John 4 is quickly becoming one of my favorite passages in the Scriptures (click here to read). It’s the passage where Jesus chooses to go into a community where the religous leaders of that day would not go. At a well, a woman encounters Jesus. By accepting the woman as she is, and speaking truth into her life, Jesus provides the context for the woman to discover who He is.
After encountering Jesus the woman goes back into her town and shares her experience with her community and many are influenced to explore her claims about Jesus. After spending two days with Jesus, many come to life-transforming faith, no longer because of the woman’s testimony, but by first-hand experience with “the Savior of the world.” (John 4:42)
It seems to me that this is a paradigm for our lives as the Body of Christ, where we desire to follow Jesus’ example by providing a place where we can connect with God and with our community. Each week we will, like the woman, encounter Jesus through genuine worship, Biblical truth, and authentic friendships, which will in turn strengthen our discipleship, and challenge us to engage our community through lives of service and love.
Travis Connick 