Scripture
John 4:42
“They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”
Observation-What does it say?
The woman at the well, a Samaritan woman, shared her encounter with Jesus with her people. First of all, Jesus came to her even though Jews and Samaritans do not associate with one another. Second, He knew the intimate details of her life....details that would be impossible for any stranger to know. Third, He knew she was thirsty for something more than what this world had to offer her, as He said that He can give her water that would cause her to never thirst again. The woman was amazed and Jesus eventually revealed to her that he was the Messiah that she was expecting (vs.25). The Samaritan woman could not keep this information to herself, so she told the other Samaritans in her town about Jesus. As a result of her testimony, many Samaritans believed in Him and chose to seek Him out for themselves.
Understanding-What does it mean?
Our faith in Jesus Christ is not meant to be hidden.
Keeping our faith to ourselves only benefits us, but we must share it with those around us too. As the Samaritan woman shared her encounter with Jesus (her testimony), it caused the other Samaritans to believe in Jesus and seek Him out for themselves. They had faith that became their own and it was no longer her faith alone (vs. 42)
Life Application
Freely share Jesus' testimony and our testimony of faith.
Jesus' testimony is His death and resurrection that enabled us to be saved from hell and not have to live a life apart from a Holy God. (John 3:16). Our testimony is our personal experiences/encounters with Jesus. Some of us have an initial testimony that led to us accepting His invitation for our salvation. But, we are given testimonies all the time as we are with Jesus everyday. It is meant to be shared with those who don't know His goodness so that they can taste and see for themselves that He is good.
Psalm 34:8- “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.”
The water He gives is truly living water and is the only thing that can satisfy our thirst for eternity.
I am grateful for my parents who laid this foundation for me. Although it was their faith that I followed in the first half of my life, because of their example and testimony and the way they raised me, it became my faith as well in the later part of my life.
Dear Lord, thank You for the people You placed in my life to plant the seeds of faith in my life. Now that I have been adopted into Your family, I pray that my testimonies with You would not be hidden, but rather shared with joy in order to draw others to Yourself so they can taste and see that You are good too. Thank You Jesus that it doesn't matter what we've done or who we once were, but that we are now seen through the eyes of Christ. Thank you that I will never thirst or hunger again. May more people be drawn to that truth as I am obedient to share it with them. Amen.
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-Michelle Gaddi
