David Norbury

Penuel Chapel will be holding a mission weekend in October followed by a Mission Week next Easter. The EMW has helped 50 churches in mission weeks and all 50 have churches have said they have been felt blessed. It’s a big thing to reach out and go beyond your comfort zone. That’s what we’ll be doing. Everyday should be like a mission. It is challenging.

The car manufacturer Volvo was the first to invent safety belts in cars. This invention could have made the company millions. However, they gave away the design and patent to everyone. The reason for this, the chairman explained, was that some things are too important to keep to yourself and somethings are too good not to give away. If it’s good enough for safety belts, it’s good enough for the gospel! You can be safe for eternity.

The woman of Samaria: John 4: 1-42

‘A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (John 4:7). When the Lord Jesus was speaking to the woman of Samaria, where were the disciples? Shopping! “For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.” (John 4:8). The Lord Jesus draws into conversation with the woman. Even more interesting, the disciples didn’t come back until after the conversation had taken place. When they returned they saw Jesus speaking to a woman – a woman of ill-repute and a Samaritan.

The disciples’ minds were focused on caring for Jesus, ‘Meanwhile the disciples were urging Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” (John 4:31). Then He tells them He has other food, “Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to accomplish His work.” (John 4:34)

The disciples were not thinking about a Samaritan woman of ill-repute being converted. They couldn’t see the revival happening. Jesus says to them, ‘What are you thinking about? There’s something major happening and you just can’t see it.’ How often have we said, ‘Nothing can happen here.’ God is working in a remarkable way. Sometimes we make excuses – what can one person do? One person is the Samaritan woman and she leads the town! 

The gospel is the power of God’s salvation. We may say, ‘I’ll speak to someone tomorrow.’ Why not today? We can make excuses, go shopping. We may say, ‘It’s not my gift.’ But we are all gifted with the glorious gospel. 

‘Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest.’ (John 4:35).

The Lord Jesus is very clear with the disciples. He understands where they are at. Our God knows what suffering is. He knows our concerns.

Jesus says four things to the disciples:

• Do not say ‘Not now, in the future…’
  Something is happening today. Do not say Why? What we say is from our hearts. Jesus says, ‘Think differently, change your desire, there’s a harvest out there. Change the way you think.’
• ‘Look can you see it?’
  You have to start looking in a different direction. The gospel is happening now.
• ‘Lift your eyes.’
  Change what you see. The Samaritan woman came with all the people.
  
• ‘The fields are white for harvest.’
  It’s happening now. The people are coming towards us. Look for God’s blessing.

‘Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.’ (John 4:36). There are wages. Wages are given and fruits are gathered for eternal life. Look at the blessings. In verses 37-38 we see there is a partnership between you, me and the Lord Jesus Christ. We’re not on our own, He is with us. There is a mutual partnership with God.

‘Many Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” After listening to Jesus they declare, ‘We know that this is indeed the Saviour of the world.’ (John 4:42). What a statement! They didn’t see it before, but they do now. The whole town has been converted. A woman of ill-repute has been converted and brought about a remarkable work.

Matthew 9:35-38: People are like sheep without a shepherd. The Lord of the harvest can change our thinking, change the way we see the lost, even those who despise and look down on us. Pray to the Lord of the harvest. ‘Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest.”’ (Matthew 9:37-38).

Jesus speaks to the disciples in helpful ways. The Lord Jesus, as He spoke to the woman, did so in a winsome, loving and caring way. He is transcendent in the way He operates. We need to be winsome – full of grace and truth.

In John 4 verses 1-9 what does the Lord Jesus do?

• He breaks down the cultural barriers. The Jews had no dealings with Samaritans. Who are the people you think you can’t talk to? He challenges us not to out up barriers. The Lord Jesus asks a simple question. He creates questions. Questions are wonderful. Use questions that you might find interesting. Change the way people think. Be winsome, use wisdom, desire to see people saved. Good questions are so useful – questions about eternity, questions about the gospel.
• After breaking down cultural barriers, Jesus speaks of a spiritual dimension. The Samaritan woman heard something she had never heard before. Jesus steps into a spiritual relationship (John 4:10-11).
• The Lord Jesus steps into the gospel (John 4: 10-26). He demonstrates the gospel and ends by gloriously declaring that He is the Messiah.
• The Lord Jesus steps into a challenge – to the woman and her thinking (John 4:21). We should never be afraid of challenges.

This passage is so rich. Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send us to reach out. Take one step to speak to the person across the room. The first step is the hardest. The gospel we have is too good not to give away, too good not to share.