Youth Ministry Object Lesson - Lessons for Evangelism of Youth: The Samaritan Woman

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Youth Ministry
Object Lesson Lessons for
Evangelism of
Youth: The
Samaritan
Woman
www.CreativeObjectLessons.com


The woman at the well is
probably the most incisive
of the New Testament
narratives of Jesus’ dealing
with the spiritually lost. It is
found only in the fourth
chapter of John’s gospel.
From it we can learn many
things about personal
evangelism in general that
can also be applied to our
evangelism to youth.



The background for this
passage involves the Lord
Jesus Christ, leaving Judea
and traveling through
Samaria to Galilee. As he
travels through Samaria, He
stops at the city of Sychar,
near Jacobs well, to rest
and eat. At noon, he waits
beside the well for a divine
appointment, as his
disciples go into the city to
buy food.



The Master’s Classroom
Interestingly, John records
that Jesus “had” to pass
through Samaria. It was not
an accident that Jesus went
through Samaria. “There
were several roads leading
from Judea to Galilee: one
near the sea coast, another
through Perea, and one
through Samaria.”



The road through Samaria
was the least traveled, yet it
was the road Christ “had”
to travel. What the disciples
saw as an uncomfortable
trip, through a land of
people against whom Jews
had great prejudice, was
actually a divine
appointment.



God will often put us in places
of personal discomfort as a
classroom for the greater
teachings of the Kingdom of
God. In this case He teaches
the disciples that there is not
room for barriers of any kind in
the Kingdom of God. The
gospel is a gospel for all
people. Manmade barriers of
prejudice, culture, and the
lifestyles of people must not
block the divine flow of the
living water.


The Master’s Workshop
The Samaritan woman
came to draw water–a
common act, done in
common way, but this
time to have uncommon
results. Unknown to her,
she had an appointment
with the Son of God.
Jacob’s well became
Christ’s workshop for the
repair of her soul.



We too need to discover
the common activities of
youth that can be used as
platforms from which to
lead lost youth to a saving
knowledge of God. Any
contact with a lost youth is
an opportunity for sharing
the gospel if we would only
look.



The most effective witnessing
occurs in those natural situations
where youth interact. A popular
theology of today says “let me
live a good life, and if you ask me
about God, I will take you to
church.” How long would Christ
have had to sit at the well before
the woman would have noticed
his good life? Jesus took the
initiative and so should we.
Think of the opportunities we
pass up daily. What
opportunities are you passing up
to reach out to youth?


The Master’s Methods
Get Acquainted
Jesus seeks to “draw” the
woman into a conversation by
asking her to “draw” Him a
drink of water. She recognizes
Him as merely a Jew and
wonders about his request.
”‘Never speak to a woman in
the street, even if she be thy
wife’; ‘Burn the words of the
law rather than teach them to
a woman,’ were the great
maxims in Jewish society.” 2


Even so, Christ’s greatest
concern was the condition of
the woman’s soul. Because of
this, he would reach out to
her, even if it violated
custom. Manmade barriers
must not hinder the gospel.
In the customs of the day
there is another interesting
meaning to Christ’s request
for a drink. In the East,



“the giving and receiving of a
drink of water is the seeking
and making of a covenant of
hospitality, with all that that
covenant implies… it is like the
covenant of breadsharing, which makes a
truce, for the time
being, between deadliest
enemies.” 3By asking for
water, Christ was not only
drawing the woman into
conversation, but disarming
any defense that she might put
up concerning his identity as a
Jew.


He was showing an interest in
her as an individual. “The
woman, the Samaritan, the
sinner, is placed over against
the Rabbi, the ruler of the
Jews, the Pharisee.” 4Her
birth, her sex, and her lifestyle
were all barriers, but the
gospel knows no barriers. The
gospel sees only the need of
the individual. We should also
see the individual needs of
our youth!



Arouse Interest
Christ offered the “gift”
of living water to the
Samaritan woman.
Notice that the living
water is a “gift” received
by “asking.” The reason
men do not ask, is
because they do not
know that it exists. 5



Samaritan woman did not
know the gift of God because
her sight was focused on her
earthly condition and her
physical thirsts. Too
often, people miss the
spiritual because they are
focused on the physical. Like
Christ, we must use their
physical needs and
perceptions to lead lost
youth to a knowledge of the
spiritual.


The Samaritan woman
then calls Christ “Sir.” She
no longer sees Him as
merely a Jew, but a Jew
who deserves her
respect. She still does not
understand that Christ is
speaking of the
spiritual, but proceeds
with a question about the
method by which Jesus
could obtain living water.



Jesus is speaking of the
water of life; the woman is
thinking of flowing
water, so much more
desirable than the flat
water of cisterns.” 6Jacob
had to dig a well for water.
Did Christ know a way of
obtaining running water?
“‘Canst thou do more than
dig a well?’ was the
meaning of the woman’s
question to Jesus.” 7



Indeed He could! Abraham
left them a well of
stagnant water, but Jesus
would give her a spring of
living water. To the
Samaritans, Abraham left
a religion, but Jesus
promised a growing
relationship with God.
Jesus “does not say He is
greater than Jacob, but
suggests that He has
better water to give than
that which was in Jacob’s
well.” 8


The well of Jacob was so
deep that it had already
lasted 1500 years and
was still being used. It
still exists today, though
much of it has been
filled. How much deeper
then is the love of God
for this woman.
(Ephesians 3:18-19)



The Samaritan Woman’s
religion was only a dry well,
but Christ offered a living
relationship. The Samaritan
woman “identified herself
with a religion which,…
instead of leading her to
God, only supplied a
substitute for Him.” 9“The
gift of God is not dry
doctrine, but a living Being.”
10 Dry doctrine creates a
thirst, but Christ quenches
the thirst.


Dry doctrine becomes foul
and corrupt over time, but a
relationship with Christ
refreshes and takes away
foulness and corruption. Dry
doctrine is stagnant, but a
relationship with Christ is
active. Dry doctrine
evaporates, but the living
water is a spring to ourselves
as well as to others.



“Most men draw their supplies
from without; they are rich,
happy, and strong, only when
externals minister to their
strength, happiness, and riches."
11 Christians draw their supplies
from their relationship with God.
From which do we drink? Do we
drink from our religious
practices and doctrines or do we
continually seek refreshment
from a vital relationship with the
Savior. When we present the
gospel to youth, do we present a
religion and a system of beliefs
or do we introduce the Savior?


Gently Confront Sin
When a river becomes
obstructed the water
stagnates and foul and
decaying things are
collected. One solution is to
clear away the
obstructions, but the same
would only reoccur in a
matter of time. The best
solution is clear away the
obstructions and then
increase the water flow.



When Jesus asks about her
husband, He is seeking to
clear away the
obstructions. The woman
says that she has no
husband. “Instead of
wringing the rest of the
confession from the
woman, Jesus makes it for
her.



It is a touch of His gentleness
with the sinner.” 12“The
conversation had passed
from the small-talk to the
personal.” 13 Notice that
Christ made the most of an
ignorant sinner’s words
instead of attacking. We
would be wise to do the
same with youth. We must
allow the confrontation of
the sinner to be with Christ
and the gospel, not anything
else.


She then calls Jesus a
prophet and sidesteps the
conversation from herself to
the location of worship. It is
very natural for someone to
cover their eyes when a
bright light is flashed. It is
natural for a person walking
from darkness into the
brilliant light of the Son of
God to shade their eyes.



The Samaritan woman
was no different. Her pain
is too great not to shade
the eyes of her heart lest
it be blinded. Yet Jesus is
too compassionate to
leave her in such a state.
He answers her
diversionary question then
returns to crux of the
conversation–the gospel.



Answer Legitimate
Questions but Confront
Sinners with who Christ is
Christ answers her
question, but instead of
giving her religion Christ
confronts the woman with
who He is and thus opens
the door for a personal
relationship. “‘Jesus’ words
are, literally: ‘I am, who
speak to you.’”14



Jesus is literally saying that
He is God using a term the
woman would be familiar
with from Exodus 3:14.
Notice the progressing
realization of the woman
concerning the identity of
Christ. He first was a Jew,
then was to be compared
with Jacob, then he was a
prophet, and then he was
the Messiah, and finally he
became her Messiah.



When she realized Christ was
the Messiah, she left her water
pot and went to tell everyone
of Him. When Christ truly
becomes Lord, He becomes our
first priority. John does not say
the woman “forgot” the water
pot nor does he say that she
“purposely” left it. Either
way, now that she had come
face to face with Christ, the
water pot was of little or no
importance to her. Her focus
was no longer on the
physical, but instead was on
the spiritual.


As the woman went to tell
others, “the living water which
the woman received from Jesus
had certainly become an
overflowing fountain in her
life, and others were coming to
share the refreshment that she
had begun to enjoy.” 15John
points out that many believed
because they had heard for
themselves through the
testimony of the Samaritan
woman. We must also bring
youth to a personal knowledge
of Jesus Christ.


The Master’s Message

If Christ had began with her
sin, her heart would have
been hardened, had he
began announcing Himself
as the Christ she would have
been skeptical, had He
approached her as
Nicodemus she would have
been puzzled.



Instead he uses that which
she knows well to lead her to
a deeper spiritual
understanding.“He takes
‘water’ for his text to this
water-carrier. In a picture
lesson unfolds the truth.
Ours are blind eyes if they do
not see texts in the
commonest things, where
from we may preach the
gospel of the kingdom.” 16



“Christ did not preach
sensational sermons, but
sermons which created a
sensation.”17 Christ’s objective
was the person, not the method
or the message. The message
was aimed at reaching the
person. Do we deliver
sensational messages to youth
or do we deliver messages to
reach youth. Are the words we
speak our focus, or the youths to
which we speak? Do we care for
lost youth as Christ cared for the
lost?


Creative Object Lessons
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Youth Ministry Object Lesson - Lessons for Evangelism of Youth: The Samaritan Woman

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