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Traditions that divide

Text: John 4:1-45

TRADITIONS THAT DIVIDE

Jesus sat at the well of Jacob. That was not an uncommon thing to do. Many weary travelers would stop at the well and refresh themselves with the cool waters of the well. There was an underground spring of water that fed the well. This well had been there for hundreds of years!

What was astonishing was that a Jew would begin a conversation with a Samaritan! The way Jesus dressed and spoke would have identified Him as a Jew.

“Then the woman of Samaria said to Him,
‘How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me,
A Samaritan woman?’
For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.”
John 4:9

The woman of Samaria spoke from her heart. She spoke as she had been brought up. John’s comment about how Jews had no dealings with Samaritans well underscored the non-existing relationship between the two races!

She was a victim of her circumstances. History and traditions had contributed heavily to this estranged relationship between the two races. Whereas once upon a time they could speak about a common heritage, they now were so separated, that even having a normal conversation was a source of surprise to the woman of Samaria.

The Samaritan woman wasn’t unaware of how the Jewish men maintained a stiff and formal relationship with the opposite sex. Thus she was truly astonished that this Jewish man dared to do away with traditional barriers that had existed for hundreds of years!

THINGS OF GREATER IMPORTANCE

Traditions were not in themselves bad. Customs and traditions play an important role as far as society is concerned. Let us consider three ways in which traditions played important roles:-

1. They help protect the distinctives of racial groups.

2. Traditions often represent the common experiences shared by the community.

3. History and traditions are closely linked. The history of a community is often encapsulated in the traditions and customs of the common people.

4. Posterity needs to know the traditions and customs of the ancestors. Without tradition, the community would lack colour, character and strength.

However, there were certain things far more important than traditional beliefs and customs. Jesus knew well what the Samaritans believed in. He knew just where they went wrong, even if they tried to worship God sincerely from their hearts! Sincerity wasn’t enough. Truth was of greater importance than traditions. Personal faith in God was also another important thing that people needed to have. Jesus knew that the Samaritan woman was ignorant of these great truths. He had come to teach her vital truths that pertained to life!

“THE GIFT OF GOD” (John 4:10)

The reply of Jesus must be given careful consideration. He did not enter into a debate about the strained relationship between Jews and Samaritans. Did the Samaritan woman feel that Jesus would feel rebuffed by what she had said? She was wrong.

Jesus graciously spoke to her on the topic of “The Gift of God”.

“Jesus answered and said to her,
‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is
who says to you, “Give me a drink,”
you would have asked Him, and He would
have given you living water.'”
John 4:10

Was there such a thing as “the gift of God”? This must have sounded like a very alien thought to the woman of Samaria. What was that gift? The Samaritans and the Jews had this in common. One must work very hard to earn God’s blessings. If one did not, for instance, keep the laws of Moses found in the Pentateuch (The Five Books of Moses – Genesis to Deuteronomy), then God would never bless them! (The Samaritans had their own version of the Pentateuch. The Samaritan Pentateuch was despised as a corrupt version of the Hebrew Mosaic Pentateuch). What did this Man mean when He spoke about “the gift of God”?

The words of this Man from Judea were strange in another way. What did He mean when He said, “If you knew… Who it is who says to you”? Indeed, who was this strange Man who proclaimed such thoughts?

She was a Samaritan, and thus would not have heard about a new Teacher who had challenged the Temple authorities in the way they managed the use of the consecrated precincts. She would not have heard that this Stranger was capable of performing miraculous feats!

What a puzzling third thought He proposed! Was He really serious about being able to give “living water”? Was He talking about physical literal water? That would be wonderful if that was true! But how was she to know exactly what Jesus meant when He said what He did? However, she was interested in what Jesus taught. She decided that she had nothing to lose if she plied Him with questions.

A DEEP INTEREST

The woman of Samaria had warmed up to Jesus. She now knew that He was not the typical Jew who despised the Samaritans. She could open herself up to this Stranger who seemed to be a Teacher of sorts.

There were many things that she had liked about Jesus. He had been friendly. He had been gracious and gentle. He had been interested in discussing with her spiritual truths. That was unusual, for women (Jews and Samaritans alike) were not encouraged to study spiritual subjects, for that was the domain of men! Who was this Man?