Daily Devotional | A Theological Dialogue

One Sunday after worship service I began a conversation with a family that was visiting our church for the first time. After a few casual comments I mentioned to the husband that he looked like a well-known personality in our area. To my surprise, he stated, “I am he!” I wasn’t expecting that!

In John 4, Jesus was continuing His conversation with the woman He had met at Jacob’s well in Samaria. Jesus asked the woman to go and get her husband. She explained that she didn’t have one. This gave Jesus the opportunity to reveal that He already knew her story (vv. 17–18). When the woman realized how much Jesus knew about her, she concluded that He must be a prophet. She used this opportunity to turn the conversation into a theological discussion regarding the proper place to worship God.

Jesus did not hesitate to dig deeper during the conversation. He saw through the superficial and led her to the truth that God seeks those who will worship Him in Spirit and in truth despite the location (v. 24). Confused and embarrassed, the woman exclaimed that the Messiah will “explain everything to us” once He comes (v. 25). Jesus revealed Himself to her, saying, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he” (v. 26). She wasn’t expecting that!

Like most Samaritans, she was looking for a “teaching” Messiah and she got one. Jesus taught the woman about the Messiah and to her surprise, the Messiah was He! Jesus was more than a prophet. He was the One she was waiting for.