Thirsty for What?

John 4:5-42, the gospel reading appointed for the Third Sunday in Lent in the Year of Matthew, is another of those extended narrative passages in John which we are reading this year.  It stands in stark contrast to the one which we read last week, where Nicodemus was a powerful man, a leader of the Sanhedrin, an insider in every regard.  The Samaritan woman is a member of a despised clan, a woman of low esteem in her community, an outsider by every measure.  It will be the preacher's task to proclaim the gospel in the unique way that Jesus does to this outsider, as opposed to the insider that Jesus preached to last week.

(The following questions have been developed in order to get at some of the fundamental concerns of Law and Gospel preaching, i.e. how the Word is functioning.  These brief questions are meant to be used in conjunction with other sets of questions which are helpful in providing different lens for looking at texts.  For more information on Law and Gospel preaching see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com or amazon.)

1.  How does the Word function in the text?  This extended dialogue gives us an example of the Word functioning in every way that it can:  1) A Gospel function is present whenever we hear Jesus proclaiming his desire to give to all the 'living water' (vss. 10, 13-14); 2) A Law function is present when the woman testifies to her thirst (vss. 7, 15), and admits to her need for repentance (vs. 17) ; 3)  A Call to Obedience is present when we hear Jesus calling his disciples to quit sitting around and instead get to the work of the harvest when the 'fields are ripe'.(vss. 35-38). 

2.  With whom are you identifying in the text?  As usual, it is important to identify with those who are addressed by the Word.  In this story that is clearly the Samaritan woman.  We might identify with her in many ways:  outcast, powerless, disenfranchised, shame-based, defensive, scornful, thirsting, seeking truth, needing healing and forgiveness, needing love, etc.  The ways we identify with her are only limited by our imagination.

3.  What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text?  As explained above, there is a clear call to the disciples to get to work, proclaiming the gospel.  Even though this is not the main focus of this narrative, we could certainly make that part of the sermon.  It is tempting to see Jesus' example here as a call to obedience as well, and view this story as one which illustrates evangelistic technique.  Many a sermon has had as its thesis, "Do as Jesus does!  Find the town 'watering hole'.  Begin with people 'where they are.'  'Confront them with their sin', and so on.  While evangelistic techniques have their place, this text is not primarily an exhortation to evangelism. 

4.  What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text?  There are many couplets that one could imagine with this text.  The most obvious is a common well/a spring gushing up to eternal life.  Others might be:  dead cisterns/living waters; outcast/embraced and respected; unknown/completely known.

5.  Exegetical work:  The multi-layered meaning of John's writing are on full display in any of the commentaries which discuss this passage.  Craig Koester has a helpful discussion about the symbolism of water in all of John's writing.  He reminds us that for Jews and Samaritans alike the law was often likened to water.  "Extant Samaritan sources speak of the law as 'a well of living water' from God.  (Symbolism in the Fourth Gospel, p. 189)  This gives us a clue that perhaps John is suggesting that Jesus will bring life and salvation in a way akin to the way the law brought life to God's people during Israel's history.  Gerard Sloyan reminds us that John often uses an individual as a representative for a larger group, saying, "we are right to doubt the literal truth of the woman's having had five husbands and not being married to her present partner (v.18).  Aside from the inherent improbability of such a career, there is the fact that the Samaritans were stigmatized as 'Cuthians'..., a tribe of the Assyrian Empire...These were one of the five idolatrous peoples of the East identified in Second Kings by their gods and consorts." (Interpretation series, John, p.55)  Lamar Williamson sees the language of the Spirit as central to this dialogue.  He is convinced that when Jesus talks about "a spring of water gushing up to eternal life" he is talking about the Spirit. "What Jesus promises is not something that will be used up after he gives it, but the gift of himself in the person of the Paraclete." (Preaching the Gospel of John, p.49) 

6.  How does the Crossings Community model work with this text?  Archived under this text are no less than four interesting analyses of this text.  One emphasizes the theme of thirst and Jesus' ability to satisfy our thirst.  Another talks about the woman's outcast status, and how Jesus "sticks with her", even though she is"stuck."  Still others call on the harvest language or the woman's awareness of her own sin.  Go to crossings.org/text-study to see this rich array.

7.  Consider the insights of the pioneers of the New Homiletic?  This lengthy text is an invitation to a sermon that tries to do too much.  As the old saying goes, "The preacher that tries to exhaust a subject, usually ends up only exhausting the listeners!"  David Buttick's insight to limit the number of moves we make in a sermon to what is essential is good advice here.

Blessings on your proclamation!