The Ultimate Example - John 4:1-26
Jesus was the ultimate example of sharing who he was. In John 4, he gives us an example of how to share the message with someone when talking to them. We have provided a brief Bible study on sharing your faith.
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Presence (v. 6)
(4) [Jesus] had to go through Samaria. (5) So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. (6) Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.
Observation: You have to be where they are. Most of the time, we expect non-Christians to come to us, but they usually don't. Jesus was constantly criticized for being around "unholy" people. He wanted to heal the sick, not the healthy.
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Common Ground (v. 7)
(7) When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?"
Observation: It’s important to talk about what they are interested in. Remember, people are interested in what they think - ask questions. What is the person you are talking to interested in?
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Transition (v. 10)
(8) The Samaritan woman said to him, "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans) (10)Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water."
Observation: Transition from the common to the spiritual. Jesus turns the conversation about water into a conversation about eternity.
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Explanation (v. 13)
(11) "Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? (12) Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?" (13) Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, (14) but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."
Observation: Explain what you are talking about and how it affects your life and how it could effect their life. Being a witness is as simple as telling what you know.
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Supernatural Sensitivity (v. 16)
(15) The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water." (16) He told her, "Go, call your husband and come back." (17) "I have no husband," she replied. Jesus said to her, "You are right when you say you have no husband. (18) The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true." (19) "Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you a prophet.
Observation: Be open to God. If you are, he may guide the conversation. God may show you things you didn't know. It could be proof that God has sent you.
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Focus (v. 21)
(20) Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem." (21) Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. (22) You Samaritans will worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. (23) Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshiper the Father seeks. (24) God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
Observation: Stay focused. People often want to change the subject because they are uncomfortable or curious about some side issue. Jesus keeps the conversation focused on what's important.
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Resolution (revealing Christ) (v. 26)
(25) The woman said, "I know that Messiah" (called Christ) "is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us." (26) Then Jesus declared, "I who speak to you am he."
Observation: Resolve the conversation. Bring it all together. The point is that we reveal who Christ really is, not who people have made him out to be.
Remember, it isn't our job to save people, just to share the truth as effectively as possible. Paul says that one plants, another harvests. Whether you just plant seeds, or pray with someone to accept Christ, we are just being obedient to God to be witnesses.