John's Gospel

The Way It Happened

John 4:28-29, The First Evangelist

Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?”  

//This woman is sometimes called the “first evangelist” in the New Testament. Do you recognize who she is?

The story comes from John’s Gospel. She is, of course, a woman … hardly what you would expect of a respected news-bringer. A woman’s word in the first century counted for little; they were not even allowed to offer testimony in a court of law.

She is also a Samaritan, a people hated by the Jews of Jesus’ time. The Samaritans were once Israelites, but they became polluted by intermarriage with other nations (primarily the conquering Assyrians) and thus were considered half-breeds.

She is slow to understand. It seems impossible for her to grasp the idea of living water. 

And she is disreputable, having had five husbands, and now living with a man who was not her husband.

Yes, the person selected by Jesus to first carry his message is the anonymous “woman at the well.” Who’d a thunk?

12 Comments

  1. mothibeli

    Dear Sir
    Can u pls help me with the following:

    a) Are we still under the Moses law?Why?
    b Do we have female pastors in the bible? Why?
    Kind regards,
    Tshepo

    • Lee Harmon

      Your opinion would be appreciated as well. My take is this:

      a) We are if we wish to be. But Jesus brought a higher law, for a better world.

      b) We clearly have female leaders in the Bible, but one wonders if Jesus had any such church leaders in mind…male OR female. See http://www.dubiousdisciple.com/2014/04/galatians-111-12-paul-contradicts-jesus-part-i-of-iii.html

    • Some people think its ok as women to be pastors

    • We have female leaders n the Bible I don’t think anyone was called a pastor until Paul’s wrote I’m Ephesians about the ministry & the administraton of the gifts of the spirit for the edification the building up the church

    • where in the bible did it say she was a evangelist give me chapter and verse please and if you can’t give chapter and verse stop lying

  2. Le.bebe2013@gmail.com

    Thank god for his spirit in man woman boy and girl that we may witness and evangelize in his nane

  3. She was not Evangelist!because she went back and Testify About Jesus she is now a Evangelist! No were in the bible did Jesus declare any women a Pastor or Evangelist??????scripture please thanks!

    • Priscilla and Aquila had one of the 1st churches in the Bible;
      Priscilla and Aquila are mentioned by name six times in the New Testament, always together as a couple (Acts 18:2-3, Acts 18-19, Acts 26; Rom 16:3-5; 1Cor 16:19; 2Tim 4:19). They exercised leadership among the fledgling churches and were held in high.

      Thank you very much.

  4. Priscilla Ugwute

    When it comes to Kingdom business no gender selection. The command is go and preach the gospel to all nations. The CHRIST we are following came for kingdom sake and not for church administration.

  5. Miyom arop

    Yeah its ok for a woman to be pastor

  6. who is the first evangelst in the bible

  7. luk;2;36 she is hana san of fanueal

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