Believing in the Savior of the World

Believing in the Savior of the World

Well, we continue our series through the Gospel of John. It's been a wonderful, wonderful journey as we've come all the way to chapter 4. Chapter 4, and I'd like for you to turn there. Chapter 4, just four verses I'd like for us to look at about believing in the Savior of the world this morning.

Believing in the Savior of the world. Keep in mind, following the interlude of verses 31 to 38, in which we've already touched on in the Gospel of John, we see the Samaritans re-enter the narrative of the story.

Builds to a very powerful conclusion here. This is the conclusion of what is taking place here. And we've seen this wonderful story of the Samaritan woman. And this is the conclusion, the application to it.

So I'd like to give it an application. And today, we look in at verse 39 to verse 42. Verse 39 to verse 42 of John chapter 4. Hear the word of the living God. And many of the Samaritans of the city believed in Him.

Because of the word of the woman who testified, He told me all that I ever did. So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them. And He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own words.

Then they said to the woman, Now we believe, not because of what you said, but we ourselves have heard Him. And we know that He, that this is indeed the Christ. The anointed one. The Savior of the world.

Amen.

May God bless the reading of His word. From our ears to our hearts this morning, please bow with me in prayer as we seek the Lord's face and His blessing. During this hour of worship as we hear from heaven and hear His holy word.

Our Father and our great God, hallowed be Your name. Our prayer this morning, Lord, was simple. Simple as a child. And Lord, we humbly submit this to You in Your presence. Open the eyes of our hearts that we would only see Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Lord, transform us forever. May each and every one of us, even the children, Lord, leave here changed supernaturally by Your power and Your Spirit and Your mercy. As only You can change a soul. May we never be the same.

And Lord, as David prayed this and said this unto You, I personally pray this to You, Lord. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.

And we will be careful to give You all the glory and the honor. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. There is nothing that can compare with an encounter with the living Christ. To transform a soul forever for the glory of God.

Nothing can compare to it. That's what the Lord does and that's why Jesus came. To save us to the uttermost. What a Savior He is. I'd like to ask the question, if you're a believer this morning, actually, what are you saved from?

What are you saved from this morning? That's a good question. Are you saved from yourself? Are you saved from hell? Most people would say, I'm saved from hell. Absolutely. That's a great benefit, isn't it?

That God saves us from hell. But mainly Jesus came to save us from our sins. I shall call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins. That's what He saves from. And He saves us not only from ourselves and our sins, He saves us ultimately from the wrath of God.

And that's the great Savior our Lord Jesus Christ is. He comes to save us from God's wrath. And what a difference, actually, was made in the life of this Samaritan woman that met Jesus at the well. She met the Savior of the world.

She goes from a hopelessly needy wayward soul to boldly proclaiming her testimony and witnessing for Jesus. She witnesses to her fellow townsmen. He told me everything I ever did. Utterly, she's weary.

She had to be heavy laden. She was weary of her deadness and her unholy calm. And now she becomes a burning and a shining light as John the Baptist was. But she was quite a witness, folks, to the glory of God.

Proclaiming the praises of Him that called her out of darkness into His marvelous light. And that is exactly what took place here in our text. We see that she was transformed by the power of God Himself in the presence of Christ, the Messiah.

He told me everything that I ever did. She repented of her sins. Even though the text does not necessarily bring out the word repentance, we do know that she believed and we know that there's a change in her life because that's what repentance wroughts.

It changes a person's mind. The Greek word for repentance is actually a change of mind. It transforms, it turns. The person turns a complete 180 degrees away from the world, from self, from the devil and turns toward God.

And can I say this? What an unlikely vessel our Lord chose. Would you like to think about that? And it's all by His grace, for His glory. Had it been up to me or you, I believe we would have looked for somebody like upstanding and very moral, a moral citizen and to rely on such a treasure to choose.

But it wasn't up to us, right? It was up to God and up to our Savior. And notice who He chooses. Technically a very immoral woman. And He takes this lost Samaritan woman that once was lost, now she's found.

The Lord came and met her. The Lord found her. Scripture says there's none that seek after God. Jesus sought after her. Then she was turned completely around and then she goes to witness to the lost Samaritan people in her own town.

This is what happens when a person believes. They become a witness. Their life is a witness. And our Savior takes the time and think of it. He took personal time to speak the truth to her. This poor Samaritan woman, the prostitute.

And how totally like the Lord and how thankful we are that she was changed. He took a cracked, broken up vessel of clay like clay pots and put her life back together. That's what Jesus does. He doesn't promise everything will be easy.

Matter of fact, it's not easy. The Lord says the way is straight and it's narrow. Jesus never said one time it will be easy. Actually He said the opposite.

There's a cross to bear.

Matthew Henry the Puritan said this concerning the text here. He said God is sometimes pleased to use very weak and unlikely instruments for the beginning and carrying on of a good work. How great a matter a little fire kindles.

Our Savior by instructing one poor woman spread instruction to a whole town. Let not ministers, now He's speaking to preachers, be either careless in their preaching or discouraged in it because their hearers are few and humble.

For by doing good to them, God may be conveyed to more. See how good it is to speak experimentally of Christ. Those are the most likely to do good who could tell what God has done for their souls. And I pray today as I minister the word of God to you that that will be the case of us as well.

The Apostle Paul tells us this great truth in 1 Corinthians chapter 1. You can turn with me there. 1 Corinthians chapter 1. How does God think when He chooses someone? Look at verse 18. And I like to read it all the way to the end of the chapter because it speaks so much.

This is that Christ is the power and the wisdom of God. And then the scriptures, Paul says, for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. But to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.

For it is written,.

I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. I will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Then he gives these questions. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age?

Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God. It pleased God. Listen to that. It pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

For Jews request a sign and the Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified. To the Jews, a stumbling block, and to the Greeks, foolishness.

But to those who are called,.

And he's speaking here of the effectual calling, both to Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

For you see your calling, brethren. Now think about the Samaritan woman here, folks. This is why I'm bringing this into reference. He says, you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put the shame, the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put the shame, the things which are mighty. And the base things of the world, and the things which are despised, God has chosen.

And the things which are not to bring to nothing, the things that are. And he tells us in verse 29 exactly why he does it. That no flesh should glory in his presence, but of him you are in Christ, Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.

Isn't that glorious? That is, as it is written, he who glories let him glory in the Lord. And I thought about the Samaritan woman here, that the Lord chose. You could say that also the thief on the cross, at the end of the Lord's ministry, as two thieves was dying and one came to him, one rejected him, one received him as the Messiah.

That pretty much represents the whole world. One rejects and one receives him. But see, God chooses the foolish things of the world to put the shame, the wise. God chose the weak things, and this Samaritan woman is no doubt very weak, and she's the most unlikely vessel that none of us would have chose her in here, I can guarantee you.

But the Lord chose her, and used her in a mighty way. Look how simple her testimony appears. Yet such a small spark, a flame, began to blaze our own testimonies and witnessed unto the Lord as one powerful witness.

Who can refute a transformed life by the power of the living God? Who can refute that? That God changed me, I'm a different creation. I'm a new person, I'm a new creation. Apostle Paul says much about this, and the power of God can do through the Word of God.

We see this all through the Scriptures. We see in Romans 10. Isn't it wonderful how the Lord works in Romans 10? I won't read the whole chapter, but I will read just a little here in verse 4. Let me back up here.

In verse 8. Let me start with 8. But what does it say? He speaks about the Word of God. What does the Word say? I love Paul. He says, it's not what man's opinion says. It's not what this person says. It's what does God say about it?

What does it say?

What does the Scripture say? And he says, the Word is near you, in your mouth, in your heart. That is the Word of faith which we preach. And then he says, that is if you confess. There's a confession that must be made.

Confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus. Now we're talking about His Lordship. He's Lord, Lord Jesus. And believe in your heart, not just your mind, it processes through your mind, but it must be in your heart.

That God has raised Him from the dead, that you will be saved. It must be with the heart. And then he says, that for with the heart one believes unto righteousness. With the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.

So there is a confession, but the heart must believe. That's the whole being. For the Scripture says, again he quotes the Scriptures, whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame. And there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, and for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.

Now what does it mean to call upon the name of the Lord? That means to repent. We call on God in prayer, and we go to business with God and say, God, change my heart. Change my life. And then he says in verse 13, for whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Another translation of being saved is being delivered. He delivers us. Verse 14. Questions, questions, questions. Notice the questions. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard?

How shall they hear without a preacher? How shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written. Notice he goes to the scriptures, folks. He doesn't give his own opinion here. He gives the scriptures.

How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, and who bring glad tidings of good things. But they have not all obeyed the gospel. Notice that word obeyed. There's belief, then there's obedience, there's faith, but the faith that believes is a working faith, a faith that is active, it's a living faith.

But he says all of them have not obeyed the gospel. So there has to be some obedience because it shows and demonstrated in our lives. We'll look at that in a few minutes as we go to the epistle of James.

But for right now he says, Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our report? And then he nails it right here in verse 17. So then faith comes by hearing. This is how faith comes. We must hear God's word in hearing by the word of God.

It's active, it's living, it's powerful. It's sharper than any two-edged sword and it pierces and it changes us. It's a living instrument, a living faith that takes place when we are changed in our hearts, confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus Christ.

But I say, have they not heard? Yes, indeed, he says. Their sound has gone out to all the earth and their words to the end of the world. But I say, did Israel not know? First Moses says, I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation and I will move you to anger by a foolish nation.

But Isaiah is very bold to say, I was found by those who did not seek me and I was manifest to those who did not ask for me. Did you notice that? For those that did not even seek God, for those that did not even ask for me.

God moves from the realm, from the Jewish people, which they rejected the gospel, they rejected Christ and God takes it to someone else that believes a heathen, Gentile nation. But to Israel he says, all day I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.

May we never fall in that kind of category and take for granted the word of the living God and be apathetic toward his stretched out hands. See, this Samaritan woman, as we know, they were mixed breeds.

She was an unlikely person, a candidate for the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, as we speak about her in John 4, verse 39 to 42, we pick up the story here and as Jesus visited this woman, as I said, at the well and then transformed her by his word in Samariam and then Jesus goes to spend a couple days in Samariam.

Actually, I like to put it this way, that was the Samaritan's day of visitation. The Messiah had come. It wasn't for judgment that day, it was because of mercy. Mercy that the Lord spent two days there and it was for their salvation.

In these four verses, we will see this morning the belief of the Samaritans. They heard and they tested. Verse 39, we will see our first point. It says this, many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, he told me all that I ever did.

So the first thing we observed in this text is this, they believed the word of the woman who testified. They believed in the word of the woman who testified. Let's look at it. He told me all that I ever did.

She made a public confession concerning Jesus Christ. She was a true believer because she became a true witness. Are you a witness for Jesus Christ this morning? Are you a witness? To everyone that you talk to throughout the day, do you speak to someone about the Lord Jesus Christ?

She made a public confession, confession concerning Jesus Christ. This is really a remarkable statement, isn't it? The woman Jesus met at the well was not considered to be again a reliable witness as we spoke about earlier.

She was scorned as we saw from her townspeople as a very immoral woman, a prostitute. Remember she came to the well at midday as we looked at noontime because of other women would shun her. But Jesus pointed out her sin and he did it without compromise and he pointed it out graciously but it did convict her.

How do we know that it convicted her? Because we know that she changed the subject. If you see that in John 4, she changed the subject. She started talking about religion. She started talking about worship.

Isn't that interesting? And Jesus just told her in verse 18 of chapter 4, You have had five husbands. The one whom you have now is not your husband. Jesus knew how in his wisdom to point out the sin and that's what he comes to do.

She had five different husbands and was currently living with a man at that time in fornication.

Look at this.

Then she changed it. She changed it. Why did she change the subject? She became very uncomfortable. Isn't it interesting when we start to talk to people about the Lord Jesus Christ and you start talking about repentance and then you start really meddling and getting down to their sin that God commands all men to repent of their sin and to believe the gospel.

Then you start talking about the sin. People get very uncomfortable. Have you noticed that? They don't like to talk about the truth. She changes the subject. Then she begins to talk about worship. Isn't that interesting?

Jesus in his wisdom was such a soul winner. Wasn't he? He succeeded. He succeeded because whom the Father draws will come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Those who come to the Lord Jesus Christ he says, I will no wise cast them out.

That's a great promise, folks. Don't ever think he would cast you out because if you come to him and you mean business with him this morning and you aim to go to God in prayer and business and you want to change and really want to change God can change your heart.

He's a soul winner. He desires for you to come to him. Actually he tells those who are burdened and laden by the law, the burden of religion. He says, come unto me all you labor and heavy laden. I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. My yoke is easy. My burden is light. What a soul winner the Lord Jesus Christ is. A great fisher of men. So we can all agree that this woman did not have a good track record, right?

The question is this. Let me ask some questions here. What was it about this woman's witness that was so compelling? What made the townspeople listen to her? People were used to ignoring her and scorning this woman because she was very moral.

She was known as a prostitute. No one wanted to be associated with such a person. So what changed? Something changed here. Something really happened in this woman's life. It was not just a mere confession.

Even though she confessed the Lord Jesus Christ, but people listened and they heard her. Something happened to her.

Think of that.

She was saying... What she was saying must have sounded like she was beside herself. They said that about the Lord Jesus Christ. He's beside himself.

He's like crazy.

Think of that.

He's filled with the Spirit of God. Brother Keith was talking about the writer of Psalm 119. He's like a drunken person with the Spirit of God. Read Psalm 119. 176 verses, I believe. I like to say that's 176 reasons to love God because that chapter is commentary of God's Word, on His Word.

To be filled with the Spirit of God and to have this kind of urgency that this Samaritan woman had. She was totally changed. But think about those questions. They thought she was crazy. Beside herself the Messiah was coming to the Samaritans?

To this mixed breed, unlikely bunch of people that were rejected. And here Jesus chose this unlikely vessel. He chooses the weak things of the world. The unlikely things of the world. To confound the wise.

To those that think they got it all figured out. God says no. My plan, my ways are not your ways. My thoughts are not your thoughts. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so is my ways not your ways.

The Lord knows exactly what He's doing, doesn't He? Because He's an all wise God. Actually, I'd like to look at the change a little bit in her life. There had to be a change in her life. Because for the Samaritans to hear her, in her confession, they had to take in something because something happened in her life.

She was full of energy and urgency and joy. She was totally, completely a different person. Isn't that what Paul the Apostle says in 2 Corinthians 5 .17? Therefore, if anyone, listen to this, if anyone is in Christ, He is a new creation.

Old things have passed away. And what does it say? I love that word behold, don't you? It says look. Behold, look. All things have become new. It's like the Samaritan woman.

Look.

They saw a change in her life. She was transformed by the supernatural power of God. The change in the woman must have been so dramatic, so compelling. It literally drove the people to go to meet Jesus.

Think of that. Can you honestly say that a change has happened in your life so dramatic, so powerful, that it points people to the Lamb of God? I like what one preacher said. If you were to have been arrested as a Christian and stand on trial in court, would you be found guilty to say, yes, that person is a believer in Jesus?

It's important to remember when we are dealing with others, other people, people respond different, don't they? Because when we give the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is very offensive. The message of repentance is very offensive because the truth always offends people.

I like what MacArthur says here. Let the truth offend. God's the one that really is offended. It's God that's offended. Let them be offended. Let people be offended.

Actually, Paul says.

If I seek to please men, I'm not the servant of Christ. Do we fear men? Or do we fear God? That's the question. And Jesus said we should fear God because He's the one that can destroy body and soul into hell.

Man can only touch our physical being and take our life from us. But see, God's the one that can destroy the soul. This is important to remember. A change took place. And that was observed in the Samaritan war zone.

This is by no means, by the way, doesn't mean that, by the way, if we're dealing with people, doesn't mean that we don't present the hope that is within us. Because what I'm trying to say is your life confesses something.

The way you behave. And this is convicting to me because a lot of times my behavior isn't always what it should be. And the standard of holiness and righteousness and sanctification, God's still working on me.

But, you know, we're far from the way the Lord Jesus Christ is. And I say stop. We should not compare ourselves with that person and that person. We can always find someone that's more sinful than us.

And we think of ourselves somebody. But how about comparing ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ? He's the perfect one, isn't He?

I would say this.

The first thing that speaks best for our life, for us, is our own lives. The way we live. Our walk. And then there's the confession. There is a confession, a witness. And where do we find this? It's all through the Scriptures.

Jesus says, you confess me before me and I'll confess you before the Father. A witness is someone that testifies to the Lord Jesus Christ. But unto the Lord Jesus Christ. And actually, if you look in Acts 1 .8, Jesus says, you shall be after that the Holy Spirit will come upon you.

You shall be witnesses unto me. That word witnesses means martyrs. And that's what the early church was. They were martyrs unto Jesus. And I like to look at witnesses unto Christ, unto God. Do you look at your life as a witness unto God before His face?

Before the face of God? And then, before men. The first and foremost thing we should be looking at is God's face shining upon me. Peter said this in 1 Peter 3 .15 and 16. But sanctify. That means set apart the Lord God in your hearts and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you.

That is in you with meekness. And he tells us how to do it. With meekness, that means humility and fear. What a beautiful, what a beautiful balance that is. Meekness and fear. Having a good conscience.

Listen to that. That when they defame you. Now he's talking about when someone rejects your message, they defame you as evil doers. Those who revile your good conduct.

Your good conduct.

There's your life. And Christ may be ashamed. That they may be ashamed. For it is better if it is the will of God to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. Where does Peter get this? Peter was on the Sermon on the Mount and Jesus himself said this in chapter 5 of Matthew.

Verse 10 through 12. You know what the word blessed means? Extremely joyful. Extremely happy. Are you extremely joyful when somebody persecutes you? We can't handle somebody speaking bad about us. What about real persecution?

He says, blessed are you when He says, are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Then he says again, blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my name's sake.

Verse 12, listen to this.

How do you react?

He tells us how the believer, the disciple is to react when you are being persecuted and people are saying all things evil against you falsely. It's not true. They're telling lies against you. For the sake of Jesus Christ, rejoice and be exceedingly glad for great is your reward in heaven for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

You know what Jesus is doing? He's giving us the proper perspective. He's giving us the eternal perspective of the way we should view persecution to those who live for Jesus Christ. Sometimes the message of the gospel is not always received and most of the time it won't be.

But by the lost people with open arms, so to speak. But when it is rejected and it comes with hatred and I say this and it's only by the help of the power of the Holy Spirit that can help us demonstrate the love of God and to rejoice before God because we're saying what a privilege it is to rejoice for righteousness sake, for the sake of the gospel, for the sake of Jesus Christ.

That's why Paul and Silas had a joyful celebration after they were beaten in chains and they were chained up in a dungeon and then they started singing unto the Lord and the Lord broke through and brought an earthquake and broke them loose.

Well, be it seething or glad. Jesus gives the right eternal perspective and also not only the eternal perspective but he also tells us how to have the right motive. We should have a right motive. If our heart has been really transformed we say, Lord, I love that person.

You look beyond that person in the flesh. You know the purpose and why persecution is coming because of hatred of the gospel truth. It's not because they hated you. It's because they hate Christ. Because he's the light of the world and now you become that light, reflecting that light and the light shines in darkness and get this, the darkness can't stand it when the light shines on.

Why?

Because bugs start showing up. You see, the sin is exposed.

Have you experienced this?

When you tell people about the Lord Jesus Christ and truth? Well, people don't gladly receive it, do they? Not all the time. Sometimes they do. But most of the time people reject it with hatred. So when people see a transformed life and your conduct of the gospel and the power demonstrated in the love of God and holiness, you see, it points to the glory of God.

This is something God has wrought. This is something God has done. And we can honestly say, just like the forerunner of Jesus Christ, John the Baptist, he says, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

We point people to Jesus because it's not us. Not unto us, O Lord. Not unto us. Well, that's pretty much the first point. These people, they believe the word, the woman who testified. The second thing is, in verse 40, they invited him to stay.

They invited him to stay. Notice this. So when the Samaritans had come to him, they urged him to stay with them and he stayed there two days. So when people came out to see Jesus, they asked him to stay for a while.

That is a very important step in growing in faith is examining the evidence for yourself. There are many, many people who are, they go to church, they are religious, they are very active in church associations, kind of like a social club situation, and that's never come to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ by faith.

They've never really truly repented of their sins, so they've never really met the Master like this Samaritan woman. And can I say this very quickly? You hear this about a personal relationship today with God.

Did you know Satan even has a personal relationship with God? It's not just having a personal relationship with God. How about a saving relationship? That's something Satan can't have. Do you have a saving relationship with God?

We can know about God and not know God. Actually, James says a lot about that. And James, go with me very quickly to James. And this is talking about faith that works. And can I say this, that the Samaritan woman had this kind of faith?

Because she had living faith, not dead faith? Look at James chapter 2. Look at verse 14. What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked or destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, Depart in peace, be warm to be filled.

It's kind of like saying, God bless you, go your own way. You don't want to meet that person's need. He says, but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body. What does it profit? Thus also faith by itself.

By itself.

Listen to what he's saying.

If it does not have works, it's dead. In other words, it's not works that saves us. It's faith alone in Christ that saves us. But that faith is not alone. Before God, this is what Paul was talking about.

Justifying faith is before God alone. But it's just not alone. James is saying, it's not just mere profession. It's possession. And he says, the faith, really what he's saying here, the faith that's living and active from God works.

It has obedience to it. If it does not have works to it, if it does not have fruit to it, what he's saying, it's dead. It's dead faith. See, people can have dead faith. I ask you today, do you have living faith or dead faith?

And then he says, but if someone say, you have faith and I have works, show me your faith without your works, and I'll show you my faith by my works. In other words, the faith that's living and active works.

Notice what he says in verse 19. This is what I'm talking about. You can have a personal relationship and be lost. Say you have a personal relationship with God and be lost because Satan knows about God.

He was in heaven. He's a great theologian. He says, you believe that there's one God.

You do well.

It's almost sarcasm there. But the truth is there, folks.

Listen to what he's saying.

You believe that there's one God. Oh, fine. Everybody says they're believing God. Everybody's a Christian. Yeah, but do you have living faith? He answers that. Even the demons believe and they tremble.

They believe and tremble, but it's a different kind of belief, folks. They have a knowledge. They know God exists. They know he's holy. They know he's got wrath. Actually, a lot of the demons is reserved in chains of darkness until the day of judgment.