AN ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS

AN ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS

John 4:1-42

An encounter with the Lord is worth far more than a lifetime of struggles. A divine encounter will bring the desired turnaround into one’s life. Divine encounter positions you for relevance in the things of God, particularly at this end-time…

Jesus moved from Judea to Galilee, but it became a necessity for Him to pass through Samaria.

After a long and tiring journey, He finally arrived at one of the cities of Samaria called Sychar, and sat on the well there (this was around noon).

Few moments later, a Samaritan woman came to the well to draw water…
And Jesus said to her, ‘Give Me a drink’…

The woman was rather astonished, wanted to know why a Jew would ask for a drink from a Samaritan (based on the rift that had existed between them for long).

Furthermore, Jesus assured her that whoever He gave the water of life would never thirst again… Consequently, the woman sincerely desired the ‘water of life’ and asked for it, so that she wouldn’t have to come to the well again.
Jesus saw her openness, sincerity and vulnerability. He decided to take the discussion to another dimension…

‘Go, call your husband and come back here’ He said to her. This suggestion opened up another chapter of her life…
The woman sharply responded, ‘I have no husband’. Furthermore, the Master dug deeper into her life, revealing her past (which might seem to haunt her)…

I believe that when God decides to open up different chapters of our lives, lines upon lines, precepts upon precepts, the healing process is about to begin!
Question: Are you ready to own up and open up to God? When God confronts you with your weaknesses and frailties, how do you respond?

However, our Lord, Jesus Christ chose not to condemn her, rather, He chose to restore her! (John 3:17).

At this stage, she could deduce that He was a Prophet. Here again, she brought up another sensitive issue, that centres on religion and worship.

Likewise today, we place more importance on ‘the house of God’ than we do on ‘the God of the house’. Religion is gradually taking the place of true worship in the church of God…
Jesus revealed to her that true worship (which is acceptable in the sight of the Father), is not a function of geographical location, but a function of the heart.

This doesn’t suggest that we should stop coming to church (Heb. 10:25), but that our coming to God’s presence shouldn’t become a routine, it must be crowned with a divine encounter! Our service unto God must proceed from the depth of our hearts. (1 Samuel 16:7; Luke 16:15).

At this stage, her heart was beginning to open up… (Psalm 119:130; Rom. 10:17).
By the time Jesus revealed Himself to her as the Messiah, she believed absolutely!

Furthermore, she left her water-pot by the well, went into the city and told everyone she came across, about Christ.
The people came to meet Jesus, believed in Him, and urged Him to stay a few more days with them…and many more believed in Him. They accepted Him as the Christ, the Saviour of the world!

Someone who already had a ‘character’ defect in the society had a life-transforming encounter with Jesus, and she eventually led many souls to Christ…

God is not a respecter of persons! He will do it for you also! You will have a life-changing encounter with Jesus! Look beyond your past, don’t let the devil use the past to intimidate you! Look unto Jesus, and receive grace to walk in the newness of life…

 PASTOR NATHANIEL SADELA

        Resident  Pastor

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