No such Thing as Luck

John 4:1-10

Do you ever ponder the events found in the Bible?  This morning as I read this account of Jesus and a woman of Samaria, it amazed me at the amount of ink that was used on this woman, we do not even know her name.  But this we do know about the area of Samaria, it was the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel, and was located on a 300 foot high hill, 42 miles north of Jerusalem. 

In 2 Kings chapter 17, gives a great account of what happened to make these people called Samaritans taboo by the people of the Southern Kingdom or Judah.  This is recorded in 2 Kings, the people of the north living independently from the commands of their God and the people of Judah began to do the same.  Verse 20, gives the account of what that life style got them; “And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight.”  We are told that God had torn Israel from the house of David; “And the king of Assyria brought the people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel.  And they took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.” (2 Kings 17:24)  It is also recorded that things did not go well for these people, so the king sent one of the Jewish priests to teach the people the ways of the god of that land.  Verse 29, tells us how this worked out; “But every nation still made gods of its own and put them in the shrines of the high place that the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities in which they lived.”  Shall we pickup the story in verse 33, “So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.” 

What happen as the Jews returned after being released, some inter-married with these people and that is why this Samaritan woman ask Jesus this question: “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?”(For Jews have no dealing with Samaritans.) (John 4:9)  Now this begins a wonderful exchange between Jesus and the women, and “Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that is saying to you ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” (John 4: 10)

As I pondered these verses, it made me understand that past failure does not keep the mercy, the compassion, the forgiveness, and the love of Jesus from me.  Our world system and the culture we live in would declare how lucky this woman of Samaria was that Jesus showed up at this time of day when this outcast woman came to the well.  But this is an absolute; there is no such thing as luck, not in her life or yours, it was appointed for her to meet Jesus at Jacob’s well so she might receive mercy, forgiveness and that the love of Jesus might fill her with new life.

Form the Back Porch,

Bob Rice