Lesson 14

Seven Serious Sins Of A Soul Winner

John 4:27-43

It was the critical moment in the conversation. Jesus is in the middle of an evangelistic encounter with a woman at a well in Samaria. Jesus is alone having sent his disciples across the field to town to get lunch.

"Give me a drink," He has said to her.

"I'm surprized that you would drirnk from the cup of a Samaritan" she has returned.

"If you knew who I am and what I could give you, you would ask me for a drink."

"Right. You don't even have a bucket." "Drink from Jacob's well and you will soon be thirsty again, but drink from my well and you will never thirst again. You will receive the gift of eternal life."

"You know I am tired and thirsty. Give me such water that will satisfy my soul."

"Go get your husband."

"I don't have a husband." "You got that right. The truth is you've been married five times and right now you're living with a man who is not your husband!"

"You're right about me! How did you know? But I'm religious. I just worship at a different place than you, that's all."

"There's more to it than that. You don't even know who or what you worship. True worship comes from a true worshipper who worships God in spirit and and in truth. That's the worship which God seeks, right now."

"O really, well, I suppose that when Messiah comes He will answer all our questions."

"You are talking to Messiah. I am he."

And at that very moment, the disciples show up with lunch (v. 27)! As is so often happens,everyone who has sought to lead a soul to Christ knows all too well, that at that critical moment of decision there is an interruption - the telephone rings, the baby starts to cry, something happens to interrupt. In this case, it was the return of the disciples which causes the interruption.

They were speechless that the Lord should be talking to a woman, and a Samaritan woman at that. It was contrary to Jewish taboos. It would seem that on their way into the villiage to buy provisions they must have crossed paths with this woman carrying her waterpot on her way to the well. Had they greeted her? I suspect not! It wasn't proper. And she was, after all, a Samaritan.

This is one of my favorite stories in the Bible. There are, as we have discovered, several lessons to be learned from this event. There is the lesson of the well - that Christ cames seeking the lost. There is the lesson of the woman - that God is no respector of persons. There is the lesson of the water - that whoever thirsts may drink. There is the lesson of worship - that the Father receives only true worship. The final lesson, is the one which we have reserved for today - the lesson of witnessing.

Actually, there is witnessing all over this chapter. The witness of Jesus to the woman. The witness of the woman to the village. Both of these are models, a pattern for soulwinning in many ways. But the real lesson on witnessing is primarily directed toward the disciples - what they heard and what they observed. In many ways, the disciples stand in stark contrast to both Christ and the Samaritan woman because of the absence of any witness on the part of the disciples. On the one hand, we see what caused the woman to witness while, on the other hand, we see what kept the disciples from witnessing. Both the disciples and the woman went to town and came back to the well. But isn't it amazing that it was not the disciples who were busy witnesing while they were in Sychar but this newly converted Samaritan woman. One might expect that it would be the opposite. After all, who would be better trained and qualified? The disciples display the kinds of problems that keep us from being the witnesses we need to be. Jesus has some things to say and to show them about witnessing.

This chapter is full of what I call "meanwhiles." The story is split between two scenes. Jesus and the woman at the well meanwhile (v. 8) the disciples are in town searching for a kosher Jewish deli, vss. 1-27. Jesus and the disciples at the well meanwhile (v. 31) the woman is in town witnessing to the people, vss. 27-38.

Isn't it amazing that the first impulse of a new believer was to go and tell others about Christ? That's the way it is. But what is more amazing is that this woman, this new convert, with very little instruction did the work of witnessing to her village while the disciples did nothing to bring the village to Christ! Why not? What keep them from witnessing? I want to show you from this story, seven serious problems that made these men shoppers instead of soulwinners. The truth is that we today have the same things that hinder our witness.

Preoccupation

"gone to buy meat" (v. 8)

These disciples were the first believers to go into the city of Sychar. They were tired and hungry. There mission for the day was to find the local "golden arches" and get some food for themselves and the Lord.

Their problem was that they were so preoccupied with burgers and fries, salt and catsup that they ignored everything else, particularly the unsaved people of Sychar. You could say that, at least for that moment, they were into stomachs not souls.

Isn't it true that we so often get pre-occupled by all the cares and concerns of this life that we fail to see the significance of the opportunities that we have to witness. We are overcome by "secular preoccupations." These things have a way of binding us to what is physical and temporal and blinding us from what is spiritual and eternal.

We think that we are "off the clock", that is that we don't need to be thinking about witnessing at some certain moment.

In contrast to these men is this woman. She came to the well to get water but left without even taking her waterpots (v. 28)! She was not pre-occupied with physical water but rather with the spiritual need of her town.

Prejudice, v.27

Look at these men. They "marvelled" (Greek - perfect tense = kept on marvelling), they could not get over their Lord having anything to do with with this Samaritan woman. I'm glad the Samaritan woman met Jesus before she met the disciples just like I'm glad that the prodigal son swa the father before he saw his elder brother! Their soulwinning was affected by their prejudice. Sexual prejudice - she was a woman. The Jewish rabbis taught, "Let no man talk with a womon in the street, no, not with his own wife." Social prejudice - she was a Samaritan, see v. 9. Status prejudice - she was poor. Spiritual prejudice - she was immoral and sinful. We all have our own prejudices to overcome. We live in area that is very homogeneous. 98.5% white. The African, Asian, and Hispanic population combined in Dearborn County is a total of 1.5%. It may be a long while before we have to deal with racial prejudices. But it is my own observation that the people of this area tend to be very provencial. We look upon newcomers with different backgrounds and ideas very suspiciously. Listen. The county is growing at a very fast rate now. New people are moving here from other parts of the country with many differing cultural backgrounds. Our church welcomes everyone to come. We are going to become more diverse over time. We must all face and face down our prejudices. Especially when it comes to witnessing for Christ.

Let me share two personal stories with you which illustrate my own struggle with prejudice which prevents a bold witness. (Factory worker - cuss, vulgar, gambler - saved!; Dr. Kingston Smith - rich, professional, good at everything (nothing in me to admire), moral - saved!).

Our prejudice can prevent us from witnessing.

Priorities, vs. 31-34

What was most important to these disciples at this time? Eating! But Jesus had a different set of priorites, a different kind of food. Any woman who has every slaved over a stove, prepared a delicious meal, called her husband to come and eat - only to be told that he's not hungry - can sympathize with the disciples at this point. It was midday. It was five miles across the field and back and Jesus says, "I have meat to eat that you know not of!" "Huh! How dare He eat without us! Who did he get food from?" "My meat is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work." While the disciples had a priority of food, Jesus had a priority of doing the will of God. To Jesus, doing the will of God was not a heavy burden nor a distasteful task but nourishment of the soul.

The wrong priorities keep us from winning souls.

Procrastination, v. 35a

"Say not ye, there are yet four months and then cometh the harvest?" What did the Lord mean by this expression? Most Bible scholars say that this expression was a proverb, a saying of the day. We have those kind of expressions. And in this case, it sounds like the disciples might use such colloquial wisdom as an excuse to procrastinate. After all, most Christians intend to win souls ... some day. Not today, but some day. Never today ... always tomorrow. We are waiting for perfect conditions, for better timing. Eccl 11:4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. And really, sometimes our plans are actually nothing more than postponement - procrastination. We have lost our sense of urgency. It is not four months until harvest. The harvest work of God is now!

Perception, v. 35b

"Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes and look on the fields;

They are white already unto harvest."

What would these men see by looking up? According to verses 28- 30, they would see all these people whom the woman had witnessed to following her across the field to the well to meet Jesus. The fields were white (robes?) and waiting ("already"). This field is ready to harvest because someone has been sowing the seed. These men had been in the city. Why hadn't they said, "Come, see a man?" Why was there not a crowd following them out to Jesus? They had returned with food but no fruit. The call to look at the fields and the sight of all those people following the woman was a rebuke to the disciples who had failed to plant any seed. Her perception was better than that of the disciples!

Have you seen the fields around you? Can you look upon people as eternal souls in need of a Saviour. Is there something wrong with your perception that keeps you from witnessing?

Persistence, v. 36

"he that reapeth receiveth wages and gathered fruit"

As Christians, we are sow until we reap. We are to witness until we win. Gal 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. Psa 126:5 -6 They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. Perhaps we do not witness as we should because we seem to never see results. And maybe we don't see results because we give up to easily. We do not "finish the work." Two things are promised to those who persist in the harvest work of God - reward and rejoicing.

Partnership, v. 37-38

Sowing and reaping are equally important in reaping a harvest. Both result in people being saved. When winning the lost, there is need of working together. It shouldn't be a matter of who wins the lost, as long as the lost are won. "We are labourers together with God" Paul says in I Corinthians 3. And in verse 6 of that chapter he says, "I have planted, Apollos water; but God gave the increase." Verse 38 is a humbling thought. "You guys are fixing to reap where you didn't sow." We cannot take credit for the harvest. Sometimes we are in on a harvest wherein we have bestowed no labor. So it was that day in Samaria.

Verses 39-42 report a great harvest, a great spiritual awakening, a great revival in Samaria - "Many believed - many more believed."

And so we learn from this text on witnessing that whenever it is, it's the right period - not four months - the fields are white already unto harvest, not just because you're off the clock going to get groceries.

We learn that wherever it is, it's the right place - even in Samaria.

We learn that whoever you are, you're the right person - even if you just got saved.