External Means to Meet Internal Needs

This is Part 2 of a 5-Part Series on Strongholds

You may already be familiar with the story of the Samaritan woman at the well (if not, read John Chapter 4). Jesus is resting at a well, and a Samaritan woman comes to the well to draw water. Jesus asks her for a drink, and a conversation ensues. Jesus proceeds to confront the woman about her past; she has had 5 husbands, and the man she was currently with was not her husband.

For years, when I read about this story, I thought this was about a promiscuous woman; guess what? It’s not! It’s about an empty woman. Jesus is not trying to condemn the woman, or even to convict her; Jesus is very personal and intimate … He knows us better than we know ourselves, and He is trying to bring an area of need or lack to this woman’s attention. Jesus knows she has an unmet, internal, spiritual need (possibly a need for unconditional love, fulfillment, affirmation, or provision), which she is looking to fill through a man/marriage/relationship … He also knows that it is a need which no human being (or other external means) can possibly fulfill for her.

Jesus points out to her that she has a “thirst”, and that He is the “living water”; the One – and only One - who can permanently meet that need for her. The original word translated “living” is actually a verb, not an adjective; it might be more accurately translated, “water that lives”. If she seeks to meet her need through external means, she will only feel satisfied temporarily; she will “thirst again” (thus the need for 6 men!). However, Jesus provides a permanent “well” (the original word translated here means “supply”); Jesus permanently meets whatever need you have so that you never “thirst” again. He has the ability to permanently quench your thirst.

The more I have read the bible, the more convinced I am that one of Jesus’ primary goals was to root out people’s strongholds, so they would experience the abundant life (see John 10:10) that only He can supply.

For example, I often used to wonder why Jesus asked the rich man to sell everything he owned and follow Him, and yet Jesus never asked anyone else to do that (at least not in that way). I have come to believe it is because Jesus knew what only Jesus could possibly know; that, regardless of outward appearances, the man’s money and possessions had become a stronghold for him. No one would have suspected – even the man himself – that he had a stronghold in his life. The man says to Jesus that he has “kept all the laws”; I imagine he was outwardly doing all the right things … observing the Sabbath, tithing 10%, giving generously, helping others, etc. But Jesus knew the man’s heart. He knew that deep down inside, the man was turning to his money to provide something – possibly security, identity, confidence, self-image, or fulfillment. When Jesus asked the man to sell everything and follow Him, the man was unable to do it; his trust and faith was in his wealth instead of in his Savior.

I believe another example are the Pharisees (the religious leaders in biblical times). Their self-image and security (and probably their social status and relationships) rested in keeping the law (following all of the religious rules of their day). Jesus consistently challenged them on this; safety, security, self-worth, righteousness before God, etc. doesn’t come from following the law, or from any set of rules or standards … it comes from following HIM.

Until we identify the underlying internal/spiritual need we have (what we are “thirsting” for) and ask Jesus to fill it, we will find ourselves repeatedly drawn back to the same thing, and it will become a stronghold for us – the one we run to in times of trouble. Sometimes, it can even progress to a physical addiction, although it always begins as a stronghold.

Click Here to Read Part 3 in This Series on Strongholds