The Samaritan Woman at the Well

“But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” “…Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.”

                                           --John 4:14-15

During the ministry of Christ, the hatred for Samaritans was at its highest. When Jesus stopped to talk to the woman at the well, she was very confused because Jews did not associate themselves at all with Samaritans. Not only did Christ talk to her, but also he treated her with love, which was very surprising to the woman. In both Colossians 3:25 and 2 Nephi 26:33, it expresses that Christ is not a respecter of persons. In Nephi it addresses the fact that Christ does not deny any one to come unto him, no matter who or what he or she is. Here Christ was setting the greatest example, for later in His life we would direct the apostles to take the gospel to all nations. By all nations, Christ was including Samaria. Through this interaction with this woman, Christ was preparing the way for His disciples in the coming years.

The woman at the well started to change her attitude toward Christ the longer she talked to him. In the beginning, she was very standoffish. Once she realized that Christ was not an ordinary man she began to open up and even went so far as to go tell others whom she had been talking with. She had come to the realization that Jesus was the Son of God. He loved everyone and was willing to treat everyone that same, regardless if she was a Samaritan. Once she realized this, she got others to come and listen to Christ. This Samaritan woman and her faith and belief in Christ resulted in many also believing in Christ and being converted.

This same lesson can be applied into my life today. As I have come to better know Christ, my love for Him has deepened. I know that He is my Savior. Knowing this allows me to open up more to Him. I know that I can go to Him with any of my thought, feelings, problems or any other matter in my life. Through His love, I know that he will always be there. I know that what ever I do, He will always love me and has provided a way for me to return unto Him. I feel a great responsibility to share my testimony with others because of what I know. Like the disciples, I know that I am charged with the same responsibility to spread the gospel to all people.

The Savior offered the woman “living water.” The Savior has been quoted as saying that, “men cannot live by bread alone” (Matt. 4:5). It is through His words that we are nourished with His living water. The “living water” is the word of Christ, the gospel. Jeremiah said that some people are prone to rejecting the “living water” and instead “broken cisterns, that can hold no water.” Not only are they rejecting the word, but they are also rejecting the ability to hold onto that word.

“…Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, The Savior of the world.”

--John 4:42