirsty psychologically, and she was thirsty spiritually. Her whole being was thirsty, and she had been thirsty her whole life. She was a thirsty person. No wonder the Spirit chose her as a representative of the immoral.
The Samaritan woman was thirsty because she did not have God. Her life was not satisfying, because she had not gained God. She had gained many husbands, but she had not gained God. She had her waterpot, the well, and water, but she did not have God. She was thirsty for God, not for other things. Her thirst was not because she lacked other things but because she lacked God.
Therefore, John 4 presents a thirsty Savior and a thirsty sinner. The Savior was thirsty, and the sinner was thirsty. The thirsty Savior came to the well in order to get water to drink, and the thirsty sinner came to the well in order to get water to drink. The Savior was thirsty because He needed a sinner. The sinner was thirsty because she needed the Savior. The Savior wants to drink, to gain, sinners, and sinners should drink, gain, the Savior.
The Samaritan woman was thirsty, but she did not know the reason for her thirst. She sensed a need, but she did not know what she needed. She did not know that she needed God, nor did she know the gift of God and Christ.
The gift of God is the gift that God freely gives to man. This gift is God Himself, that is, His life. Man needs God Himself; that is, man needs God’s life. In the universe only the life of God can quench man’s thirst and satisfy man. God has given Himself, His life, as a gift to man. Man can obtain this free gift without exerting any effort or paying any price. If someone knows his need and knows the free gift of God, he will seek God in order to receive God’s life. The Samaritan woman, however, did not know her need, nor did she know the free gift of God. Hence, the Lord Jesus led her to know her own need and the gift of God so that she might seek and gain this gift.
There must be a means for God to give Himself, His life, to man. This means is the incarnated Christ. God is embodied in Christ so that He can give Himself to man. A person who believes in Christ and receives Christ gains God and God’s life. Christ spoke with the Samaritan woman, but she did not know Him; she regarded Him merely as a Jew according to His appearance. Therefore, the Lord Jesus spent some time to lead her to know that He is the Christ sent by God so that man may gain God’s life. If she knew the gift of God and if she knew Christ, she would ask Him, and He would give her living water, that is, God’s life.
God’s life is the living water that man needs. This living water of life is in Christ and is what God wants to give man to drink. If man believes in the Lord Jesus and calls on Him, man will drink the living water. The living water is living because it is God’s life, which has vitality; God’s life does not lack vitality. God’s life is living and powerful. Therefore, in man the living water flows ceaselessly and is full of life and vitality. This life makes man strong to live.
God as the living water of life can quench man’s thirst and satisfy man. Man is also refreshed, strengthened, joyful, and full of light. Those who have God as the living water no longer have a sense of emptiness; instead, they are satisfied. Their pain becomes joy, their weakness becomes strength, and their darkness becomes light. Formerly, they sought amusement and entertainment, committed sins, and did evil things in order to quench their thirst. Now that the living water has quenched their thirst, they no longer need amusement and entertainment, they no longer willingly commit sins, and they no longer do evil things. Both the entertainment that they loved and the addictions that they served fall off because they gain the satisfaction of the living water.
The Lord Jesus did not tell the Samaritan woman to be delivered from her sinful life. He knew that she lived a life of sin because she was thirsty; that is, she sinned because she did not have the living water of life to satisfy her. If she had the living water to quench her thirst and to satisfy her empty feeling, she would no longer need to live a life of sin; she would not need to drink “poison” in order to quench her thirst. She would no longer need to satisfy her heart with the pleasures of sin. Therefore, the Lord Jesus led her to know the gift of God and to know Himself so that she could gain Him as the living water.
The primary need of the immoral is the living water of life, just as the primary need of the moral is regeneration. Even though living water and regeneration both involve the divine life in man, different characteristics of this life are manifested to different degrees in different kinds of people. The characteristic of God’s life that is important in the experience of the moral is related to regeneration, but the characteristic of God’s life that is important in the experience of the immoral is related to living water that quenches thirst. The moral primarily need regeneration so that their life may be changed. The immoral primarily need living water so that their thirst within can be quenched.
The Samaritan woman heard the Lord speak of living water, but she did not know that the living water was God’s life. She thought that it could be drawn from the well, because she knew the well of her forefathers and her waterpot; however, she did not know the gift of God, nor did she know Christ. The Samaritan woman highly regarded the well of her forefathers. She knew that both she and her forefathers lived by the well and drew water from the well to drink. She did not expect that any source could be higher than her well or that anyone could be greater than her forefathers. She could not perceive that the gift of God is higher than any source, nor could she perceive that Christ is greater than her forefathers. She knew her forefathers and the well that her forefathers had left for her, but she did not know the gift of God, nor did she know Christ. She treasured her forefathers and the well, but she did not treasure the gift of God or Christ.
She highly regarded the well and her waterpot. She knew the waterpot in her hand, but she did not know Christ, who was in front of her. There was water in the well and a bucket to draw water from the well, but the water in that well could not keep her from thirsting forever. Only the gift of God and only Christ, that is, only the living water as the gift of God in Christ, can cause man not to thirst forever. She did not know that the living water that causes man not to thirst forever is the gift of God in Christ. The fountain of living water is not passed down from one’s forefathers; it is given by God. The living water is passed down in Christ. Man does not gain the living water by his own methods or effort. Man gains the living water because it is the gift of God given through Christ.
Many people are like the Samaritan woman. As soon as they hear the Lord’s gospel, they say, “We are Chinese and have Confucianism from our forefathers. Confucianism teaches us how to conduct ourselves. What doctrine is higher than Confucianism? Who is greater than Confucius? Can the doctrines of Christ be greater than Confucianism? Can Christ be greater than Confucius?”
The Chinese regard Confucius as being greater than Christ. The Greeks regard Socrates as being greater than Christ. The Muslims regard Muhammad as being greater than Christ. The Buddhists regard Sakyamuni as being greater than Christ. Every group, whether religious or ethnic, highly esteems its sages and regards them to be greater than Christ. People boast in their sages and treasure the things passed down from their forefathers. They do not know that their sages and the things passed down from their forefathers cannot quench their thirst. The teachings and doctrines passed down from their forefathers are like the well in John 4 they cannot satisfy the emptiness of human life, nor can they give man true and eternal satisfaction.
The sages in whom people boast and the things passed down from their forefathers cannot quench the thirst in human life. Rather, they hinder people from knowing the gift of God and from knowing Christ, and they hinder people from obtaining the living water of life. Many Chinese cannot know the gift of God or believe in Christ, because they boast in Confucius and Confucianism. Many Muslims and Buddhists also cannot know the gift of God or believe in Christ, because they highly regard Muhammad or Sakyamuni and their doctrines. Other ethnic groups also cannot know the gift of God or believe in Christ, because they highly regard various philosophers, philosophies, and doctrines.
People boast in sages and in things passed down from their forefathers, and they believe that the methods they have received are effective and that their labor is necessary. The Samaritan woman is not the only person who highly regarded her waterpot and her labor of walking a long way to the well and of drawing from the deep well. Many Chinese highly regard their cultivation and their endeavoring to do good. Many Indians highly regard their asceticism, diligence, and hard work. Buddhists regard their abstinence, and Muslims regard their pious cultivation. Man invented these methods that require human labor. Using these methods to quench the thirst of human life and to satisfy the void in human life can be compared to the Samaritan woman drawing water from a deep well: it is vain labor that is unable to quench man’s thirst or give him eternal satisfaction.
People consider methods to be effective and labor to be necessary. However, methods and labor are like sages and the things passed down from the forefathers. They cannot quench the thirst of human life, and they hinder people from knowing the gift of God, from knowing Christ, and from gaining the living water that causes man not to thirst forever. It is very difficult for cultivated people and ascetics to know the gift of God and believe in Christ. It is also difficult for those who practice abstinence and for the pious to know the gift of God and believe in Christ. Such people depend on cultivation, asceticism, abstinence, and piety; thus, they cannot know the gift of God or believe in Christ. They do not know that such activity merely enables them to walk a long way and to draw water from a deep well. Such activity is to labor in vain without solving the problem of human life. Such people cannot perceive that the living water that solves the problem of human life and causes them not to thirst forever is a free gift from God in Christ to man. This gift does not require human effort, nor can it be purchased. They do not believe that only God’s gift and Christ, not human methods or human labor, can solve the problem of human life, quench man’s thirst forever, and thereby satisfy man. Such people are like the Samaritan woman, who walked a long way with her waterpot in order to draw water from a deep well but did not know God’s free gift or God’s Christ.
The Samaritan woman highly regarded her forefathers, her forefathers’ well, and her waterpot, but she did not realize that the water from this well could not quench her thirst. Therefore, the Lord Jesus led her to see that her thirst could not be quenched. The Samaritan woman highly regarded her forefathers’ well and her waterpot, but she neglected the gift of God. She regarded her forefathers to be greater than the Christ of God, but the Lord Jesus did not debate with her concerning who was greater. The gift of God is greater than the well and her waterpot, and Christ is greater than her forefathers, but the Lord Jesus did not correct her erroneous concept. Rather, He reminded her that the water from the well that she boasted in could not quench her thirst. She focused on theory; the Lord Jesus focused on fact. It is not a matter of what or who is greater but of what can cause man not to thirst forever. No matter how great her forefathers were and no matter how good the well was, they could not cause her not to thirst forever. This is a fact. How valuable were her forefathers and their well if they could not quench her thirst?
We are not considering the theory of whether Confucius is greater than Christ or of whether Confucian doctrine is better than Christian doctrine. It is a fact that Confucius and his doctrine cannot satisfy human life or cause man not to thirst forever. We are not considering the theory of whether Buddha is greater than Christ or of whether Buddhist doctrine is deeper than Christian doctrine. We are not considering the theory of whether Muhammad is greater than Christ or of whether Islamic doctrine is higher than Christian doctrine. We are considering the fact of what can quench the thirst in human life and satisfy the emptiness of human life. You may have venerated Confucius or worshipped Buddha for many years, or you may be deeply rooted in Islam. You may have studied Confucianism, Buddhism, or Islam in depth and learned much. But have these quenched the thirst deep within your spirit? Have they removed the emptiness within you or satisfied you? This is a matter of fact, not theory.
Many people study various religions but neglect the fact that they are thirsty in their spirit. They are just like the Samaritan woman. The Lord Jesus led her to the thirst in her spirit, and He is also leading you to see that you feel empty within. Whether you venerate Confucius, worship Buddha, or believe in Islam, you are still empty within. Confucius may be noble, Buddha may be deep, and Islam may be good, but how valuable are they if they cannot fill the emptiness inside of you, satisfy you, or quench your thirst?
The Samaritan woman highly regarded the origin of the well, but the Lord Jesus turned her to the effectiveness of the well. He said, “Everyone who drinks of this water shall thirst again” (John 4:13). The well had a long history, but the water from the well did not have an eternal effect. Everyone who drank of this water thirsted again. People exerted much effort in order to drink this water, but the effect of this water was neither great nor long lasting. This water could quench man’s thirst temporarily; it could not quench man’s thirst permanently.
This water was from the well given by her forefathers; it was not the gift of God. This water came from the ground, not a heavenly fountain. Man obtained this water with a bucket, not through believing in Christ. This water required human labor; it was not given freely. This water was of the present age; it was not eternal. This water is anything that is handed down, anything that is out of the ground, and anything obtained through methods and human labor. Hence, it cannot quench man’s thirst. In other words, this water is anything that is not given to man by the gift of God, anything that is not out of heaven, anything that is not in Christ or through Christ, anything that is not obtained freely from God, and anything that is not eternal.
Knowledge and doctrines that have been passed down from forefathers cannot quench the thirst within man. They cannot fill the emptiness of human life. The doctrines of Confucius can temporarily change your conduct, and the philosophy of Socrates can seemingly enlighten your mind, but they cannot quench your thirst. Knowledge and doctrine are the water of the world that is out of man, not out of God. They have been passed down through generations; they have not been given by God. They may be good and offer temporary help, but they cannot give eternal satisfaction. If you have knowledge and doctrine, your life is still empty, and you are still dissatisfied. You may drink of this water, but you will still be thirsty.
Some people love money and enjoyment instead of knowledge and philosophy. These people say that money is practical and that their enjoyment is real. Let me ask: Can money prevent thirst? Can enjoyment satisfy man’s spirit? Gold bars and dollar bills can meet a temporary need for clothing, food, housing, and transportation, but they cannot provide eternal satisfaction. Amusement and entertainment can give a person temporary happiness, but they cannot give his spirit lasting joy. Various forms of enjoyment, such as dancing and going to theaters, can meet only a physical or mental need; they cannot quench the deep thirst within man. The earthly riches and pleasures of this world are “this water.” Whoever drinks of it will thirst again. Earthly riches and pleasures give man a kind of enjoyment, but they cannot give man satisfaction. They are “this water,” but they are not the thirst-quenching water.
Earthly things and the pleasures of this world do not merely fail to quench man’s thirst; they actually increase man’s thirst. The more man gains earthly things and the pleasures of this world, the greater the thirst becomes within him. The more man gains earthly things and the pleasures of this world, the thirstier he becomes. Hence, the Lord Jesus said that everyone who drinks of “this water” will thirst again. The water of this world, the worldly pleasures, make man thirsty instead of quenching his thirst. The more man drinks the water of this world, the thirstier he becomes. The more he drinks, the greater is his desire to drink; and the more he drinks, the greater is his ability to drink. A person who makes fifty thousand dollars wants to make a hundred thousand dollars. When he makes a hundred thousand dollars, he wants two hundred thousand dollars. When a person has a son, he wants a daughter. When a person finishes elementary school, he wants to advance to middle school and then high school. After he finishes middle school and high school, he wants to attend college. When he has a bachelor’s degree, he wants a master’s degree. After he has a master’s degree, he wants a doctorate degree. Then he wants to become a government official or the chief of a bureau. When he becomes the chief of a bureau, he wants to become a mayor. After he becomes a mayor, he wants to become a cabinet member or a minister. He always wants more. He is thirsty even after his death. He will be thirsty in Hades and thirsty in the lake of fire.
The Samaritan woman previously had five husbands, and the one she was with was not her husband. Her thirst was not quenched with her first husband. She was still thirsty with her second husband and third husband, so she had a fourth, fifth, and sixth husband. She was thirsty even though she had many husbands, and her thirst only increased her desire for more. However, the more husbands she had, the thirstier she became. The words the Lord Jesus spoke were true: “Everyone who drinks of this water shall thirst again” (v. 13).
In a gospel meeting in the south of Fukien, I said, “This woman kept changing husbands because one by one they could not quench her thirst. She had one, but her thirst was not quenched, so she had another one. When the second one could not quench her thirst, she looked for another one. She kept changing husbands and did not hesitate to sin, because her husbands could not quench her thirst.” Remarkably, in the audience there was an educated, fashionable woman who had had three husbands. She was amazed when she heard this, and she thought that I was talking about her. Afterward, she went to one of her schoolmates, the wife of a brother, and asked, “Did you tell Mr. Lee about my affairs so that he would speak about me?” The sister said, “No, Mr. Lee does not even know you. He was talking about a woman in the Bible.” As a result, she received the Lord. She admitted that her husbands could not quench the thirst in her human life.
The things and the pleasures of this world only make man thirsty; they cannot quench man’s thirst. Furthermore, they are poisonous and harmful. The people who enjoy them are drinking poison to quench their thirst and are poisoned as a result. Many people have been ruined by money, and many people have been ruined by knowledge. Countless people have been ruined by seeking entertainment in dancing halls, fornication, and gambling. The things and the pleasures of this world ruin not only individuals but also families, and they ruin not only man’s body but also man’s soul in the present age, in the future, and in eternity.
Worldly pleasures are obtained and applied improperly; they are unprofitable and also harmful. Furthermore, they cannot fill the emptiness of human life, nor can they quench man’s thirst. Only the water that Christ gives can satisfy you and cause you not to thirst forever.
The water that Christ gives is His life, which is God’s life. God has given His own life as living water to man. Man needs the living water. God wants man to receive the living water, and Jesus Christ came in order for man to receive this living water. Christ gave Himself on the cross in order to release this living water, and the Spirit enters into man so that man may receive this living water. The living water is the center of God’s salvation and the goal of man’s salvation. Man’s being saved is his receiving this living water. When this living water enters into man, it quenches his thirst and becomes in man a fountain springing up into eternal life. Only the living water that Christ gives can satisfy the human life and quench man’s thirst forever.
After the Lord spoke of the water that causes man not to thirst forever, the Samaritan woman said, “Sir, give me this water” (v. 15). Initially, she said that the Lord Jesus was but a Jew, but she now called Him “Sir.” The way she addressed the Lord Jesus improved, but her knowledge of the Lord Jesus was still inadequate. In spite of her inadequate knowledge of the Lord Jesus, the Samaritan woman asked Him for this water.
The Lord Jesus had said, “If you...would have asked Him... He would have given you living water” (v. 10). This was a promise. Although the Samaritan woman did not have sufficient knowledge, she asked, and the Lord Jesus had to grant her request and give her the living water according to His word, His promise. For someone to ask the Lord for living water and be saved does not require much knowledge of the Lord. Someone who does not know the Lord adequately will be saved if he is willing to ask. Many people who did not have much knowledge of the Lord have been saved because they were willing to ask. In England there was a well-known, beautiful, and intelligent woman who was born into a family of high standing. She attended most of the parties in her town and liked to dance. One day a large banquet was being held to welcome the Prince of Wales. Everyone told the host that the party would not be a success unless this woman was invited. The party was for the Prince of Wales, but she was the center of the party. That day she danced very well, and everyone praised her; she was also very content and happy. However, that night as she sat alone in her room, everything was tasteless. She asked herself, “What is the meaning of all this? Is this not vanity?” She said to herself, “If a missionary saw me now in this state, he would talk to me about God and say, ‘You need God.’” But she was determined not to believe in God, so she said, “I cannot believe in God. I do not want God.” She continued to consider and again spoke to herself, saying, “If a Christian saw me in this state, he would talk to me about Christ and say, ‘You need Christ.’” But she was determined not to believe in Christ, so she said, “I will not believe in Christ. I do not want Christ.” After a little while she decided to pray. She began by saying, “God! I hate You! I do not love You!” Then she said, “I hate You! You said that the world You created is not lovable. But I feel that it is very lovable. I hate You! I do not love You!” Her prayer was the most peculiar prayer ever recorded in a Christian book.
However, her prayer was effective. The next day she was a different person. The night before she had told God, “I hate You! I do not love You!” But the next day she was changed. She loved God very much. She had joy and satisfaction. From that day onward, she would tell God, “Even if the whole world were given to me, I would throw everything away to love You.” This woman did not know God, and her prayer was very odd, but she prayed and contacted God. Therefore, she gained God and received salvation.
There are others who also did not know the Lord. Some even doubted the existence of God. But they prayed, “O Lord Jesus, if You are God, make me believe in You.” Others prayed, “God, if You exist, make me believe.” Because they prayed and asked in this way, they gained God and were saved.
Ask Him, and He will give you living water. This is the Lord’s word. Heaven and earth will pass away, but the Lord’s words can never pass away; they will be fulfilled. If you ask Him according to His word, He will give you your request. To ask is not to comprehend or to understand. To ask is to request. It is not to study or comprehend with the mind but to request with the heart. It is not to contact dead doctrines with the mind but to contact the living Lord with your heart. Many people study doctrines concerning Christ by exercising their mind and contact Christianity with their mind, but they do not contact Christ with their heart. As a result, they are not saved. Many people understand doctrines, but they have never asked the Lord to give them living water; therefore, they are not saved. If you want to be saved, to have the life of God, you must ask the Lord and contact the Lord with your heart.
When the Samaritan woman asked the Lord for the living water, the Lord asked concerning her husband. He brought up this matter so that she could gain the living water. The Lord said, “Go, call your husband and come here” (v. 16). She asked the Lord for living water, but the Lord asked her about her husband. Her husband was her history. Her manner of life was included in the matter of her husband. Therefore, the Lord asked her for her husband in order to lead her to know her corrupt manner of life and to confess her sins.
In order for the Samaritan woman to receive the living water of life, she had to confess her sins related to her husband. How could she confess such sins? The Lord is so sweet! He wanted her to confess her sins, but He did not point out her sins. Instead, He gently brought up the matter of her husband in order to lead her to know her corrupt living and to confess her sins.
When the Samaritan woman heard the Lord bring up the matter of her husband, she sensed her corrupt living, but she was unwilling to confess her sins. Instead, she told a truthful lie, saying, “I do not have a husband” (v. 17). She attempted to deceive the Lord Jesus with a half truth. But the Lord Jesus is God; He knows everything related to man’s living, and He knows what is in man. He knew her hidden living, and He knew that she was attempting to deceive Him, but He did not rebuke her. Instead, He said, “You have well said, I do not have a husband, for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly” (vv. 17-18). The Lord took the lead to bring out her secret living when He said, “You have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband.” The Lord’s word not only brought forth her history, her hidden living, but also confessed her sins for her. The Lord Jesus is great and fine, full of insight yet very considerate, respectable and lovely, and awesome yet approachable.
When the Samaritan woman asked the Lord for living water, He led her to know her corrupt nature and then to confess her sins. If someone asks for living water, the Lord will lead him to know his corrupt nature and to confess his sins. Unless a person confesses his sins, he will not receive the Lord’s salvation and the Lord’s life. Therefore, no one can ask the Lord for living water without being led by the Lord to know his corrupt nature and to confess his sins. An idol will not lead a person to see his corrupt nature or to confess his sins. The Lord Jesus, however, will lead a person to know his corrupt nature and to confess his sins. Some people sense their sins before they even approach the Lord Jesus. Some sense their sins and defilement as soon as they have the thought to ask the Lord for living water.
The Lord’s leading people to sense their corrupt nature and to confess their sins proves that He wants to give them His life. The Lord asked this woman for her husband because He wanted to respond to her prayer and to give her living water. Whenever someone asks the Lord for salvation, the Lord asks him about his sins. Whenever someone asks to be saved, the Lord wants him to confess his sins.
There was a person who was always praised and felt that he was not bad. He despised Christianity and thought that a gentleman like him did not need Christianity. One day while he was recuperating in a hospital, however, he decided to ask the Lord Jesus for living water. While he was asking, he sensed that he was full of sins. He prostrated himself on the floor and confessed his sins to the Lord with many tears. After confessing his sins, his heart was filled with joy, and he knew that he had been saved by the Lord.
If you want the Lord to save you, you must let the Lord lead you to see your sins and to confess them to Him. When you give your sins to the Lord, the Lord will give His salvation to you. Your sins need to be confessed. The matter of the husband had to be brought forth in order for the living water to flow into the Samaritan woman.
After hearing the Lord’s words concerning her husband, the Samaritan woman said, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” (v. 19). She now considered the Lord to be a prophet. However, she turned the subject from her husband to worship. Her husband was a matter of sin, which was scandalous. Worship, however, was a matter of religion, which was noble. It is not easy to confess one’s sins, but it is easy to talk about religion. Therefore, she turned from an embarrassing topic to a convenient topic. But the Lord Jesus is truly the Lord. He could lead this woman from the impersonal topic that she had brought up to the practical matter of contacting God with the human spirit.
The Samaritan woman turned the conversation to an impersonal subject, but the Lord Jesus brought to her a practical and spiritual matter. She asked concerning the place where God should be worshipped, but the Lord Jesus showed her that worshipping God does not depend on the place but on the human spirit. Her question concerned the place for worshipping God in religion, but the Lord Jesus brought her to the reality of worshipping God in spirit. The reality of worshipping God does not depend on a place but on the human spirit.
To worship God is to contact God. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him, contact Him, must worship in spirit. Because God is Spirit, He wants man to contact Him in spirit. Therefore, worshipping God does not depend on a place but on the human spirit. God is Spirit, and He is omnipresent. He is like radio waves. No matter where people are, as long as they worship Him in spirit, they will contact Him.
God is not physical, nor is He mental; He is Spirit. Hence, man cannot use his physical body or his mind to contact God. Man must use his spirit to contact God. The mind, man’s psychology, is not the deepest part of man. The human spirit is the deepest part of man. It is deeper than man’s mind. Man must use his spirit to worship and contact God. Man contacts God with his spirit, not with his body or mind. Man can use only his deepest part, his spirit, to contact God.
Contacting God with the human spirit is not a matter of thinking with your mind but of praying to God according to the feeling in your heart. If you pray to God with the thoughts in your mind, you are not contacting God with your spirit. If you want to contact God with your spirit, you must ignore the thoughts of your mind and pray to God according to the feeling in your heart because your heart includes the conscience, which is a part of the human spirit. Tell God what your heart feels. You do not need to think of what to say. If you feel pain, tell God that you have pain. If you have problems and burdens, tell God that you have problems and burdens. If you feel that you are corrupt, evil, and sinful, tell God that you are corrupt, evil, and sinful. Tell God what you feel. Only such prayer is contacting God in spirit, and only such prayer can contact God.
If you want to contact something, you must use the right organ and the right method. If you use the wrong organ or the wrong method, you will not be able to contact that thing. For example, you must use your ears to hear sounds and your nose to smell. Otherwise, you will say that sounds and scents do not exist. Similarly, you must use the right organ and right method to contact God. God is Spirit; hence, you cannot contact Him if you merely use your mind to think about Him. The more you think, the more you will say that there is no God. God is Spirit, and He wants man to contact Him; hence, man must use his spirit and pray to contact God. Even though God is invisible to human eyes and intangible to human hands, He is contactable and perceptible to the human spirit. If you pray to God according to the feeling in your heart, you will contact Him in your spirit.
The Lord’s step-by-step leading of the Samaritan woman shows that in order to obtain the Lord’s salvation and life, a person must ask the Lord. When someone asks the Lord for salvation, he must first let the Lord lead him to see his sins and to confess them to the Lord, and he must also pray to the Lord according to the feeling in his heart. If someone confesses his sins to the Lord and prays to Him from his heart, he will contact the Lord and obtain salvation and the Lord’s life.
More than ten years ago we preached the gospel for several days in Chefoo. A customs officer came to hear the message every day and was quite moved. After the last meeting he told me that he wanted to believe in the Lord because the messages spoke to his many problems. However, he did not know how to believe, and he did not know how to contact the Lord in order to receive the Lord’s life. I told him to pray, and he asked, “How do I pray?” I explained that to pray is not to compose an essay or an official document. Therefore, he did not need to think about what to say; he only needed to open his heart to the Lord and pray according to the feelings in his heart. He should tell the Lord what he felt in his heart. That night he told his family that he had something important to do. Instead of eating dinner, he shut the door to his room and prayed to the Lord. When he began to pray, the Lord led him to sense his sins so that he confessed all his sins one by one to the Lord. He received the Lord as his Savior. The next morning he discovered that he was a different person. He had been saved and had received the Lord’s life.
After the Lord’s practical and spiritual word to the Samaritan woman, she asked Him about Christ, and the Lord told her that He was Christ. Then her eyes were opened, and she realized that this One who asked her for water, the Lord who spoke to her, was Christ. She had brought her waterpot to draw water, but she did not know that she would meet Christ there. She could not think of Christ when her heart was consumed with the waterpot, but now both Christ and her waterpot were in front of her.
The waterpot could hold water from the well, but Christ could give living water. When the Samaritan woman did not have Christ, she had to rely on the waterpot in order to draw water. But now that she had met Christ and knew that Christ could give her living water, she believed in Him, went into the city, and testified to the people, saying, “Is this not the Christ?” (v. 29).
When the Samaritan woman believed in Christ, she gained Christ and the living water. Therefore, she no longer wanted her waterpot, and she no longer wanted to draw water. Instead, she left her waterpot and went to testify concerning Christ. Her life had changed. Initially, she brought her waterpot to draw water, but she now left her waterpot to testify concerning Christ. She went away with Christ. Initially, she needed the waterpot to draw water, but she did not need the waterpot when she had Christ and the living water. Without Christ she had to rely on the waterpot. With Christ she did not need to rely on the waterpot. When Christ came, she left the waterpot.
When Christ comes, everything else leaves. Those who have Christ have no needs. Those who do not have Christ are spiritually thirsty, and their human life is empty; they seek amusement, entertainment, the pleasures of sin, material enjoyment, and worldly blessings to quench their spiritual thirst and to fill the void in their human life. When they have Christ, they are spiritually satisfied, their human life is fulfilled, and they no longer need entertainment or material enjoyment.
Mr. Moody once preached for several days in a place in the United States. Every day he saw a woman in the audience who was very moved. After the last meeting the woman said to Mr. Moody, “I want to believe in Christ, but I cannot live without the theater; I have been going to the theater with my father ever since I was young. Now my husband often takes me to the theater. Much of our time is spent in the theater.” Moody asked her, “I noticed that you have been listening to my messages these few days. Did I say anything about going to the theater?” She said, “No.” Moody then said, “Every day my messages were printed in the newspaper. Have you read in the newspaper that I said something about going to the theater?” She said, “I have not.” Moody then asked her, “Then how did you come up with this matter of going to the theater?” She said, “I thought that you would not want people to go to the theater.” Moody said, “Do not talk about going to the theater. I will speak to you about Christ.” He then quoted some verses and spoke to her about Christ. That evening her husband took her to the theater as usual. As soon as the curtains were drawn, she told her husband, “I am leaving. This is not my place.” Her husband said, “Perhaps you are insane from listening to Moody’s preaching.” She said, “I want to be ‘insane’ like this for the rest of my life!” A person who has Christ has no need and no appetite for the theater.
In 1937 I gave some messages in Nanking. One day someone brought a fashionable and extravagant woman to see me. The woman told me that she was deeply moved by the messages and felt that she should believe in Christ, but she did not know whether she could continue to watch movies after believing in Christ. I realized from her question that she liked to watch movies. I could not tell her that she could continue watching movies after believing in Christ. However, I did not want to tell her that she could not watch movies after believing in Christ, because if I did, she might refuse. I asked her, “If your son were playing with a sharp knife, how would you take the knife out of his hand?” She said that the best method was to scatter some candy and fruit on the floor, because the child would drop the knife to pick up the candy and fruit. I said, “This method is very good. In the same way, when you believe in Christ, your hobbies will spontaneously fall away.”
This is the meaning of believing in Christ. This is Christ’s salvation. It is not a matter of whether you can keep your hobbies, forms of enjoyment, or love for the world after you believe in Christ. You will not need your hobbies, forms of enjoyment, or love for the world after you believe in Christ. When you have Christ, you do not need these things. When Christ comes, these things will leave. I know of a customs officer who loved to smoke cigarettes and make jokes at parties. However, after he prayed and accepted the Lord, he changed. He forgot about cigarettes and no longer took them to work. Furthermore, he no longer liked to make jokes at parties. Christ came, and these matters left.
The Samaritan woman was satisfied when she had Christ and the living water. Furthermore, the Lord Jesus was also satisfied. John 4 shows that two parties were satisfied; the Samaritan woman and the Lord were both satisfied. When the Samaritan woman received the Lord, she gained the Lord, and the Lord gained her. She was satisfied because she gained the Lord, and the Lord was also satisfied because He gained her. She was a thirsty sinner when she went to the well with her waterpot to draw water. Now that she was satisfied within, she left her waterpot because she no longer needed to draw water to drink. The Lord asked the disciples to buy food to eat and asked the Samaritan woman for water to drink because He was both hungry and thirsty. When He was satisfied within, He no longer needed to drink water or eat the food the disciples bought. The Lord satisfied the Samaritan woman, and she satisfied the Lord. The Lord was her satisfaction, and she was the Lord’s satisfaction. Before she had gained the Lord, the Lord did not have her. After she had gained the Lord, the Lord had gained her. When she was thirsty, the Lord was thirsty. When she was satisfied, the Lord was also satisfied.
When a sinner does not have the Savior, the Savior does not have that sinner. When a sinner is thirsty, the Savior is also thirsty. It is not until a sinner has the Savior and is satisfied that the Savior gains the sinner and is satisfied. The thirst of sinners speaks of the Savior’s thirst. The satisfaction of sinners speaks of the Savior’s satisfaction.
Are you not thirsty deep within? Are you satisfied with your human life? Without the Lord you have no satisfaction, and without you the Lord has no satisfaction. The Lord is waiting for you to receive Him so that you may be satisfied and so that He too may be satisfied. Do not disappoint Him and do not remain thirsty forever!
