A Union At The Well

I was scrolling on social media when a certain scripture caught my attention.

John 4:23-24 | New King James Version

23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Naturally, I had to crack open my Bible and delve in further. In this chapter, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman with a very ritualistic perception of worship. In this verse however, He explains to her that we must worship the Father with true and sincere worship from our hearts. This conversation was an initiation of Jesus being revealed in her life. But the full picture is much deeper. 

John 4:5-6 | New King James Version

5 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Jesus met this woman at a place where Jacob’s well was- the well where Jacob met Rachel (Genesis 29). In scripture, a well is often used to symbolize a source of life. There is a pattern established in the Old Testament of marital unions beginning at a well. In Genesis 10, Isaac’s servant identifies Rebekah as Isaac’s wife at a well. In Exodus 2, Moses and Zipporah also unite at a well. The Lord established a covenant with this lineage of men who meet their brides-to-be at a place that symbolizes the source of life and life sustained. These unifications taking place at a well leads us to the most important encounter a person can have, which is one with Christ. 

This Samaritan woman in John 4 is carrying her sin in her heart, having been married 5 times and currently in sexual immorality with a man whom she is not married to. She goes to the well with her pot to fetch her water, unknowing that her life would change. There at the well, the well where Jacob met Rachel, was Jesus. In a simple yet loving conversation, He revealed himself to her and won her heart. 

The previous chapter (John 3) describes Christ as our bridegroom meaning that His people, us, are the bride. As a husband is to a wife, the Lord is our head, loving us unconditionally, giving Himself for us selflessly, and making us blameless (Ephesians 5:22-23). 

This woman’s symbolic encounter with Jesus, as a reflection of how Christ united man and woman in covenant, is a beautiful depiction of Christ’s love for His bride. The woman left her water pot as she ran back into town, leaving behind the drinking water to profess about the living water she had just experienced. She began to embody John 4:23-24, letting all who would hear her know what Jesus did in her life. Consequently, many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified (John 4:39). 

There are many love stories out in the world but the love story between Father and His people is by far my favorite. 

Song: Even So Come by Passion