Willing Enough to Reach One: What Jesus’ Conversation at the Well Teaches Yountville About Mission
In John 4, Jesus goes through Samaria to reach one hurting person—showing Yountville Community Church what it looks like to be willing enough to cross barriers, love boldly, and help one friend take a step toward Jesus.
A Clearer Vision for the Church in Yountville
When people think of “church,” it’s easy to picture a building. But in this sermon, we’re reminded of something deeply biblical and deeply freeing: the church is a gathering of people—flesh and blood, not brick and mortar. Jesus didn’t say He would build a beautiful facility. He said He would build His church, and that even the gates of hell would not prevail against it.
That matters here in Yountville and across Napa Valley because our community doesn’t just need a place to attend—it needs a people who live on mission.
This message lands in week three of our “2020 Vision” series (not the year—think vision, clarity, alignment). The question guiding this week is simple and searching:
Are we willing enough?
Not just willing to agree with Jesus—but willing to follow Him into the places we’d rather avoid.
150 Years of Faithfulness—and the Question of What We Leave Behind
Yountville Community Church traces its roots back to 1876, which means 2026 marks 150 years of God’s faithfulness through this church family. That’s not just a fun historical fact—it’s a moment to pause and wonder: what did it cost the people before us to plant a church here? And what might God be inviting us to build for the people who will live in this valley after us?
If we want the kingdom of God to take root in Napa Valley—not just in theory, but in real changed lives—then willingness is not optional. It’s foundational.
The Power of One: A Simple Commitment That Changes Everything
Here’s the practical invitation that anchors the sermon:
What if, in 2026, each person made a simple commitment to Reach One—one friend, one coworker, one neighbor, one family member—helping them take one step closer to Jesus?
We often underestimate “one,” because we’re trained to look for big results. But the math of mission is different. When everyone reaches one, something powerful happens: multiplication. It’s how communities change—one relationship at a time.
Jesus Goes to an Unlikely Place to Reach One (John 4)
To show what “Reach One” looks like, we turn to John 4—the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well.
John writes that Jesus “had to pass through Samaria.” But as Pastor Ted pointed out, Jesus didn’t have to geographically. Many Jews intentionally went around Samaria to avoid Samaritans entirely.
That’s the point: Jesus didn’t choose the easy route. He chose the intentional route.
Because following Jesus means we don’t go around cultural walls. We don’t avoid “those people.” We don’t wait for hurting, broken, ashamed people to limp into safe, clean spaces.
Jesus goes through—and He calls His people to do the same.
Why the Woman Was at the Well at Noon
The details matter. This woman comes to the well at the sixth hour—around noon—the hottest part of the day. That’s not when women typically collected water. They came in the cool morning, together.
She came alone.
Why? Because loneliness felt safer than rejection. Shame had made her a social outcast, and isolation became a kind of control—painful, but familiar.
And right there, in the middle of her ordinary need, Jesus meets her.
“You Don’t Even Have a Bucket”—and Jesus Offers Living Water
The conversation begins with Jesus asking for a drink. The woman is shocked: Jews and Samaritans didn’t mix. Men didn’t typically initiate conversations with women this way—especially alone.
But Jesus is not acting out of accident or convenience. He is acting out of mission.
Jesus offers “living water”—life that satisfies beyond what circumstances can provide. He explains that ordinary water only satisfies for a moment, but what He gives becomes “a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
Her response is honest and aching: “Sir, give me this water…”
You can almost hear the longing underneath her words: I’m tired. I’m thirsty in more ways than one. I don’t want to keep living like this.
The Moment Jesus Names Her Pain
Then the conversation turns: “Go call your husband.”
She tries to move past it: “I have no husband.”
Jesus gently but clearly names the truth: she’s had five husbands, and the man she’s with now is not her husband.
Jesus isn’t exposing her to shame her. He’s inviting her into wholeness. He’s revealing that He knows her—fully—and still chooses to meet her with grace.
This is where many of us recognize ourselves. We carry weight from the past. We hide what hurts. We fear that if people knew the real story, we’d be rejected.
But Jesus doesn’t ask us to clean ourselves up before we come to Him. He meets us in the mess—and offers new life.
What Happens When One Person Meets Jesus
The turning point of the story is beautiful: the woman leaves her water jar and runs back to town. The very thing she came for—water—becomes less important than the One she has just met.
And the most surprising detail? She goes back to the people who shunned her and says, “Come and see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?”
That’s courage. That’s transformation.
And then Scripture says the town came out to Jesus.
This is the ripple effect: the one who’s reached can open the door for many.
Willing Enough to Go Through
Pastor Ted brought it home with a challenging truth: following Jesus will cost you something. It will cost comfort. Convenience. Reputation. The temptation to “play it safe.”
But if Jesus met us in our pain, how could we refuse to meet others in theirs?
In a place like Yountville—surrounded by beauty, success, and busy schedules—there are still people with quiet emptiness, private shame, and a deep need for hope. Some look messy. Some look put-together. But the need is the same: living water.
So here’s the question that lingers:
Who’s your one?
And what would it look like, this year, to go through—not around—so that one person you love can take a step toward Jesus?