Revival in the wrong place

Who is Jesus? part 49 – John 4:39-45

Ever been in a hurry and chosen the quickest route instead of the safest, only to discover it was safe after all? If yes, read on…

³⁹ Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” ⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. ⁴¹ And many more believed because of his word. ⁴² They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Saviour of the world.”

⁴³ After the two days he departed for Galilee. ⁴⁴ (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honour in his own home town.) ⁴⁵ So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.

John 4:39-45 ESVUK

---

There is a structure to chapters 2 to 4. They are one big chiasmus. Chiasm, meaning crossing over, is a poetic form used in nearly all Psalms and is a repetition of similar ideas in the reverse sequence. Where there is a central section, here marked X, that is usually the focus of the poem.

A. John 2:1-11 Miracle at Cana – Water into wine.
B. 2:12-22 Temple cleansed – new Temple of his body.
C. 2:23-3:13 We must be born from above.
X. 3:14-21 God so loved the world that He gave His Son.
C’. 3:22-4:3 Christ comes from above.
B’. 4:4-46 Temple to be replaced by a new place of worship.
A’. 4:46-54 Miracle at Cana – healing of a nobleman’s son.

---

The people of Sychar are coming to Jesus because of what a woman, an outcast from their town, said. They want to hear it themselves.

The woman at the well had a confusing view of Jesus. After a brief talk, she thought of him as a mix of a fortune teller and the Messiah, but her experience led others to learn about Jesus through the struggles she once tried to hide.

Samaria is not a suitable place for a revival. Devout Jews would take the coast road or the Jordan valley to travel from Jerusalem to Galilee, avoiding this region. Jesus and his disciples are in hostile territory. The conflict dates back to when Ezra and the Jews returned from Babylon. Those who remained were excluded from the new kingdom because they couldn’t prove their true Jewish heritage. Samaritans were viewed with disdain and contempt.

Jesus accepts these people instead of rejecting them, undoing the reforms of Ezra. The people of Sychar refer to Jesus as the ‘Saviour of the World,’ a title Tiberius Caesar claims for himself. This small revival in a Samaritan town could potentially turn both the occupying Romans and the occupied Jews against Jesus.

Differences shouldn’t divide us. After I became a Christian, I wanted to learn more about my faith. I bought a Christian magazine and read about the Lausanne conference. The 1974 International Congress on World Evangelization, organised and funded by US evangelist Billy Graham, aimed to unite evangelical churches for evangelism. Although Graham wanted this focus, evangelicals from other countries, led by John Stott from the UK, emphasised that social responsibility in missions is just as important as reaching different people groups.

Graham and Stott disagreed but did not have a falling out; they supported each other’s work. Stott was in the group that invited Graham for Mission:England in the 1980s.

I think it is important that the church works in unity, but not union.

There’s some confusion about what Jesus meant by, “A prophet has no honour in his own hometown.” (verse 44). Over the years, a few interpretations have been suggested. Here are the top three:

Galilee

Was Jesus thinking of Galilee as the place where he was not respected? Saint John Chrysostom believed so. Historians suggest that the oldest evidence is usually the most reliable unless proven otherwise. This 4th or early 5th-century idea gained early acceptance in both Eastern and Western churches. [Note: Chrysostom also criticised the misuse of power by church and political leaders, which is still relevant today.]

Nazareth

Reformer John Calvin disagreed, believing it was tough to see Galilee as the place of Jesus’s rejection since the following verses in John’s Gospel mention Galileans accepting him. Instead, he pointed to Nazareth as the location of rejection, noting that other Gospel writers also mention Jesus being rejected there and Nathanael asking, “Does anything good come out of Nazareth?”

Calvin was usually sure of what he said. Not here, though. He made allowance for another place.

Jerusalem

Calvin played it safe. He suggested that Jesus, the Son of God, might have been referring to the city of God: Jerusalem. Nicodemus, in Jerusalem, did not accept Christ right away, while the woman in Sychar did. Nicodemus’ journey of commitment took longer; though it’s not detailed in chapter 3 of John’s Gospel, when he appears again, he supports Jesus.

Some theologians are historically interpreting scripture. N. T. Wright and others are looking at the culture of the time would have understood the Gospel writings as a way into a modern interpretation.

The earth is being redeemed. It happened through Jesus. His followers were about to receive this when the Holy Spirit was sent. At the end of the age, heaven and earth will come together, and God’s glory will fill the earth like the waters cover the sea.

The Jews of Jesus’ time believed that God created two kingdoms, of Earth and Heaven. These two kingdoms overlapped in one specific place, the Holy of Holies at the centre of the Jerusalem temple. Things had changed. Now Jesus was full of God’s glory.

I prefer to think that Jesus was referring to Jerusalem, but I understand that others may have good reasons for their choices. We should focus on unity, not uniformity. But that is assuming Calvin was right.

But what if Chrysostom was right and Calvin was mistaken? I’m looking at it that way in the next post.

---

< Previous | The Gospel of John | Next >