Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“The woman said to him, ‘I know that Messiah is coming’ (who is called Christ). ‘When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am he, the one who is speaking to you.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, January 30, 2022
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: Jesus’ invitation to drink the water of eternal life is for all people.
This entire exchange between Jesus and the Samaritan woman should never have happened. Jews did not mingle with Samaritans. Men did not have private conversations with women. And yet, here it is—the beginning of the breaking down of barriers that Jesus fought for and continues to fight for today. Jesus did not see Samaritan or female—Jesus saw a child of God every bit as deserving of his time and attention as any other.
Like last week’s encounter with Nicodemus, Jesus once again spoke cryptically about the things of the flesh and the things of the spirit. This time he explained the spirit as water with the power to bring eternal life—water that will make its drinkers never thirst again.
The woman asked Jesus for this water that refreshes the spirit and Jesus gave it to her. By asking about her husband, he gave her a choice. She could either answer truthfully, that she had not one husband but several—a shameful thing—or answer deceptively, thereby keeping her secret and her shame hidden in darkness. She chose to open the door to reveal her shame, and Jesus swung it wide open with his prophetic sight, “You have had five husbands, and the one you have now it not your husband.” Would she shut down with the sudden revelation of her shame, or would she accept the vulnerability and claim Jesus’ forgiveness as her own? She chose to remain open and in the end, Jesus’ identity as Messiah, Christ, was revealed to her before any other. Because of her openness and willingness to live in the light, many others were exposed to Jesus that day and many chose to believe.