Bible Study

Disclaimer: Sometime in 2015 I took an interest in finding out the ways in which Jesus interacted with women in the Bible; I have never heard it preached about before and -- being a feminist and a Christian -- I thought I would do some research into it.


10. Jesus and Mary Magdalene 

Scripture: John 20: 1 – 18 
Location: Jerusalem 

After Jesus had been crucified and buried, one of the women who waited on him and his disciples while he was alive - Mary Magdalene - went to his tomb. On seeing that the stone by the entrance had been rolled away, she ran to tell the other disciples that Jesus’ body had been removed from the tomb. 

She told them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we don’t know where they have put him!” – verse 2. 

Simon Peter and John (disciples of Jesus) went down to the tomb to find that Jesus’ body was indeed no longer there; only the strips of linen used to wrap his body were lying there. Seeing this, and perhaps feeling confused and unsure what to do, they left. But, Mary Magdalene did not leave the tomb. “Mary stood outside the tomb crying” – verse 11. 

Mary looked into the tomb and saw two angels, and when they asked her why she was crying, again she said, “They have taken my Lord away and I don’t know where they have put him" - verse 13.

I don’t know where they have put him - this was the second time she made this statement.

I figure that Mary Magdalene had a pressing need to cater to Jesus’ dead body; she needed to know where he was. It worried her that she could no longer see him. 

Suddenly seeing Jesus standing there, Mary Magdalene did not recognize him. Jesus asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” - verse 15. (Jesus obviously already knew who she was looking for, but asked anyway). 

Mary thought Jesus was the gardener. For the third time she demonstrated a need to find Jesus: “Sir, if you have carried [my Lord] away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” - verse 15. 

It was not until Jesus called her name in verse 16 that Mary knew it was him. This encounter reminds me of what Jesus said in John 10: 27, before he had died: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me.” 

All Jesus had to do was call Mary's name and she immediately knew it was her Lord. Jesus instructed her to go and tell the disciples that he was going back to God; “to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” – verse 17. 

This is the beauty of the cross; Christ’s death opened the gate so that His Father could become our father too. 

When Mary got back to the disciples, she told them, “I have seen the Lord!” – verse 18. That was all she had wanted all along, to see Jesus. 



9. Jesus and the Widow Whose Son He Raised from the Dead

Scripture: Luke 7: 11-17 
Location: Nain 

As Jesus approached a town called Nain, he saw a funeral procession leaving the town gate; the dead man was the only son of his mother and she was a widow. 

Verse 13 says, When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, ‘Don’t cry.’ 
Jesus touched the bier (the stand the coffin was being carried on) and said to the dead man “Young man, I sat to you, get you!” – verse 14. The dead man rose up and Jesus handed him back to his mother. 

It is characteristic of Jesus to intervene and to make a situation better, which is exactly what he did here, and what he does every day; Jesus is ever changing and touching lives. 

 
8. Jesus and the Canaanite Woman

Scripture: Matthew 15: 21 – 28 
Location: Tyre and Sidon 

This story is interesting because Jesus was rather “rude” to this Canaanite woman, who approached him, asking that he heal her daughter, who was demon-possessed. Jesus initially ignored the woman (verse 23) and then went on to insinuate that she was a “dog” (verse 26). The woman was not a Jew and when Jesus said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel… It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs” what he meant was that He (being Salvation in human form) was, first and foremost, for Israel. 

If this was the only story recorded about Jesus in the Bible, one might conclude that he was a prejudice and arrogant man. I am actually surprised this woman kept calling after him even though he ignored her. It is obvious that she wanted help for her daughter and that, deep in her heart, she knew that this Jesus, whom she called the Son of David (verse 22), could and would meet her needs. 

Her response to Jesus’ "unpleasant remark" was, “Lord… Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table” (verse 27). In other words, “Yes, I’m a dog but dogs don’t go hungry!” That is the attitude of someone who was willing to lay down her airs to get what she wanted. 

In the end, Jesus said the word and her daughter was healed (verse 28). In this scripture, I learnt more from the Canaanite woman than from Jesus; I learnt that sometimes you have to abandon your pride and egotism to get what you need. David writes, "A broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise" (Psalm 51:17). This woman might have lost the war, but she won the battle. 

I will have to ask the Lord when I see him one day why he was so mean to this woman! Lol!


7a. Jesus and his mother

Scripture: John 2: 1 -12
Location: Cana in Galilee 

Many Christian recognize this scripture as “Jesus’ first miracle”, yet Jesus had not been keen on performing this miracle. Jesus was at a wedding with his mother, Mary, and his disciples. The wine ran out and Mary told Jesus, “They have no more wine” (verse 2). Jesus' response was, "Ma, that has nothing to do with me" (verse 3 -paraphrased). Mary basically ignored him and told the waiters at the reception to do whatever Jesus told them to. They did as Jesus told them and the water they had turned into six stone jars miraculously turned into wine.

A few things strike me about this story:

1. How did Mary know that Jesus could perform miracles (as stated above, this was his first miracle)? Mary believed in Jesus' divine nature without prior evidence.
2. Following her cue, the waiters also believed in Jesus and obeyed his instructions (verses 6 - 8). In fact, they were expectant, because verse 7 says that when he asked them to fill the jars with water, they filled them to the brim. Where had their confidence in Jesus come from? It had come from the confidence they saw Mary exhibit
3. Why did Jesus obey his mother's request, despite initially wanting to be left alone? He obeyed her authority over him as his mother, even though he was God. Mind-blowing humility!
4. Verse 11, it was at this point that his disciples believed in him.


7b. Jesus and his mother

Scripture: John 19: 17-27
Location: Jerusalem 

As Jesus hung on the cross, bleeding. battered and bruised, he saw his mother and his 'favourite' disciple, John, standing by the foot of his cross. And what did Jesus say to them as he hung, dying? "Mother, behold your son. Son, behold your mother" (verse 26 - 27). Jesus handed the care of his mother over to John and from that time on, John took Mary into his home to care for her. At the point of death, Jesus was thinking about the welfare of his mother. That is extraordinary love!



6. Jesus comforts Mary and Martha

Scripture John 11: 1 – 45 
Location: Bethany

In this passage, we see two ways in which Jesus deals with the grieving. Mary and Martha – talked about in Bible Study 5 (below) – had a brother, Lazarus, who fell ill. The sisters sent word to Jesus, who was not in town at the time, letting him know that Lazarus, “the one he loved” was ill (verse 3).

Jesus loved the family (verse 5), yet when he got the news of Lazarus’ illness, he remained where he was two more days (verse 6). One of the reasons Jesus did not hurry to Bethany was because he wanted his disciples to believe more in him and in his power (verse 14 & 15). 

So, the sisters had sent word to Jesus but he never responded to their message and neither did he hurry down to Bethany. In the same vein, when Lazarus died, the sisters did not send word to Jesus, but Jesus knew that Lazarus had passed on (in verse 11 he says to his disciples, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up”); he knew Lazarus would die and he let it happen because he had a plan.

As Jesus approached Bethany, Martha went out to meet him (verse 20). I find this interesting because from Luke chapters 7 and 10, I thought Mary was the one who was closer to Jesus. But Mary, as we will see later, had been absorbed in her grief to initially notice Jesus. 

When Martha met Jesus, she said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (verse 21). Jesus, in response, offered her the greatest comfort: 

Your brother will rise again. I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?

verses 23, 25 & 26 

Martha’s response was lucid: 

 Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.
verse 27* 

Martha returned to the house and told Mary that Jesus was asking after her (verse 28, 29**). When she met Jesus, she dropped at his feet and said – just like her sister had – “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (verse 32). Seeing Mary and her friends distressed and sobbing made Jesus troubled and he wept (verse 33, 35). He knew that she blamed him for the death of her brother – because he had taken so long to get to them (verse 37) – and was moved by their sadness.

Mary’s expression of grief moved Jesus in a different way, compared to Martha’s grieving. Talking to Martha earlier, Jesus was able to hold a conversation with her. However, with Mary, he comforted her through allowing himself to be moved by her suffering. What this proves to me is that there is nothing wrong with being emotional, with expressing sadness or negative emotions; Jesus is empathetic – he gets it. 

In verses 39 – 44, Jesus speaks to the dead man and Lazarus walks out of the tomb. This miracle boosted the faith and confidence in Jesus of the people who had come to mourn with the family (verse 45), of the sisters, of Lazarus himself (I'm sure!) and of the disciples who had accompanied Jesus on the journey.

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* You’ll notice that even after this conversation, where Jesus tried to explain to Martha that he had the power, not just to heal the sick, but to raise the dead, Martha still did not believe he could raise her brother and thought Jesus was referring to the resurrection at the last day (verse 24). This is why, in verse 39, 40, she tried to stop Jesus from having the tomb opened. 

** Notice that when Mary stood up to go to Jesus, so did the people who were mourning with her (verse 31), thinking that she was going to the tomb to cry. However, when Mary had gone to meet Jesus earlier, nobody had followed her out of the house. Mary was more emotional than Martha – Martha was stronger, but Jesus found a way of comforting both types of women in their grieving.

5. Jesus, Mary and Martha

Scripture: Luke 10: 38-42 
Location: Bethany 

Mary and Martha were friends of Jesus and would occasionally have him over when he was in town. In verse 40, Mary was making preparations for Jesus and his disciples when they came to visit. If this was an African setting, I can image her cooking jollof and chicken, setting the table, making sure the drinks are cool, maybe serving appetizers before the main meal, maybe diced fruits or puff-puff. 

Now, Mary, on the other hand, in verse 39, was chilling… “sitting at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he was saying.”* I can’t imagine having guests over and my mum or sister is running around getting things ready and I’m relaxing, listen to stories (maybe Jesus was saying a parable or was talking about their journey over). I would worry that our guests would think I had no home training!

Expectedly, Martha was upset and told Jesus to ask Mary to help her with the preparations (vs 40). What I notice here is that Martha was letting her duty as a host become a worry to her; she was letting it get her anxious. Instead, Mary had chosen not to get carried away with hosting; maybe she wasn’t so keen on making a “good host” impression on her guests – she just sat there being herself, enjoying Jesus’ company.

Jesus’ response to Martha was (paraphrased) – verse 41 & 42 – “Martha, you are worried and upset about many things.** Mary has chosen me and I will not encourage her to become distracted. I will not be taken away from her.” This scripture reminds me that Jesus does not want to be a burden to us;*** he instead wants to be a friend and companion, which is the way Mary saw him.

While it is great to “work” for Jesus (like Martha was), working for him should not rob us of the joy of his company. HE is the most important thing, not our works.

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* Note to Nigerian women; don’t try this at home. Lol!
** Notice that Jesus wasn’t himself worried about what he would eat. In Luke 12: 22 & 23, he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.”
*** Jesus says in Matthew 11: 28 -30: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest…you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”


4. Jesus, the sick woman and the dead girl

Scripture: Mark 5: 22-43

Location: Capernaum

A synagogue ruler named Jairus approached Jesus, saying, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live” – verse 23. Jesus followed him, and a large crowd had gathered to see Jesus, so they followed him too, pressing around him.

In the crowd was a woman who had had a hemorrhage for 12 years (verses 25, 26). She thought to herself, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed” – verse 28. So she touched the edge of his cloak and, immediately, her bleeding stopped and she was freed from her suffering (verse 29).

Jesus immediately realized that power had gone out from him, and he asked the crowd, “Who touched my clothes?” – verse 30. Even his disciples were like, “Dude, you’re in the middle of a crowd and you’re asking who touch you…” But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.

Now, this is interesting because, obviously, Jesus already knew – he is Omniscient*, after all – who had touched his cloak, but he asked because he wanted to draw the woman out of the crowd and make her an individual, so that he could say to her face, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering” – verse 34.**

At this time, some men came from Jairus’ house and told him that his daughter had died and that he shouldn't bother Jesus anymore (verse 35). But Jesus ignored these ‘bearers of bad news’ (a.k.a. ‘enemies of progress’) and instead told Jairus, “Don’t be afraid, just believe”  - verse 36. Jesus spoke before Jairus had a chance to be terrified; he countered fear with faith: just believe.

When they finally got to Jairus’ house, Jesus took the dead girl by the hand and said to her, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!” – verse 41. Of course, she stood up and Jesus told her parents to give her something to eat.***

Lessons I learnt:
That Jesus pays attention to the people around him, like the sick woman; he does not get distracted by the crowd. Jesus pays attention to me.

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* He had to have known, because he knew when power left his body – he was aware someone in the crowd had intentionally touched him.

** Jesus was in his early 30s at this time and this woman had been sick for 12 years, so it is safe to say that she was much older than Jesus, yet he called her “Daughter” because he is ageless. He had once said to the Jews, “Before Abraham, I am”, (John 8:58, 59) which had really ticked them off.

***It is interesting to note that the girl was 12 years old (verse 42), which was the exact number of years the woman with hemorrhage had been suffering for.

3. Jesus and the woman who wiped his feet with her hair

Scripture: Luke, chapter 7, verses 36 - 50

Location: Probably in the town of Nain

This woman was Mary, the sister of Lazarus whom Jesus raised from the dead in John 11: 1 – 41 (we will visit this story later in this series).

The above Luke scripture describes the woman as having “lived a sinful life” – verse 37. My guess is that she was a sex worker or a thief or something of the likes.

So, she arrived at the house where Jesus was eating (a Pharisee had invited Jesus over for dinner) and Jesus was reclined at the table -- I have noticed that Jesus always enjoyed fine dining. The woman arrived with an alabaster jar of expensive perfume and, standing by Jesus’ feet, she began to wet his feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them (verse 38).

The Pharisee, Simon, who had invited Jesus over, seeing this, thought to himself, “If Jesus were a true prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner” – verse 39.

Jesus knew what Simon was thinking and told him a parable (verse 40-43); two people owed a moneylender money – one more than the other – and both had their debts cancelled. The one who had been forgiven the larger debt (500 denarii) obviously was very grateful and loved the moneylender more than the one forgiven the smaller debt (50 denarii).

Looking at Mary, Jesus said:

“Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.* You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much.  But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

– verses 44-47

Here, Jesus points to the relationship between love and forgiveness; we are forgiven and loved by God so that we can go on to love and forgive other people.

This is why, in the Lord’s Prayer, a line reads: “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

Mary was forgiven because she loved much, and the reason she loved much was because she had been forgiven much. This sinful woman had the biggest heart in the room, much larger than that of Simon, a self-righteous Pharisee.

Now, there is another version of this story in Mark 14: 1 – 11, where the writer focuses, not on Simon’s reaction to Mary’s actions, but on the reaction of other guests at the dinner:

“Some of those present said indignantly to one another, rebuking her, ‘Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor!’”  

– verses 4, 5

Jesus’ response to them was:

“Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me…She did what she could… Truly, I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she had done will be also told, in memory of her.”

– verses 6 to 9

And that is how a sinful woman, got a special place in the bible. Because she loved much.

The lesson I learned from this scripture:

1. Jesus saw Mary’s big heart more than he saw her sin

2. She who loves much has been forgiven much. I am expected to love and forgive other people like God has loved and forgiven me. Easier said than done, but that is the goal.

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* Let’s note here that Jesus’ feet were not pretty; Jesus didn’t own a donkey or a horse, so he walked everywhere in his sandals. Imagine the callous-ridden feet Mary was kissing…

2. Jesus and the woman the Pharisees wanted to have stoned to death

Scripture: John, chapter 8, verses 1 - 11 

Location: Galilee 

Jesus saved a woman -- who was caught in the act of adultery -- from being killed. I have always wondered why the Pharisees and religious leaders of the time didn't like Jesus and it makes sense; he 'broke rules'. According to the law God had given to Moses, adulterers should be put to death (Leviticus 20:10). Serious stuff. You’ll see, as we walk through this story, that Jesus actually broke that rule, in order to save a life. 

So, verse 2 says that Jesus showed up at the temple courts at dawn, and people gathered around him and he began to teach them things from Scripture. So he’s sitting there and he’s talking to these people so early in the morning when the Pharisees show up, intending to trick him (verse 6); they brought in a woman who had been caught in adultery and had her stand before the group. They asked Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” – verses 4,5. 

I can just imagine the coy smile on their faces as they asked this, sure they had finally got him muddled up in theology and ethics. Jesus bent down and began to write something on the ground with his finger. I have heard all sorts of interpretations and explanations about what happened here; some say Jesus was genuinely confused at the question asked and was buying time... and I have heard a preacher once say Jesus was wondering why they only brought the woman out to be stoned and not the man she had been engaging in adultery with. It is interesting that the writer of the book of John (Apostle John himself) did not record what Jesus had written down on the ground either; perhaps he himself did not know.

Then Jesus straightened up and said, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her” – verse 7. 

Those who had gathered around must have “caught shame” and the crowd began to disperse until only Jesus was left with the woman still standing there – verse 9. The following conversation between Jesus and the woman always astonishes me (verses 10, 11): 

Jesus: Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? 

Woman: No one, sir. 

Jesus: Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin. 

It is interesting to note that Jesus agreed she was a sinner (which is why he told her to leave her life of sin) but chose not to condemn her. He was saying, If these people, who are as sinful as you are, know not to condemn you, then I, the Righteous Judge, do not condemn you either. 

A lot of people have an imagine of God breathing fire and just looking for who he can cast to hell. But this image of Jesus paints one of a merciful savior. He actually saved her life that morning, which is probably why he showed up at the temple courts so early, at dawn; if Jesus had not shown up that morning, the woman would have died at the hand of the people. 

Another thing of interest is; hadn’t Jesus been teaching a few folks before the Pharisees came along? How come everyone dispersed after the ordeal, including the ones he had been teaching? It is interesting how the part of the crowd quickly went from participating in Jesus’ lecture to becoming spectators of what they might have thought would the next talk of town -- the stoning of an adulteress. 

The lessons I learnt in this story: 

1. Jesus takes no pleasure in condemning me 

2. Jesus wants me to live a life free of sin 

1. Jesus and the Samaritan woman who wouldn't give him a drink

Scripture: The Book of John, chapter 4, verses 1 - 42

Location: A town in Samaria called Sychar

The well Jacob had dug was located in Sychar and a (nameless) Samarian woman came to fetch water, when she found Jesus -- tired from a journey (he was going to Galilee from Judea)  -- sitting by the well. He asked her for a drink and they went off into this deep philosophical conversation about God.

A few things stand out to me in this story. First, Jesus was several classes above this woman because of his gender (a man) and his genealogy (a Jew). Back then, women and Samaritans were looked down upon. I watched an interview a few months ago where a Bible scholar explained that, in 'Bible times', women were so 'invisible' that their testimonies were actually not admissible in court. So, let's say a murder took place around that time and the only witness was a woman, her eyewitness testimony would not be admissible and the murderer might get away. Imagine that.

So Jesus, knowing his status as a Jewish man, watches this woman approach the well and asks her for a drink; "Will you give me a drink?" -- verse 7. By doing this he immediately put himself at the mercy of a woman who was several classes below him, thereby setting up an avenue for a conversation with her. Jesus considered the Samaritan woman worth his time; she mattered to him and therefore, tired as he was from his journey (verse 6), he was willing to spend time with her.

However, the woman had other plans. When he asked her for a drink of water, she became defensive and, in case he had forgotten, quickly reminded him: "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" -- verse 9. Jesus, knowing where the conversation was going, (as Nigerians would say) 'gave it back to 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." -- verse 10. He was indirectly telling her that he was, in fact, much more than a Jew and much more than a man; that he was divine.

Now, this annoyed the woman, and she retorted: "You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 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?" -- verses 11, 12. She was, in effect, sizing Jesus up; trying to pull him down, off his supposed high horse; how could he insinuate that he was greater than their father, Jacob?* 

I think this woman was actually prejudice; which is understandable, since Jews did not associate with Samaritans. Samaritans had probably become accustomed to being treated as the bottom brunt of society in Israel and this woman was sick and tired and was acting out of the experiences she had probably had with "Jews like Jesus". It's familiar, isn't it? When the abused becomes aggressive and takes on defiance as a defense mechanism.

So, the Samaritan woman tried to squeeze Jesus into the 'You Are A Jew' box, but Jesus refused to fit into it, trying to expose his true, divine identity (as the Son of God) because it was his divine nature that would save her at the end of the day, not his social status**. So Jesus stuck to his guns and, despite her 'aggression', said; "Everyone who drinks the water from this well will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." -- verses 13, 14.

What Jesus said seemed appealing -- imagine never having to fetch water ever again! Those of us who have been punished by NEPA, when they took light and the water in the tank finished, know the struggle of carrying bucket-loads of water under the heat, up and down the stairs. So, this woman was excited and was like, "Fam, give me some of that water!"

Then Jesus said something very random in verse 16;  he said, "Go, call your husband and come back." Wait... what does fetching water have to do with her husband? What exactly is the correlation? The woman quickly confessed: "I have no husband." -- verse 17. But Jesus already knew this -- which could well be the reason he started a conversation with her in the first place. He said, "You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband." -- verses 17, 18.

Feeling exposed and vulnerable, the woman quickly changed the topic. Can you blame her? Imagine someone you just met telling you about the number of men you have married, how many baby daddies you have. Abeg o. So instead of going to call the supposed husband (who she was not legally married to) she tried to change the subject and play on Jesus' intelligence; she said, "I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews*** claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem." -- verses 19, 20.

Jesus (in verses 21 - 24) explains the transformation God was bringing, where people would no longer need to go to a specific temple to seek and worship him, but could do so in spirit and in truth -- which is the transformation Jesus brought by dying on the cross. This theological talk flew over the woman's head (after all, she had asked for it when she tried to change the topic), and she said, "I know that Messiah (Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us." -- verse 25. Jesus had obviously gotten too deep for her; she still had not grasped who she was talking. Maybe it was a thing of pride, as opposed to genuine uncertainty, and, like she had earlier challenged him about thinking he was greater than Jacob, maybe she was thinking, You're not Jacob, or the Messiah,  you're probably just some prophet from out of town. 

Finally, Jesus said, (the New International Version says Then Jesus declared) "I who speak to you am he." -- verse 26. "I am that Messiah that you think is so far away, who you say is coming. I'm right here." 

Oh. Lord.

And then along came his disciples (they had gone into town to buy food) and they were surprised to see him talking to a Samaritan woman. But no one said anything; because his disciples probably sensed, after having moved about with him for a while, that he operated  differently from other Jews, from other men. So if he wanted to chill by a well under the hot sun with a Samaritan woman, please, let him. And everything with Jesus was a parable. You ask him about one thing, he tells you a story. So maybe the sun was too hot that day and the disciples were too hungry and nobody wanted to hear a story.

After Jesus revealed that he was the Messiah, the Samaritan woman leaves him, his disciples and her water jar by the well (someone who had come to fetch water) and went into town, telling anyone who cared to listen, "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did (including having five husbands, which I really should be ashamed of, but right now I really don't care!****). Could this be the Christ?" -- verse 29.

So, that's the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman. Lessons I learnt include:

1. She never did give him a drink in the end -- which tells me that Jesus wasn't really that thirsty in the first place; it was her that he was after. Her attention and her heart. Gahh. I've got something in my eyes.

2. He gave her his time, played the name-dropping, hide-and-seek game with her and won her over

3. Jesus cared and cares about women.

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*Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (grandfather, son and grandson) were the Patriarchs of Israel

**There's a quick jab for those of us -- me included -- who think our social statuses can save us or anybody.

***Notice that reference, again with the prejudice and the attempt to take the spotlight off herself -- "you Jews"

****What she said in my head.