John four thirty one through forty five and it reads Meanwhile the disciples were urging him saying rabbi eat, but he said to them I have food to eat that you do not know about so the disciples said to one another has anyone brought him something to eat Jesus said to them my food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work Do you not say there are yet four months then comes the harvest look? I tell you lift up your eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life So that soar and reaper may rejoice together For here the saying holds true one so's and another reaps I Sent you to read that that for which you did not labor others have labored and you have entered into their labor Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony He told them all that I ever did so when the Samaritans came to him they asked him to stay with them and he stayed there two days and Many more believed because of his word they said to the woman it is no longer because of what you said that we believe For we have heard for ourselves and we know that this is indeed the savior of the world After the two days he departed for Galilee for Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his hometown So when he came to Galilee the Galilee and welcomed him having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast for they too had gone to the feast This is the Lord's word to us We'll have a question for you this morning The question is what do you do after a good meal? After you have a hearty Plates of good food. What is your body most probable reaction? I've been around Many of you a few of you before and after eating much food and I can say that many of us Find ourselves looking for a cozy a cozy place to catch a quick nap resting and sleeping is probably Our most popular activity after eating Before the pandemic hit the elders here at East Point Church would would go on our annual elders retreat. It seems like Ben ages since we've been able to do that, but We would usually share a meal in that evening be a hearty meal I mean we'd eat well and then after which somebody I don't know why Plan would plan this extended time of prayer Well, let me just say to you beloved at those times we discover that the spirit is willing But the flesh is weak And we find that there are those among us who are not able to persevere as We might hope we are familiar with Thanksgiving traditions and practices aren't we? Thanks giving that is just as much a tradition on Thanksgiving as it is the Thanksgiving dinner itself There's a reason why they call it comfort food past the field
Why do we sleep after a big meal? Why do you sleep after a big meal now? Not discussing all the scientific and physiological reasons. I mean just the nuts and bolts the reason why will you sleep after getting milk? Well, we sleep because we are full When you are full you generally want to do nothing more than sleep I don't want to call any names this morning, but I have seen and heard some of you In what we might call food comers Being full slows us down nobody nobody eats Thanksgiving dinner and then runs a marathon Nobody eats Thanksgiving dinner and then goes and does 10 laps in the pool the last thing you want to do when you Full is run. I think coach Duncan soon will agree with that I am sure the last thing that she wants to see is her track athletes eating whoppers and Big Macs before they run their races But I would know one wants to run when they get full That is unless You get full with Jesus
Unless you are full with Jesus feel with checkers and Feel with five guys know But when you are filled with Jesus that is another thing When you are full of Jesus there is nothing else that you want to do but run And that's what we see in our textures morning That's what we see We are continued to look at this unfolding drama of Jesus and The Samaritan woman at the well last week we saw How Jesus offered to her that Living and loving and lasting waters of eternal life in replacement Remember of her stale temporary fleeting and and futile waters of this world and as Sam cook and the Therese there is remind us Jesus gave that woman water and it was not from the well She had come she had come to the well to get her bucket field but instead The bucket of her heart was the field She came to the waters at the well and she met Jesus She met the Messiah She met the Christ and Jesus Christ the Messiah changed everything And I text this morning Continues that drama and we see in verse 27 just as Jesus had field her bucket the Bible tells us that the disciples had returned So the disciples had returned They had returned because Jesus had no doubt Sent them into town and Jesus has sent them in the town not only just to get food as the Bible says in verse 8 of John chapter 4 but he but he also sent them in the town so that he could speak freely with this woman He sent the disciples in the town not just to get food, but so that he might have a conversation uninterrupted with the Samaritan woman But still however the disciples the reason that in their minds that they were going to town is because they were hungry They went into town to get food and so Jesus sent them to get food so that he could give this woman Water when they get back The text reminds us when they get back There is Jesus there is a marriage in woman here in his disciples and beloved Everybody is full everyone is full but the question for us this morning is Field with what That's the question Field with what We learn this morning that there are two things that the text reminds us two things that we can get filled with Hey, we can get filled with food and we can get filled with faith
Jesus used food to teach us about Faith you can get filled with food you can get filled with the food of this world
verse 27 the Bible says That when the disciples returned They came back with food That seems to me if they were hungry if anything like me they were probably nibbling along the way They were nibbling along the way as they were getting ready to bring the food back to Jesus They had been hungry and to some degree or another they had just eaten and Food was still on their mind naturally beloved before they brought the food back to the ride by they would not have eaten it All they would have not had a full meal, but they would have nibbled Like you would have nibbled by the time they get back to Jesus. They ready each They are ready to eat food is still on their mind and What did this do? By being so pre occupied with the food and the flesh and the and the appetite of the belly beloved it kept them from seeing and discerning what Jesus had been doing It kept them from seeing and discerning What Jesus had done? Notice what it says in verse 27, right? Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with the woman But no one acts No one acts What do you want no one acts? Why are you talking to her? Now beloved they thought it's strange and and they thought it unconventional for Jesus to be talking to this woman They thought it's strange and unconventional that he would be talking to a Samaritan But they didn't ask you this woman was They didn't ask what they were talking about. They didn't even bother to ask if she was hungry
Why not why did they not ask? What's going on Jesus? Why did they not ask? Jesus what y'all been talking about why didn't they ask Jesus? Why are you speaking to this woman? What's going on here? Why didn't they ask those questions beloved? They didn't ask those questions because those are spiritually minded questions Those are questions that are spiritually discerning That the spiritually discerning would ask these are the questions of the and they don't inquiries of those Who hunger and thirst for righteousness? They were not hungry for wisdom They were not hungry for truth. They were not hungry for righteousness. They were not hungry for Jesus Their minds and their appetites Well on the things of the world the appetites of their belly They had gotten some food and all they could think about what's filling up on The food. How do we know that when in verse 31
Meanwhile his disciples urged them rabbi eat something eat something. Let's eat Let's eat no no doubt no doubt. They had a concern for Jesus welfare, right? They had a concern for Jesus well-being in their mind Jesus hadn't eaten anything for quite a while and so they had brought food back and and Seen Jesus in this conversation with this woman. That wasn't their concern. Their concern was for their rabbi their teacher teacher We know you have to be hungry. Let's eat something
Because they were so concerned with the worldly and fleshly matters. They had a still had no idea about his mission And so food distracted them food distracted them from seeing it food distracted them from seeking it
Instead of talking to Jesus About the eternal truths of which he had been speaking to this woman They want to talk about food. We're hungry aren't you hungry? Come on, let's eat something Let's eat but notice what Jesus said to them in verse 32 says but he said to them I Have food to eat That you do not know about In other words, Jesus says no thanks You guys are late I Already ate I'm already full You guys are late they already ate if true food beloved as Jesus said if true food The food by which got nourished and satisfied the soul Then Jesus is saying to his disciples men I'm full I'm full. This is so instructive beloved This is so instructive for us and I am sure that it began to instruct the disciples But I hope it instructs us this morning the temptations of the flesh and The temptations of the world And the temptations of the devil our best met When you have already eaten did you hear what I said? You meet the temptations of the flesh the world and the devil When you can look at them and say I'm already full and Matthew chapter 4 in verse 3 The Bible says the Satan came and tempted Jesus and the Tempter came to him and says And said if you are the son of God tell these stones to become bread And Jesus said in Matthew 4 and verse 4 And Jesus answered and said it is written Men shall not live by bread alone But on every word that comes from the mouth of God in other words Jesus said no thanks Satan. I've already eaten
I've already eaten even though even though beloved Jesus had not had physical food for 40 days Even though the Bible said in verse 2 that he was hungry When see when Satan came to tempt Jesus Jesus said I already ate Already ate somebody ought to say that this morning say I already ate I already ate The next time the enemy comes to tempt you you tell him I already ate The next time the world comes and tells you that it's got something for which you can be satisfied you tell him I already ate The next time the flesh rises up and begins to tell you just touch and get it just a little bit more you tell the flesh I already ate
Already ate comes the love it and tells you that you are not happy and That you need just something or someone more you tell the world I already ate Already ate somebody ought to make that a t-shirt You ought to make that a hat
Walk around with a shirt that says I already ate If you walk around with a t-shirt that says I already ate you know what somebody gonna come up and do it to you and ask you a What that's what the disciples did That's what the disciples did the first 33 so the disciples said it wasn't that somebody brought him something to eat It was still on these fleshly matters on Jesus said to them My food Is to do the will of him who sent me And to accomplish his work in other words boys. I'm good on food I'm good on food I'm full My food is the will and the work and the word of God And Jesus here was telling his disciples we've already feasted here And if you work more discerning you would see That there is food all around us There is food all around us in verse 35 he says do you not see? But do you not say that there are four months then comes the harvest he says look You ain't got to wait for months I tell you lift up your eyes and see that the fields are right while white with harvest now Listen Beloved There is no food shortage in the kingdom of God
There is no food shortage in the kingdom of God
Fortunately in some corners and parts of our community and our city and our country and our world There is eight food shortage Children across our country even in our city beloved even this evening will go to bed Hungry even tonight and one of things that COVID-19 in the pandemic has has exposed to us once again Is the nature of this hunger crisis in the world that many are experiencing every day Which is why this is why right here in east point right here in river park We've had the blessed opportunity of of hosting and conducting the food drive in which we have been able to partner with the families of Parkland Ella entry and do a small but important part and alleviating the this shortage of food in our community In the richest country that the world has ever seen there should not be beloved a food shortage
no child Should go to bed hungry in our land And so we do our part We do our part To address This shortage in our community While there Is a food shortage in parts of our community beloved There is never ever a food shortage in the kingdom of God If the food is As Jesus said the will and the work And the word of God no one no one should go hungry No one should go hungry The will of God is always available to you you can eat The work of God is always ready to be done. You can eat the word of God is always always here to feed you You can eat There are no food shortages in the kingdom of God because beloved There are no seasons in the kingdom of God
There are no seasons in the kingdom of God No, it's what he says in verse 36 Already already the one who reads is receiving rages and gathering through for eternal life So the sore and the reaper may rejoice together in our world There is planting season and there is harvest season But in the kingdom of God beloved it is always planting season In the kingdom of God it is always harvesting season It is always sowing season it is always reaping season And therefore beloved what you sow today You are reaping tomorrow what you are reaping tomorrow They are sowing Yesterday It's always harvesting and reaping This is what we do You are either sowing or reaping
The kingdom of God is perpetual sowing and reaping
That's why Jesus says you don't wait for months
It's harvest time now You can eat now there is no shortage There's no shortage Because there's no shortage of the work There's no shortage of the word There's no shortage of the willow God Why didn't the disciples see this for them? Why didn't they discern this? Well, because the disciples were full They were full But now that the food that Jesus had They're full of their own food And when you get filled with your own food what do you do We already said it You go to sleep you go to sleep And what were the disciples doing? Like many of us They were sleeping They were sleeping They were in food commas
But notice who wasn't You know who wasn't in a food coma You know who wasn't sleeping You know who was full and wasn't sleeping That's the marital woman That's the marital woman She was full also
She wasn't full of the world's food Which caused you to sleep She was full of Jesus Which caused you to run Which causes you to run She was full But she was full of faith She was She was full And yet she ran Full And ran
She was full And yet she ran fast Then she had ever run before She was full But she didn't want to go to sleep She was full And she was ready to get to work
No it's a couple of things about her No it's a couple of things about her 11 Verse 28 First thing the Bible says about her That she dropped her bucket She left her water jar She dropped her bucket And she ran back to the city Why? Because, beloved She wasn't thirsty for the waters of the world anymore She had been filled with Jesus
Those waters Became This Interesting to her Because she had met the most interesting man in the world And his name was Jesus She dropped her Because she wasn't thirsty For those waters anymore She was filled with Jesus And how do we know that? Well, beloved She didn't run back home There was a man waiting back home
She didn't run back home There was a man waiting back home That she thought Would have what was satisfying her needs But once she met the most interesting man in the world She didn't run back home She ran the town She ran the town And she ran To tell the men of the town About a man that she had met And it wasn't a man in her home This is what Jesus does This is what Jesus does And satisfies you He filled and satisfies you With good things For the Bible says in Psalm 107 and verse 9 He filled her with faith For he satisfies the thirsty And he filled the hungry with Good things Good things And she was full She was full She's full because she met Jesus She was full because she looked at Jesus She looked full For the songwriter says Into his wonderful faith And the things of this world Even the man at home Through strangely dim In the light of Jesus glory And Jesus grace She was filled And she was ready to join the harvest And so she ran back to town And she called on the people of the town To come and see Jesus To come and see Jesus In verse 29 To come and see a man Come and see a man Come see a man Who knows things only the Messiah can Come and see him I love this, I love it I absolutely Positively love this She is not a published theologian She doesn't have any advanced degrees But she knows what matters She knows who matters And she invites others Just come and meet him
Just come and see Just come and meet him Because come The love it Is the simplest invitation Of the gospel that we have Just come That's what God said There chapter 1 verse 18 Come Come now let us reason together says the Lord Though your sins are like scholar They shall be white as snow Though they are red Like crimson They shall become like war What if he wants you to do Just come Just come It's what he said in Isaiah 55 And verse 1 Come all you who are thirsty Come to the waters And you who have no money Come by and eat Come by wine And milk without money And without cost He does not require Anything of you But come Come Not what The thing you said And that what Philip said in the thing you win the thing you said And John chapter 1 and verse 46 Can anything good come out of NASA And what does Philip say Just come and see Just come Just come and see And that what Jesus says Matthew chapter 11 Verse 28 Come to me All Labor and I have been laid And I'll give you Where Come to me In Revelation 22 Verse 17 The spirit and the bride What did they say Come Let anyone who hears this Do what Come Let anyone who is thirsty Do what Come Let anyone who desires drink freely From the water of life All God says Is Come Come The love is I can't save you But I know who can just come I can't heal you But I know who can You just come I can't fix you
The love and when you are talking to people About Jesus You don't need to try to fix them You don't need to try to save them
You just tell them come and see Jesus will do the rest Jesus will do the healing Jesus will do the fixing Jesus does the same
She wasn't in advanced theologian And she had no hard degree
But she knew what to say Just come to Jesus
Come The seeds of a gospel beloved Are just that easily planted
That is how easily The seeds of a gospel are planted When you just tell people Come and see
I'll tell you what he's done for me But you just come and see Come and see him Let Jesus do the rest Just tell people what Jesus did for you And Jesus will do the rest The love it So she did she planted her seed And her seed was small It was a little seed It was a small seed Right She went the top And she just said Come and see the man Who told me things that only Messiah can And that's small seed The love it The Bible says Produced a mighty harvest Verse 39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him Because of the woman's testimony He told me everything I ever did
She just told him to come Jesus did the rest She just told him I met Jesus This is what he has done for me Jesus did the rest Jesus did the rest They came Because of what she said Jesus did They ultimately trusted in Jesus Because of what Jesus said And would do for them John 442 the Bible says And 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 What happened When they got to Jesus They got feel too They got full to Field with faith Field with Jesus This is what it means for love it Don't miss this This is what it means to be full It means to understand the difference that Jesus makes
Those who become full
Understand the difference that Jesus makes Because when Jesus becomes real You become full-time Full-time What it means to be full And what it this is what it means to be full-time This is full-time Christianity This is what this woman is in Marriott She's a full-time Christian The disciples were part-time They were part-time It was full-time Part-time Christians get distracted Full-time Christians get focused
Part-time Christians They're just looking for the next big thing Full-time Christians are looking for today Turn a retirement It's not part-time Part-time Christians see it as a job Full-time Christians see it as a lifestyle
It's all I do It's all I got
It's all I mean Ain't looking for another job Full-time with Jesus Timers talk about Jesus Full-time with running They run They run for Jesus The question this morning Beloved Where you gonna be part-time Full-time This morning Is desiring Full-time Christians Those Feel With the Spirit of God Those Feel With the love of Jesus Those Full Of the kingdoms of China Oh, beloved It's time to get full It is time to get full You can feast on Jesus His will His work And His word You can get full And as you run You can remind The world The flesh and the devil At every turn I have already eaten And I'm full I'm full-time I pray I pray the love of theirs No one in here No one in here Without a know And desire To be full-time In Jesus Let's pray