The Art of Life Bible - Flipbook - Page 39
John
4
will not perish but have eternal life . 17 God sent his Son
into the world not to judge the world, but to save the
world through him .
18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes
in him . But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and
only Son . 19And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s
light came into the world, but people loved the darkness
more than the light, for their actions were evil . 20All who
do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their
sins will be exposed . 21 But those who do what is right
come to the light so others can see that they are doing
what God wants .*”
John the Baptist Exalts Jesus
22 Then Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and went
into the Judean countryside . Jesus spent some time with
them there, baptizing people .
23At this time John the Baptist was baptizing at Aenon,
near Salim, because there was plenty of water there;
and people kept coming to him for baptism . 24 (This was
before John was thrown into prison .) 25A debate broke
out between John’s disciples and a certain Jew* over
ceremonial cleansing . 26 So John’s disciples came to him
and said, “Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of
the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah,
is also baptizing people . And everybody is going to him
instead of coming to us .”
27 John replied, “No one can receive anything unless
God gives it from heaven . 28 You yourselves know how
plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah . I am only here
to prepare the way for him .’ 29 It is the bridegroom who
marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply
glad to stand with him and hear his vows . Therefore, I am
filled with joy at his success . 30 He must become greater
and greater, and I must become less and less .
31 “He has come from above and is greater than anyone else . We are of the earth, and we speak of earthly
things, but he has come from heaven and is greater
than anyone else .* 32 He testifies about what he has seen
and heard, but how few believe what he tells them!
33Anyone who accepts his testimony can affirm that
God is true . 34 For he is sent by God . He speaks God’s
words, for God gives him the Spirit without limit . 35 The
Father loves his Son and has put everything into his
hands . 36And anyone who believes in God’s Son has
eternal life . Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will
never experience eternal life but remains under God’s
angry judgment .”
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman
Jesus* knew the Pharisees had heard that he was
baptizing and making more disciples than John
2 (though Jesus himself didn’t baptize them—his disciples did) . 3 So he left Judea and returned to Galilee .
4 He had to go through Samaria on the way . 5 Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near
the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph . 6 Jacob’s
well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk,
sat wearily beside the well about noontime . 7 Soon a
Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said
to her, “Please give me a drink .” 8 He was alone at the
time because his disciples had gone into the village to
buy some food .
4
3:21 Or can see God at work in what he is doing. 3:25 Some manuscripts read
some Jews. 3:31 Some manuscripts do not include and is greater than anyone
else. 4:1 Some manuscripts read The Lord.
Woman at Jacob’s Well
Read John 4:1-42.
All we know about this unnamed
Samaritan woman is found in the
story of her encounter with Jesus
in John 4. Jesus had left Judea and
passed through the mountainous
region of Samaria on his way to
Galilee. The Samaritans were
descendants of mixed marriages
between Jews and other peoples.
Intermarriage was a violation of
the law, and this practice, along
with various other tensions that
had arisen between the Jews
and Samaritans, led to much
animosity. So, the fact that Jesus
engaged in conversation with a
Samaritan—especially a Samaritan woman—was quite shocking.
The woman came to draw water
while Jesus was sitting alone at
Jacob’s well at Sychar. This happened around noon, the hottest
time of the day and an unusual
time for going to draw water. This
suggests that she may have been
a social outcast. But Jesus was
sent to everyone (as articulated in
his encounter with Nicodemus),
regardless of social or economic
status, race, or gender. In his
conversation with this woman,
Jesus supernaturally recounted
her personal history and showed
that she hadn’t really understood
her true needs. Jesus explained
that the living water he offered
would meet her needs beyond the
physical need of water. Jesus then
presented himself as the Messiah,
and the woman’s testimony to her
village led many Samaritans to
believe in Jesus.
This woman’s story is told in John
4:1-42.
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