공동체와 양육

Dare to be Different (Jn. 4:3~30)

2018.06.24P. Wes McClure

Jesus dares us to take the road less traveled and confront our personal Samarias, the people and places we would rather avoid, trusting that obedience will change the course of our lives and of those around us.

Take the road less traveled, the road Jesus took

The sermon begins with the image of a dare: Jesus challenges us to be different and to choose our road in life. Scripture describes a broad road that leads to destruction and a narrow road that leads to life, and Robert Frost's poem The Road Not Taken illustrates the choice. Straddling the fence gets us nowhere, so we must choose. Jesus took the road less traveled on our behalf, and it made all the difference. That road brings loneliness, anguish, and sorrow, yet Jesus walked it because he came that we might have life. Those who went before us, the witnesses of Hebrews 11, faced opposition and still did not turn back. What motivates us on this road is the love of Christ, and as the hymn says, though no one goes with us, we still follow, because 1 John 2:6 calls us to walk as Jesus walked.

Confront your personal Samaria

Samaria was a place Jews avoided, and Jesus had to pass through it, not only for geography but as an object lesson for his disciples. The early church scattered into Judea and Samaria, the very places Jesus named in Acts 1:8. Jesus saw the woman at the well as a woman from Samaria, not as a Samaritan woman defined by her label. Our ministry often picks and chooses whom to love, but God does not. Jonah also refused to go to Nineveh, his own Samaria, even after God gave him a second chance. Pastor Ha's account of Japan shows that God first confronted the Korean church's anger and prejudice, and that loving those we resist is what God desires. Personal Samarias must be faced, or we cannot minister effectively for Christ.

Be honest with God and follow him wholeheartedly

The true worshipers worship in spirit and truth, so we should come before God honestly, naming our personal Samaria and asking him to free us to follow him completely. Each of us has a circle of influence and a pulpit, whether a large social media following or a few people nearby. God puts a particular person on our hearts, a coworker, a neighbor, or a family member, and calls us to pray for and minister to that one, as the shepherd who left the ninety-nine for the one. Obedience changes things, and God transforms those who step into the road less traveled.

The woman who was changed becomes a witness (John 4:3-30)

The woman at the well was avoiding people at noon because of her shame, but Jesus confronted her shame and her guilt. She tried to change the subject to the mountains of worship and later to the coming Messiah, but Jesus kept speaking to her truth and offered living water. Though she had wanted the water without the cost of obedience, she left her water jar and ran into the town, and her countenance was different. Her testimony brought the townspeople to Jesus, and they confessed that he is the Savior of the world. When we change the course of our lives and follow Jesus, we can watch what he does in the lives of those we have been praying for.

Apply to Life

  • Let us choose the road less traveled and follow Jesus wholeheartedly, whatever it costs us.
  • Let us name our personal Samaria honestly before God and ask him to remove the barrier that keeps us from ministering.
  • Let us pray each day for the one person God has placed on our hearts, whether a coworker, neighbor, or family member.
  • Let us use the pulpit God has given us, whether our family, friends, or social media circle, to share the good news of Jesus.
  • Let us love those we have labeled or avoided, looking at them through God's eyes and responding as he would.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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