Unit 3: The Call of Women
Called to Evangelize | Bible Background • JOHN 1:37-51, 4:25-42 Printed Text • JOHN 4:25-42 | Devotional Reading • JOHN 1:37-51
AIM FOR CHANGE
By the end of this lesson, we will IDENTIFY the barriers Jesus crossed in speaking with the Samaritan woman, SENSE the wonder the Samaritan woman felt in her meeting with Jesus, and SHARE with others the transforming power of God at work in their lives.
IN FOCUS
Thirty-year-old Retha, pregnant and unmarried, sat in her kitchen, staring blankly into her cup of coffee. Ever since her abdomen had started rounding obviously, her neighbors and friends avoided her. So, she was quite surprised when she heard a knock on her door. Retha found herself face-to-face with two elderly women she had never seen before. “Hi, I’m Artice, and this is Peggy. We’re from the senior adult Sunday School class of True Rock Church. We’ve come to bring you some things for your baby,” said Artice. “Our pastor asked us to scout out the neighborhood to see who we can help. When we saw you walking and looking sad the other day, we decided that you might be one we would help. So, here we are,” said Peggy.
Retha could hardly believe her eyes and ears. After sharing a cup of coffee and conversation with the ladies, Peggy spoke up first. “We have some good news for you. We came to tell you that Jesus loves you and we would like for you to go to church with us.” But how could Jesus love me? Retha wondered. Wasn’t He going to look down on her just like her family did? Still, they had been nice to her and even offered to come by to take her to church on Sunday. Retha’s decision to go to church that week would change her life. Eventually, she would know for herself that Jesus is alive and she too would want to share the Good News of Him with others.
No one is too much of an outcast of society that Jesus cannot reach them and make their lives new. How has your witness helped someone to feel that they were welcomed?