Mensa Otabil - Jacob's Well (11/01/2025)
Welcome to a brand new week. Beginning today, we are starting a new study, and we’ll be focusing on John chapter 4. We’ll do this for two weeks, and it looks at how Jesus presented the gospel to a woman who is commonly referred to as the woman at the well or the Samaritan woman. We will use this as a lesson for Christians on how to present the gospel to another person.
We start from verses five and six of John chapter 4, where Jesus is at Jacob’s well. He came to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus, therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well; it was about the sixth hour. John chapter 3 and John chapter 4 have a relationship. In John chapter 3, Jesus meets a man called Nicodemus and shares the gospel with him. Then, in John chapter 4, Jesus meets this woman to share the gospel with her.
In the two chapters, we see how Jesus explains the gospel to different kinds of people. He explained the born-again experience to Nicodemus, who was a Jewish leader, and now He speaks to a woman who is not highly regarded in society. Yet, for both of them, Jesus ministered life. The Samaritan woman we will talk about today contrasts sharply with Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a respected leader; she is an outcast. Nicodemus is a Jew; she is a Samaritan. He’s presumably seen as a moral person; this woman, as we learn, is presumably seen as an immoral person. Nicodemus was learned in religious matters; this woman was quite ignorant about them. Yet, in spite of their differences-one coming from a more refined environment and the other from a more plain environment-both needed the same Savior, and Jesus made time for both of them.
The place Jesus chose for this encounter with this woman is a well, the well that belonged to Jacob. At this time, the well had been there for over 1,800 years, and people still fetched water from this old well. Jesus sat there while His disciples went to town. Why did Jesus choose this place? Probably, He chose it because it was a meeting place. In those days, that’s where people would gather. The well is where the women of the city, and sometimes the men who followed them, would come to fetch water. There would be people at the well, but at this time, it was noon. Jesus chose to sit at the well to preach the gospel to others. We must position ourselves where people are, and that’s what Jesus did. You can’t hide away from people and preach the gospel to them; you must be where they are.
The well was a meeting place for the inhabitants. Today, what would represent a well for us, or the place where Jesus located Himself for us? It could be our office, where people gather, or the marketplace or public transport. In the digital age, it could be Facebook or WhatsApp. That is the well, the place where people gather, and in that place, God positions us to share His word.
The first thing we note about sharing the gospel with other people is where we locate ourselves, how we position ourselves, and which platform we choose to use. Are we using a well, Facebook, or personal contact in the office? There has to be a place where you adopt as the spot to share the gospel with others. Can you imagine what Jesus would have done if He were living in our day and had all the tools? If Jesus were on Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, or Twitter, what would He be tweeting about? What message would He put on His Facebook page? What would He be WhatsApping? What would He be forwarding to people? Just think about it.
As a Christian, consider whether you are using your well, your platform, wisely to present the gospel.
Let us pray. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, put me in a place where I can share the message of Your salvation with others. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.»
Well, that’s our first lesson for today. We will continue tomorrow to learn more about sharing the gospel with other people. I am Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.