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Trusting God & The Water of
Life
I
think it is only when you travel in the middle east and other countries
where water is such a precious commodity that you fully appreciate the
background of the two stories, - two very human stories -
which are our Bible readings for today, and which are both centred
around water. The first story in the Old
Testament reading is about God being called upon, even implored, to
literally provide water for His people in their journey through the desert
from Egypt towards the Promised Land.
The second story, and
reading from John’s gospel, is about the Samaritan woman who comes to
Jacob’s well to draw water, and meets Jesus. Both
stories are centred around water – but both stories teach us something
more about trusting God. We can
read them simply as a record of events – or we can see a deeper
meaning in these stories. Lets
start with the Old Testament story first.
We can read it simply as a story about the Israelites, not far from
Mt.Sinai, wandering through the desert who run out of water. They complain to Moses, who brings the matter to God in
prayer. And as a result of Moses prayer, God acts and provides them with
water- out of the rock, there at Mt.Sinai.
that’s the basic story! But this morning I would also like us to
see within this story a message about trust in God…., or lack of it.
So lets step back in time a little and pick up the story. Through
a series of miraculous interventions, God led the Israelites out of Egypt
– and in each step of the way He provided for them.
He went before them in a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire
by night. He brought them
across the Red Sea, rescuing them from Pharaoah’s army;
He provided them with food -
even there in the desert! Could He not be trusted also to provide them with
water for the present? It seems that the Israelites, despite all these
events, had not learned from
their past that they could trust God to provide for their present
needs. When God leads us – God will
provide for us! So what are those
present circumstances in your life today where you are finding it hard to trust
God – to believe that He will be there with you into the future?
Well, while you are thinking about those -Can you now look back in
your mind and see how God – in a thousand different ways -
has been faithful to you in the past? Has God ever failed you?
No, He hasn’t, has He? So
wont you take hold of that faithfulness of God which He has shown towards
you in the past, and now trust Him with your present situation, and your
future? The Bible story may be about God providing water in the desert –
but its also about God asking you and me to trust Him this
day – for the needs you and I worry about, and lie in bed
at night thinking about! Trust Him
for your needs – is a simple lesson we can learn from the Israelites. The second story in our scripture reading this morning about water, has to do with the woman who comes to Jacob’s well, to draw water. We have just heard all about her and her background. She comes to the well, hoping
that she will be alone. She has
had enough of the other women of the town
gosipping about her, of the young shepherd youths who hassle her, and
the men of the town making fun of her. They all know her past, her failed
relationships, her character. But
as it turned out, when she arrived at the well that day, she was not alone.
Jesus was already there! And even
more unexpectedly, he asked her for a drink – for as we have heard –
Jews and Samaritans normally have no contact with each other at all.
Jesus could probably tell what kind of life she lived, even before he
talked with her – her manner of dress, and the fact that she came to the
well at midday, had blown her identity.
But there, beside the well, Jesus meets her, and she meets him, and
she discovers that here is someone that not only knows all about her,-
but, from the way he speaks to her , - with courtesy, with respect,
with kindness – here is someone she can surely trust.
So after a brief and startling conversation, she excuses herself,
leaving her water jar behind – and rushes back to the town to tell
everyone about the new man in her life.
But this one - was so
different from all the rest. Here
was someone,- someone at last-, whom she could really trust! – who
didn’t look down on her, or despise her, or ridicule her – but someone
who took her seriously, and treated her as a person, not an object.
She may have thought that day, when she set out from home to draw
water, that it was just another chore, another ordinary day. And when we
set out to work in the morning, or take the children to school, or put the
washing machine on and tidy the house, or log in on our computers – that
it will be just another ordinary day! Don’t
be so sure! We may be startled
to find that Jesus is already there waiting for us , and
our meeting with Him – in that very ordinary place – perhaps in some new
way – will change the rest of our lives.
Just know that when you
meet Him – you can trust Him. For
when we meet Jesus – we meet the God ,who in every way, can be trusted. |
