What happened in the book of John chapter 4?
Here’s a short outline of this marvelous chapter:
Verses 1-26……The CONVERSION of the Woman of Samaria
Verses 27-30….The WITNESS of the Woman of Samaria to the Men of the City
Verses 31-38….The INSTRUCTION of Jesus to His Disciples to Reap the Harvest (of souls)
Verses 39-42….The RESULTS of the Woman’s Testimony to Her Fellow Samaritans
Verses 43-54….The RETURN of Jesus to Galilee and the Healing of the Nobleman’s Son
As you can see by the outline, there was A LOT that happened in this chapter. Most of it (verses 1-42) is taken up with the Lord’s personal witness to a poor woman of Samaria and her amazing conversion, resulting in her desire to see others converted through “believing on the Lord Jesus Christ.” We learn through the Lord’s dealings with this woman that we should have a heart for lost souls and that one of the best ways to win lost souls is through a “one-on-one” conversation with them in which we introduce them to the Savior of sinners, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is the order in which the Lord did this:
1) He “whetted her appetite for salvation” by speaking of “the gift of God” (verse 10)
2) He “pointed out her need of salvation” by pointing to her sin (verses 16-18)
3) He “declared that He was the Christ” (verses 25-26).
The woman then BELIEVED and CONFESSED the Lord Jesus before men (compare verses 28-29 with Romans 10:9-10). This, in turn, led those who heard her to “believe on Christ as the Savior of the world” (verses 29, 39-42). What a blessed example for those of us who are saved to be “soul winners” by simply confessing Christ before men and trusting God to work in their hearts to produce saving faith in them.
We are also encouraged by the Lord’s word in verses 31-38 to “do the work of an evangelist” (see 2nd Timothy 4:5). He uses “a field ripe for harvest” (verse 35) to teach us that the “there are souls in this world ready to be won for Christ” and thus our hearts and minds should be focused on “reaping souls for Christ” (verses 36-38).
Let me ask my fellow brothers and sisters a personal question, “When is the last time you had a one-on-one conversation with a lost soul over their need of Christ?” Dear Ones, we have been left in this scene for this very purpose! It is all too easy to become distracted by focusing our attention on things (our job, our possessions, our family, or a host of other things) that really, in the grand scheme of things, don’t compare to the all-important business of seeing precious, immortal souls saved for all eternity. But time is fleeting and we are told, in Ephesians 5:16, to be “redeeming the time”; that is, to seize every opportunity we have to be a testimony for Christ. We may not have long to witness for Christ for He is coming soon to take us home to glory (John 14:2-3; 1st Thessalonians 4:15-17), so may we heed His words in Luke 19:13, “Occupy till I come” (KJV).
In the rest of the chapter (verses 43-54) we see the Lord was also interested in meeting the “physical needs” of people, so in love and grace He healed a man’s son who was nigh unto death. Yet as great as that miracle was, it pales in comparison to the miracle seen in the woman’s conversion, for there the Lord healed her from “the malady of sin” (see Isaiah 53:5), which could have resulted in her “eternal death” (Revelation 20:11-15). (349.1) (DO)