living water

But he had to go through Samaria. So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) 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.” The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, (John 4:4-13, NRSV)

Jesus broke down bearers, not just societal, but every bearer that existed.

He should not have gone the way He did, even though it was the shortest route to where He was going.

He should not have been speaking to the person He was speaking to for so many reasons:

She is a Samaritan
She is a she.
She is at the well at noon.

All of these things are against her and society would say that she is not worth anyones time.

But Jesus comes to meet her here. He comes and offers her living water.

Just as Jesus comes to meet you where ever you are to offer you that same living water.

yours is…

YoursISThen he looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.  “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. “Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. “Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. “Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets. (Luke 6:20-26, NRSV)

Yours is…

If you are poor you will have the kingdom of God.

If you are hungry you will be filled.

If you weep you will laugh.

If people hate you you can rejoice.

But if you hoard your blessings now and do not live as God has shown us to live, yours is hunger, weeping and mourning.

So what is yours?

ate manna

Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (John 6:41-51, NRSV)

Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness and died!

You will all die unless you feast on the bread I give you and that bread is my flesh…

Hard to understand. Hard to accept.

You see Jesus and God are not going to be fit into our boxes so we understand everything that is going on. God’s ways are far above us, and we will not understand it.

That is where faith comes in.

We must take it on faith, and follow where He leads us.

Because they ate manna and died.

And all of us will die the physical death of this life, but then if we believe and trust and have faith in Jesus life will not end.

So that one may eat it and not die!

Jesus is good news and He has come to help us see the way to live and the love to share!

So take and eat, and take and drink and live in God forever!

steadfast love of the Lord

He turns rivers into a desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,
a fruitful land into a salty waste,
because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.
He turns a desert into pools of water,
a parched land into springs of water.
And there he lets the hungry live,
and they establish a town to live in;
they sow fields, and plant vineyards,
and get a fruitful yield.
By his blessing they multiply greatly,
and he does not let their cattle decrease.
When they are diminished and brought low
through oppression, trouble, and sorrow,
he pours contempt on princes
and makes them wander in trackless wastes;
but he raises up the needy out of distress,
and makes their families like flocks.
The upright see it and are glad;
and all wickedness stops its mouth.
Let those who are wise give heed to these things,
and consider the steadfast love of the LORD.
(Psalm 107:33-43, NRSV)

Consider the steadfast love of the Lord.

The love that is the same, regardless of the circumstances.

A love that will make the rivers dry up and the fields not produce, so you are brought low.

A love that makes the desert to be a fertile field and the dried up spring to shoot forth water.

The love of the Lord is always there for those of us who seek Him and follow Him.

So do not give up on the Lord, because He will never give up on you!

proclaim!

For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26, NRSV)

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”

Does this mean when we celebrate communion or when we sit down with friends around a meal and share bread and wine?

You see bread and wine were staples in Jesus’ day.

They were the most common elements of a meal that every family would have them. Bread and wine were there for every meal.

So every time you sit down at that table and share a meal with your family or friends you are proclaiming the Lord’s death!

You are proclaiming the love He has for all of us.

So share and proclaim away!

This is!

While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it. He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly I tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” (Mark 14:22-25, NRSV)

He blessed it and broke it and gave it to them and said, “Take; this is my body.”

And then He took the cup and gave thanks He gave it to them and all of them drank from it. He said to them “This is my blood of the covenant, poured out for the many.”

This is…

My body

My blood

Given and shed for you!

God gave Himself for you.

So that you could know what true love is.

So take and eat, take and drink, and know that you are loved!

fed

Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” The word of the LORD came to him, saying, “Go from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the wadi, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” So he went and did according to the word of the LORD; he went and lived by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the wadi. (1 Kings 17:1-6, NRSV)

Have I said it enough this week, God will provide.

I really feel like a broken record, and like the boy who cried wolf.

How many different passages in a row can we look at that show God provides.

But I bet this is not a story most of us know.

Elijah was told by God to proclaim rain nor dew would be present in the land for years. And then he is told by God to go east and hide near Wadi. and there you shall find drink and the ravens will bring you food.

You see when God wants to do something He will stop at nothing to make it happen. He will even have the ravens feed you!

So trust that God will provide!

buy with no money?

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. See, you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:1-9, NRSV)

Where can you go and buy with no money?

This is an interesting concept. I do not know of anything I can buy that is free.

I have been given somethings in my life. But I did not buy them.

But in God’s reality we can buy the things we need with no money!

God will give us the delight of providing us with the good things we need.

Are you ready to allow God to provide for you?

eat your fill

Therefore keep the commandments of the LORD your God, by walking in his ways and by fearing him. For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land with flowing streams, with springs and underground waters welling up in valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land where you may eat bread without scarcity, where you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron and from whose hills you may mine copper. You shall eat your fill and bless the LORD your God for the good land that he has given you. (Deuteronomy 8:6-10, NRSV)

If we follow the Lord, He will lead us to a land where there is more than enough for all of us.

A land with flowing streams, with crops galore, and plenty for everyone!

You will eat your fill and bless the Lord for how He has blessed you.

He will give it to you and provide for you through it.

cosmic vending machine

So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here? Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:24-35, NRSV)

Why do we seek Jesus?

Do we follow Him because we think we are going to get something?

That is exactly what Jesus asks the people who found Him, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you got what you wanted…”

You see Jesus isn’t a cosmic vending machine standing by to dispense what we want when we want and He also isn’t Burger King, where we can get it our way.

Jesus is here to show us how to live and to lead us to others who need to hear of His love and mercy.

We are His hands and feet and He is sending us to tell everyone.

So seek Jesus, not because you will get anything for it, but seek Him because your life will be nothing without Him!