November 2, 2010
QUENCH MY THIRST
John 4:1-15
Kristen Kedersha
Central Truth
Nothing but God can quench the thirst of our souls.
Key Verse | John 4:13–14
Jesus answered and said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life." (John 4:13-14)
John 4:1-15
Jesus and the Woman of Samaria
1 Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3 he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob's well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour. 1 4:6 That is, about noon
7 A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8 (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9 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.) 10 Jesus answered 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.” 11 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? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.” 13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. 2 4:14 Greek forever The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 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.”
Dive Deeper | John 4:1-15
We all look for something to quench our thirst, fill our belly, or just meet our immediate physical need, whatever it is. Yet, many times we forget—or do not know—how to feed our soul. The woman at the well is intrigued by this man, a Jew, who would speak to her, a Samaritan. The more Jesus said, the crazier He seemed, and the more confused she became.
In the end, even though she did not truly understand what He was offering, and despite not having figured out who He was, she asked for the living water He was offering. It might have been because it just sounded like it would make life easier. This prophet person obviously knew something. She may even have thought it could prevent the need to return twice a day to draw water.
When I first became a follower of Christ, the initial draw was the lives of believers around me. They had peace and joy no matter what was going on in their lives. Jesus treated the woman at the well differently than He "should have," making Him intriguing to her, just as I was intrigued by the believers around me before I came to Jesus.
Like the woman at the well, I really did not know the whole story of this Christ, but I knew that a relationship with Him was worth having. This is where living water becomes real. God is the fresh, flowing, cleansing water that brings life to our souls. He transforms us. And it is a gift only Jesus can give. Jesus tried to explain that living water is different from physical water. Once we have living water, we will not thirst—unlike physical water. Once we have accepted Christ as Messiah, our souls will not thirst. This living water is always available and always satisfies.
So when I feel thirsty and go to grab a Gatorade, I need to remember there is only one way to quench the thirst of my soul, and it is available to me no matter who I am or what I have done.
Discussion Questions
1. What past attempts have you made to quench your thirst?
2. What are you doing now to quench your thirst?
3. Why do we struggle by filling ourselves with other things, when we can have living water?
4. How do you intrigue others to ask about your Savior?
FAMILY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Who does Jesus talk to at the well (verse 7), and what does He offer her (verses 10, 14)?
2. What does she think Jesus means by living water (verse 15)?
3. What do you think Jesus means by "never being thirsty again"? Just like we need water to be satisfied, our hearts are “thirsty” to be loved. Jesus is the only one who can satisfy our thirst. He is the living water.