THE KING’S BUSINESS
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pel of John, and listening to His words as they are here recorded and as they are interpreted to our own hearts by the Holy Spirit. If we have been capable of judging by a surrender of our wills to God, then we shall come not merely to believe but to know that He is a Teacher sent from God, and that He is in deed “ the Saviour of the world” (cf. John 7:17). The Samaritan woman had done her work and had'done it well, but she now disappears from the Gospel history. Those to whom she had tes tified are brought into personal con tact with Him of Whom she testified. The true worker is always the one who brings the one with whom he is dealing directly to the Saviour where he can hear Him for himself, and then gets out of the way. Too many make the mistake of bringing people to themselves and continually stand ing between those whom they bring and the Christ to Whom they would bring them. The expression “ the Saviour of the world” is found in no other place in the New Testament ex cept here and in 1 John 4:14, and it is deeply significant that it was first used by the Samaritans. The Jews looked for a Messiah who should be only the Saviour o f the Jews, the Samaritans would have no part in Him, but as these 'despised Samari tans sat at the feet of Jesus, it dawned clearly upon them that He was their Saviour as well as the Saviour of the Jews and not merely their Saviour, but the Saviour of the whole human race; any one of any race who would come to Him might have a part in Him. 11. The Lord Jesus Received by the Galileans because they had seen all the Things that He did at Jerusalem at the Feast, 43-45. Vs. 43, 44. “Now (rather, And)
our Lord’s life which we find in these records of His words and deeds. Vs. 41, 42. “ And many (rather, by far) more believed because of His own (omit, own) word; and (add, they) said unto (rather, to) the wom an (add, that), Now we believe, not because of thy saying (rather, We no longer believe because of thy saying) : for we have heard him ourselves (rather, we have ourselves heard), and know that this is indeed (rather, truly) the Christ (omit, the Christ) the Saviour o f the world.” The meaning of verse 41 is not that many more believed in addition to the Samaritans who had already believed, but that by far more be lieved through the word of Christ Himself than had believed through the testimony of the woman. The highest form of faith is not that which is founded upon miracles which one sees (cf. ch. 20:29), nor even that which is built upon the tes timony of others, but that which comes from hearing or reading the words o f Christ, and being immedi ately and directly convinced by the character and substance of Christ’s own teaching, that He is indeed what He claims to be, the Saviour of the world. To this higher form of faith the Samaritans now came, and they tell the woman frankly that their faith is no longer built upon her testi mony but upon their own direct con tact with Jesus. Through this they were brought to the place where they not only believed but “ knew” through the response of their own hearts to His teaching that He not only claimed to be the Saviour of the World, but that He was “ truly” or “ in very fact” what He claimed to be. It is our privilege to-day to have this same kind of faith, by sitting at the feet of Jesus as He is presented to us in the Gospels, especially in the Gos
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