To Print Out The Lesson Click On The Title Below.
Proverbs 13:1-8
1 A wise son heeds his father's instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to
rebuke.
2 A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, But the soul of the
unfaithful feeds on violence.
3 He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall
have destruction.
4 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has
nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
5 A righteous man hates lying, But a wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame.
6 Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless, But wickedness overthrows the
sinner.
7 There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
8 The ransom of a man's life is his riches, But the poor does not
hear rebuke.
Father God, give us the words and boldness we need to sow
Gospel seeds, so souls will be harvested by you. In
Jesus
name we pray, Amen!
Gospel of John 4:27-38 NKJV
As the
Disciples return, the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman ends
and she heads into the city to tell others about what had just happened. Then a
conversation begins with the disciples and them urging Jesus to eat, but He
begins to speak spiritually trying to get the disciples to understand the
importance of spiritual life and what a believer is commissioned to do.
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?"
And
at this point His disciples
came; The disciples
return from their mission of securing food from the village as Jesus revealed
to the Samaritan woman who He was.
And
they marveled that He talked with a woman; This statement may seem odd to us, but in Jesus time
there were strict laws that forbid the Rabbis to converse with women in public
or instruct them in the law. In fact a Rabbi couldn’t converse with his own
wife, sister, or daughter in public. So it wasn’t just the fact that Jesus was
talking to a Samaritan, but she was also a woman that the Apostles marveled at.
So where did this law come
from that they couldn’t speak to a woman? There is nothing in the OT that
stated such a law. It was devised by man thinking this was a good thing. Just
look at the Middle East and some of their customs toward woman especially in
the way they are to dress. So yes the Apostles were astonished that Jesus was
speaking to a Samaritan woman, but Jesus practiced His Fathers will and not the
will of man and this is one reason why the Pharisees hated Jesus, because He
defied there man made doctrine of religion.
Manmade religious doctrine
still exists today in Religious denominations. If Jesus were here today and paid
no attention to some of the ritualistic doctrine that is practiced in some
denominations, it would anger the leaders of that denomination and as a result
would not believe in Jesus and who He is. In fact the leaders of that religion
would probably put on a crusade to turn their congregation against Jesus just
like the Jews did.
Yet
no one said, "What do You seek?" or, "Why are You talking with
her?; This phrase
tells us that the Apostles had great respect for Jesus even in the early part
of His ministry. They saw the miracles that Jesus had performed already and
also heard His teachings and realize He had great authority, therefore out of
respect, no one would question Jesus actions here of speaking to a Samaritan
woman in public.
28 The woman
then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men,
The
woman then left her waterpot; I
thought the woman came to the well to fill her water pot, so why would she just
up and leave it? Was she saved at that time and that fountain of living water
was starting to bubble up insider her that she had to go share her experience
with others? I think so! I think she left the water pot there because she was
so excited she forgot why she was at the well and had to go tell others about
Jesus. Anyone that gets saved has this same excitement and great desire to go
share Jesus with others because they want other to share in the gift of Grace.
Went
her way into the city, and said to the men; It states here that she went into the city and to the
men. Why would she go to the men of the city or what does this mean? At that
time the men of the city were men of religion; religious leaders. This may not
have been the case in all villages or cities, but it was the case here in this religious
community. In other words she went to the religious leaders of the Samaritans;
the pharisees of Samaritans.
29
"Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this
be the Christ?"
Come,
see a Man who told me all things that I ever did; Whether Jesus told her other things or
not, we do not know. However, He told her enough, that she was thoroughly
convinced as to Who and What He actually was. This is what makes Christianity
so different than the religions of the world. Religions have to do with the
externals only, because it is impossible for them to do otherwise, but Jesus
changes and mends the heart of a person for a permanent cure.
Could
this be the Christ?;
She based this question to the men on what Jesus told her about her life. She
believed Him to be the Messiah, but was posing the question in such a way as to
arouse their curiosity. Jesus gave her the Living Water, which healed the
malignancy of her actions. Out of Grace, love takes over and produces actions
for Jesus, or it’s not love. It is because of this woman’s belief that she goes
to share the Gospel.
30 Then they
went out of the city and came to Him.
This verse tells us there
were many hungry hearts in this city; that were yearning for something, but
they didn’t know what. This explains why Jesus was lead to go through Samaria
by the Holy Spirit in verse 4.
31 In the
meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, "Rabbi, eat."
The disciples were
bewildered when they returned and found Jesus conversing with a Samaritan
women, but evidently Jesus was not eating any of the food that His disciples
had brought back with them. They urged Him to eat, out of concern for His
health. They had come a ways, and had a ways to go, and they knew that Jesus
needed strength for the journey.
32 But He
said to them, "I have food to eat of which you do
not know."
Here
Jesus confounds the disciples again by His statement. He is speaking
spiritually and the disciples are thinking carnally. This statement given by
Christ, has relationship to His answer to Satan in Matthew
4:4 But He answered and said, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE BY
BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS FROM THE MOUTH OF GOD.' "
Jesus food was the
salvation of the woman and also of those on their way to Him.
33 Therefore
the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?"
Again the disciples are
thinking carnally. They were probably thinking at that time that maybe this
Samaritan woman or perhaps someone else came by while they were gone and gave
Jesus something to eat.
This one question by the
Disciples, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?”, presents the separating
line for most Believers. Do we think carnally or spiritually? Are we looking to
the Lord to supply our needs, or to men? If we’re looking to men, our frame of mind
will be as the Disciples. If we’re looking to God, it will be as that of Jesus.
34 Jesus
said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him
who sent Me, and to finish His work.
Jesus said to them, “My food; Here
Jesus explains what he said in John 4:32. His food was to do the will of His
Father. He came to the well weary and thirsty, and the time of day when meals
are eaten, so He was no doubt hungry, yet an opportunity of doing good
presented itself, and he forgot his fatigue and hunger, and found comfort and
joy in doing good; in seeking to save a soul. To do the work of the Father in
saving this soul, He forgot his hunger and thirst. Job once said this; Job 23:12
I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the
words of His mouth More than my necessary food, and
this is how Jesus felt.
Is
to do the will of Him who sent Me;
Referring to the will
of God in regard to the salvation of men. John 6:38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but
the will of Him who sent Me.
And to finish his work;
To “finish” the work
which he was commissioned to do, in regard to the salvation of men.
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!
Do you not say, 'There are still four months and then comes the harvest'?; This verse comes about after the
disciples urge Jesus to eat and He replied that He had eaten. Jesus is speaking
about spiritual life and not physical life. He refers to fields ready for
harvest and the priority of them getting harvested. In the natural world seed
is sown and then a waiting period takes place for the seed to grow, mature, and
then be harvested.
In the spiritual sense
Jesus planted that seed of salvation with the woman and she went and spread
that seed to others. As a result others were coming to Jesus that were ripe for
harvest (saving of souls). What Jesus is saying then is that doing the work of
God and saving souls is a priority over eating. If we do the work of God He
will sustain our physical life.
Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for
they are already white for harvest; As a disciple of God we don’t know the effect of our
words on an individual, sometimes the soul is ready to be harvested
immediately, with others a span of time takes place, and with some, never to be
harvested. This lady went and planted salvation seeds and the response was
immediate, requiring a priority of saving souls which edifies a believer above
all physical things. A field of souls were coming that were ready to be
harvested, there was no time for eating or anything else. All diligence was
necessary to harvest this crop of souls that was about to surround Jesus and
His disciples.
Jesus likens the people
coming to Him being ripe, like that of a ripe field of barley that goes from
green to almost white in color.
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.
And he who reaps receives wages; This refers to a believer; all believers that sow and
reap. It is our mission out of Love for Jesus and what He did on the Cross for
us. One day we will receive wages for what we do for God’s Kingdom in leading
people to Jesus. What type of “wages” does Jesus speak of? He speaks of lost
souls being brought to Him and the joy one receives when they accept Jesus as
their Saviour, we will receive a reward in Heaven for doing this work. 1
Corinthians 3:8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and
each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.
The
Samaritan woman immediately went and told what happened to her, sowing seeds of
salvation which in turn sent others to Jesus. Jesus saved many of this
community because she went and told others. Jesus reaped the harvest that she
had sown. So, the obligation of the Believer is to sow the seed of the Gospel,
and to reap its harvest respecting souls.
And gathers fruit for
eternal life; Meaning
converting souls, who shall inherit eternal life. The harvest is not temporary,
like gathering grain, but shall result in eternal life. This harvesting of
souls is something that will last for eternity. The harvesting and selling of
grain is only temporary. The money obtained from the sale of grain goes toward
sustaining life here on earth, while the harvest of a soul last forever.
That both he who sows and he
who reaps may rejoice together; This
sowing and reaping is a united work. It matters little whether we sow the seed
or whether we reap the harvest. It is part of the same work, and whatever part
we may do, we should rejoice. The person that sows may not know the effect of
what they may have said or done, but the joy is knowing they are doing God’s
will. Just like these studies, they are read all around the globe and I rejoice
knowing they are being read.
37 For in this the saying is true: 'One sows and another reaps.'
God has a special
ministry for each individual; the “sowers” are those who make it possible for
the “reapers” to reap. One man may preach the gospel, and with little apparent
effect, but another succeeding him may be crowned with success. The seed, long
buried, may spring up in an abundant harvest.
38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored;
others have labored, and you have entered into their labors."
In this verse, Jesus is
explaining to His Disciples, and us also, that whatever is done for the Cause
of Christ, is brought to completion as a result of much labor on the part of
many different people; many unaware of the input of others; like the prophets,
who long labored to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah; or the
teachers among the Jews, who have read and explained the law and taught the
people; or John the Baptist, who came to prepare the way; and, Jesus himself,
who by his personal ministry taught the people, and prepared them for the Apostles
success of preaching the Gospel and being reapers.
And so it is today many
may serve as sowers like Sunday School Teachers, pastors, authors of sound
Gospel writings, etc., but both rejoice with the reaper when a soul is saved.
Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created
that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible and invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All
things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God."
The
Lighthouse Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you
believe it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus I know I am a
sinner. I confess my sins to you; I am
sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a sinful
lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness. I believe that only you can forgive sin. I commit my life to you and ask you to come
into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.”
(John 3:16,17; Romans
3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians
2:8-10; 1 John 5:11-14; 1:6-10)
(Sin: Rom. 1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph.
5:3-7)
No comments:
Post a Comment