By Pastor Paul Bennett
Many of us are familiar with the story of Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman in John 4.
The Gospel writer, John, tells us that Jesus is traveling to Galilee, then says in v.4, “Now He had to go through Samaria.” This is an interesting choice of words because any other self-respecting Jew who “had to go through Samaria” to get somewhere still chose to go around Samaria instead. Samaria was a place that made the Jews uncomfortable as it was home to a group of people whom they looked down upon, even despised. Their prejudice was based on ethnic differences that had developed into feelings of superiority over the Samaritans. Jesus, as we know, was quick to break down such barriers and to violate the societal taboos that developed around them. He walked right through the heart of Samaria and, in doing so, changed the life of a woman who lived there. That woman would then be the connecting piece between Jesus and her entire village. In order for this to happen, though, Jesus had to venture outside the frequented territory, and comfort zone, of an average Jew of His time.
If we dig deeper, we find His venturing into Samaria wasn’t intended just to transform that village, but to model this level of courage and love for His disciples who accompanied Him. As His modern-day disciples, I wonder how well we’re doing at following Jesus’ lead and going through our own personal Samarias rather than circumnavigating them? It is so easy, and quite natural, to build our lives around the people and places we are familiar with, comfortable with, and who do nothing to challenge the way we think or feel about the world or ourselves. This observation is not intended as an attack on our character. We don’t wake up every day intending to go around our Samarias. Rather, we’ve subconsciously built our daily rhythm without Samaria in mind. And all the while, our woman at the well whom we’re intended to encounter is waiting for us to show up and transform her life, just as we are waiting for our lives to be changed by the very same encounter. Without question, we can still serve the Lord quite effectively without ever venturing into Samaria. Yet, God’s will compels us there nonetheless, as God has something greater in store for all who are willing to venture into the unknown and uncomfortable.
In Acts 8, we see the early apostles busily spreading the Gospel in Jerusalem until a great persecution breaks out against the church and they are forced to scatter. Those who were scattered, however, continued to tell of Jesus wherever they went. One of Jesus’ original twelve disciples, Philip, went directly to a city in Samaria of all places to continue spreading God’s Word, and the entire region was converted to followers of Christ! Philip had clearly been paying close attention to Jesus’ example during their Samaria visit. Shortly thereafter, an angel prompted Philip to go to a rarely travelled “desert road” where he encountered a foreign man from Ethiopia, who worked in the palace of a pagan queen, sitting in his chariot reading from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. I think we can safely call this a divinely inspired encounter! Philip shared the Good News about Jesus with the man and soon after baptized him as a Christ-follower.
Friends, God is calling us to our Samarias, to our “desert roads”, in much the same way He did Philip. To whom and to where is God specifically calling you? Contributing to our expanding efforts at Story Church is a great opportunity to discern your answer to this question. The needs we can fill there are tremendous. And our own needs for spiritual growth, perspective, and opportunities to humbly serve “the least of these” are perhaps even greater than the tangible needs we are meeting there for others. I encourage you to prayerfully consider how you might contribute. Or seek the Lord to identify your own Samaria. But do not miss out on this incredible calling God has placed on the lives of all who follow Him.
With you in service, Pastor Paul