Breaking Down Barriersনমুনা

Jesus asks the Samaritan woman for a drink. She can’t believe it! Jesus is crossing a thousand-year-old cultural chasm.

Tensions began about ten centuries before Jesus when Israel split in half, into Judah in the south and Israel in the north. The Jews descend mostly from Judah, and the Samaritans, partly from the northern kingdom and partly from non-Israelite nations.

Northern worship became corrupted, with King Jeroboam making golden calves in the cities of Samaria and Dan. To faithful Judeans in the south, this was unforgivable idolatry. The northerners were traitors who compromised with Gentiles and forgot their God.

After the Exile (a period from about six centuries before Jesus in which both kingdoms were conquered by foreign empires), the rivalry continued with separate temples. One on Mount Gerizim in Samaria, and one in Jerusalem, rebuilt on the site of Solomon’s Temple. The Samaritan temple was eventually destroyed by the Jewish King John Hyrcanus about 130 years before Jesus asked the Samaritan woman for a drink.

Ten centuries of bitter rivalry, and Jesus asks for a drink.

Yesterday, we talked about how Jesus came to us from the Father, becoming a stranger so that we could become family. We follow Him, taking on the role of ‘stranger’ for the sake of the good news. This puts us in a vulnerable position. It’s tempting to try to minimise the risk and stick to friendly people: open-minded friends and family, or people who are similar to us.

Jesus doesn’t take the easy way; He goes to His enemies. A Jew visiting Samaria would be like a Saracen visiting Rome!

Whilst we were God’s enemies, Jesus died for us. Jesus reconciles His enemies with God on the cross, offering His body and His blood: bread to eat and a cup to drink from (as we remember in Holy Communion). However, here at the well, He doesn’t begin by offering a drink, but by asking for one.

Jesus shares good news, and He shares His life. Sharing our lives means being willing to open up to people about our needs. Asking people for help is a powerful trust builder, and it demonstrates self-awareness and humility that can be missing when we try to share the good news.

As Jesus sends you out this week, notice the people you’re most afraid to talk to. Step one isn’t always an explanation of the good news. Asking someone to show you kindness can come first. What needs do you have? Can those needs become bridges for the good news?