Sitting Thus by the Well - 2

and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. (John 4:6)

Maybe it is because my mind has been cogitating on this for a few days. Or maybe God wanted to offer me another insight – or both. I woke up earlier than usual this morning with a distinct feeling that God was inviting me to get up and spend more time with Him than I have been for several days. Lately I have been a bit rushed in my devotional time because of work schedules, tiredness etc. As a result I have started noticing an increase of spiritual hunger inside of me that must not go unnoticed or unaddressed.

So, maybe as a way to help motivate me to get up, I internally heard something about this word that I wrote about a few days ago and have been pondering. I have been wondering why it says here that Jesus was sitting thus by the well. Well, upon reflection it seems quite obvious now what this can mean from the words just previous – He was tired!

Interesting. Jesus was not living as a superhero who always had the advantages and was never in a position of needing to receive help for Himself. This is much more than just a theological explanation about the physicalness of Jesus and the fact that He was able to get tired like everyone else. Jesus was very possibly so exhausted from the walking, from the heat of the day and, in addition the emotional drain of being misunderstood and misrepresented by the religious leaders where He was just leaving that He absolutely had to collapse by the well and wait for His disciples to go into the village to get some nourishment for all of them because He was simply too tired to move another step.

From this perspective I can now see Jesus looking completely drained and sitting against the well trying to get what little shade might possibly be found at high noon, which probably wasn't much. It is quite evident to anyone looking at Him that He is very tired and in such a state is actually very vulnerable. This is interesting because we don't typically think of Jesus as appearing vulnerable most of the time. But then why is this? Jesus Himself made it very clear in another place that the way we treat the most vulnerable in society is how He considers that we treat Him. (Matt. 25:31-46)

It was in this position of obvious vulnerability that the woman – who was also quite vulnerable herself – found Him as she approached the well to get water at a most inconvenient time of the day for her. She was a vulnerable person who felt ostracized by the rest of the people of her village; she was one who didn't trust anyone any more, especially men. So when she arrived on the scene, God knew that she would not be attracted to engage in conversation with a man who looked confident, self-assured or even “normal”. Because of her deep fears and suspicions and her own history of broken relationships and quite possibly even abuse, the only way she might open up to listen to what God wanted to share with her about Himself was to be have opportunity to connect with someone who appeared as weak and vulnerable as she was.

As I ponder this I am moved at the heart level with the awesomeness of a God who is not just willing but eager to connect with me right where I am emotionally and spiritually. He does not insist that I get my life together better before He is willing to be my friend. He can do that within me if I allow Him to later by His transforming grace. But right now He is more than willing to disguise Himself in the form of a helpless stranger in desperate need of assistance in order to deliver the very blessings and help that I myself need.

Of course, if I look at it this way that can also be a very frightening proposition as well. From that perspective I very well may be missing many opportunities to encounter God in the person of the most vulnerable when I fail to relate to them because of my own pride or my prejudice or fear of what others might think of me. It also strongly implies that He very well may want to use me to reach others by appearing vulnerable to them. But feeling vulnerable is not exactly high on my list of desirable situations to experience around others.

The ensuing interaction between Jesus and this vulnerable woman of Sychar has proven to be one of the most profound exchanges and revelations of light and truth in all of the Bible. Jesus ended up being more open with her in the simple discussion that followed than nearly anyone else that He talked to in person. This woman was entrusted with core truth, a key of sorts that has intrigued and stimulated people interested in deeper spirituality and a closer connection with God for centuries since that day. But the scene was set up by Jesus allowing Himself to become so vulnerable and exhausted that He could be approached by someone who likewise felt all too vulnerable herself. Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well...

I sense that I need to learn a great deal from this simple verse. I don't enjoy being vulnerable. I prefer to feel confident, strong, bold and even a little assertive at times. Like the Jews, I like to think of a God who is strong and in charge, not a God who appears impotent and vulnerable. And yet over and over again in Scripture I find a God who puts Himself into the place of the weakest and tends to identify with the most vulnerable among us and calls us to find Him and relate to Him there. This does not fit neatly into the religion that is popular today, but it seems to be the direction that must be followed if I am to discover the kind of incredible insights and experience the kind of heart relationship with God that this woman was privileged to experience later in this story.

The profound words about God and about true worship that later come out in this story have captured my attention for a number of years. The necessary involvement of both spirit and truth needed to experience true worship of God has riveted my attention over and over and kept me searching for that kind of true worship in my own life. Now, what I am seeing in this one little word thus helps me to better understand the context in which these words were spoken. And the context, the scene, the emotions and setting and “props” if you please, that creates the atmosphere for this revelation about God is becoming more clear to me.

Father, I want to praise You for waking me up this morning to share more of Your heart with me. You have already spoken a number of things to my mind and my heart and I want to thank You for being willing to meet me where I am in my own problems and fears and issues. You know far better than I do the many misconceptions about You that still keep me afraid of trusting You fully. You know the pain and abuse that I have suffered in the name of religion that has terribly distorted and limited my ability to trust You and receive Your love for me as I need to.

You also know the spiritual pride that strangles my ability to hear You as well as I need to and I ask You to continue to heal me of that especially. I want to live in open, free, joyful communion with You and be willing and humble enough to relate to You in the person of the most vulnerable and unattractive ones that You put into my life. As I have been praying already this morning, I want to be filled with the joy of Your salvation in my life and my heart. I want to know You at a much deeper level than ever before. I want that intimacy that You have been talking to me about for so many years now. I want You to live and dwell and be in full authority inside of my heart so that Your beauty and attractions can be seen in the way that I relate to others.

Father, I have felt Your convictions about my discontent with some of the people I associate with and do things with. I have wished that I could have relationships and interactions with people who are more “with it”, who have more of the personalities or skills and abilities that I enjoy. But You have been reminding me that these people are in my life for a reason and if I will allow You to, You will use me to not only bless them through me but may even surprise me with fresh revelations about Yourself through them.

Thank-you for Your word and for Your Spirit that is always ready and eager to reveal Your heart to me through Your word. Thank-you for leading me, for attracting me to Your heart over the past few years. I also ask that You intensify a deep hunger to know You not only in my own heart but in the hearts of every member of my own family, my siblings and those I know in my local church and other fellowships. Please send Your Spirit to awaken and stir within our hearts a desire to really know You with a level of desperation that cannot be ignored. Send a revival of genuine godliness so that we can see more clearly the real truth about Your love.