03182020 – John 4. 5-42
Let’s Start Out with an “Actual Question:” How racist are you? How’s that for food for thought?
This is “the ACTUAL scoop behind our text!”
This is what happened IMMEDIATELY AFTER the reigns of King DAVID and King SOLOMON.
The once, UNITED nation was NO more.
It became PHYSICALLY divided between the North and the South with a ruling king over EACH of the TWO TERRITORIES.
In 922 BCE, the TEN Northern Tribes of Israel seceded from the UNION and took “THE NAME” with them.
“ISRAEL,” or the NORTHERN Kingdom lasted ALMOST exactly 200 years.
“Judea” was the SOUTHERN Kingdom.
The NORTHERN Kingdom was defeated by the Assyrian Nation in 722 BCE.
In order to DECREASE the possibility of FUTURE REBELLIONS, the Assyrians in a WISE MOVE moved SOME people OUT of the region and moved some OTHER people INTO the region. The region became known as “SAMARIA.”
It became quickly a mixed area of Jew and Gentile, alike!
Despite THE MIX of “various NATIONALITIES” in Samaria, the Samaritans considered themselves to be DESCENDANTS of the TRIBES of EPHRAIM and MANASSEH. This gave them “a DIRECT LINE to JACOB and JOSEPH!”
The Samaritans WORSHIPED Yahweh, they PRESERVED a line of LEVITICAL PRIESTS and ACCEPTED the TORAH as their HOLY BOOK or Scripture.
They did NOT HOWEVER accept 25 BOOKS…which included 8 WRITINGS, 5 MAJOR PROPHETS, and 12 MINOR PROPHETS…All of which, the Judeans DID accept.
They also worshiped at the TEMPLE on Mt. GERIZIM. While the JUDEANS said, the only place to worship YAHWEH-GOD was in Jerusalem-in-JUDEA.
It became a “US against THEM situation,” with the Southern Kingdom considering the Samaritans to be “MONGRELS and HALF BREEDS” and they thought THEIR priesthood DID NOT COUNT and believed THEIR TORAH was textually CORRUPT.
There were much hatred and animosity between the two groups. Clearly, an “us against them” situation.
The JEWS believed that the Samaritan pedigree was completely BASTARDIZED due to intermarriage with their ASSYRIAN CONQUERORS. The Samaritans were declared FOREVERMORE to be UNCLEAN and IMPURE…as was “THEIR LAND.” The land itself had “become” DEFILED.
The Judeans DESTROYED the Samaritan TEMPLE and burned down their CAPITAL city of SHECHEM.
By the time of JESUS, things were EVEN worse. NO JEW could set a FOOT in Samaria. To do so meant being labeled RITUALLY UNCLEAN.
That JESUS “entered SAMARIA” at all – is a significant STATEMENT all by itself.
Samaritans were DECLARED to be “foreigners, outcasts, dogs, heretics, unbelievers, half-breeds, pagans” and were to be avoided at ALL COSTS.
That Jesus told “a STORY or a PARABLE” about a “GOOD” SAMARITAN was equally ASTONISHING.
Jesus ACTUALLY BREACHES the cultural-religious divide through a “simple encounter.” He arrived rather UNOBTRUSIVELY without his usual ENTOURAGE being present. It was HIGH NOON in Samaria.
While it was UNTHINKABLE for a Man a HEBREW MAN to talk to a woman in PUBLIC, and for a Jew and a Samaritan to engage in conversation it did happen. And, JESUS was the one to strike up the conversation.
What a “strange turn about of events” this is: The FIRST PEOPLE to proclaim Jesus as “SAVIOR of the WORLD” and they are a bunch of Half-breed FOREIGNERS, not even his own people.
You have to be careful because some people read into this all kinds of an ANTI JEWISH SENTIMENT. JOHN’S Gospel is the ONE that has done GREAT HARM (the most harm) when it comes to Anti-Semitism.
We have to keep in mind that it is “the ELITISTS of JERUSALEM” and “the TEMPLE AUTHORITIES” that have the conflict with Jesus. It is NOT the JEWISH PEOPLE, per se!
So, this is BIG STUFF. IT is an IMPORTANT STUFF. The JUDEANS will actually go SO FAR as to say that JESUS was himself a SAMARITAN…and not a JEW, at all!
We need to hear these LABELS as name-calling, childish, kiddish, grade school stuff…labeling Jesus as NOT ONE OF US, but an OUTSIDER, not to be trusted and therefore, VULNERABLE to ABUSE, that WE “would not do” – to ONE OF OUR OWN!
I tell you Jesus was breaking down BARRIERS long before his time.
He was building BRIDGES between PEOPLES’ long before his time.
Jesus was breaking down religious TABOOS to the right and to the left.
Jesus RISKED “serious POLLUTING acts” by Pharisaic standards, by being WILLING to SHARE a drinking vessel with a WOMAN and a FOREIGNER…a SAMARITAN!
When JESUS comes to TOWN the WALLS start crashing in…and come, a TUMBLING DOWN.
Jesus is the GREAT LEVELER between peoples. He sees them ALL as being IMPORTANT.
He sees them ALL – as being FILLED with self-worth, filled with POTENTIAL and incredible GOD-GIVEN VALUE.
No Racism here.
No prejudice.
No Bias.
No hatred.
No time for such things as that!
Just love and acceptance.
IF ONLY, IF ONLY…”WE” could be MORE like Jesus! So how prejudicial are you, toward other people?
Amen.