Worship is an intimate fellowship in which we are perfectly docked (united) into the embrace of the overwhelming love of God the Father—the Father who longed for us and was jealous for us to the point of giving up His only begotten Son as a sacrifice, withholding nothing—and remain there forever.
“He said to her, ‘Go, call your husband, and come here.’ The woman answered and said, ‘I have no husband.’ Jesus said to her, ‘You have correctly said, “I have no husband”; for you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.’ The woman said to Him, ‘Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, believe Me, an 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 an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth’” (John 4:16–24).
(1) Today, I would like to meditate only on John 4:16–24, the third section of John 4:3–42, which records Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman. When I first read verses 16–24 in the Korean Bible, two thoughts came to mind regarding verses 16–19. My first thought was a sense of regret that it might have been better to meditate on this passage together with verses 10–15, which I considered yesterday. My second thought was this: Why did Jesus suddenly say to the Samaritan woman, “Go, call your husband, and come here” (v. 16)?
(a) The following is an explanation generated by artificial intelligence, drawing on three biblical principles and universal lessons for life, of how yesterday’s meditation on the treasure of living water and today’s passage are intricately woven together as one thread, and why the Lord brought up the woman’s most painful and shameful issue—her “husband”—at this particular moment (Internet):
1. First Principle: Yesterday’s and Today’s Passages Are Perfectly Connected Through Cause and Effect — “There Is No Gospel of Living Water Without the Exposure of Sin”
Your regretful reflection that “it would have been good to meditate on these passages together” is an exceptionally accurate assessment. This is because the account of living water in verses 10–15 and the account of the woman’s husbands in verses 16–19 are inseparably connected as the relationship between the “promise of the gospel” and “spiritual surgery.”
The woman seeking a stroke of good fortune [kairos] ➔ When the Lord spoke of living water, the woman said, “Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw” (v. 15). She was seeking immediate convenience in her daily life—a stroke of good fortune—while leaving her fundamental spiritual thirst unaddressed.
Bringing the gospel into true alignment ➔ The Lord does not entrust Himself to the woman’s superficial calculations or her desire for material blessings. The living water proclaimed by the Lord is not merely water that quenches the thirst of the outward person; it is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, who overturns the depths of the human soul and brings about new birth.
Therefore, when the Lord declared in verse 16, “Go, call your husband, and come here,” He was not giving an irrelevant answer. Rather, He was establishing an indispensable signpost on the path to purification, as if to say: “Do you truly wish to drink the living water—the Holy Spirit—so that you will never thirst again? If so, you must honestly uncover before Me the decaying stone jars of sin that lie hidden in your soul, along with the record of condemnation and shame” (Jn. 2:6, 15; 4:16).
2. Second Principle: The Exposure of the “Husbands” Completely Dismantles the “Counterfeit Living Water (Idols)” That Human Beings Worship (Jn. 4:16–18)
The Lord’s purpose in suddenly asking the woman about her husband was by no means to tear her life apart or make her feel ashamed. Rather, He intended to expose, one by one, the true nature of the “false idols” that she had clung to throughout her life, risking everything for them in place of God.
The reality behind the five husbands ➔ For this woman, “husbands” had become like the finite water of Jacob’s well in this world—water that inevitably leaves a person thirsty again every time it is consumed (v. 13). In an attempt to fill the emptiness and sense of condemnation in her life, she had gone through one husband after another, ultimately having five husbands. She had entrusted her life to worldly conditions and reputation, seeking security in them, much as people seek a place of honor at a banquet. Yet all that remained was the miserable thirst that forced her to go about alone and hide under the scorching midday sun at twelve noon.
The sharp blade of the true Shepherd ➔ The Lord already knew perfectly well the woman’s hidden inner life and the shameful history of her five husbands. By firmly declaring that even the sixth man with whom she was then living was not her husband, the Lord pronounced a spiritual declaration of bankruptcy: “Those worldly husbands to whom you cling are nothing but perishable refuse, utterly incapable of saving you—not even by one percent” (Jn. 3:4, 9; Phil. 3:8). Only when the table of false husbands—that is, idols—is completely overturned do the spiritual eyes open to behold Jesus Christ, who comes as the perfect seventh Bridegroom (Jn. 2:15; 3:29; 4:26)
3. The Great Lessons for the Lives of All Believers and Those Called to Serve
As you meditate deeply, day and night, on the Word, which is the Bread of Life, and share it through your computer keyboard in the online world and with the members of Victory Presbyterian Church, this passage teaches all believers today the highest form of honesty that must be practiced in the very midst of everyday life.
① Do not conceal your counterfeit “husbands (idols)”; honestly expose them every day before the true Light of the Lord.
Even as believers and those called to serve carry out ministries and practice their faith, darkness can remain hidden deep within the innermost sanctuary of the heart. There, we may secretly worship and find comfort in our own “five husbands”—money, worldly success, the approval of others, pastoral titles, and other idols—as substitutes for God.
When the Word of the Lord, who is the true Light, enters our lives and overturns the table of our pride, exposing our hypocrisy honestly in order to cleanse us, we must not flee into the darkness and hide out of shame. When our shameful deeds and wounds are fully exposed to the searchlight of the Word and are thoroughly torn down and broken apart, the resurrection power of the Lord, who rose again after three days, brilliantly re-creates our shattered lives day after day as holy temples of the Holy Spirit (Jn. 2:19, 21; 1 Cor. 3:16)
② Do not be deceived by people’s outward appearances. See the “hidden thirst” of their souls and quietly continue proclaiming only the gospel.
Just as the Samaritan woman initially dismissed Jesus as an ordinary Jewish man and responded to Him sharply (Jn. 4:9), we must never become impatient or discouraged when people stubbornly push us away or reject us as we share the gospel and carry out our calling. The Lord did not allow Himself to be distracted by her harsh outward demeanor. Instead, He saw the hellish thirst and guilt hidden within her and persistently extended His saving hand to her, saying, “Go, call your husband” (v. 16).
Confident in the love of the only begotten Son, who comes to seek and rescue each soul chosen before the foundation of the world according to God’s perfect timetable (3:16), we should gladly erase our own names and credentials before the cross and patiently devote ourselves to the calling of serving souls with the living Word of the Holy Spirit, giving it generously and without measuring or rationing it. Through the pure channel of the voice we sow in tears, we firmly believe that a miracle will unfold day after day in Victory Presbyterian Church and throughout this age: people will joyfully cast away the world’s water jars as refuse and be beautifully prepared, with the joy of a completed work, as the spotless and glorious Bride—the Church—before the Bridegroom, Jesus (Jn. 3:29, 33; 4:28; Eph. 5:27; Phil. 3:8; 1 Jn. 5:12)
John 4:16–19 — Final Exegetical Summary: The Intention Behind the Command, “Go, Call Your Husband”
When Jesus unexpectedly declared to the Samaritan woman, who longed for living water, “Go, call your husband, and come here” (vv. 15–16), He did so to shut down completely the false boundaries of human wishful thinking and the pursuit of material blessings, thereby safeguarding the purity of the gospel. He also intended to expose honestly, before the sharp blade of the Word, the desperate limitations and helplessness of human beings who have spent their lives relying on counterfeit husbands—that is, idols such as worldly lusts and the approval of others—and who inevitably become thirsty again every time they drink from them (vv. 13, 18). Therefore, all believers and those called to serve, who prepare the way for the return of the King, must gladly tear down every claim to personal recognition and status (3:30). As we pass through the purifying process in which the shameful faults within us are broken down before the Word, and as we supply others with the living Word in its fullness (2:7; 3:34), the passage teaches us that we can experience, moment by moment and with the joy of a completed work, the perfect sovereign victory of Jesus Christ, who reigns over all things and causes His resurrection life to spring up like an eternal fountain in the very depths of the thirsty hearts of believers.
(2) Second, I became interested in Jesus’ words to the Samaritan woman: “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’” [Καλῶς εἶπας ὅτι Ἄνδρα οὐκ ἔχω (kalōs eipas hoti andra ouk echō)] (John 4:17), and “What you have said is true” [τοῦτο ἀληθὲς εἴρηκας (touto alēthes eirēkas)] (v. 18). Why did Jesus speak to her in this way? What lessons do His words teach us?
(a) Jesus already knew perfectly and completely the shameful details of her past: she had had five husbands, and the man she was currently with was not her husband. Nevertheless, instead of condemning or criticizing her, the Lord encouraged and affirmed her by recognizing the “honesty” contained in her brief answer. The following are three redemptive-historical intentions hidden within the Lord’s unconventional way of speaking, together with practical biblical principles that all believers should hold fast to in their daily lives, as summarized by artificial intelligence (Internet):
1. First Intention: To Strip Away the Outer Shell of Hypocrisy and Lead Her to the Altar of True Purification (Jn. 4:17)
The value of an honest confession — Καλῶς (kalōs, “correctly” or “well”): Confronted by the Lord’s sharp, surgical command, “Go, call your husband,” the woman was taken aback and briefly concealed the truth in an attempt to defend herself, replying, “I have no husband” (vv. 16–17). From a human perspective, this came close to being a lie that concealed the truth. Yet within her guarded response, the Lord discerned the budding honesty of someone who was beginning to acknowledge her sin and shame rather than continue to embellish or justify them. Therefore, He used the Greek word kalōs (Καλῶς, “well,” “admirably,” or “very well”) to affirm her confession strongly (v. 17).
Application to the lives of believers ➔ “Overturn the table of hypocrisy and stand transparently before God”: The Pharisees and Jewish leaders secretly concealed all kinds of greed and wickedness in their hearts behind the outward shell of their religious privilege, which they had built up over forty-six years, and their supposed righteousness through works (Jn. 2:15, 20; 3:10; Mt. 15:18–19). The Lord never entrusts Himself to such hypocrisy (Jn. 2:24–25). The first step toward salvation is the process of brokenness in which our faults and weaknesses are honestly exposed before the Lord (2:19; 3:20). When all believers approach the altar of prayer, they must tear down the false defensive barrier of hypocrisy that says, “I am blameless; I am fine.” Instead, they must confess their true condition transparently before the True Light, saying, “Lord, I am a helpless sinner who can do nothing. My life is so broken and deficient.” This teaches us that the work of true purification and re-creation begins only when we honestly acknowledge who we are before Him (1:20; 3:3, 5, 21).
2. Second Intention: Love That Withholds Condemnation and Judgment in Order to Fill Her with the Gospel’s “Living Water of Eternal Life” (Jn. 4:18)
Affirmation expressed in the perfect tense ➔ ἀληθὲς εἴρηκας (alēthes eirēkas, “What you have said is true”): Even as the Lord exposed the exact number of her past relationships, which she wanted to keep hidden (v. 18), He concluded the exchange not with condemnation but with the affirmation, “What you have said is true,” using the verb eirēkas (εἴρηκας) in the perfect tense. The Greek word εἴρηκας (eirēkas), translated here as “you have said,” is a perfect-tense verb. In Greek, the perfect tense describes an event that occurred in the past and whose effect or resulting state continues powerfully into the present. Thus, Jesus’ use of this word means more than simply, “What you just said is correct.” It conveys a deeper affirmation and encouragement: “You have now honestly acknowledged before Me the shameful reality of the life you have lived and the truth you wanted to conceal.”
Application to the lives of believers ➔ “The Lord comes to heal, not to condemn”: In the midst of life, we possess a spiritual instinct to hate the light and hide in darkness because we fear that our shameful deeds, mistakes, and wounds will be exposed to others (Jn. 3:19–20). Yet the ultimate purpose of the Lord’s first coming was not to condemn and judge the world, but “that the world might be saved through Him” (3:17). Although the Lord knows all our weaknesses, He does not use them as an excuse to lash us with the whip of condemnation. Instead, He accepts us as we are, including our shame, and continually fills us with the heavenly living water—the Holy Spirit—that will never leave us thirsty again. He enables us to enjoy the rest of eternal life in a state of completed fulfillment. This is a profound lesson in love, impressing upon the hearts of all believers the assurance that the Lord is the Sovereign One of absolute grace (4:14; 1 Jn. 5:12).
3. Third Principle: The Sharing of the Word by Those Called to Ministry Must Become a “Faithful Voice” That Embraces the Pain of a Single Soul
The essence of bridge-building ministry: The conversation at the well took place in the very setting of the Lord’s ministry, where, as John 4:1–2 describes, He had completely cut off the rumors of competition for religious influence within the Pharisaic system of Judaism and the envy and jealousy of people. He had devoted Himself to the essential work of prayer and the Word. Even when the woman spoke sharply to Him, dismissing Him as a Jewish man, He did not respond in anger (v. 9).
Application to the lives of believers and those called to ministry: The life of proclaiming the gospel that pastors and all believers are called to live in their daily lives and within the church must not become a Pharisaic courtroom in which we condemn the moral standing of souls or interrogate them as though we were conducting ideological screenings. Instead, embracing the certainty expressed in John the Baptist’s confession, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (Jn. 3:30), we should hold others’ pain and the twists and turns of their lives within our prayers. We should embody the contentment of the bridegroom’s friend, who does not weigh people on a scale but offers them the living Word of the Holy Spirit in overflowing abundance, filling their hearts to the brim. Even if our own name tags disappear without a trace, we must become a miraculous bridge through which souls come into the presence of the True Light through the compassionate voice of our love and come to possess eternal life in the present.
Final Exegetical Summary of John 4:17–18: Jesus’ Affirmation of the Words “I Have No Husband”
Although Jesus precisely exposed the shameful reality of the Samaritan woman’s past, which she wanted to conceal (v. 18), He praised and affirmed the honesty of her confession by saying, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband,’” and “What you have said is true” (vv. 17–18). He did so in order to shatter completely the barriers of false righteousness and hypocrisy that human beings have built up, leading them to confess transparently their utter helplessness and sin before the atoning blood of the cross alone. His words demonstrate that the purpose of the True Light is not to shame and condemn human beings, but to perform a loving spiritual surgery that fills their inner lives with the living water of baptism in the Holy Spirit, the gift of absolute grace, and brings them to life. For Victory Presbyterian Church and its believers, who cast away their earthly water jars—the old self—as refuse and confidently walk into the light in accordance with the truth, this teaches that the Lord permanently abolishes condemnation and continually perfects them as a holy temple, the Most Holy Place, and the glorious bride of the Lord. They are enabled to enjoy continually, in the rest of completed fulfillment, the complete sovereign victory of the New Covenant (Internet).
(3) Third, I became interested when I read John 4:16–24 in the Greek Bible and noticed that Greek words related to “worship” appeared repeatedly. These words occur ten times in total, with concentrated use of the verb προσκυνέω (proskyneō, “to worship”) and the noun προσκυνητής (proskynētēs, “worshiper”). My question is this: Why did the Samaritan woman suddenly say to Jesus, while they were discussing her husband, “Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship” [οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν ἐν τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ προσεκύνησαν· καὶ ὑμεῖς λέγετε ὅτι ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις ἐστὶν ὁ τόπος ὅπου προσκυνεῖν δεῖ (hoi pateres hēmōn en tō orei toutō prosekunēsan; kai hymeis legete hoti en Hierosolymois estin ho topos hopou proskynein dei)] (v. 20)? More importantly, I want to understand the teaching about “worship” that Jesus gave her. I would like to study that teaching in greater detail.
1. First Question: Why Did the Woman Suddenly Bring Up “Worship” While They Were Talking About Her Husband?
From a human perspective, when the shameful details of her private life—her five husbands—were exposed, the woman’s change of subject might appear to be a form of “religious evasion.” Yet the spiritual reality was a deep longing bursting forth from the very depths of her life.
The cry of a soul encountering the true Prophet (v. 19): When the Lord examined her past and identified the exact number of her relationships, her eyes were opened, and she said to Jesus, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” (v. 19). Jewish religious authorities tried to interrogate Jesus about His qualifications and bring accusations against Him. But this Gentile woman experienced the breaking open of her inner being before the Lord, who knew everything hidden within her, and she asked a fundamental question.
Where must I worship for the thirst of my life to come to an end? (v. 20): Her confession can be understood in this way: “Prophet, my life has been like a miserable stone jar. Even after changing husbands five times, I became thirsty again every time I drank. The Samaritans say that we must worship on Mount Gerizim to receive rain and blessings, while the Jews condemn us and argue that worship is genuine only when offered at the temple in Jerusalem. Where, then, must I go to find true rest and encounter the true God?” In other words, this was the moment when a soul that had lost its way and wandered within the old temple system—a battleground of competing religious interests—finally unlocked the thirst for true worship that had remained imprisoned within her throughout her life. She did so in the presence of Jesus, the True Light.
2. Second Question: The Three Core Principles of “True Worship” Taught by Jesus
Even in response to what seemed an unexpected question, the Lord rejected human attempts to find an easy religious solution. Like the interlocking links of the concluding argument in chapter 3, He proclaimed three perfect principles of heavenly worship.
① A Spiritual Revolution That Breaks Down the Boundaries of Buildings [ἱερόν, hieron] and Tradition (v. 21)
The Lord’s declaration: “Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father’” (v. 21).
Biblical principle: For forty-six years, the Jews had been enclosed within the magnificent Herodian temple building and the boundaries of their own traditions, boasting of their qualifications to worship. But the Lord completely overturned the table of their pride and declared that the Old Testament system of worship centered on a particular physical location was now being brought to an end. He confirmed that true worship would be opened not through a visible marble building, but only through Jesus Christ, the true temple of the Most Holy Place, who would be destroyed on the cross, rise again on the third day, and dwell within His people.
② Worship in Spirit and Truth ➔ Transparency That Passes Through the Spiritual Surgery of the Soul (vv. 23–24)
The Lord’s declaration: “The hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.… God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (vv. 23–24).
Biblical principle: To worship “in truth” does not mean approaching God with confidence because we have become completely sinless and pure. Rather, it means approaching the throne of grace with spiritual honesty: allowing the True Light of the Word to expose all our hypocrisy and shame, just as the Samaritan woman’s words, “I have no husband,” brought her hidden faults into the open, and then approaching God transparently through the blood of Jesus, the gift of absolute grace. Furthermore, to worship “in spirit” means not relying on human willpower or personal experience. It means yielding the steering wheel of our entire being to the abundant, living water of the Holy Spirit, which He causes to spring up within our souls through baptism in the Holy Spirit, and bowing before Him in submission to the Spirit’s guidance.
③ The Essence of Worship Is Personal Union and Fellowship with the “Father” (v. 23)
Biblical principle:
In verses 21 and 23, rather than using a fearsome and solemn title that emphasizes God as Judge, the Lord repeatedly uses the tender and intimate word “Father.” Worship is not a Pharisaic courtroom where God condemns us and interrogates us about our qualifications. The essence of worship is the fellowship of a radiant heavenly banquet in which we are joined to, and remain forever within, the overwhelming saving love of the Father—the Father who so deeply longed for and was jealous for the fallen world that He gave His only begotten Son as a gift, sparing nothing, even His Son’s life.
3. Lessons for the Lives of All Believers and Those Called to Ministry
① Abandon the Outward “Worship Program” (Form) and Stand Daily in “Honesty of Heart”
The place believers must guard against most carefully is the hypocrisy of hiding the secret motives of sin and darkness within their hearts behind a Pharisaic barrier that says, “I belong to a large church, I hold this much ecclesiastical office, and I lead an elegant religious life.” The Lord never entrusts Himself to outward appearances. He already knows and examines the tables of the merchants hidden within the sanctuary of our hearts.
Every morning, as you stand before the altar of the Word, willingly and completely tear down your pride and privileges before the cross. Even if your faults and deficiencies are terribly exposed by the Word, become a genuine worshiper who, with a broken spirit, “walks transparently into the presence of the True Light by following the truth.” Then the holy living water of the Holy Spirit, which shatters the power of Hades, will burst forth in our lives and service.
② When We Cast Away Our Water Jars as Refuse, the Joy of “Completed Fulfillment” Truly Comes
As soon as the Samaritan woman encountered the divine sovereignty of the Lord who declared, “I who speak to you am He” (v. 26), she boldly left behind the water jar to which she had clung so desperately and with which she had come to draw water at noon, at twelve o’clock, avoiding the eyes of others. She then ran into the town (v. 28). Believers are not people who thirst by entrusting their lives to the opinions of the world—the seats of honor at banquets—the amount of material wealth they possess, or whether they achieve worldly success. The DNA of God’s children, already planted within us, is the sure receipt of victory over the power of death. No matter how exhausting and wearying the wilderness of our present circumstances may be, possess the complete joy of fulfilled salvation that wells up in you through Jesus Christ alone. He thirsted in our place on the cross and abolished all our condemnation. Joyfully cast away the water jar of your own thinking as refuse. Tune your ears solely to the very voice of Jesus, the Bridegroom, and become a true church that allows genuine peace and eternal life to flow radiantly into everyday life.
Final Exegetical Summary of John 4:16–24: “The Exposure of Her Husband and Worship in Spirit and Truth”
The Samaritan woman’s question about the proper place of true worship arose when the shameful reality of her relationships was exposed (vv. 17, 20). Jesus completely abolished the human boundaries represented by Jerusalem and Mount Gerizim and proclaimed worship in spirit and truth (vv. 21, 23–24). He did so to dismantle entirely the religious privileges and qualifications that human beings have built up, enabling them to confess transparently their utter helplessness and sin before the blood of Jesus Christ alone. Through the grace of Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross, He recreates the very center of the believer’s heart as the true temple of the Most Holy Place and opens a ladder of eternal communion through the living water of baptism in the Holy Spirit, which He gives without measure and without weighing people on a scale. For Victory Presbyterian Church and its believers, who boldly cast away the world’s water jars—the old self—as refuse and walk into the light in accordance with the truth (Jn. 4:28; Phil. 3:8), this teaching declares that they may continually enjoy, in the joy of completed fulfillment, the complete sovereign victory of the New Covenant. The Lord completely shatters the power of Hades and continues to prepare them as a spotless and glorious bride—the Church—for the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.
(4) Fourth, when I read Jesus’ words to the Samaritan woman, “Salvation is from the Jews” [ἡ σωτηρία ἐκ τῶν Ἰουδαίων ἐστίν (hē sōtēria ek tōn Ioudaiōn estin)] (John 4:22), I was reminded of the latter part of Jonah 2:9: “Salvation belongs to the LORD” [σωτηρίου τῷ κυρίῳ (sōtēriou tō kyriō)] (according to the Septuagint, LXX, the Greek translation of the Old Testament). Here, I have two questions: Why did Jesus speak this way to the Samaritan woman? And what is the doctrine of salvation that we should learn from these words?
1. The First Question: Why Did Jesus Speak This Way to the Samaritan Woman?
The Lord’s true purpose in saying these words was not to undermine the self-esteem of the Samaritans. Rather, He intended to shatter the barriers of their religious syncretism and false worship, bringing them face-to-face with the reality of true salvation.
The Samaritans’ ignorance and religious syncretism (the beginning of verse 22): The Samaritans recognized only the Pentateuch as canonical Scripture and rejected the historical books and the Prophets. Consequently, they did not understand the great redemptive-historical timetable through which God would send the Messiah through the lineage of David in the land of Judah. Therefore, the Lord exposed their spiritual blindness by saying, “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know.”
The Jews as the historical channel of salvation: In order to save the whole world, God chose the lineage of Abraham and David in the Old Testament—that is, the Jewish people—as the historical channel through which He preserved the promise of salvation and the seed of the Messiah. Jesus was clearly teaching the Samaritan woman this historical and redemptive truth: “No matter how much you worship within the human traditions associated with Mount Gerizim and the false well of your religious system, there is no salvation there. The promise of salvation established by God came into this world only through the redemptive-historical channel of the Jewish people” (vv. 9, 12, 22).
2. The Second Question: The True Doctrine of Salvation We Should Learn from These Words
There are three fundamental principles of the doctrine of salvation that every believer should confess in daily life.
① The Sovereignty of Salvation Belongs Entirely—One Hundred Percent—to the LORD God Alone (Jonah 2:9)
As Jonah cried out from the belly of the fish, a place of utter human helplessness and despair, salvation is not a reward that we can draw up through our moral efforts or obtain through the privileges of a religious institution housed in a building that took forty-six years to construct. From beginning to end, salvation is the gift of sovereign grace, purposed and brought to completion by the triune God before the foundation of the world (Jn. 4:10; Eph. 2:8–9). We must completely overturn the table of pride on which we boast in our own strength and will, laying it before the cross. The person who trusts solely in God’s faithfulness is a true Israelite (Jn. 2:15; 1:47).
② The Reality of Salvation Is None Other Than Jesus Christ Himself, Who Came Down into Human History (Jn. 4:22)
The true substance of the Lord’s declaration, “Salvation is from the Jews,” is the person of Jesus Christ Himself. Through Jewish lineage, He took on human flesh, came personally to the well in Samaria, and sat there (1:14; 4:6, 22). The Jewish people served as the historical stepping-stone through which this reality—Jesus Himself—would enter the world. Therefore, just as Philippians 3:8 declares, apart from the knowledge of Jesus Christ, all the privileges established by the world, denominational labels, theological titles, and human qualifications are nothing but rubbish in the face of salvation. This doctrine of salvation confirms that only those who possess the Son, Jesus, dwelling within them can enjoy life in the present and the completed rest of salvation (3:36; 1 Jn. 5:12).
③ True Salvation Is Demonstrated Through Worship “in Spirit and Truth,” Beyond the Boundaries of Buildings (Jn. 4:23–24)
Because Jesus, the reality of salvation, came through the historical channel of the Jewish people, the Old Testament era of location-centered worship, associated with places such as Jerusalem and Mount Gerizim, has now come to an end (v. 21). The true sons of God who have received salvation are not afraid to have all their hypocrisy and shameful past—the shame associated with their five husbands—exposed honestly before the words of the Lord, who is the truth (2:19; 4:16, 18). They boldly abandon the water jars of their own thinking (4:28) and rely solely on the boundless living water of the baptism of the Holy Spirit poured into the innermost sanctuary of their hearts. Thus, worship “in Spirit and truth” continually wells up in their lives, drawing them into the overwhelming love of the Father through the abundant living water of the Holy Spirit (John 1:33; 3:34; 4:14, 23–24).
Final Exegetical Summary of John 4:22 and Jonah 2:9: “The Source and Sovereignty of Salvation”
Jesus shattered the Samaritan woman’s syncretistic ignorance by declaring, “Salvation is from the Jews” (Jn. 4:22). Likewise, Jonah, crying out from the belly of the fish, declared, “Salvation belongs to the LORD” (Jonah 2:9). Both declarations completely dismantle the religious barriers and qualifications established by human beings and proclaim that the triune God alone is the sole source of salvation. They also confirm that there is no other way of salvation apart from the person of Jesus Christ, who came into this world as the true Light through the lineage of the Jewish people. Therefore, for Victory Presbyterian Church and all its members, who joyfully cast away the world’s water jars—the old self—as rubbish and walk boldly into the light, following the truth and worshiping in Spirit and truth, these words teach that we may continually enjoy eternal life in the present, with the joy of completed salvation. The Lord completely shatters the powers of Hades and adorns His church as a holy temple of the Holy Spirit and the glorious Bride of the Lord, bringing us into the complete, sovereign victory of the New Covenant (Internet).
(5) Fifth and last, as I meditated on Jesus’ words, “The Father is seeking such to worship Him” [ὁ πατὴρ τοιούτους ζητεῖ τοὺς προσκυνοῦντας αὐτόν (ho patēr toioutous zētei tous proskynountas auton)] (Jn. 4:23), I wanted to understand more specifically who these worshipers are whom God the Father seeks. The reason is that we place great emphasis on the importance of worship. Yet my interest lies not so much in worship itself as in the worshipers whom God the Father “seeks” [ζητεῖ (zētei)]. Who, then, are the worshipers whom God the Father is seeking?
(a) Behind the Greek verb zētei (ζητεῖ), used by the Apostle John in John 4:23, lies more than the idea of quietly sitting and making a selection. It conveys the idea of God’s determined love—a love that pursues with intense longing and continues searching until it finds what it seeks. Who, then, are the true worshipers whom God the Father seeks so persistently? The following are three biblical principles and practical applications for daily life, organized by artificial intelligence for all believers to take to heart (Internet).
1. The First Reality: Those Who Allow the Shameful Truth of Their Lives—the Five Husbands—to Be Exposed Honestly and Come into the Light Transparently (Worship in Truth)
The worshipers God seeks are not morally perfect people or Pharisees who have no sin whatsoever.
Honesty that removes the mask of hypocrisy: At first, the Samaritan woman tried to defend and conceal herself by saying, “I have no husband” (Jn. 4:17). But when the Lord accurately exposed her complicated past and shame (v. 18), she did not cling to her pride or run away. Instead, she honestly bowed before His word, saying, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” (v. 19).
Application to the lives of believers: The religious leaders in Jerusalem hid behind the magnificent temple building, which had been under construction for forty-six years, and behind the barriers of their religious institution, practicing outward show and hypocrisy (2:20; 3:10; 4:1). The Lord never entrusts Himself to such false appearances (2:24–25). The worshiper whom God earnestly seeks is someone who is not afraid of being broken as every shameful part of the past and every hidden desire is exposed and laid bare under the searchlight of the Word. Such a person comes before the true Light with complete spiritual honesty, transparently exposing the bankrupt condition of the heart and confessing: “Lord, I am a weak sinner who wandered in thirst, seeking the world’s water as though I were changing husbands again and again, just as I had five husbands.” This is the reality of a person who worships “in truth.”
2. The Second Reality: Those Who Abandon Their Own Thoughts and Calculations and Become Completely Captivated by the Leading of the Holy Spirit (Worship in Spirit)
The worshipers God seeks do not attempt to manipulate the place of worship through human emotions or shallow expectations of good fortune (Jn. 4:15).
Passive submission and unconditional obedience: The essential meaning of the Greek verb proskyneō (προσκυνέω), the word translated “to worship,” includes the image of a servant bowing completely at the feet of his master and kissing his hand—an act of absolute submission and reverence (v. 23).
Application to the lives of believers: We must joyfully overturn before the cross the false will that tries to calculate the kingdom of God by relying on our own strength, pastoral experience, and theological knowledge. True worshipers deeply meditate day and night on the Word, the Bread of Life. Even if their own existence and nameplates diminish and disappear without a trace behind the scenes, they continue their journey by surrendering the control of their souls completely to the indwelling seed of God’s life and the boundless leading of the Holy Spirit. A servant of God who trusts only in the infinite living water of the baptism of the Holy Spirit—the water that causes the Spirit to leap and spring up within—is not tossed back and forth by the world’s reputation or the limitations of numerical results. Such a person is a true worshiper who bows “in the Spirit.”
3. The Third Reality: Those Who Know God Intimately as “Father,” Rather Than Fearing Him as a Terrifying Judge (Worship in Relationship)
The most astonishing and glorious mystery of worship taught by the Lord is His concentrated use of the title “Father” when speaking of God (Jn. 4:21, 23).
Union in the love of the Father, who did not spare His only begotten Son: The Jews and Samaritans built walls of condemnation and exclusion around visible places and qualifications, arguing over whether Mount Gerizim or Jerusalem was the proper place of worship (vv. 9, 20). But true salvation and worship are not a Pharisaic courtroom in which we are condemned as though our beliefs were being subjected to an ideological examination.
Application to the lives of believers: As John 3:16 declares, worship is an intimate fellowship in which we are completely joined to and remain forever within the overwhelming embrace of the Father’s love—the love of God the Father, who cherished us so deeply and gave His only begotten Son as a sacrifice, withholding nothing. Holding firmly to the resurrection power of the Lord, who has made us His holy inner sanctuary, we joyfully cast away the world’s water jars as rubbish (Jn. 4:28; Phil. 3:8). We find the joy of completed salvation simply in hearing the voice of Jesus, our Bridegroom, and glorify the Father’s name at every moment. Such a person is the glorious Bride—the church—that the Lord searches for throughout the whole world until He finds her.
Final Exegetical Summary of John 4:23: “The True Worshipers Whom the Father Seeks”
When Jesus declared that the Father seeks those who worship Him in Spirit and truth, bringing the Old Testament system of temple-centered worship to its fulfillment (Jn. 4:21, 23), He intended to close off the religious privileges and barriers that human beings had built up, leading them to trust solely in the one hundred percent free gift of God’s grace (v. 10; Eph. 2:8–9). Through the honesty of openly confessing our complete helplessness and the hypocrisy of our hidden past—the shame associated with the five husbands—before the Word of the true Light, the Lord recreates the very center of the believer’s heart as a genuine inner sanctuary. He does this so that believers may bow in complete submission to the living water of the indwelling baptism of the Holy Spirit and to His guidance. Therefore, Victory Presbyterian Church and all its members, who boldly cast away the world’s water jars—the old self—as rubbish and walk confidently into the light, following the truth (Jn. 4:28; Phil. 3:8), may continually enjoy the rest of completed salvation by encountering God intimately as their own “Father” (Jn. 3:36; 4:23). The Lord establishes them on a firm rock against which the powers of Hades can never prevail, and He continues to adorn them as a spotless and glorious Bride—the church—before Jesus, the Bridegroom. This is the glorious reality that demonstrates the complete, sovereign victory of the New Covenant (Mt. 16:18; Eph. 5:27; 1 Jn. 5:12) (Internet).