Prisoner of Shame

  John 4 – The Woman At The Well

On Thursday evenings I have the honor of going to the Jail in our city and bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to broken women.  Last Thursday I preached on being a Prisoner of Shame to my girls of J Pod.  This woman we read about in John chapter 4 has a bad reputation, she’s been married 5 times and is living with another man, that isn’t her husband.  She runs with the wrong crowd and she is definetly no angel.

Because of her reputation and the shame she felt because of it she would wait until the hottest part of the day to go to the well to get water.  Most of the women went first thing in the morning before the noon day sun.  Not this women, she was too ashamed so she wanted to avoid contact with the other women.

One particular day while at this well she met Jesus a Jew.  He told her about all the things that she had ever done, and told her he had living water to give her so that she would never thirst again.  Not only were the things he was telling her amazing to her but the fact that Jesus, a Jew would even dare talk to a Samaritan Woman.  

But Jesus is no respecter of persons; he loves us all.  This woman had been married five times, can we just say that she was looking for love, acceptance and happiness in these men and they failed to make her happy.  Jesus wanted her to be happy so he was offering himself as the Living Water that would forever satisfy her.  With this water she would be happy during the good times and the bad. 

Jesus told her to go and tell her husband about the living water she had just received and she admitted that she didn’t have a husband.  When Jesus already knew she didn’t have a husband, but he wanted her to realize that she had been looking for love in all the wrong places.

During this encounter Jesus did something that he had not done before, he announced publically to her that He was the Christ.  She was so happy she left her water pot, ran back into town and told all the people to come and she the man that had told her everything.  Many of the Samaritans believed in Jesus and they believed because of this woman’s witness. 

Friends, God used this woman who had been a prisoner of shame to reach many people, even to those people who had looked down upon her.  But check this, being the awesome Jesus that He is He used this woman to publically announce who He was.  Amazing!  That is my Jesus!! 

No matter what she had done or where she was in her life Jesus showed up, offered Himself to her as the living water because she was special and worthy of his time and love.

This story is so inspiring.  Doesn’t this just show us that Jesus will go out of his way, go down to the deepest lowest pit just to show us he loves us and that he wants us.  This is the story that I told the ladies Thursday as I offered them the living water of Jesus Christ.  Praise God 9 precious women received Him!

Praise Him!