Michael Carlye-Taylor

Living Water Michael Carlye-Taylor

This is a story about hope; Samantha's hopes, Jesus' hopes, and our hopes. It's a story about love; Jesus' love for her, his love for us, our love for God and one another. And it is a story of transformation, of how a lonely, empty woman of shame met Christ, engaged in his dance of life, and was transformed into a heroine, filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit as she was given a new life. Her story contrasts with another encounter where a highly qualified religious leader met Christ with a view to learning about the kingdom of God, but unlike Samantha he was so self focused and worried about what he could lose that he refused Christ's offer and left him unchanged and disappointed. We look closely at Jesus and how he acted, as well as what he said, to Samantha and to Nicodemus so that we can learn from him, learn how he loved, how he behaved. We look at Samantha and how she acted, and also at Nicodemus and his responses so that we can learn from them both. In this story Jesus not only announced the revolution he brought to the world, he also demonstrated it and the impact it can have on those who follow his lead.