(1) It appears that Jesus continues to talk until 3:21. How appropriate was Jesus’ use of Moses and the bronze snake as an analogy of His work of salvation? (See Num. 21:4-9)
(2) We often associate the snake with evil, what does this analogy teach us about the use of symbols in the Bible?
(3) 3:16 makes a very clear statement about eternal death and eternal life, and many people opine that a God who can send people to death is not a God of love. Read v. 18 carefully a few times. How does this verse answer this criticism?
(4) Substitute your own name in v.16 and read over it a few times.
(5) What is the verdict declared by Jesus as He sees the response of the people to Him and His ministry? (v. 19)
(6) In contrast to the one who does evil, how does the one who lives in truth respond to the light and why?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
John the Baptist’s final testimony about Jesus:
(1) As John’s disciples and the “Jew” brought their dispute to John:
a. What did they already know about John and Jesus?
b. What was their motive in telling what John already knew — that many had switched to be baptized by Jesus and to follow Him?
(2) Read carefully John’s response:
a. What is the essence of v. 27?
b. Who is he not?
c. In using the bride and bridegroom’s analogy:
- Who is the bride? (See Mat. 25:1ff)
- Who is the groom? (See Rev. 21:2, 9ff)
- Who is the friend?
- Why is John’s joy now complete?
d. What conclusion does John draw in v.30 and why?
(3) What is the most important lesson you can learn from John the Baptist?
(4) Read carefully vv. 31-36. Jot down all that John said about Jesus. What can you learn about Christ?
(5) Review the entire chapter 3 and highlight everything about “eternal life”. How important is eternal life to you and to Jesus’ mission?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) Why did Jesus have to leave Judea and go back to Galilee?
(2) To the disciples, Samaria was not a welcoming town to the Jews, and it was a place that He “had to pass through”. As it turned out, it was a divine appointment for the Samaritan woman. How might this incident speak to your current situation?
(3) Why did Jesus have to stop and sit down at the well? How does it speak to the extent of His “incarnation”?
(4) Why was the woman surprised that Jesus asked her for a drink?
(5) In what way(s) is cross-cultural evangelism easier and in what way(s) might it be harder?
(6) Jesus, of course, was thirsty, but what do you think the real reason was behind His asking her for a drink?
(7) How did Jesus use the water from the well as an object lesson to teach the truth?
(8) How did the woman respond to His self-revelation and why?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) What is the living water that Jesus talked about?
(2) How is it different from other types of water?
(3) From the woman’s reply in v. 15, do you think she really understood what Jesus meant?
(4) How did Jesus help her understand her thirst and the true meaning of the living water that He offers?
(5) Are you now thirsty (answer honestly), and why?
(6) In order that the woman could drink of this living water, why was it essential that the issue with her personal life had to be first dealt with?
(7) Is there any personal issue in your life that has yet to be dealt with so that you will not be thirsty anymore?
(8) Why did the woman, all of a sudden, talk about the place of worship?
(9) What is worshipping in spirit and in truth? What is not?
(10) How can you apply it to your Sunday worship and your attitude toward your place of worship?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) How did Jesus end His conversation with the woman in v. 26?
(2) How did the woman respond to the word of Jesus?
a. What was her purpose in coming to the well?
b. Why did she leave her water jar behind?
(3) How does v.6 describe Jesus’ physical condition?
(4) Did the disciples believe that Jesus might have eaten? (v. 33)
(5) Do you think when Jesus talked to the disciples, He still looked tired? Why or why not?
(6) What is Jesus’ food? Why did He use food as an analogy? What is your food today?
(7) In Samaria, the time for seeding is in November/December, and harvest time would be in April. So when Jesus asked them to look, they could only see bare fields at the time; yet Jesus said the harvest was already “white”. Read v. 35 carefully: What might Jesus be pointing to and what might the disciples be seeing? (Remember people in those days dressed normally in white.)
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) V. 6 points out that the time the woman drew water from the well was at noon, a very hot hour of the day in a desert land. Can you imagine why?
(2) And now, she openly talks about her adulterous life. What effect does drinking the Living Water have on a person?
(3) From what the people of Samaria said of the reason for their belief, can you define what “true faith” in Christ is?
(4) Was it your experience too?
(5) How does the statement in v. 44 echo that of v. 3?
(6) Why did the people in Galilee respond differently from the people in Jerusalem although they saw and heard the exact same things in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast?
(7) What kind of faith did this royal official have when he asked Jesus for help?
(8) How did Jesus test his faith?
(9) How did he respond to Jesus’ words?
(10) How special was his faith?
(11) What kind of faith did he and his household have after the healing of his son?
(12) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) Some older manuscripts added that whoever first dipped into the stirring water would be healed. If this were true, do you think it was an act of God? Why or why not?
(2) On the other hand, if it was not true, why would people still line up, including this invalid of 38 years?
(3) Of all people, why did Jesus only heal this invalid?
(4) “Do you want to be well?” appears to be a superfluous question. In what sense was it not superfluous, but a very important question to this man?
(5) How did Jesus heal the man and how special was His method of healing?
(6) Mark the different reactions to this miracle:
a. How did the man react to his healing? What does it tell us about him?
b. How did the Jews react to his healing? Why did they not choose to rejoice over his healing, or at least rejoice at the manifestation of God’s power in their midst?
(7) Why did Jesus choose to show Himself to the man again?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?