Are You Concerned About The Right Matter?

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” — John 4:21-24

This short dialogue between Jesus and this woman is fascinating. First, the discussion begins with a basic human need — water. Second, the conversation turns to a discussion about a different kind of water — eternal life. Third, it takes a personal turn by addressing the woman's personal and perpetual sin — she's an adulterer and fornicator. And then, fourth, they are now talking about matters of religious debate — locations and types of worship. And it's this part of the discussion that I find very interesting.

They end up arguing about who's attending the right church. But Jesus is not going to argue with her about this because this matter doesn't matter. The issue for Jesus is not the location of worship but the nature of worship — spirit, and truth. And the nature of worship can only be understood by looking beyond temporal matters of debate to what God has been revealing throughout history. Therefore Jesus is not going to argue with her about her national pride, her woke religious beliefs, what her early church fathers have declared, nor her race and gender. He does not get hung up on these things. Now, I don't think he ignores them. He sees and hears them, but he will not let any of these matters keep him from presenting the thing that really matters. He knows she wants to know and worship God. And what is so laughable about this moment is that worship is about to happen on this mountain, in this historical location. The God of all worship is standing right in front of her, and all she has to do if she wants to worship God is get down on her knees.

So here's the application. As believers, we need to do a better job of presenting the truth to those who do not know Jesus. This requires us to see past peripheral matters to get to the issue that really matters. Therefore this might mean we are going to have to look beyond the prejudices we have about others. Their race, gender, political beliefs, religious beliefs, hurts, hang-ups, perpetual sin, and misunderstandings about God to discover their real needs, issues, and questions regarding spiritual matters. The only way we can do this is by setting our prejudices and norms aside and seeing people spiritually.

I believe that is why Jesus doesn't argue with her about these things. They are not his primary concern. And he is willing to risk breaking a few cultural prejudices to get to her heart so she will see everything from a different perspective.

So today, when you interact with people that don't know Jesus, don't get hung up on all the wrong things about them. That's how they are supposed to act. We are the ones who are supposed to act differently. See past the peripheral issues in their life and look at them spiritually. See them as spiritual people on a quest to know God. And when the time is right, challenge yourself to break from your matters so they might know the one who really matters — Jesus.

ASK THIS: Who is that person you need to see differently?

DO THIS: Begin by seeing them as a spiritual person, and ask God to give you an opportunity for a meaningful spiritual conversation.

PRAY THIS: God, help me to see past the issues I have to the issues they have. Rescue them, Lord. And use my words and willingness to direct them to you.

PLAY THIS: Came To My Rescue.