Dave's Diary

Daily Reading: 2 Kings 17

This week our attention shifts from Jesus’ encounter with Nicodemus, “The Teacher” to the encounter he had with “The Town” in John 4. The encounter happened when Jesus ministered so powerfully to a woman from the town of Sychar in Samaria that she rushed back home and told the townspeople, ‘Come, see a man who told me everything I’ve ever done. Could this be the Messiah?’ (John 4:29) In response to her testimony, the townspeople flocked out to see Jesus and His ministry to them led many to believe in Him too.

Today’s reading from 2 Kings 17 sets the scene. It helps us to understand why the disciples (and the first readers of John) would have been as surprised to see Jesus ministering to a Samaritan town as the Samaritan woman was to have Him pay any attention to her in the first place(John 4:9). The areas which became known as Judea and Samaria had once been the kingdom of Israel, under David and Solomon. It was when Solomon’s sons Jeroboam and Rehoboam fought over the throne that the kingdom split in two. The southern Kingdom became known as Judea with its capital in Jerusalem, and the northern kingdom retained the name Israel with its capital city, Samaria. A 2 Kings 17:7-23 explains, the people of the northern kingdom fell into such depths of idolatry and rebellion against God that God handed them over to the Assyrians and, “in the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria.” (v.6)

2 Kings 17:24-41 explains how the Assyrian king then sent other people from the various corners of his empire to resettle the region which now became known as Samaria, and how they intermarried with the last remaining Jews of the region and mixed their idolatrous religions and pagan practices with worship of the LORD. Verse 41 says, “Even while these people were worshipping the Lord, they were serving their idols. To this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their ancestors did.“

The townspeople to whom Jesus ministered with such great effect in John 4 were these very descendants – Samaritans. They were the last people the Jewish disciples and readers of John’s Gospel would ever have expected to be “worthy” of receiving Jesus’ ministry – let alone receiving it with faith! But that is exactly what happened. As it turns out, ALL people CAN be saved!

May we realise today that no one is beyond the reach of our Saviour Jesus. Even the most fallen and depraved seeming person can still be reached by the love of God in Jesus Christ and, if they respond to Him and His love with repentance and faith, they too will be adopted into His family. This is the amazing grace of our God!

Lord Jesus, help me to see everyone I meet today with Your eyes and to be an instrument of Your ministry to them. Remove any pride and prejudice from my heart so that I can be used effectively to draw people home to You. Amen.