Year A - Third Sunday in Lent, March 12, 2023
The Presence of “I AM”
Immanuel, God with us, help us to always see your Incarnate presence among us. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
This morning, we have the fabulous opportunity to encounter the story of the Samaritan woman at the well from the Gospel of John. Yes, that’s right! Right in the middle of Year A, the year of Matthew, Matthew is interrupted by three months of the Gospel of John (with a couple of exceptions).
John’s Gospel is quite different from the Synoptic Gospels – that is, Matthew, Mark, and Luke – by including entire stories that the others do not include, as well as taking the risk of spending these long dialogues on theological conversations, and they deserve a second look.
Two of the stories included in the Gospel of John that are missing from the synoptics are last week’s story of Nicodemus in chapter 3, and this week’s story of the Samaritan woman at the well in chapter 4. And in looking at these two stories, I really think they are meant to be read as a side-by-side comparison, as they have so many contrasting elements.
If Nicodemus coming to Jesus at nighttime is a foreshadow of Nicodemus’ unbelief, then it is noteworthy to see that it was about noon when Jesus meets the unnamed Samaritan woman. This daytime encounter causes anticipates the Samaritan woman’s belief.
Jesus is amid his 3-day journey from Jerusalem to Galilee, so he is likely tired, thirsty and somewhat vulnerable at this time of the day. The Samaritan woman has something he needs – a bucket for water.
And, by the way, it was not a geographical necessity for Jesus to go through Samaria, as he could have gone around it, but rather a theological one. Jesus had just said in his conversation with Nicodemus, “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son.” Jesus had to demonstrate going out into the world, beyond Judea, where the fields are ripe for harvesting.
In the story of Nicodemus, Nicodemus missed the most important thing – he missed God’s presence in Jesus. Nicodemus described Jesus as a teacher, but completely missed the reality of Jesus as the very presence of God. While the Samaritan woman at the well also has some questions, she continues to engage with Jesus, has faith, and becomes an evangelist to her people. Let’s take a closer look.
Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, a site which was known as a place of betrothal, marriage and relationship. Specifically, it was the place of betrothal for Jacob and Rachel (Genesis 29), for Moses and Zipporah (Exodus 2) and for Isaac and Rebekah (Genesis 24).
This may help explain the disciples’ surprise to find Jesus speaking with a woman when they returned. While the Samaritan woman needs the Gospel, Jesus has human needs – perhaps for water, rest, possibly even human connection.
In her dialogue with Jesus, the Samaritan woman wishes for an answer to a centuries-long dispute between the Jewish people and the Samaritan people: Should followers of God worship in Jerusalem or on Mount Gerizim in Samaria? You see, the Samaritan people were members of the Israelite clan that wandered through the desert for 40 years. They were from the very line of Joseph, the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.
In Deuteronomy, the Israelites arrived at Mt. Gerizim as they entered the promised land and brought the Ark of the Covenant to this site. Thus, the Samaritan people stayed at Mt. Gerizim, revered it as a holy place, and on that site, built temple for worshipping God. Thus, when the Samaritan woman believed that Jesus was a trustworthy source, she asked him where God should be worshipped.
Jesus’ reply was that the true place of worship was in neither of these places, but rather by abiding with God through Jesus.
The Samaritan woman then called her people to “come and see,” using the words that Jesus had used in speaking with his first followers. The Samaritans then asked Jesus to “stay” with them – using the same Greek word that Jesus used when he said “abide in me.” In other words, because of the Incarnation, the Samaritan woman became the presence of the “I AM” to the Samaritans, by calling them into relationship with God through Jesus! In John’s Gospel, she is the first evangelist after John himself.
Similarly, you and I are called to be like the Samaritan woman. We are called into relationship with God, and to be recipients of God’s love. Where do you need God’s love today?
Next, we are called to go out, just as the Samaritan woman did, and demonstrate the Way of Love to those around us. We are called to go to those who feel lonely, ignored, ostracized or marginalized, and bring them into the center, and bring the presence of God to others.
How can we be the “I AM” to the world around us? By recognizing God’s presence in those we encounter, we are both shaped by the Way of Love and we become the Way of Love to those around us.
Karoline Lewis says of the woman at the well, “Her encounter with the Word made flesh brings her into the theological reality that undergirds the entire Gospel. She is not only an example of what it means to be a witness. She embodies fully the transition from darkness to light, from outsider to insider. She is reborn.”
Let us strive, as Christ’s church, to recognize the presence of Jesus in those around us. As we come to the Table, you are invited to come to the Table, share in God’s real presence, and then go out into all the world to be the I AM to those around you.
God is with us, Immanuel. Amen.
Mtr. Lisa Aguilar+