Your Story Matters

You have a story to tell.   I have a story to tell.  My story is of a young man growing up in the sixties and watching the world come unraveled all around me.  My story is about a search for meaning.  My search for meaning led me to try drugs as a teenager, led me to embrace Eastern Religion as a young adult and led me to live a “party hard today, for tomorrow I may die” kind of life.  And in living that story I eventually came to a place where I was empty inside. I came to a place where I saw that my life had no meaning, no purpose and no peace. But when you looked at the story I was portraying, you would see nothing amiss.  In my story, I wore a mask that said everything was fine – but if you could look into my heart, what you’d see was insecure and anxious young man who was searching for meaning.  That is… until I met Jesus.  And he changed everything, including me.

Now my story is not your story.  You may have a story similar to mine, or your story may be all together different.  And your story may seem even seem obscure – or even insignificant in the grand scheme of things… but NO story is insignificant to God.  Why?  Because every person matters to Him.

We learned this last week as we went with Jesus on his “had to go through Samaria” journey.  And eventually we learned that Jesus had to go through Samaria, not because it was a short cut home, but because “he had to” teach us something about himself.  And what he taught us about himself is this: that no one is too sinful or too far gone – to be loved by God.  When Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well – we learned that every person really does matter to God!  And that means every person in this place this morning, every person who lives in this community, and every person we ever lock eyes with – they too matter to God.

And if you matter to God – then, like the woman at the well, your story matters.  And the reason your story matters, is that God uses our stories to draw unbelievers to faith in Jesus.  That’s where we’re going to see in the Gospel of John today.  For in this passage, we’re not just going to see that you have a story to tell, but also how your story matters into the bigger story of God.  So, if you brought a Bible with you today, let me encourage you to find John 4:27-42, where Jesus is going to shows us just how much your story matters and how much your life matters in the bigger story of God.

So, let’s jump back into the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4. If you recall what happened last week; Jesus gave us an extraordinary picture of what love does.  We saw in his encounter with the Samaritan woman that love breaks through our man-made barriers and treats us with dignity and respect.  Love gives us far more than what we’re looking for.  Love breaks through our brokenness and sin.  And love awakens our deepest hopes for a relationship with God.  So Jesus loved this woman who’d been looking for love in all the wrong places, and once Jesus awakened her hope with His love, she said this: “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you – I am he.” John 4:25-26

Now right at the apex of this encounter with the Samaritan woman, just when we might see her come to faith in Jesus, they’re interrupted by the return of his disciples. And we read: Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”

This may have been one of the wisest pictures of the disciples we’ve seen up till now.  They knew Rabbi’s just didn’t do what Jesus was doing.  Rabbis did not talk with any women – ever…  But as his disciples were learning, and as we’ve been learning, Jesus was no ordinary Rabbi, so they kept their mouths shut.  Yet, their interruption ends this amazing conversation, but not the story.  Look what happens next:  Then, leaving herwater jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?”  They came out of the town and made their way toward him.  John 4:28-30

I love this scene. Meeting Jesus has changed her.  She leaves her water jar behind.  You could say that her water jar represented her past.  A past where she had to fend for herself; a past filled with broken promises and failed relationships, a past filled with shame. But now in meeting Jesus, she leaves her past behind her. Now she has a new story to tell.  “There is a man who knows everything about me.”  He knows everything I ever did to try and fill my thirst.  He knows every wrong turn I took; every emptiness I feel; every hope I’ve longed for.  There could only be one person who could do this:  The Messiah.  Could this be the Christ?  Come and see.”

What boldness and freedom this woman shows us as she goes through the village, because the response to her story is immediate and effective.  The townspeople come out and make their way toward Jesus.  Literally, they went out at once in a rush.  And their response tells us a powerful truth:  Her story mattered.  There was something in her words, in her story that awakened their hopes.  And so they came running to Jesus.

This is why the first truth God wants us to see in this passage is this:  You have a story to tell.  If you’ve met Jesus, put your trust in Jesus, put your hope in Jesus, then meeting Jesus should change you.  For not only has He forgiven you, cleansed you, removed your guilt and shame, but He’s rescued you for a whole new kind of life. That’s what the redeeming grace of Jesus does: He sets you free to be the person God created you to be.  To be a whole new person. To no longer be defined by your past, to no longer have to struggle to find love and acceptance, to no longer wonder if there could be more to life than this.  No, when Jesus sets you free, He changes you.  He removes your guilt and shame. He gives you new life – the abundant life of His Holy Spirit to come live inside you.  He gives you a new relationship with God as your Father.  He changes your destiny.  He changes your heart.  He changes your purpose.  He changes your life! So then – When Jesus changes you, you have a story to tell:  A story about how he’s loved you, how he’s rescued you, and how he’s changing you.   And when you tell what Jesus has done for you, God will use your story to draw people to Jesus. That’s why your story matters.

Jesus has come to redeem mankind.  He has come to give us life that our souls long for. That’s why people need to hear your story.  They need to hear there’s a love that breaks through our brokenness and sin.  They need to hear there’s a love that gives us meaning and purpse.  They need to hear that there’s a new kind of life available for us in Jesus – a life of peace, of joy, of meaning and hope!  A life of soul satisfaction with the One who created us to be fully known, fully accepted and fully loved by Him. So, if you’ve trusted in Jesus, been changed by Jesus, you have a story to tell that can bring hope to a world who needs hope.  So let me ask you, “Have you ever shared your story?”  Do your friends or family know what your life was like before you met Jesus?  Do they know how you came to trust in Jesus?  And do they know how Jesus has changed you or is even changing you today?

If there’s one thing you can take away from this message today, it’s this: Know your story.   Because if you know your story you can share your story. This may seem very elementary.  But if you’ve never put your story together, here’s a basic framework to fill in the blanks.  And the framework is this:

What my life was like before I met Jesus    Where were you trying to find happiness or soul satisfaction that never delivered: Was it in your relationships, your accomplishments, your abilities, your intellect, your assets?  What fears, anxieties, failures or sins enslaved you and kept you from experiencing peace or joy in your life?  If you can identify these, it will be easy to share how Jesus has helped you.

How I came to trust in Jesus  What circumstances or people were instrumental in you coming to faith in Jesus. Was it the faith story of a friend?  Was it hearing the Gospel from your parents?  Was it hearing the message of Jesus at Camp, or Sunday School or a worship service?  For me it was the witness of a girl I was dating.  She had a peace about her that I longed for.  She asked me to come to Church with her, and so I did.  They very next week I had the gospel explained to me and I put my trust in Jesus.

How Jesus has changed me Where has Jesus set you free?  How has Jesus given you hope, or peace or purpose? If you’ve met Jesus, then Jesus has changed you.  And people need to hear that.  Your story matters.  Do you know your story? Because if you know your story, you can share your story! Just like this Samaritan woman… Now, You have a story to tell, but that’s not all.  The next thing we will see is this:

You Have a Part to Play in His Story: Let’s see how this plays out in the following conversation Jesus has with His disciples:  Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.  John 4:31-34   Once again the disciples have no clue what Jesus is talking about.  They are thinking of physical food, but Jesus is speaking of a different kind of fuel for the soul.

Jesus is echoing Deuteronomy 8:3, where Moses addressed Israel and explains God’s way to them. He says of God: ‘He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.’ So what Jesus is saying here is that doing God’s will fuels His soul in a way that food can’t. Natural food provides temporary filling.  Satisfying the Father’s will is what gave Jesus true satisfaction.  Think about that one for a minute.  We often think that reading God’s Word, hearing a good message – this nourishes us, feeds us.  But what Jesus says here is that doing God’s work is equally – if not MORE satisfying.

So now, he describes this work:  Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.  John 4:35  It’s the work of the harvest. The disciples lived in an agrarian world.  Everyone knew that it took four months from the time of sowing to the time of reaping.  So Jesus shares this common knowledge and then gives them a command:  “Lift up your eyes and look at the fields.  What did he want them to see?  He wanted them to look up and see the approaching Samaritan village who were all dressed in white.

Then he says: “They are ripe for harvest.”  “They” these people coming up the road where ready to be reaped.  They wanted what the Samaritan woman had.  When she told her story about Jesus, they dropped what they were doing and made a beeline for Jesus.  So, Jesus continues: Even now the reaper draws hiswages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. John 4:36  Someone had done the work of sowing the seed of truth about the coming Messiah with these people. John the Baptist had been in this area. And his sowing work had prepared this village for this moment. So, Jesus continues:  Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.  John 4:37-38

What is Jesus saying to his disciples? He is saying is that the very work the Father sent him to do, is the same work He is calling them to do.  They have a part to play in the harvest.  He is telling them, “We are in this together. My mission is your mission.”  Right here Jesus calls his disciples to join Him in the harvest.  He calls them to do their part.  Others have done the hard work of sowing seeds of the gospel, now they get to share in the work of the harvest – and now they get to reap the benefits of the harvest together.  They get to share in the joy of seeing the fruit of salvation.   And THAT joy will feed their souls.  THAT JOY will fuel them in a way physical food can never do.

Now here’s the cool part: What Jesus was teaching his disciples at this moment applies to us today: When Jesus redeems you, He enlists you in His Story   The same work the disciples get to share in, is the same work God gives to us.  We are in this together.  We all have a part to play in harvest work.  His mission is our mission.  His work is now our work.

Here’s what Jesus is calling us to do together: It’s an all-hands-on deck endeavor. Jesus gives each one of us a part to play in the ongoing work He began: helping people find the living water, the hope of the world, the new life found in Jesus! And that takes work.  One sows, another reaps.  Its labor – a labor of love.  Some do the hard work of cultivating the soil.  Others do the work of sowing the seeds of truth.  Still others do the reaping. But IT TAKES EVERYONE working together.

You see for some strange reason, most Christians think the work of the harvest, of evangelism, or soul winning, is somehow an individual endeavor.  It’s not.  WE ARE IN THIS TOGETHER.  We need everyone to do their part to bring in the harvest.  And if you understand farming, it’s quite a process.  First, the ground has to be prepared.  Sometimes the ground is quite hard and needs a lot of cultivating before it can ever accept a seed.  This is the work of the church, and why Jesus calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves.  For it’s when we love like Jesus loves we break up the hard ground so we can sow seeds of the gospel. But if you’ve ever planted a garden, you know the cultivating work doesn’t end when you’ve sowed the seed.  You’ve still got to water it, fertilize it, pull weeds, and cultivate it every day.  It takes work.  It takes care.  It takes time.  The harvest doesn’t come a week later.  The harvest comes after continued cultivating and caring effort. Then comes the day when we can reap the fruit of our labors together.

So, here’s the second reality Jesus wants us to take from this encounter: You have a part to play in His story.  His mission is our mission.  So each one of us needs to see ourselves as an essential workers in what God is trying to do to redeem this world.

Now, before I move on from this, there’s one more truth Jesus wants us to see in this harvest work, and that is this:  There is an urgency to our mission. When Jesus says, “Lift up your eyes and look at the fields. They are ripe for harvest.” He is telling us look up and see right now – that the harvest is right now.  I can’t think of a more appropriate message for us today.  For in our day, it’s as though we’ve lost this sense of urgency. So, we need hear Jesus’ command anew today.  For when he says, “Lift up your eyes and look” this is a command to obey.  We need to hear this again because we are not lifting up our eyes to look upon those who need Jesus.  If we’re honest, our eyes are only on what is in front of us: our families, our adventures, on how we’re going to spend our time fulfilling our dreams – not God’s dreams. I’m as guilty of anyone here.  Our culture has discipled us to be about fulfilling the American Dream, but Jesus wants His followers to embrace His dream  So how do we begin to recapture a sense of urgency for our mission?  A couple ways: First, Ask God to renew our sense of urgency for the harvest.  Every person matters to God, therefore every person should matter to us!  Let’s pray that God would rekindle this urgency, rekindle our compassion. Second, Start lifting our eyes to see what He wants us to see. To see each person as someone with an eternal destiny – as someone who needs the hope, peace and new life that’s found in Jesus – as a someone who needs to hear the good news about Jesus.  Lift up your eyes and look.  Every person you SEE needs Jesus.

You have a part to play in His Story, You have a story to tell, But the Star of the Story is Jesus Now we see WHY Jesus “had to go through Samaria.” John writes: Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s story, “He told me everything I ever did.”  So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of His words many more became believers.  John 4:39-41   They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”  John 4:42  Look now at the fruit of the harvest.  First, many came to faith because of the woman’s story.  God used her story.  Once she had been a disdained outcast.  No one associated with her. Now, her story is a catalyst for faith in the whole village.  To which I must say: Never discount your story.  Your Story Matters.  God can use your story.  People are hungry to hear of real-life change.  Deep down, people really do want to know if there’s a Savior.   But remember, the star of the story must always be Jesus. For as we see here, once these people met Jesus, they wanted more of Jesus, and urged him to stay with them and teach them.  And he stayed.

This Jewish Rabbi who should have kept his distance, not only stayed for two days – but for two days He ate their food, laughed at their jokes, listened to their stories and taught them God’s truth.  And when they heard His truth, something happened:  They believed in Jesus. And then, as a result, they now had a story to tell: “Now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

This why your story matters, and why you have a part to play in His story.  For when you tell of what Jesus has done for you, how he’s rescued you and changed your life, then people will know there is a Savior.  So let’s make Jesus the star of our stories, so people will come to know that this man really is the Savior of the World. For when Jesus is the star of your story, then your story will truly matter.