A dialogue in Samaria II
A second, and possibly more important, message from this passage – John 4 - involves a discussion on the locus, the physical setting where the Lord would convey this communication (see A Dialogue in Samaria I). This discussion is revealed in verses 13-14: Jesus answered and said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life." (John 4: 13-14).
Verse 14 specifically mentions that the water we receive from God through the Lord Jesus – salvation – becomes a water well that will conduct us to eternal life. That shows the clear change in locus of our contact with God. From the holy places, altars, tabernacle, and finally the temple, all established in the Old Testament, the Lord moved the locus to men’s life, heart and soul. That means that the Holy Spirit resides in the lives of those that believe and have accepted the Lord as his/her personal Savior. It is in our lives that the Lord communicates with us, through the Holy Spirit. “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (I Corinthians 3:16).
What is, then, the role of our present-day (improperly called) temples and houses of worship? The Lord Jesus specifically answered that question: “And He began to teach and say to them, "Is it not written, ' MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS'? But you have made it a ROBBERS' DEN." (Mark 11:17). We see two main functions prescribed by the Lord in this verse: learning and prayer. Learning the scriptures - being continuously reminded of the example of life left by the Lord Jesus, and praying as a congregation (i.e. as a group), these are the only functions for these houses. Unfortunately many of them became places of bargain, where people attend with the illusion that sacrifices – and appearance of sanctity – will obtain favors from the Lord……