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We are in our third week of Advent, and the theme is JOY. We are looking forward with anticipation to celebrating the birth of Jesus next week. Our Immanuel, our God with us.

There’s a story in the Bible that’s been on my mind for the last couple months. It may seem like an unlikely source, but when I read it, I see joy.

I encourage you to pause for a moment to read John 4:1-26, and then join me at the well.

Jesus was traveling from Judea to Galilee, passing through Samaria. The Bible says he was tired from his journey, and we find him sitting by Jacob’s well. It’s around noon, and a Samaritan woman comes to draw water. A variety of topics are discussed between them. Living water, a string of husbands, true worship. He even reveals to her that He is the Messiah.

Let’s pick it up in John 4:27-30 – “Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, ‘What do you want?’ or ‘Why are you talking with her?’ Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, ‘Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?’ They came out of the town and made their way toward him.”

She left her water jar (and any water she had come there to draw). I imagine she was in a hurry, running back, full of joy. She’s going to get the people from her community, the ones she has had to avoid by retrieving her water in the middle of the day.

She extends an interesting invitation: “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” In The Message, it says: “Come see a man who knew all about the things I did, who knows me inside and out. Do you think this could be the Messiah?”

I’m not sure they would have gone to see Jesus if she wasn’t excited, if she was upset or felt condemned. I think she received joy from her interaction with Jesus, and it bubbled over to everyone she knew.

Come see a man who knows me, my past and my present, who chose to reveal truth and compassion to me. A man who sees all of me, and He still loves me.

John 4:39-42 says, “Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me everything I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers. They said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.'”

Many of the Samaritans from her town believed in Jesus because of her testimony. And many more believed because she brought them to Him and they heard His words with their ears and became believers.

One woman changed her entire town because she met Jesus and then pointed others to Him. She joyfully asked everyone she knew to come meet this Jesus, not to visit a temple or church, not to sign up for religion. She invited them to come close, into proximity and relationship with Him. She shared her testimony with them, her personal experience with Him. Look at the impact.

There is joy here at the well, in the heat of the day, in the middle of the mess. This woman had to face her pain, shame, and loneliness; she had to wrestle with some hard truths. But she wasn’t alone; Immanuel was with her.

Jesus met her at the very place everyone else avoided her. And it’s the very place she invited them all to come see Jesus. What a beautiful picture of vulnerability.

What if the Pharisees had witnessed this? How would they have responded? They wouldn’t have liked Jesus stopping in Samaria, or that he was talking with a woman. Because of her past and present they would have deemed her unworthy. Even if someone was worthy to belong, they’d have a few hoops to jump through. Spend time at the temple. Learn all the laws. Do all the deeds. They would have promoted performance and perfection, inviting others to follow their exterior example.

In Matthew 11:28 Jesus says, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life.” (The Message)

Jesus says “Come to Me,” not “Go to Church to find Me.” (Disclaimer: I love the Church, but she’s not always healthy, and she’s not a replacement for a thriving personal relationship with Jesus.)

What if we spent more time pointing people to a Savior than an organization? Sometimes we masquerade behind a program, trusting the church will be enough to help people. As if the Person of Jesus isn’t, like He’s insufficient to save.

The invitation stands: Come see Jesus. Come be with Him. Find out for yourselves that He really is the Savior of the world. Spend time at the well; receive His living water, and let joy splash over on everyone in your life.

This week’s song suggestions:

• My Testimony by Elevation Worship, covered by Jon Wright
• Nothing Else by Donzell Taggart
• There’s No Other Name by The McClures
• What Joy (Psalm 146) by Sarah Emerson

Photo Credit: Samur Isma (Unsplash)