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The Bible Breakdown: Daily Bible Reading
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Welcome to "The Bible Breakdown," where we break down God’s Word so we can know God better. I'm your host, Brandon Cannon, and I'm here to guide you through the pages of the Bible, one day at a time.
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The Bible Breakdown: Daily Bible Reading
John 04: Jesus Balances Truth and Love
John walked with Jesus.
John saw it all.
Now, he has been inspired by the Holy Spirit to make sure we understand... Jesus is God. He isn't just a man, a great teacher, and a healer. He. Is. God.
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The More We Dig. The More We Find.
Hey everyone and welcome to the Bible Breakdown podcast. In this podcast, we will be breaking down the Bible one chapter a day. Whether you are a new believer or have been following Christ for a while, we believe that you will learn something new and fresh every single day. So thank you for joining us and let's get into breaking down the Bible together.
Speaker 2:Well, hello everybody. Welcome back to the Bible Breakdown Podcast with your host, pastor Brandon. Today, john, chapter four, and if I were to give this a title, it would be Jesus Balances Love and Truth. It's going to be awesome. Jesus literally calls a lady out, he calls her basically a liar and she loves him for it. I mean, it is amazing. We're going to jump into that in just a moment before we do, as always. If you like what we're doing here, help us build this community, like the video, share this video, comment on this video and go to our Facebook page and make sure that you go to Bible breakdown discussion and let us know what God is doing in your life.
Speaker 2:Have you ever had an awkward conversation? You ever tried to share the gospel with somebody? Let us know how it went. Let us know if it went well. Let us know even more if it didn't go well, because, man, we want to share God's word. We want to know the good, bad and the ugly, because it is difficult to share truth and love at the same time. And that's exactly what Jesus is going to do, as we saw last week or, excuse me, yesterday, in John, chapter 3, jesus shares the gospel with this elite, with this scholar, with this person, and he just blows his mind with truth bombs. Well, today he's going to share the life-changing gospel again, but this time not with a scholar, but with just a regular old folks, people that are just right here in the ordinary. And it's amazing how Jesus balances this truth. He doesn't shy away from calling this lady out, but at the same time, there's no malice attached to it.
Speaker 2:I think that's what the message of the gospel is, if you think about it. The gospel says you and I are wrong. It says that we are in sin, we're going to die and we're going to go to hell. That's really bad news, but that's not all of it. The good news is well, the bad news is we know it. We know that this thing called life is not working. The good news is Jesus said I came to fix all that, and so it's the best news ever. But we got to hear the bad news. But we can know the good news. So it's truth and love, and that's exactly what Jesus is going to do. So, man, let's jump in and let the, let the King do the talking.
Speaker 2:All right, if you got your NLT Bible with you, you want to open it up to John, chapter four, and our NLT Bibles. Our coffee cups ready. Let's dive into this. I'm going to try not to stop too many times. There's just so many good things here. Here we go.
Speaker 2:First one Jesus knew the Pharisees had heard that he was baptizing and making more disciples than John, though Jesus himself didn't baptize but his disciples did so he left Judea and returned to Galilee. Listen to this. He had to go through Samaria on the way. Now what happens is is from where he was in that area, leaving Judea and returning to Galilee, he was basically going south, traveling north, but in between the two places was an area that was occupied by Samaritans. Now, samaritans were people who were half Jewish, half not Jewish. They'd intermarried with some of the Canaanite people, and so they were it would be considered in the Jewish people, half Jewish, which was a really bad thing. You didn't want to be half Jewish.
Speaker 2:But their problems went all the way back to when the nation of Israel was destroyed and they were led the Jewish people led into captivity. We're going to get to that eventually in the old Testament for 70 years they come back and the people who had stayed? They had intermarried with some of the other people, and they actually worked against the returning exiles from rebuilding the city of Jerusalem, rebuilding the temple. Like they, they were enemies trying to stop them from rebuilding because, since the temple had been destroyed, they had started worshiping God over on these mountains and so they didn't want the temple restored because they were already doing their worship over here, and so they stood against the nation of Israel rebuilding Jerusalem. Well, they rebuilt anyway, and that created friction. Well then one of the high priests went and had them burn down all of those mountainous worship areas. So there's just all kinds of friction going on. Where are we supposed to worship? We supposed to worship in Jerusalem, you know. We supposed to worship in this hill country. Hey, uh, we never went into exile, so we're kind of better than you. No, you're not. I mean just All kinds of cultural issues.
Speaker 2:And so what would happen many times is the Jewish people would avoid the area of Samaria and just stay out of it, but not Jesus. Jesus goes straight through Samaritan territory because he is on assignment to talk to this lady and later to talk to this entire village. So now let's pick back up. Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field of Jacob gave to his son, joseph. Jacob's well was there and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water and Jesus said to her please give me a drink. He was alone at the time because the disciples had gone to the village to buy some food.
Speaker 2:Now, something's very interesting is this is a very hot climate. You would never go get water at noontime unless you're trying to not be seen. The two times when most of the ladies that were kind of taking care of their households would go get water is early in the morning and late in the afternoon, when it was cooler. And what they would also do is it would be kind of a time when they would check up with one another, see how things were going and then going back home. So she waited until the middle of those two times. It would be hot outside, no one would be around because she's probably trying to avoid people as much as possible. So the problem is is you can't avoid Jesus. You may have 99 problems, but Jesus ain't one of them. The Bible says in verse nine.
Speaker 2:The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans, because what we talked about earlier. She said to Jesus you're a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink? Jesus replied if you only knew the gift of God, that the gift God has for you and who is speaking to you, you would ask me and I would give you living water. But, sir, you don't have a rope or a bucket, she said. And this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? And besides, do you think you're greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed? Jesus replied anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water that I give will never be thirsty again. It will become a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life. Please, sir.
Speaker 2:The woman said, give me this water, then I will never be thirsty again and I won't have to come here and get this water. Go, get your husband. Jesus told her I don't have a husband, the woman replied. Jesus said You're right, you don't have a husband, for you have had five husbands. You ain't even married to that fool you're shacking up with right now. That's not what he said. You are not married to the man you are living with right now. Jesus is nicer than I am. You certainly spoke the truth, sir.
Speaker 2:This woman said she's changing the subject. You must be a prophet, so tell me. Why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place to worship? Well, we Samaritans claim it is here, at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped. Remember what I told you earlier?
Speaker 2:She immediately tries to sidestep this whole deal by her shacking up with somebody and goes to a political thing. Hey, you Jews say we should be worshipping in Jerusalem. We think we should worship Mount Gerizim. What do you think about that whole political debate? Right? She's just trying to change the subject. Jesus brings her right back again. Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter where you worship the Father, on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You Samaritans know very little about the one that you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. But the time is coming Indeed, it's here now when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, because the Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. God is spirit and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.
Speaker 2:She didn't like that answer, so she sideswipes again. I know that Messiah is coming, the one who is called Christ, and when he comes he will explain everything to us. So that's kind of that answer of hey, should you be Democrat or Republican? Should you do this One day? We're all just gonna find a way to get along. She's just trying to come up with something else. But then Jesus rocks her boat and says this I am that Messiah, I am that one. And this is the first time he says the I am statement. We're going to get into what. That I am statement is the next time he says it, but trust me, it is amazing, jesus.
Speaker 2:Then, just then his disciples came back. They were shocked to find him talking to a woman, but none of them had the nerve to ask what do you want with her? Why are you talking to her? The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village telling everyone come and see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this possibly be the Messiah? So the people came streaming from the village to see him. Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus Rabbi, eat something. But Jesus replied I have a kind. Jesus Rabbi, eat something. But Jesus replied I have a kind of food you know nothing about. Someone bring him some food. While we were gone. The disciples asked each other. Then Jesus explained my nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work.
Speaker 2:You know the saying four months between planting and harvest, I say wake up and look around around. The fields are already ripe for harvest, the harvesters are paid good wages and the fruit of their harvest is people brought into eternal life. What joy awaits both planter and harvester alike. You know the saying one plants and another harvest. And it's true. I sent you to harvest where you didn't plant. Others had already done the work and now you will get to gather the harvest. In other words, what he's saying is all these people are so desperate and they're so looking for eternal life they don't even know what they're looking for. In other words, they are ready to hear the gospel. Guys, we about to party, we about to see some life happen up in here.
Speaker 2:Verse 39 says many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said he told me everything I ever did. When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed there two days, long enough for many more to hear the message and belief. Then they said to the woman now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves and we know that he is indeed the savior of the world. Isn't that amazing that it wasn't the Jews that believed him first, it was the Samaritans, it was the outcasts, because he didn't move by them. And Jesus actually laid out for us a template on how to share the gospel with people who are unsaved. And that is number one he found her. Number two he pointed to the truth, which is she was in sin. Number three he didn't let her skirt around it but at the same time he didn't disrespect her. And number four he offered her hope. The very best thing that we can do is to not skirt around the truth. And the truth is we are all sinners, we're all going to hell unless we receive the gospel. But then the good news is there is a gospel and Jesus can save all of us.
Speaker 2:Verse 43 at the end of two days, jesus went on to Galilee. He himself had said that a prophet is not honored in his hometown. Yet the Galileans welcomed him, for they had been in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration and had seen everything he did there. And as he traveled through Galilee he came to Cana where he had turned the water into wine and there was a government official in the nearby Capernaum who was sick. His son was very sick. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son who was about to die. Jesus asked will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders? The official pleaded Lord, please come now, before my little boy dies. Then Jesus told him go on back home, your son will live. And the man believed that Jesus said and started what he said and started home. While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied. Yesterday afternoon at one o'clock his fever suddenly disappeared. Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him your son will live, and his entire household believed in Jesus. This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus did in Galilee after coming from Judea. Remember, jesus is going to do seven significant signs that all point to not just a man, but he is the savior and the king of the whole world. Now I want to ask you a question.
Speaker 2:The theme of the entire gospel of John is John, inspired by the Holy Spirit, is telling the church Jesus is God. In other words, he's saying you may have 99 problems, but Jesus ain't one. Well, what can we get out of this chapter? Well, to me, what I love about this is that Jesus knows us. He knew that lady done been shacking up on everybody, everybody and their uncle done known all about that lady, but Jesus didn't go to the next whale. He went there. Jesus knows us, yet he seeks after us.
Speaker 2:If you have ever wondered in your life if you have value, if you've ever wondered if you matter, you know what. I don't know if you matter to your neighbor, I don't know if you matter to whoever it is that you're trying so desperately to get their attention, but can I tell you you matter to the only one that matters. You matter to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Jesus entered into time and space, born of a virgin, lived 33 years, died on a cross, rose again, did all of that for you. God's word says in Romans 5, 8,.
Speaker 2:God demonstrated his great love toward us in that, while we were still sinners, he died for us. While we were still sinners, he came on a rescue mission for us, and if that doesn't fill you with joy, you need to rewind it and listen to it again. Let me pray for us and then we'll be done for today. Father, thank you so much. Thank you for sending your son Jesus, thank you that you are the king of kings and the Lord of lords, and we may have 99 problems, but you are not one of them, and we celebrate you today In Jesus' name. We pray amen, don't forget. John 20 says these things were written that you may continue to believe that Jesus is God and that by believing in him we can have life by the power of his name. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow for John, chapter 5. Thank you.
