Jesus continued conversing with His disciples around the well at Sychar in John 4:35-42 - "'Do you not say, "There are still four months and then comes the harvest"? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: "One sows and another reaps." I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.' And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, 'He told me all that I ever did.' So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word. Then they said to the woman, 'Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.'"

Jacob's well in Sychar overlooked the grain fields of Moreh. If the disciples looked at the fields, they would say that it would be four more months until the harvest. The harvests in the natural world are slow. But, if they turned their eyes toward the city, the disciples could see the citizens of the town pouring forth to come see Jesus. He would gather many of them as a harvest of disciples which had sprung up and ripened from the seeds of truth sown by the woman just minutes earlier. Sowing spiritual seed sometimes brings speedy harvests.

Harvest time is typically a time of joy, satisfaction, and profit. The one who reaped this harvest would receive everlasting wages, but he was not the only one who labored for this harvest. Others before him had sown the precious seed (Luke 8:11), and they would rejoice with him and share in the fruit of the harvest (cf. I Cor. 3:5-15).

Those who reap are blessed by those who have sown long before. The disciples were now about to profit from the labors of all who had gone before them: the prophets, John the baptizer, and all others who had kept alive the divine message. In the case of the Samaritans, the disciples were about to observe a quick and easy harvesting of seed they had not sown themselves. They would thus reap where they had not sown. This would be especially characteristic of the work of the apostles following the establishment of the church. Our Lord sowed, often with few positive visible results. The apostles, as reapers, gathered more souls in one day (Acts 2:41) than He did throughout His ministry. Yet, these converts were His, and their work was His work as they went forth to the great harvest as His workers.

John 4:39 notes that many believed in Jesus because of the testimony the woman gave. This is strong evidence that she herself believed back in 4:29.

Jesus came to His own people (i.e., the Jews) and they did not receive Him (1:11). But, the Samaritans did! They realized the great opportunity that was before them, and they "urged" Jesus to stay with them. The stay was brief, but long enough to prepare the way for the future message that would be preached there (cf. Acts 8:5ff).

It is interesting that many "believed because of His own word." There is no recorded evidence that Jesus performed any miracles here (other than His statement in 4:18).

John 4:42 indicates that some of the Samaritans had believed because of the testimony of the woman; others developed faith in Him because they heard Jesus personally. Additionally, those who believed because of the woman's testimony, after hearing Him, came into a deeper, fuller faith because of this personal contact. They then fully believed Him to be "the Savior of the world." With great joy these people must have come to that conclusion! He was their Savior also, and not merely a Messiah to the Jewish nation.

Friends, praise be to God that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world! He is the giver of living water and eternal life. May we, like the Samaritans, develop a genuine faith in Him, and may we, like the woman, share our faith with others, bringing them to Christ!