“You have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband.” John 4:18
Think about the immense sadness of this woman’s life. Her personal history had been a story of broken relationships.
Think of all the joy of a wedding and all the anticipation of joy. Five times she had married with all the hopes of happily ever after. Five times it had ended in disappointment. Now she was living with a man who did not want to marry her.
In any society, having five husbands would be unusual, but in the ancient world it would have been unusual in the extreme. That may be why there was so much interest in the town when this woman told her story: “Come see a man who told me everything I ever did!”
“Well, a stranger who knows everything you have ever done must be quite remarkable—let’s go meet him!”
Her own story might have led her to wonder, Why would God be interested in me? But here’s what you need to know: Jesus crosses every barrier in order to reach this woman, who seemed about as far away from faith in Jesus Christ as it would be possible for a person to be.
Do you think Jesus would be willing to cross every barrier in order to reach you? Why or why not? Which barriers do you think Jesus might be willing to cross? Which barriers do you think Jesus might not be willing to cross? Why?