Who is Jesus? He is the Savior of the World

Jesus and the Woman at the well

In our series, Who is Jesus?, we discover, with the inhabitants of the Samaritan town of Sychar, that Jesus is the Savior of the world. While Jesus and his disciples were traveling to Galilee, they stopped near Sychar. Jesus, weary from the journey, sat by the well while his disciples went into the town to buy lunch. While he waited, a woman came from the city to draw water.

Jesus asked the woman for a drink. In speaking to the woman, Jesus ignored many of the barriers that existed in his day. He ignored the cultural, gender, racial, and religious barriers; and simply engaged her in conversation about his identity. (Who is Jesus?) To do this, he began by talking about (physical) water and ended by offering her “living water” (or spiritual water). She readily accepted, thinking it was some kind of physical water and that she could avoid the work and embarrassment of coming to draw water.

Knowing that she did not fully understand, Jesus confronted her with her sin. He did not condemn her, but did not condone her sin either. Undeterred by her attempt to sidetrack the conversation, Jesus continued demonstrating that he was the Messiah. Once she realized who Jesus was, she returned to the town to tell others.

Jesus and his disciples

While she was gone, Jesus addressed his disciples and again used something they were familiar with – food. He contrasted physical food with “spiritual” food. Obeying God and accomplishing His purpose can be more satisfying than physical nourishment. Finally, Jesus the n challenged his disciples to observe the need in the world around them. “I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest” (John 4:35).

The Savior of the world

When the woman returned, she brought many people from the town back to Jesus. At their urging, he agreed to stay with them for a couple days. In conclusion, John used the words of the people of the town saying, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world” (John 4:42).