In Part 1 we looked at the seven buckets that never satisfy. In Part 2 we looked at the well that never runs dry. Now we come to the question that matters most. What actually changes in a life when you stop chasing buckets and start drinking from the right well?
The Samaritan woman gives us the answer. In one afternoon, at one well, with one conversation, seven things about her life changed. And what changed in her can change in us.
John 4:14 “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Notice what happens next in the chapter.
1. Your Society Will Change
She came to the well alone because she had been avoiding the other women of her city. That is why she showed up at noon in the heat of the day instead of morning or evening when the other women came. Her sin had put her in a circle she needed to escape, and she had been dodging people for a long time.
Then she met Jesus. And the moment she drank from the right well, she left the circle that had been feeding her sin.
John 4:28 “The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men. John 4:29 “Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?”
John 4:30 “Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.”
She did not go back to her other buckets. She did not go find her ex-husbands or to find the man she had been living with. She went to the city and pointed people to Christ. The old circle was done and a new circle was starting.
1 Corinthians 15:33 “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.”
When you change wells, your society changes. The people you used to run with will not fit anymore. The places you used to go will not feel right anymore.
2. Your Shame Will Leave
She had five failed marriages and was currently with a man she was not married to. That kind of past does not just walk around a small town without shame following it.
Then she met Jesus and her soul was changed from the inside out.
John 4:29 “Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?”
She said it out loud and in public. She did not hide what happened to her. She did not soften it or try to spin it. She said He told me all things that ever I did.
When you drink from the source of forgiveness, you stop carrying the weight of what needs forgiving. The very thing that used to send you into hiding becomes the testimony that pulls others out.
Psalm 32:5 “I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.”
Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the Spirit, but after the Spirit.”
Shame is a bucket problem. When you change wells, shame leaves.
3. Your Speech Will Change
Before Jesus, she was defensive. She questioned and dodged His words about her husbands. She tried to change the subject to a theological argument about which mountain was the right one to worship on. Her mouth was in defense mode.
After Jesus, her mouth changed direction entirely. She stopped defending and started declaring!
John 4:28 “The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men.”
John 4:29 “Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?”
She used to defend her life. Now she was declaring her Saviour.
Luke 6:45 “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.”
What comes out of our mouths tells the truth about which well we have been drinking from. When the well changes, the speech changes.
4. Your Stance Will Change
She used to avoid people. She timed her trips to the well to skip the crowd. She kept her head down.
After Jesus, she did the opposite.
Now she was standing in the middle of the city, calling men out to meet Jesus. She went from avoiding to approaching. Her stance completely flipped.
Proverbs 28:1 “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.”
When you change wells, your stance changes. You stop hiding and start standing.
5. Your Service Will Change
She had no training, position, title, or pulpit. She had been a Christian for a matter of minutes when she took off running into the city.
John 4:39 “And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.”
She served without waiting to be qualified. She just told people what Jesus had done for her, and God used it to bring many to faith.
That should encourage every one of us. You do not have to have a seminary degree to point someone to Christ. You do not have to be a deacon or a pastor to tell a coworker what Jesus has done in your life. You just have to have been to the well.
Mark 5:19 “Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.”
When you change wells, your service changes. You stop waiting for permission and start pointing people to Christ.
6. Your Soul Winning Will Change
Notice what happened as a result of her testimony. Souls got saved!
John 4:41 “And many more believed because of his own word.”
John 4:42 “And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.”
Her witness got them to Jesus and His words sealed the deal. We do not save anyone. God saves. But God uses the testimony of ordinary Christians to bring people to the place where they can hear Him for themselves.
Proverbs 11:30 “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.”
Psalm 126:6 “He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.”
When you change wells, soul winning becomes something you do because you cannot help it. You have found the water and you cannot keep quiet about it.
7. Your Stability Will Change
She used to be driven by physical thirst. Every day the same trip, with the same bucket. Every day the same emptiness. She was running on empty and did not know any other way to live.
Then Jesus offered her the well that would live inside her.
John 4:14 “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Jesus did not offer a bucket she had to lower into a hole. He offered a well that lived in her.
Isaiah 26:3 “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
Philippians 4:7 “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
When you change wells, your stability changes. The panic settles, you stop chasing and your soul finally rests.
Every one of these seven changes came from one thing. She stopped focusing on the bucket and started drinking from the well. That is the whole message of John 4.
Go to Jesus. Drink deeply, come back tomorrow and drink again. The well never runs dry and neither will you.
John 7:37 “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.”
The invitation is still open. Come and drink.
