Desired To Hear Jesus Personally - Part 605

Jesus said "Except you see signs and wonders, you will not believe." (John 4:48) Often, this scripture is offered by form institutionalized religions as a rationale for accepting that some people simply will not believe that Jesus is our Lord God and Saviour. That our Creator loved us so much that He would offer Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for our transgressions. Or that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.  But there is another context and meaning in this scripture that should also be considered. That is, the reaction of the Samaritans after Jesus met the woman at the well.

Earlier, Jesus had told the woman, "If thou knew the gift of God, and who it is that saith thee, Give me to drink; thou would have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water." (John 4:6-42)

Obviously, the woman had never had a conversation like the one she had with Jesus. So when she went to the city, she told everyone to come. "Come see a man which told me all things that I ever did. Is this not the Christ?"

She was excited. She had just met the Most High God -- King of kings and Lord of lords -- on her way for water. And she wanted everyone to know that this is indeed, the Christ, the Saviour of the world. This man, she said, "is this not the Christ? (John 4:29) But the Samaritans did not initially accept her at her word.

Instead, they ventured out of the city and came to Jesus. Indeed, they besought Jesus that He would tarry with them, and He abode there two days. During this time, "many more believed because of His own words." (John 4:41)

As we read further, we learn that these Samaritans wanted to see and hear Jesus for themselves. Like the lady who was sick for twelve years and desired to press close to the Master Himself for healing. It wasn't enough to simply accept the good news about Jesus the Christ. Their purpose was to hear Jesus' message of salvation from the Master themselves. Like the woman at the well, they would not settle for anything less than experiencing His love. His peace. His mercy.

Once they had met Jesus -- and witnessed the Word for themselves, they said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of thy saying; for we have heard Jesus ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world." (John 4:42) Their lives had been changed. Firsthand, these Samaritans had experienced the love of Jesus.

Today, we need to reach out the same way. We need to press closer to Jesus. We need to find out personally for ourselves what Jesus intended for our own life. We need to read His Word. Why? Because life-changing experiences only occur when we've encountered the life-changer. The Father who holds the universe in the palm of His hands. The one who comforts us in our dark times. The one who would willingly shed His precious blood on the cross so that we might have salvation.

Like the woman at the well, we need to personally know who it is that we worship. Jesus said, "The hour cometh when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him. God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth." (John: 23-24) Stand in the offering plate.