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." 27. Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, "What do you want?" or "Why are you talking with her?" 28. Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29. "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?" 30. They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
Last week I looked at some elements of witnessing, but when you meet Christ one of the most effective means of witnessing is sharing your story. The woman at the well told others what happened to her. A testimony is one’s own story of a God or Christ encounter. It is significant because it is your story. People can either investigate for themselves or ignore or deny it. That didn’t make any difference to the woman.
What makes up a testimony? Typically, your God-story tells what life was like before Christ. It also includes your encounter with Christ. Then it reveals your response to Christ and finally, what has happened in your life after Christ.
I would be stretching it to make this woman’s own story fit that common formula, but those elements are there for us to see. We are told of her past. We learn the details of her encounter with Jesus. She was becoming convinced because of His knowing all about her that He must be the prophet promised by God. Then we saw, she becomes a believer in John 4:39-40. Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did."
God used this rejected, sinful woman to share her story and it resulted in many others getting saved. The woman at the well was the first evangelist to tell the good news of Jesus Christ in Samaria. Once she got the living water from the Lord, she forgot all about the water of this world. She left her jar behind and ran back to town to tell her story.
Vs 41 & 42 ” So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers. They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world."
They went to see for themselves and believed in Him for themselves, but some believed based on the woman’s testimony. Your testimony is a powerful tool to share with other people. It may not be dramatic. You may not have had a life before full of dramatic sin, but facing the past, meeting the Lord and responding to Him resulting in a changed life and future helps others accept, reject, or investigate for themselves.
What is your story? A skeptic may deny your doctrine or attack your church, but he cannot honestly ignore the fact that your life has been changed. He may never listen to a sermon or read a Bible, but there is attraction to stories that are true with people who are also in need of “living water”.
Application: If you haven’t done it before, why not write out your salvation story. Include your life before you came to faith in Christ. Write how you were introduced to Jesus as Savior. What happened that moved you to respond to believe and accept Him? What is your walk with Christ like since then? It is your unique experience that God can use in someone’s life.
Prayer: Oh Lord, you give each of us a story, a personal testimony. May I use my testimony to bring your Word to others and in the Holy Spirit's power bring others to You. Teach me Lord how and where to do this.
Dale
