Karoline M. Lewis is the Marbury E. Anderson Chair in Biblical Preaching at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN, where she has taught since 2007.
Lewis is the author of the newly published Belonging: 5 Keys to Unlock Your Potential as a Disciple, among other books, as well as numerous articles and book chapters. She was one of the 100 religious scholars in the United States to contribute to the Values and Voices Campaign.
Ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Lewis holds degrees from Northwestern University (B.A.), Luther Seminary (M.Div.), and Emory University (Ph.D., New Testament Studies and Homiletics). She has served as Treasurer of Academy of Homiletics and Regional Coordinator for the Upper Midwest Region of the Society of Biblical Literature. Lewis is the Program Director of the Festival of Homiletics and Chair of the Homiletics and Biblical Studies Section of the Society of Biblical Literature. Lewis leads conferences, workshops, and retreats internationally on the Gospel of John, the New Testament, interpreting the Bible, preaching, leadership, and women in ministry. She is a contributing writer for Working Preacher, co-host of the site’s weekly podcast, Sermon Brainwave, and regularly authors the Dear Working Preacher column.
Visit karolinelewis.com for resources on preaching, leadership, and being a woman in ministry.
The Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:1-42) is my person—that is, my person in the Bible. She can’t be my “go-to” person, I guess, given the fact that 2,000 years separate us.
But almost every day, she inspires me.
From her I have learned more about faith, more about myself, and more about God, than from many of my contemporary acquaintances.
I admire her. I respect her—this woman with no name who holds her own in a conversation with Jesus and ends up being the first witness to the grace upon grace (John 1:16) that is ours because of Jesus.
Belonging narrates what the Samaritan woman at the well has taught me about following Jesus and invites readers to consider the lessons they might learn at the well.
Five aspects of Discipleship
The Samaritan woman’s encounter with Jesus changes her life and unlocks her potential as a disciple of Jesus.
In overhearing this conversation, we discover five aspects of discipleship worthy of our reflection: discomfort, wonder, trust, letting go, witness. This encounter at Jacob’s well should feel encouraging—that our own faith experiences can be trusted. That our own encounters with Jesus are worthy of reflection.
Discomfort, wonder, trust, letting go, and witness all name what it’s like to belong in a life-giving relationship. A life-giving relationship is one where there is deep mutual love; where reciprocity means both dependence and devotion; where trust gushes over, and what salvation truly means.
Through discomfort, God saves us from complacency.
Through wonder, God saves us from rigidity.
Through trust, God saves us from safe and calculated lives.
Through letting go, God saves us from holding on to that which keeps us captive.
And through witness, God saves us from ourselves—our inclination to keep what is meant for the world for our own personal gain.
Belonging Comes with Decisions
Belonging means some decisions: can we live in the discomfort of Sychar or will we sit around and long for life before the storm?
Will we wonder about newness and possibility or wish for the normal we had constructed?
Will we trust that the Spirit is breathing new life into dry bones once again or attempt to manipulate the rebirthing process?
Are we willing to let go of what no longer gives life or will we keep a white-knuckled grasp on what had died long ago?
And are we willing to witness to the Jesus we know or will we keep silent in the face of testimony bent on keeping Jesus from others?
Belonging as a Beginning
The five keys to unlock your potential as a disciple—discomfort, wonder, trust, letting go, witness—are not answers, but beginnings.
They are not orderly activities that determine how you measure up as a believer. Rather, discomfort, wonder, trust, letting go, and witness embody your belonging—to Jesus, to God—that’s the promise.
We might want to equate potential with capacity or capability, but that’s not the only way to think of potential.
Potential can mean budding, prospective, imaginable, possibility, and promise.
What I hope Belonging helps us embrace is that discipleship is not so much about doing but belonging.
And if Jesus can go to Sychar, Samaria, to find the woman at the well, Jesus will most certainly go wherever it takes to find you—the Beloved Disciple.