John 4:34-45

“Lift Up Your Eyes…..and See the Harvest”

34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! 36 And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.” 39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of His own word. 42 Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.” 43 Now after the two days He departed from there and went to Galilee. 44 For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. 45 So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they also had gone to the feast.

“Lift Up Your Eyes…..and See the Harvest”

So…..where did Jesus get food? The disciples were so confused! They had just come back from getting food, and Jesus said in John 4:32, that He had food that they didn’t know about. Hmmmm…..

Did Jesus get physically hungry? Yes, He did! Jesus was a human being, and had to have food in order to stay physically healthy to do the will of God. Jesus was talking about spiritual fulfillment or food. This statement in verse 34 is along the same lines as the statement He made to Satan when he tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread to satisfy His physical hunger after He had been fasting for 40 days and nights. In Matthew 4:4, Jesus says, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Jesus says, it is God’s Word that sustains me, and gives me life. When the disciples returned from buying food, Jesus had just finished teaching the Samaritan woman about the “living water” that He could provide. That is when He said, “I have food that you don’t know about.” Jesus’ spiritual “food” was teaching the woman, and then having her go and share the good news with others. That type of “food” was far more important to Him than any physical food that could be provided to Him. The lesson for His disciples was transforming as it is for us today! This Samaritan woman’s soul was way more valuable than the food that the disciples had brought back for Him. Jesus was probably really physically hungry, but He took the time to teach the disciples what was truly important before taking a bite of the food that they had brought Him. Jesus teaches all of us a lesson here. Our life is meaningless without God’s higher purpose in it. Serving God and saving souls should be the highest priority in our lives above everything else. What about me? What sustains me? I love my life. I love my family…..my husband, children, and grandsons. I love my parents and my extended family. I love my friends. I love being a teacher. I love my home. I love music, the beach, and sports. I love pasta, Japanese food, Mexican food and good ole country home cooking. But these people, things, places, and foods should not be what truly sustains me. In fact, I can’t be truly sustained by anything except for God. I have all of this in my life because of God. Like Jeremiah says in Lamentations 3:24, “The Lord is my portion….therefore I hope in Him”. None of the things that I listed above can give me eternal life. The hope and promise of eternal life is the “food” that should sustain us. Job lost everything, but he still had sustenance because He kept His faith in God. His life wasn’t void even though He had lost so much. Life is void and empty without Jesus. The richest, most famous person on earth is empty and void without Jesus. According to verse 35, it must have been around four months until the physical harvest, but Jesus told His disciples not to wait four months because the harvest was happening right then and there…..a spiritual harvest of souls who needed a Savior. Jesus says in verses 35 and 36 paraphrasing,” Look up at the people coming to see me. They are ready to hear. This is the harvest. This is the food that comes from sowing and reaping…..saved souls are the food.” The people were coming to see Jesus after the Samaritan woman told them about Him. Jesus and the woman were the sowers. Jesus sowed the seed to the woman, and then the woman sowed the seed to everyone she met in the city. The people who were then coming to see Jesus were the harvest…..the possible fruit that might grow from that sown seed. Now, the disciples would be the reapers and the gatherers of the fruit. They would gather all the people (fruit), and bring them to Jesus so He could continue to teach them more about the kingdom of God. But Jesus says, no worries…..the sowers and the reapers are equal in the kingdom. Both have a job to do and both will rejoice and be rewarded. Ok….time to examine myself! Am I seeing the harvest? Am I sowing the seed? Is it urgent to me? Jesus wanted His disciples to know that saving souls was more urgent than anything else in the world…..even eating. He wants us to know this too.

In verse 38, Jesus tells His disciples that He is ready for them to reap…..to gather the fruit…..to bring the people to whom the woman had told the good news of the Messiah to Jesus so that He can continue to teach them. The disciples did not labor (sow the seed). Jesus and the woman did the laboring (sowing of the seed). But the disciples will now enter into the work of the Lord. This is their time to start their ministry for Jesus. As Jesus said in verses 36 and 37, the workers who sow and the workers who reap are equal. Both bear fruit, and will rejoice because of that fruit. Everyone who plays a part in a person’s salvation is equal and rejoices because of it. But who gets the increase and the glory? God gets the increase and the glory when a person becomes a Christian. God gets a new daughter or son, and we get a new sister or brother. 

Let’s use a hypothetical situation with made-up names. Beverly invites her friend Sally to come to church with her. So Sally comes one Sunday morning. Beverly introduces Sally to Susan. Susan invites Sally and Beverly to lunch after services which leads to a Bible discussion as they are eating. Sally decides to come back the following Sunday, and is introduced to more people, and is taken out to lunch again with a group of ladies. A couple of services and more introductions later, one of the ladies from the “lunch group” invites Sally to have a Bible study with her using “Back to the Bible” materials. She invites Beverly also since Sally had been coming with Beverly, and they are friends. She thought that might make Sally more comfortable. The three get together, have dinner, and study the Bible together using “Back to the Bible”. They study a couple more times after that initial study. All of this leads to Sally’s desire to be baptized into Christ. Brother John, one of the elders, talks to Sally, and then baptizes her into Christ. Who was responsible for her soul being saved? Who sowed? Who reaped? Does it really matter? Jesus says it doesn’t matter who does what in regards to helping a person understand the gospel and be saved. Everyone who welcomed Sally, invited Sally, went to lunch with Sally, spoke to Sally, invited her to keep coming, studied with Sally, or even smiled at Sally had a part in her soul being saved. We all rejoice, and God gets the glory. 

Verse 39 specifically credits the woman’s testimony as the reason a lot of people believed. When I think about that, it makes me examine myself. This Samaritan woman had just learned that she had met the Messiah. She is not one of God’s chosen people. She is not a scholar of the law of Moses. Yet, she brought people to Jesus. All she knew was that Jesus had told her all about her life, and said that He was the Messiah. Her testimony jump-started Jesus’ ministry to the Samaritans. What about us? We can all invite. We all have a conversion story that we can tell to others. What does this tell us about our personal ministry? We should all have our own ministry in some way within our role. We tend to think we don’t know enough to tell others, or we don’t know how to approach others. But yet…..this woman…..who probably was known for her past and present situation, brought the good news of Jesus to people who were hungry for spiritual food. Verse 40 says that the Samaritans begged Jesus to stay with them, and He stayed with them for two days. Jesus, the Savior of the world, was accepted and adored by Samaritans, who were looked down on by His own lineage. Jesus stayed two entire days with people who the Jews saw as unclean. Verse 41 says “many more believed” in those two days……and it all started with one Samaritan woman who believed and then shared her belief. One person can make a difference. Each of us can make a difference. 

And then comes something very special! Respect is given to the woman who shared the good news of the Messiah with everyone she met. “Thank you so much for sharing this good news with us, because now we believe not only because you told us, but because we got to hear Him for ourselves!” Verse 42 is a thank you verse from the people of Samaria to the woman. I love it! What do you think this did for this “beaten-down-by-life” woman who was basically an outcast? To have people say thank you to her? Wow, did Jesus ever know exactly who to choose for a task! The woman was the perfect choice, as is every choice that Jesus made. The Samaritans also confessed Christ in this same verse. This is a big moment for these people that is not to be glossed over! They said, “We…..KNOW that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.” They had no doubts about who Jesus was or what His purpose was. And Jesus knew their hearts. This is why He chose to stay with them for two days. Remember in John 2:23-25 when Jesus “didn’t entrust Himself “ to those in Jerusalem because He knew their hearts were not right? They were only interested in the miracles that He was performing. It was a shallow belief. What can I get from Jesus? It was not this way with the Samaritans. They acknowledged Jesus’ deity, and they also realized that He was not just the Savior for the Jews, but for them as well. Back in John 4:3, we read that Jesus was leaving Judea and heading to Galilee. But…..He had an important stop to make at Jacob’s well to meet the Samaritan woman, and bring the gospel to the city of Samaria. Now verse 43 tells us that He is continuing on to Galilee. In verse 44, we see a curious statement by Jesus…..a testimony. Jesus, who is the Prophet, will find no honor in His own country among His own people. How sad! John told us in John 1:11 that He was rejected by His own people. But wait….verse 45 says that they received Him, or welcomed Him. So if they welcomed Him, why is He saying He gets no honor there? Well…..it is the same situation as it was in John 2:23-25. What is their reason for welcoming him? Again, it is the miracles and signs that they are interested in. It is the shallow attitude of “wow, cool, did you see what this Jesus guy did? I wonder what He can do for me. What can I get out of this guy?” You see…..the people being spoken of in these verses were at the feast in John 2:23-25, and saw Jesus’ miracles. These were some of the same people that Jesus said he didn’t trust. Why didn’t He trust them? They had the wrong motives for following Him! It was a surface level belief, not a transformative belief. The Samaritans experienced Jesus and He changed their lives! The people in Galilee…..Jesus’ own countryman…..could not get past their own selfish hearts to truly see the Son of God, the Savior of the world. The Samaritans saw Jesus as a treasure. The Galileans only saw treasure that they could possibly get from Jesus. Studying these verses in depth has truly made me examine myself, and my motives. I need a Savior, because I am a sinner. I need mercy and salvation. I didn’t give my life to Jesus for some kind of worldly gain, or to have some kind of status on this earth or in my community. I am eternally lost without Him. He is my Savior, and I owe Him my life. He IS my treasure. I don’t need an overabundance of earthly treasure, because Jesus has already given me everything that I need. Am I giving Him my all? Am I treating Him like the treasure that He is? 

I love God’s Word. It challenges me to be better…..to do more in His service. It is interesting and keeps me on the edge of my seat wondering what is going to happen next. It gives me confidence and builds me up, and it brings me to my knees when my soul needs convicting! Thank you Father for the wonderful gift of Your Word!

God means for everyone to learn what the Bible teaches about how to be saved. It only takes an open heart for Jesus, and a willingness to put away what we’ve been taught in the past, and truly read what God’s Word says for ourselves…..and then accept what it says and obey it. If I can help you in any way, I would love to! 

Are you walking in the light? Are you in Christ? If you aren’t, I’d love to help you. Are you a member of the Lord’s church, but are struggling spiritually in your walk with Christ? If you are…..believe me, I’ve been there many times, and I’d love to help you. If you have any questions, please reach out. 

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for humankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. This plan is straight from the Bible. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins.  (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)