John 4:39-42 - Belief by Hearing the Good News
Ya gotta hear it for yourself. That's what the Bible says. Hear from God yourself. Many people will come to believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior today. They will hear that Jesus died on the Cross to pay for their sins. Uniquely, they will hear that God loves them and that the Son was sent to earth to be lifted high on the Cross so that anyone who believes in Him will be made right with God and have everlasting life. Born again! God’s Kingdom is gloriously advancing, one soul at a time.
We see in the example of Jesus and the Samaritan Woman that God indeed does take the initiative for people to believe Jesus is the Savior of the world (John 4:42 and 1 John 4:14). But it is not at all, as some man-made theories say. Jesus does not magically change Nicodemus’ heart, mind, or soul. God does not force you to believe. Nicodemus wanted to believe; he wanted to know more about this new spiritual life Jesus was talking about. He could see the power and authority of Jesus but it didn't make sense. So he went to Jesus. Similarly, the Woman at the Well was quite intrigued by Jesus' mention of living water - true satisfaction and life everlasting. Jesus did not regenerate either of their hearts so they had to believe Jesus was the Messiah. That is not what Scripture shows. Instead, Jesus took them just where they were and presented them with the facts of life. They were sinners in need of a Savior.
What we do see in Scripture is that God provides the way of Salvation. It was God's loving plan from the start. God always takes the initiative. God creates. God provides. God sustains. God gives us life. And God gives us His Word. God sent His Prophets. And then God sent His Son - just as He said He would.
Jesus says that we can expect people to cling to man-made ideas about how to be made right with God. Some will try to follow religious systems, philosophies, laws, and sacrifices. All meaningless and useless to make a person right with God (Romans 10). Others, fatalists, believe God has favorites (He makes it clear in Scripture that He does not!). Their philosophy is that there is no way a person can accept God or reject God. They claim that by forces a person can’t resist they are compelled apart from their faculties, moral reason, control, ability, or responsibility. Contrary to the man-made theories, the Good News in the Bible shows how to be made right with God.
The Bible tells us that no person can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. Jesus is the purpose and end of the law. Jesus fulfilled the law's very purpose which was to point people to the Messiah (Romans 10:4). All who believe in Jesus are made right with God. That's the Good News!
It’s true whether you are highly educated, wealthy, and respected. Or if you are poor, disrespected, and a total outcast of society. God loves all people and wants all people to believe in the Son for eternal life. In chapters three and four of John, we see that Nicodemus (a Jewish priest) and the Samaritan Woman (a gentile outcast) are the same in this respect. Jesus spoke to each of them. He loved them both. Jesus told them they needed to be born again and to repent of their sins. Jesus told them they had to believe in the Son of God - the Messiah.
How can people have faith? How are we born again? How can we come to believe in Jesus and what does God do in us when we believe? The truth is that God’s way does place on us a responsibility. We can’t be right with God by accident of birth or by bullying or cajoling. God will draw us, coax us, and use a myriad of loving and creative ways to persuade us of His love and His gift of living water. But He will not force us to believe. And He will not accept those who reject the Son (John 3:18).
God’s way is that He uses His people, sent by God to go and tell people about the Savior. Christians tell others about the Risen Son, risen to new life by the Power of God. Terribly, not everyone will believe the Good News (John 3:20). But the Bible is clear that a person must hear about Jesus to believe in Jesus. And many many people will believe in Him just as the people of Sychar did in this chapter. Each according to what they heard about their life and about the Savior. “Faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ” (Romans 10:17).
Jesus opened His arms to the people of Sychar for two days. Many heard His message and believed in Him as their Savior. The people of Sychar said, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world” (John 4:42).
Thank You Jesus for speaking plainly to us through Your Word. Thank You for dying on the Cross for our sins so that we may be made right with God by believing in You. We trust in our hearts that You came to earth, died, and rose again. We know that the fields are ripe for harvest and that many people will hear of Your offer of reconciliation and believe in You for eternal life today. Help us to be part of Your Kingdom building by sharing Your message of reconciliation today. Amen.
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