Did the Samaritan woman wonder . . . ?

The conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman has always frustrated and confused me. John's gospel makes it sound like a verbal tango, tension, struggle, and finally common ground.

Trudging through John 4, questions began to rise to the surface, the Samaritan woman wondered about some of the same things:

• Can I possibly be worthy of the Messiah's attention?
• Does He have enough grace to cover all my sin?
• Am I worried about the flesh when I should focus on the spirit?
• How can I know God only wants and wills what's best for me?

Or did she try to pull herself out of the pit of sin and doubt with empty words? What was the Samaritan woman thinking as she tried to keep up in a battle of words and wit with the Messiah? 

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you don't have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where would you get that life-giving water? 12 It was our ancestor Jacob who gave us this well; he and his children and his flocks all drank from it. You don't claim to be greater than Jacob, do you?”
John 4: 11-12 GNT

And how did Jesus respond to her questions, never mind whether they were arrogant or desperate? He answered the only way he could:

The Lord is kind and true to those who obey what he said in his agreement.
Psalm 25:10 ERV

I think Jesus responds to our questions with the the love John and the Apostle Paul describe:

And God showed his love for us by sending his only Son into the world, so that we might have life through him. 
1 John 4: 9 GNT

Love patiently accepts all things. It always trusts, always hopes, and always continues strong.
1 Corinthians 13:7 ICB

​Dear Reader, do you have questions? I pray you do! I believe it's our questions that force us to go deeper, to claim faith of our own. Best of all, God knows the answers to all of our questions, even before we ask.

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