He Chose to Speak With A Samaritan (Forty Days with Jesus – Day 23, Mar 15th)

16 Mar He Chose to Speak With A Samaritan (Forty Days with Jesus – Day 23, Mar 15th)

Read John 4:7-10

Thought for the Day: ‘Sides’ and ‘labels’ don’t matter, but people do!

Few fictional friendships measure up to the deep bond between Gimli the Dwarf and Legolas the Elf in The Lord of the Rings. But what ended as one of the all-time great bromances in literature started off on much shakier terms. Over the ages in Middle Earth, dwarves and elves had grown to deeply distrust and dislike each other, with each side blaming the other. But despite this ages-old feud, Gimli and Legolas found themselves united with a common goal: support and protect Frodo on his way to destroying the evil ring of power in Mt. Doom. So, they set aside previous divisions and quickly learned that they had much more in common than they had ever thought.

In the First Century, Jews and Samaritans had even more mistrust for each other than elves and dwarves in Middle Earth. But, Jesus didn’t come to earth to deepen divisions. He didn’t simply come for the Jewish people. Instead, He came on a mission of reconciliation for all. So, it is no shock that He sat down at a well and did the unthinkable: He chose to speak with a Samaritan! When the woman he had struck up a conversation with questioned why He was even speaking to her in the first place, He made something clear: He was there to talk about Living Water!

Just as Jesus spoke with a Samaritan, we are called to get to know those who are different than us. The divisions in society today are not something new. Humans have found themselves at odds on ‘sides’ with various ‘labels’ for as long as civilization has been around. As Christians, we are not called to further partisan divides or wade into arguments on social media. Instead, Jesus calls us to talk about Living Water.

Reflect & Pray – Do I find myself caught up in ‘sides’ and ‘labels’? Am I willing to let go of these and instead share the message of Jesus? God, please give me a willingness to let go of the things that only further division and instead share Your Love with those around me!