“The woman said, ‘I know that Messiah’ (called Christ) ‘is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.’ Then Jesus declared, ‘I, the one speaking to you—I am he.’” (John 4:25-26)
Messiah - the promised deliverer of the Jewish nation prophesied in the Hebrew Bible.
Christ - the title, also treated as a name, given to Jesus of Nazareth.
The people of Israel were seeking, and still seek to this very day, their Messiah. They believed in Jesus time that Messiah would come in splendor as a mighty warrior king to defeat the Romans. When the Son of God came as a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes they were unreceptive. He grew up among them and they were unable to see who He truly was. It required the spiritual eyes that only faith provides. Jesus did many things in His ministry that displeased the religious leaders of His day; but knowing what needed to take place, He went about His business undeterred. There was a long history of distain and hatred between the Samaritans and the Israelites, so when Jesus not only traveled through Samaria instead of around it as a Jew would normally do, it caused a stir. Then He actually spoke to a Samaritan woman at the well of Joseph, Jacob’s son, as He requested a drink of water. The Samaritan woman, who had been living in sin, knew of the coming Messiah. She knew that He would explain all things and bring freedom with Him. The freedom He provided and still provides is one of a spiritual nature and not of a physical nature. A man or woman can be physically free yet still be in bondage to sin. The freedom Jesus brought with Him was of an eternal nature; freedom from sin, now and forevermore.
Today, men still seek Him. It seems as though the holidays bring out a spiritual element in all of us. But shouldn’t we be embracing the Christ each day and not just when it is a national holiday. We should because it is a very personal thing. Religion is a system of beliefs; very ambiguous and vague; it can represent any belief system. What I speak of and what I believe God is seeking from us is a deeply personal relationship with Him. It comes from surrendering to His will and reading His word. How else can we ever get to know Him better? If we want to learn about one of our national patriarchs, such as Ben Franklin or George Washington, what would we do? We would read a biography about him, would we not? Of course we would. Reading the Bible reveals to us God’s character. It tells us of His promises to us. It teaches us how to live peaceably among our fellow man. God wants to use us all for His glory and for His kingdom. Do you know the Messiah today? Do you really know Him?
WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!
NOTE: “The nation of Israel was divided into two nations in the days of Rehoboam (1 Kings 12). Israel was composed of the ten tribes to the north, and Judah was made up of Judah and Benjamin. The animosity between the Jews (inhabitants of the Judah, the southern kingdom) and Israelites began immediately after the division, as Samaria was the capital city of the northern kingdom (with Jeroboam as her first king). Rehoboam assembled an army to make war against Israel to reunite the kingdom, but God intervened through His prophet Shemiah (1 Kings 12:21-24). Later, in speaking of the reign of Abijam, Jeroboam's son, 1 Kings 15:6 says ‘there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.’ Immediately after the division, Jeroboam changed the worship of the Israelites in 1 Kings 12:25-33. No longer did the inhabitants of the north travel to Jerusalem to offer sacrifice and worship (Deuteronomy 12:5-14). Instead, Jeroboam set up idols in Dan and Bethel. Later, after Israel's fall to the Assyrians, they began to intermarry with the Assyrians, contrary to Deuteronomy 7:3-5. This is why the Jews hated the Samaritans as ‘dogs’, or ‘half-breeds’. [http://www.housetohouse.com/]
