INTENTIONAL

John 4:4

We are into speaking wholesome, spirit-inspired prophecies into people’s lives. We are not here to throw people away. Jesus forever says to His church “. . . Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost” (John 6:12). You may feel like crumbs today, like broken, fragmented crumbs, chewed upon, spat out, cast away and rejected, but Jesus commanded His disciples to be sure to take up the fragments; that nothing be wasted. Jesus sad to the church, pick them up – I can use them. These are some of the lessons we can certainly learn from Jesus’ interactions with this spiritually destitute Samaritan woman in John 4. He was intentional about reaching her (John 4:4).

When the world throws us away, turns on us, tramples us under feet, Jesus picks us up, dusts us off, cleans us up and puts us back into commission. He specializes in renewing and recycling souls for His greater glory. No wonder the Psalmist David declared, “I waited patiently for the Lord, He inclined unto me and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock and established my goings. And hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it and fear and shall trust in the Lord . . .” (Psalms 40: 1-3). How many of us can testify about this reality in our own lives!

In our passage of reflection today Jesus saw deep into this immoral, feisty, disturbed Samaritan woman’s soul. He looked deep into the cesspool of her past, run-down, burn-out life and He saw not only what she was, but also what she could and would be by His grace, an evangelist of great worth and excellence. May it be pointed out here that evangelists and prophets and pastors and ministers are not always chosen from the morally elite and the privileged upper-class level of religious society, but to the contrary, He oftentimes chooses the outcast and least expected to be His chosen vessels and instruments of His glorious cause.

Jesus could have never seen this woman as destitute and lost as she was and left her in that same condition. It was against His religion. I mean He was tired, weary from His long journey, thirsty, hungry, beat and just as He sat down to rest – a need presented itself (John 4:6). Almost immediately, however, he forgot about Himself – how tired He was, how thirsty He was, how hungry and began ministering. It was never, it seemed, about Himself – there was an urgency about her condition that compelled Him to move into action.

Maybe that’s what ministry and mission and evangelism are all about. He did not say I am just too tired of giving. He never complained. He never protested. He never fussed or fretted. Without even thinking He passionately went to work. For the next few moments, He forgot about Himself and like a warrior with fierce courage He exerted all His energy to rescue this poor destitute, morally bankrupt, aching soul.

May the Master help us to realize again, it’s really not about us always trying to save ourselves, but we must go beyond ourselves to save and reach others. Men and women are dying all around us! Souls are crying! It’s about becoming intentional again, about rescuing, saving, snatching, helping, caring for the lost. It is not about making judgement calls and being selective. It’s about sharing, giving, ministering unselfishly and tirelessly. It’s about winning souls and being intentional about it – “And He must needs go through Samaria (John 4:4).

Leroy V. Greenaway

Presiding Bishop – Northeast Region

Weekly Messages

November 12, 2022

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