When Jesus met the woman at the well, He introduced some remarkable truths. Rather typically, our regal king used few words to convey volumes of meaning across many dimensions: He specifically addressed the needs of the woman, but that overflowed to the needs of her community. Beyond that He spoke to Jews and Samarians and ultimately also addressed the church that would follow in His footsteps.
Sometimes I ponder how gainsayers fuel their doubts, for even if I had nothing else I would still be compelled to believe Him: His words are just so profound. Through great economy of language, He managed to reach the poor, the rich, the simple and wise, the Jew and the Gentile.
He addressed a long standing dispute over Jacob's well: Samaritans argued that the great patriarch had called it the house of God, and so it should be, whilst the Jews favored Jerusalem, because God covenanted with Abraham on Mount Moriah.
In cutting through the dispute He dispensed with a time or place religion, arguing that the only bases for future worship would be Spirit and Truth. Because God is Spirit and cannot be contained in buildings made by men, He made it possible for us to relate to Him through a mutual engagement of Spirits. Jesus also dismissed time issues, when He said: "The time is coming and has come, for all to worship God in Spirit and Truth", by which He implied that our access through the broken veil would have an inception without an end.
"Truth" in this context means "reality", by which Jesus implied that our experience of God would cease to be a symbolic shadow of dispensations to come. As the realisation of all that went before, Christ became the mediator of a better covenant, His blood speaks better things than Abel and His sacrifice gave us a new and living way, by which we also gained access to the grace wherein we now stand.
It is easy for believers to now stand aloof of all that and see both sides of the argument. However, Jesus did not preclude us from His argument, because, like them, we also contend over models, doctrines and dogmas. Unfortunately events of history are about to overtake all of that, including our wineskins, for all their virtue, and our buildings, for all their majesty. None of those things will ever contain the power and glory of our King or His advancing kingdom. As they rightly said in Narnia, "He is not a tame lion".
The coming struggle will converge believers from diverse contexts around a common position in Christ. The future struggle between the Kingdom of light and its antithesis, will not be about abstractions. They will all be about He who is, was and is to come. That is the foundation and capstone of our faith, its fabric and its life, for in Christ we have a building not made by human hands, a worthy habitation for the most High God.
Christ, and only Christ, became the fulfilment of all that went before. He is the key to every truth, word or prophesy ever uttered by God. As the Lord of the Harvest He will firmly draw the battle lines between those who are for Him and those who are not. It is that simple.
The wood, hay and stubble of our differences will not endure, but the gold, silver and precious stones of a redemptive faith will ... to rise above every distraction until the church victorious becomes the church at rest:.
Mid toil and tribulation, and tumult of her war,
she awaits the consummation of peace forevermore.
Till with vision glorious, her longing eyes are blest,
and the great church victorious, shall be the church at rest ~ S J Stone.
Even so, come Lord Jesus, Amen.
(c) Peter Eleazar @ http://www.4u2live.net/
Image source: http://www.cstrikelp.com/
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