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Weekly Reflections 01: Thirst Quencher

This is part 1 of a 3 part reflection that looks into the deepening levels of John 4. Today we will talk about intimacy.

Focus: Intimacy

Introduction:

There is this thing on Twitter called “Thirst Tweets” where men or women are very openly talking about their sexual desire over a celebrity or artist. There is a YouTube segment where these celebrities read and respond to those thirst tweets on video. Thirsting over someone is described by pop culture as someone who is giving too much attention or too much interest in the person they are attracted to.

Question: Is thirsting really just a strong interest and desire over someone or is it a cry for help from someone who wants love and intimacy?

Main Text: John 4:7-30

There are three (3) levels to this text:

  1. Personal level: The thirst for something (FOCUS for this message)
  2. Political level: The nature of worship
  3. Spiritual level: The identity of Jesus

Observations:

  1. Jesus comes to us.

A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, “would you give me a drink of water?” The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, “How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” Jesus answered “ _If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water.”_

John 4:7,9-10 MSG

The woman came to draw water, but Jesus came for the woman. Not only does he come to see her, but also to offer her— living water.

  1. The woman thirsts for something she cannot explain.

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.” Jesus said to her, ‘Go, call your husband, and come here.” The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.”

John 4:15-18 ESV

Jesus wanted to reveal himself, but also give the woman what she has been thirsting for. The woman of Samaria has been trying to quench her thirst with something physical because she did not understand what she was thirsting for. Jesus comes in to reveal that her thirst was spiritual in nature. Her desire for intimacy and love cannot be quenched by man, but by God.

  1. The woman finally had her thirst quenched.

Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?”

John 4:28-29 NIV

Her original purpose for going to the well changed after her encounter with Jesus. She went as a seeker and returned as a preacher.

Truths

There are three (3) powerful truths we can relate to:

  1. We have an indescribable desire for something.
  2. We fill that desire with things that do not fit.
  3. We realize only Jesus can fulfill that desire.

Application

They say that man has an endless thirst for knowledge, but through this text we learn that we also have an endless thirst for intimacy with God.

Question: How can we quench the thirst?

  1. Acknowledge God.

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you; as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Psalm 63:1

I really love how David is a man after God’s own heart. The way he thirsts for God and the way he seeks Him is a sight to behold, but it always starts by acknowledging God and His position in your life.

  1. Seek God.

You will seek me and find me, when you seek with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:13

We get used to the famous quote from Jeremiah that says “For I know the plans I have for you…”, but let us look at something else. Something that is within our control.

When you do not study for your exams, is the teacher’s fault you failed? When you do not attend service, is it the preacher’s fault you did not receive the Word of God? When you do not open your bible, is it God’s fault you did not hear His voice?

Often times we say “I’m waiting for God,” when God is saying “I’m waiting for you.”

How have you been seeking God?

  1. Know God.

For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.

1 Corinthians 2:11-12

You know God by knowing Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is like defibrillators—the devices used to restore a normal heartbeat by sending an electric pulse or shock to the heart. It is used to prevent or correct an uneven heart beat, one that is too slow or too fast. It can also restore the heart’s beating if the heart suddenly stops.

The Holy Spirit is tied to our heart. It helps steer us away from sin, it helps us from growing too cold in our faith, and it can help restore a faith that has already died.