Jesus had a way of dealing with people groups -- radical!  Sometimes we're afraid of crossing lines. Jesus never is.

GASP! Jesus went to Samaria.

5 "So He *came to a city of Samaria called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph; 6 and Jacob’s well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about [a]the sixth hour." John 4:5-6

He goes through and stops in the middle of the day.

7 There *came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus *said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman *said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 11 She *said to Him, “[a]Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? 12 You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?” John 4:7-12

She falls back on tradition.

13"Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”
15 The woman *said to Him, “[a]Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw.” John 4:13-15

Water was a big deal.  Her shame was relived every day as she walked to the well.

16 He *said to her, “Go, call your husband and come here.” 17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus *said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.” 19 The woman *said to Him, “[a]Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet." John 4:16-19

God knows all our sin. He knows all our dark spots. He knows it all but He still offers His living water.

She brings up a religious argument. Her question goes back to religion.

20 "Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” 21 Jesus *said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 God is [a]spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:20-24

True worshippers worship in Spirit and Truth.

Being filled with the Spirit.

Think of the disciples like us. 

27"At this point His disciples came, and they were amazed that He had been speaking with a woman, yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why do You speak with her?” 28 So the woman left her waterpot, and went into the city and *said to the men, 29 “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done; this is not [a]the Christ, is it?” 30 They went out of the city, and were coming to Him.
31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” 32 But He said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” 33 So the disciples were saying to one another, “No one brought Him anythingto eat, did he?” John 4:27-33

Disciples uncomfortable with Jesus's actions but didn't confront him on them.

Woman took this encounter with Jesus and ran with it. Allowed it to change her! She goes to the ones who shun her and told them the Good News!

Jesus has just fulfilled His purpose with this woman. He was full. He gave. She accepted.

34"Jesus *said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. 36 Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 For in this case the saying is true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored and you have entered into their labor.” John 4:34-38

He stayed two days. The Harvest was in process!

39"From that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all the things that I havedone.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 Many more believed because of His word;" John 4:39-41

Live water= running water

Do you have a stock pond or a river in reference to your faith? Is your faith a stock pond (stagnate) or a river (deep and flowing)?

Live water is overflowing, pressurized, bursting out. Spirit will overwhelm us.

37"Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “[a]If anyone is thirsty, [b]let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From [c]his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." John 7:37-39

#1 You gotta be thirsty.
#2 Come to Jesus.
#3 Drink!

What's keeping us from drinking from the well?

What's separating us from the living water?

What fears keep you from commitment?

Whose rules are limiting your witness?

What is stopping your harvest?

We're missing the harvest. God's harvest will happen, but are you giving away the opportunity to take part in that harvest?

Have you encountered Jesus in this radical way?

Have you asked for the living water?

Have you received the living water?

"Then he showed me a river of the water of life, [a]clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of [b]the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve [c]kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; 4 they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5 And there will no longer be any night; and they [d]will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever." Revelation 22:1-5

Take it now!

10"And he *said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near."
Revelation 22:10

The time is near!

12 “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man [a]according to what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Revelation 22:12-13

He is coming soon!

He doesn't want us to be fans. He wants us to be followers.

What have you done for the kingdom of God?

Take them to the well!

Let the river flow!

​Shannon was the guest preacher for the Dupree Community Service today. Dupree is celebrating Pioneer Days this weekend and there is always a community service for all who want to attend.

I didn't take notes, but I can tell you Shannon talked about love -- how Jesus says in Matthew, 'You are to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect" in all manners of love. Loving God and loving all people (friends, family, enemies, strangers and especially those who are hard for you to love). 

This world is lacking love. So many people are lacking love in their lives.

Loving like God loves isn't easy. Sometimes it is darn hard. But you'll never regret it.

Ever.

Can we defend the Bible?

Many people base their opinion on the Bible on hearsay.

14 "You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is [a]inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for [b]training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:14-17

#1 Continue in what you have learned. Don't stop. Don't get stagnate in your study.

A lot is first-person witness.

All in Bible is God-inspired.

14" Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this in [a]a book as a memorial and [b]recite it to Joshua, [c]that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” Exodus 17:14

9 Then he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he *said to me, “These are true words of God.” Revelation 19:9

God told them to write it down.

New Testament quotes Old Testament (Matthew 15:4, 1 Corinthians 2:13, 2 Corinthians 13:3)

Biblical Accuracy - - three tests:

Bibliographic tests, Internal tests, External tests.

Bible stood up to all these tests. 

Masoretic texts -- 7th century

Supporting texts  -- Septuagent -- 3rd century Greek translation of Old Testament.

Samaritan Pentatuch

Targums -- ancient paraphrases of O.T.

Talmud -- Hebrew teachings and comentaries

Quality of Manuscripts:

Reverence -- every line, word and letter counted in copying the O.T.

Dead Sea Scrolls -- predate masoretic texts by 1000 years and they are virtually the same!

New Testament:
5000 Greek Copies of NT
8000 Latin Copies of NT
(These are all handwritten)
Tens of thousands of references to the NT by early church fathers.

Comparison: Plato, Aristotle, Caesar and Tacticus -- only 1 to 20 copies of each.

Quality of NT Manuscripts:

Small variations on translations, interpretations, reconstruction -- none of which are abnormal.

Scholarly review= 99.5% pure copies!

Papyrus copies to 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D.  Most copies written between 100 and 200 years after Christ.

Better than any other ancient document!

Internal Tests:

Many of the books are woven together.

Timelines, genealogies, places and dates accurate.

Most books are primary sourced -- eyewitness authors.

Original NT texts written between 47 -- 70 A.D.

Nobody shines in the O.T. but God.

External Tests:

Archeology -- there is something found almost daily even now that proves the Bible!

Josephus and Roman Historian Tacticus and other writers validate Jesus Christ and the facts of His life.

There has NEVER been an archeological find that disproves the Bible. 

No Ancient text is more validated by fact than the Bible.

6 Billion Bibles have been sold.

Translated in more languages than any other writing (including Klingon -- yes from Star Trek). 

It was written over 1600 years, 40 different authors, on 3 continents, in 3 languages. Consistent message, God's love, God's grace.

​Am I choosing willful ignorance?

15 "Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the [a]people any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16 At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. 17 So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18 For he knew that because of envy they had handed Him over.
19 While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for [b]last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to put Jesus to death. 21 But the governor [c]said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” 22 Pilate *said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all *said, “[d]Crucify Him!” 23 And he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “[e]Crucify Him!” Matthew 27:15-23

Barabbas (insurrection, rebel, murderer, thief). Nothing redeeming about him. He was guilty and condemned.

I'm Barabbas. We're all Barabbas.

18 "No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him." John 1:18

 "for all [a]have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," Romans 3:23

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23

Without the cross we're all Barabbas. We're rebellious, murderers, thieves. 

Jesus was enough. Jesus lived the life we wouldn't and died the death we should have died.

The Law is an impossible standard.

All or none.

Sin or no sin.

We are no different than Barabbas.

18" But they cried out all together, saying, “Away with this man, and release for us Barabbas!” 19 (He was one who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection made in the city, and for murder.)" Lukw 23:18-19

Take Jesus. We don't want him. GIve us Barabbas.

Who does the world put up on a pedestal? The worst of the worst. People cheer for the bad guy.  

Jesus said, "Take me instead."

Centurion in charge of 100 men. Best of the best. An experienced man. 

He was given the task of executions. Seen it happen a lot.  

54 "Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “Truly this was [a]the Son of God!” Matthew 27:54

What changed him?

The sky went black and there was an earthquake. He saw Jesus mocked and whipped. He saw Jesus stay silent. He heard Jesus talk to his mother from the cross -- caring for her while he was being killed. He heard Jesus talk to the thief on the cross and tell him he'd be with Jesus in paradise. He heard Jesus ask God to forgive forgive the ones who crucified Him.

This was not normal -- never happened before during an execution.

Like the centurion we're holding the hammer in our hands.

Neither Barabbas or the Centurion are ever mentioned again.  Both were at a decision point. 

Now that you know, you have a decision to make. We know we're condemned.  

Celebrate the resurrection.  Completion of the sacrifice.

To accept or deny.

What is your decision?
​

Great sermon today! I hope you take time to listen!

Being exposed, being open and bare is hard. We don't like being exposed.

We learn to insulate ourselves. Some of us use possessions, careers, achievements. We often use these to cover up the core, our inner selves -- just like Adam and Eve did when they hid from God in the garden. 

In the end all there is is God. 
17 "You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me." Revelation 3:17-20

God sees the real us.

He puts us in a position to receive His Grace. He doesn't force grace on anyone.

15 "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin."  Hebrews 4:15

Jesus knows what we're going through.

There are times others wrong us. We aren't responsible for their behavior. We are responsible for how we respond.

13 "No temptation[a] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[b] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[c] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it." 1 Corinthians 10:13

God is the way out.

God's with us, not against us.

14 "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven,[a]Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." Hebrews 4:14

Hold onto this no matter what.

Have a grasp on your faith always so when life wants to buck you off you can stay on.

God knows it's going to get rough.

6 "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." Hebrews 11:6

Pray I need you to help me need you!

16 "Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16

God's grace extends to today.

The world will intentionally lead us astray.

As bad as it gets Jesus has been there.

"Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,[a] and to still another the interpretation of tongues.[b] 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.
Unity and Diversity in the Body12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ."
1 Corinthians 12:1-12

Have a passion for God.

Have a gift.

Find your style.

Don't be ignorant of the Spirit.

Don't be ignorant of the gift(s) God has given you.

7 "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good." 1 Corinthians 12:7

Everyone has at least one.

No one is without a gift.

It is something you'll find joy in.

It will be fulfilling.

An ability you'll perform with ease and effectiveness.

Do a search for spiritual gift inventory and you'll find sample quizzes you can take to find out your gift(s). Then ask God how you can put them to use for His kingdom.

(Shannon handed out a spiritual gifts inventory checklist to the congregation which we did in church).

4"But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:4-10

Handiwork = masterpiece, made complete, perfectly

Made to work for God.

All of us are called.

We are all tools in the toolbox.

All of us have a role to play.

10 "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10

There is a difference.

Everyone gets at least one gift.

We have to discover it and develop it.

Gifts are meant to share with each other.

"Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."  1 Corinthians 12:1-7

Recognize your gift. Develop it.

Do you love me? Get to work.

God will take care of the ability. He's concerned about your availability. Are you willing?

'making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.' Ephesians 5:16

If you don't use what you've been given, there might be a time you no longer can. What a sad day that will be.

Oh, you lazy lazy servant. You could have done something for me. We will be held accountable for how we used the gifts God gave us.

4 "For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body,and each member belongs to all the others."
Romans 12:4-5

You're hurting the church if you aren't doing what you're called to do. We've been given a lot. We are His hands.

11 "So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christmay be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." Ephesians 4:11-13

This is not a spectator sport. You have to be engaged. What am I doing with what God has given me? 

Are you willing? Are you available?

"Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy." 1 Corinthians 14:1
​