Devotional - John 4:27-38

Passage To Study:

John 4:27-38

[27] And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?” [28] The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, [29] “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” [30] Then they went out of the city and came to Him. [31] In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” [32] But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” [33] Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?” [34] Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. [35] “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! [36] “And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. [37] “For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ [38] “I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”

What are the facts of the passage?:

The disciples return and marvel (not at His conversation with a Samaritan as with a woman!) but don't ask about the incident.
The woman goes and speaks to the men of the city telling them about her interview with Christ and asks if He might be the Messiah.
They all go to see Christ.
Meanwhile, the disciples urge Christ to eat, but He seeks to convey the same lesson to them as He taught the woman.
They too misunderstand.
Christ makes the point that it is more important to do the will of God.
He uses the food analogy and makes the point that there is a spiritual harvest to be gathered.
He underscores that they are only a part of the mechanism that God uses to bring men to faith.

What do those facts mean?:

The concept of getting our eyes off of the physical and onto the spiritual is an important one. Our awareness of the great mass of unredeemed all around us is critical to our service to God. It is important that we put first things first and serve the spiritual need of those around us over and above (before) the physical needs.

How do those facts apply to my life?:

I need to learn to think of those around me in these terms and learn to act on the basis of their spiritual need and not only on the basis of physical need.

What should I do in response?:

I need to discipline myself to think and act this way.

Day

The Samaritan Woman (Part 3)