Scripture to Read: John 4:7–10
Jesus was led by God the Father to a divine appointment to encounter the woman from Samaria. Make sure to see in John 4:8 that Jesus’ disciples had gone into the city to buy food, so Jesus was alone. So, to better understand why this encounter was so significant, we read in John 4:9, For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. There was a hatred between the Jews and the Samaritans that had begun back in 721 B.C. During this time, the Assyrians overcame the northern kingdom (called Israel, while the southern Kingdom was called Judah). Many Israelites were led off to Assyria as captives, but some of the Israelites stayed in their land where the Assyrians ruled over them there. Some Israelites intermarried with the Assyrians who were left there to rule them. The children born to those who intermarried were half-Jewish, half-Gentile. These offspring became known as the Samaritans (2 Kings 17:24–42, Ezra 9, Ezra 10, Nehemiah 13:23–28). Since these offspring were not fully Jewish, the Jews began to hate them, and the hatred was still going on when Jesus came over seven hundred years later. The good news is that Jesus came to open doors of opportunity and to tear down the walls of hatred, bigotry, racism, and so on. God never wants us to get caught up in hatred, bigotry, racism, or anything else that separates us from those who have been made in His image. We must die to any fleshly desire that causes us to see anyone as anything less than someone made in God’s image.
Challenge & Application
• Why was there so much hatred between the Jews and Samaritans, and what can we learn from Jesus’ example?
• How do we guard against hatred, bigotry, racism, and things that divide us from others?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!