WEBVTT 00:00:00.840 --> 00:00:08.400 Good morning, everyone. How are we all on this Harvest Sunday? I don't know about you, 00:00:08.560 --> 00:00:14.679 I expect you're extremely shattered because we've all been out in the fields, haven't we? 00:00:14.700 --> 00:00:21.359 We've been working since dawn. We've been out there. We've had spent every ounce, every ounce 00:00:21.359 --> 00:00:28.359 and gram of our energy that we've had. We've worked side by side with people from morning 00:00:28.359 --> 00:00:37.100 until late at night in order to get the harvest in safe and secure, to bring the harvest home. 00:00:38.719 --> 00:00:48.460 Yes or no? You see, it's all very nostalgic, isn't it? Really singing our hymns that we've sung for 00:00:48.460 --> 00:00:58.179 ages, our harvest hymns. But as we know that when Jesus is talking, is in our reading, that it isn't 00:00:58.179 --> 00:01:07.560 necessarily about all this produce, that it's about people. And so this morning, I may unashamedly 00:01:07.560 --> 00:01:15.219 to say how much food there is in the Bible, because wherever you look in the Bible, it's all about food. 00:01:15.960 --> 00:01:21.599 And this morning's reading, if taken in isolation, you wouldn't be surprised if you think the disciples 00:01:21.599 --> 00:01:29.979 were fussing a little bit about food. It's like my mother-in-law. Bless her. If you're listening in, 00:01:30.039 --> 00:01:39.019 mother-in-law, thank you so much for looking after me and my food. Because if you're reading this morning, 00:01:39.500 --> 00:01:47.119 it's a bit like a Bible sandwich. And here we have, there is bread to eat. And we're going to start off 00:01:47.120 --> 00:01:54.240 this morning with the first slice, because what we've actually had this morning is the filling. 00:01:55.260 --> 00:02:01.340 And I want to take you back to the beginning of this reading this morning, because if you put it in 00:02:01.340 --> 00:02:08.980 context, you can see why Jesus is talking about what he's talking about here, but why the disciples were 00:02:08.980 --> 00:02:16.120 so concerned. Because the top layer of this sandwich this morning is the woman at the well. 00:02:16.120 --> 00:02:24.680 Jesus is on his way. He's on a town in Samaria. He gets to a place by Jacob's well. And Jacob's well, 00:02:24.800 --> 00:02:32.460 he was there, he was tired from his journey. And he sat down, it was about noon. And there was a woman 00:02:32.460 --> 00:02:39.900 at the well, a Samaritan woman, who came to draw water. And Jesus said to her, will you give me a drink? 00:02:39.900 --> 00:02:47.640 It says in brackets, the disciples had gone into town to buy food. What was it with the disciples 00:02:47.640 --> 00:02:57.840 that are so obsessed with food? They really are. What is it? I'm a bit worried about this obsession 00:02:57.840 --> 00:03:02.860 that they had with it. But that's okay, I'm getting over it. And they have gone off, I don't know, 00:03:02.860 --> 00:03:08.040 it says that they've gone off to find food for him, whether they've gone to the local Liddles or 00:03:08.040 --> 00:03:14.600 whatever. Anyway, they've gone off. But here's Jesus with this encounter with this woman at the 00:03:14.600 --> 00:03:22.020 well. And this is a prophetic encounter that will not only change her life, but will inspire the 00:03:22.020 --> 00:03:29.100 disciples afresh. Woman, Jesus replied, tell me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father 00:03:29.100 --> 00:03:36.320 neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans, you do not know, but we worship what 00:03:36.320 --> 00:03:44.960 we know, for salvation comes from the Jews. Yet, yet, a time is coming, and now has come, 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:51.900 when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. For they are the 00:03:51.900 --> 00:03:59.480 kind of worshippers that the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit 00:03:59.480 --> 00:04:09.460 and in truth. She knows that this is a holy moment. The woman says, top layer, the woman says, 00:04:09.460 --> 00:04:17.100 I know that the Messiah called Christ is coming, and when he comes, he will explain everything to us. 00:04:17.100 --> 00:04:33.640 And then it comes. I, the one speaking to you, I am he. What a revelation. 00:04:33.639 --> 00:04:42.740 This is an awesome moment. Because if we know that the woman at the well, 00:04:43.879 --> 00:04:54.659 it's said that she is, quite rightly, I think we would term it a scarlet woman. Jesus is going to 00:04:54.659 --> 00:05:00.039 speak into her life. She hasn't just had one husband, she's had five, and she's living with 00:05:00.040 --> 00:05:08.240 somebody else at the moment. Jesus decides to reveal to that person the fact that he is the Messiah. 00:05:09.120 --> 00:05:15.580 What a great filling for the sandwich. I love this quote. It was from Pope Francis. 00:05:16.200 --> 00:05:21.860 It doesn't matter what you've said or done, what you've thought about saying or doing, 00:05:21.860 --> 00:05:29.040 where you've been or who you've been there with, there is more grace in God than sin in you. 00:05:30.040 --> 00:05:37.900 I think that's an amazing quote. All of a sudden, this woman at the well is about to be fed, 00:05:38.280 --> 00:05:44.720 fed with something that she's never experienced before, which is grace and love. Because if you 00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:50.820 remember, she's there on her own at midday. All the rest of the women come in the morning. 00:05:51.560 --> 00:05:58.720 They all come in the morning. They come together, fill up, but she's there because she is the outcast. 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:08.960 She is on her own. She has this chance meeting, or is it chance? Because if we read on, here comes 00:06:08.960 --> 00:06:15.400 the meat in the sandwich. I was going to do cheese and pickle because I thought it was more sort of 00:06:15.400 --> 00:06:22.760 harvesty really, but we'll go for ham and cheese because it seems, but there's certainly no ham in this 00:06:22.759 --> 00:06:33.159 story. Because here comes the filling. Then, leaving her water jar, she leaves the one thing 00:06:33.159 --> 00:06:39.459 that she has brought, that she is about. Think of all the times in the Bible when there's an encounter 00:06:39.459 --> 00:06:45.279 with Jesus, when people leave what they're doing in order because they've had this amazing meeting. 00:06:45.279 --> 00:06:52.519 The question is today, what do we leave in order to do what Jesus is asking us to do? 00:06:53.519 --> 00:06:59.939 What do we leave? Prejudice? What do we leave behind us? Do we leave behind our preferences 00:06:59.939 --> 00:07:07.639 in order to do the job that God is asking us to do? That's the meat in this sandwich. 00:07:07.639 --> 00:07:14.319 Because as we read on, leaving her water jar, the woman who went back to the town and said to the 00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:21.099 people, said to the people, she's the outcast. She says to the people, come, come and see this man 00:07:21.099 --> 00:07:29.979 who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah? And they listened to her and they responded. 00:07:29.980 --> 00:07:42.520 It's a great message. I was just thinking so often that we have often prided ourselves, and pride is in 00:07:42.520 --> 00:07:52.360 the worst possible term, on our pastoral care and on our teaching. And yet so often, here is this news 00:07:52.360 --> 00:07:59.379 for today of moving in the prophetic. He told me all about myself. How did this person know this? 00:07:59.980 --> 00:08:07.220 He seized my attention. He's about to change my life. If any of you have moved in the prophetic, 00:08:07.620 --> 00:08:14.220 you will know, as I have, how that changes your life when people speak into it in a prophetic way 00:08:14.220 --> 00:08:20.620 that moves that. If you want to experience that more, come at 7.30 tonight to the gathering. You will 00:08:20.620 --> 00:08:28.300 experience that. And here this woman has changed. She goes back, she listens, she responds, 00:08:28.300 --> 00:08:35.840 and it says in verse 30, here's the meat. They came out of the town and made their way towards him. 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:45.840 What were the disciples doing? You've guessed it. The next line, Rabbi, have something to eat. 00:08:45.840 --> 00:08:54.340 What is it with them? Jesus reads the situation. It couldn't have been better, could it really? 00:08:54.800 --> 00:09:00.240 They're bothering about earthly food. They're bothering about the earthly food that they're 00:09:00.240 --> 00:09:05.519 thinking about to sustain themselves. And here is Jesus talking about the spiritual food. 00:09:05.519 --> 00:09:12.000 He said, I have food to eat that you know nothing about. 00:09:18.480 --> 00:09:23.299 Let's finish the sandwich off, because here it comes. It is complete. 00:09:23.299 --> 00:09:29.699 Then the disciples said to each other, could someone have brought him food? 00:09:32.339 --> 00:09:37.359 You know, what did they expect? You know, a camel with delivery written on it or something? 00:09:41.799 --> 00:09:48.099 Why are they so worried? They need to be, because people are about to be fed, 00:09:48.100 --> 00:09:56.139 and the harvest is about to be fed, but not as they expected it. So Jesus, as he does, grabs the 00:09:56.139 --> 00:10:05.820 opportunity. My food, said Jesus, is to do the will of him who sent me and finish his work. Don't you 00:10:05.820 --> 00:10:14.279 have a saying, still four months until harvest? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields. 00:10:14.279 --> 00:10:28.620 Open your eyes and look at the fields. Open your eyes and look at the fields, because they are ripe for harvest. 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:38.259 To see things through Jesus' eyes, prophetically, is an amazing thing. 00:10:38.259 --> 00:10:46.580 I don't know whether you look through Jesus' eyes and see the harvest that is ripe to be brought in. 00:10:47.439 --> 00:10:53.019 I think it's an exciting moment in our times. I'm wondering if in the corner of Jesus' eye, 00:10:53.299 --> 00:10:58.960 he could already see the whole village coming to him, being led by the woman at the well. 00:10:58.960 --> 00:11:07.300 Even now, the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the 00:11:07.300 --> 00:11:14.780 sower and the reaper may be glad together. Isn't that a great picture of our oneness with God? 00:11:15.259 --> 00:11:24.420 That the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying, one sows and another reaps is true. 00:11:24.419 --> 00:11:33.959 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped 00:11:33.959 --> 00:11:41.879 the benefits of their labor. That's humbling. He had done the hard work. Jesus had done the hard work 00:11:41.879 --> 00:11:47.360 that day. He had met with the woman at the well. He had sent her off. He'd given her a prophetic word. 00:11:47.659 --> 00:11:53.019 She had gone off. She was going to bring the village to him. The disciples were just about to see 00:11:53.019 --> 00:12:00.379 this amazing thing happen. And here's where the bottom of the sandwich comes in. The beautiful 00:12:00.379 --> 00:12:06.460 thing is many of the Samaritans from that time believed in him because of the woman's testimony. 00:12:06.960 --> 00:12:12.379 All it took was one woman to go, and she wasn't the most popular flavor in the village. 00:12:13.220 --> 00:12:19.620 And she goes and brings a whole village to meet with Jesus. And so when the Samaritan came, 00:12:19.620 --> 00:12:30.000 he said, he told me everything I ever did. We need more and more of the prophetic because people will 00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:36.360 sit up. We can quote them. We can do whatever. If somebody speaks into your life, that is the thing 00:12:36.360 --> 00:12:45.200 that seizes your attention. That's the burning bush moments that makes you hungry for more. And she was 00:12:45.200 --> 00:12:52.420 hungry. She wanted to be fed. She wanted to be filled with more of this. So when the Samaritans 00:12:52.420 --> 00:12:57.700 came to him, they urged him to stay with them and stayed for two days. And because of his word, 00:12:58.220 --> 00:13:06.440 many, many more became believers. They said to the woman, we no longer believe just because of what you 00:13:06.440 --> 00:13:14.300 said. Now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the savior of the world. 00:13:15.200 --> 00:13:23.320 I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields. They are ripe for harvest. 00:13:24.780 --> 00:13:31.580 And sometimes I sense at harvest time, we all get a bit complacent. It's all very nice. We're all gathered in. 00:13:31.580 --> 00:13:41.200 But there's more together. Because the fields are ripe with harvest. We may not think it is, 00:13:42.020 --> 00:13:47.740 but they are ready. Because they are ready because Jesus goes before us. And Jesus said, 00:13:47.860 --> 00:13:57.020 they are ripe for harvest. We put the idea, this romantic notion of straw and hay and horse-drawn 00:13:57.019 --> 00:14:06.519 vehicles. And it's very nostalgic. And it's lovely for that age. But people, this age is to bring a harvest 00:14:06.519 --> 00:14:16.079 in. And there are people waiting to come and meet with Jesus. I think there's a bay, I'm not sure how many 00:14:16.079 --> 00:14:21.840 were gathered this morning. But how many ever we are, that is the number of encounters that there could be 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:31.220 this week? Who will be your woman at the well this week? Who will you speak to about Jesus? 00:14:32.220 --> 00:14:41.100 Who will we pray for a prophetic encounter? So that that person will go and bring even more 00:14:41.100 --> 00:14:50.000 to meet with Jesus. You see, people were coming in their droves. And she was categorized as a sinner. 00:14:53.300 --> 00:14:59.399 What a great person to bring our whole village to know Jesus. What a great, I can't wait to meet 00:14:59.399 --> 00:15:05.879 with him. You know, Jesus, as we move more and more in the power of the Holy Spirit, you see, 00:15:05.879 --> 00:15:13.320 Jesus has done the work on the cross. We think we've got to do so much more. Jesus has done the 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:21.820 salvation work. You know, all the hard labor is done. And we think it's hard work, don't we? We think, 00:15:21.899 --> 00:15:27.220 oh, it's hard work to go and fill our churches and to bring people to Christ. It's not. Because the work 00:15:27.220 --> 00:15:37.680 has already been done. And all that is left for us to do is to move more and more to see where it's 00:15:37.680 --> 00:15:45.680 ready to be harvested and to go and do it. Day by day, week by week, year by year. 00:15:47.580 --> 00:15:55.480 I pray that more and more this year through us will come to know Jesus. Because I don't know about you, 00:15:55.480 --> 00:16:00.960 I look at the harvest field and I don't want to leave it to rot. 00:16:03.440 --> 00:16:05.440 Because it's ripe for harvest. 00:16:05.940 --> 00:16:06.940 Thank you.