What If Your Real Hunger Is To Do God’s Will

What if the satisfaction you’re missing isn’t another achievement but a different kind of food entirely? We walk through John 4 and watch Jesus, weary and thirsty, light up with fresh strength after one honest conversation with a Samaritan woman. His secret is startling and simple: “My food is to do the will of Him who sent me.” That line reframes joy, worship, and mission for anyone who feels stuck chasing short-lived highs.

We revisit the well and see how grace tells the truth without crushing the heart. Worship shifts from geography to spirit and truth, inviting an inner change that overflows into action. The woman leaves her water jar and runs to tell her town—a picture of what happens when hope finally outweighs shame. From there, we follow Jesus’ harvest language: stop saying “later” and lift your eyes now. Some of us will sow, others will reap, but all share the reward because God has been working long before we arrive. Along the way, we face what chokes our fruit—cares of this world, the pull of comfort, and the fog of discouragement—and learn to anchor our lives in Scripture the way Jesus did in the wilderness.

We also talk courage. The early church rejoiced when pressured to be silent and kept preaching Jesus as the Christ. That same bold, compassionate steadiness is needed today as we pray for laborers and discover God often answers by sending us. This is a warm, Scripture-rich journey through joy, obedience, evangelism, and the urgency of a harvest already ripe. If you’re hungry for purpose that outlasts the moment and a faith that acts with love, this conversation will meet you at the well and invite you into the field.

If this resonates, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs courage today, and leave a review so more people can find the message. Lift your eyes—where is your field this week?

Come On Up is the radio ministry of The Mountain Cross in Waynesville North Carolina. To learn more about us please visit: TheMountainCross.com. 

Transcript

Opening Scripture And Theme

SPEAKER_01 0:05

Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, and we shall walk in his paths.

SPEAKER_00 0:13

Welcome to Come On Up, the Radio Ministry of the Mountain Cross in Waynesville, North Carolina.

SPEAKER_02 0:20

I was reflecting how I was reflecting going through the study, and you know, some of the times of greatest joy in my life came in ministry circumstances. When we're ministering and pouring our lives into other people, and you see God move in the circumstance and things change. That just it's something it does something to you, doesn't it? It pumps you up, it gives you this joy to keep on going no matter what. And Jesus was experiencing the same thing.

SPEAKER_00 0:48

It's easy to believe that reaching your goals or snagging that item you've been eyeing will bring you the happiness you crave in life. But really, how long does that joy stick around? It's short-lived. Today, Pastor Carl reminds you that the real joy in life springs from serving God and helping others find their way back to Him. Sharing the Word of God and talking about Jesus brings such incredible happiness. Knowing that you've played a part in helping someone find his or her way back to God is simply amazing. And now, here's Pastor Carl.

Worship In Spirit And Truth

Disciples Arrive And Awkward Moment

My Food Is To Do God’s Will

Resisting The Flesh And Trusting Scripture

Joy In Suffering And Bold Witness

Distractions That Choke Spiritual Fruit

Lift Your Eyes: The Fields Are Ready

Sowers, Reapers, And Shared Reward

SPEAKER_02 1:28

Let's get into a study of God's Word, then, since that's what we're here for, to simply teach the Word of God simply, and we're in John chapter 4. We'll be finishing up that chapter. John chapter 4 was the chapter about the woman at the well. And last we saw that the one who brings us rest was exhausted. The Lord got exhausted so he could bring us rest. But he needed some time to rest. And so when they were coming into this Samaritan town of Shikar, he said, You guys go get some food and I'll wait here by this well. Hopefully, somebody will come by that can get some water out for me and I get some rest, some rejuvenation. And this woman came at noon when no other women came. She had a history, she had a past. She had uh four husbands, and the the man that she was living with now is is not, she wasn't married to, so she she didn't have a real good luck with relationships. But Jesus was here and talking with her, saying all sorts of things, and she was into debating and stuff, and she was a little perturbed too about the Jews because the Jews hated Samaritans and they think they're all better because they worship in Jerusalem. We worship here on this mountain. And Jesus said, the time will come where it doesn't matter where you worship, but God is seeking worshipers that will worship in spirit and in truth. It's a supernatural thing. It's it's something that happens when God actually changes you from the inside out, and you see things from his perspective, and you and you give him the praise and the glory that he deserves. I hope that's what we were doing out of spirit and truth. We were acknowledging these words that we saw on the screen, that these are what's coming out and flowing out of my heart. And he started telling her some things, especially about her husbands and the man that she's living with now, and and it just uh it clicks something. And she's admitting, could this be the Messiah we've been waiting for? Because they, the Samaritans, were waiting for a Messiah that would be the revealer, that would share all truth with them. And she was being shared all these things about her that she had no idea anybody would know. This must be the guy. And that's where we pick up right now. In verse 27, and at this point his disciples came and they marveled that he was talking with a woman, yet no one said, What do you seek? or or why are you talking to her? You notice it said that they were surprised he was talking to a woman, not to a Samaritan. They talked with Samaritans, but uh he was talking with a woman, and there was some stigma there. And um you could do some study in there and why some of the traditions of the Pharisees look down on women and so forth, but Jesus had a different perspective on women, didn't he? Women are part of mankind, and they're they're the ones that I've come to die for that I love. I love all. I've come that all would be able to come to the knowledge of Christ. And women are important, and so he came to her. But it was kind of an odd situation because it was Jesus alone with this woman, and that's kind of scandalous too, isn't it? And I just, you know, I try to put myself in this situation, what it looked like. She's getting excited because she's starting to realize who he is. She's kind of giddy. He's got a big smile on her face because he's excited that she is realizing who he is, and that's why he's come, that people would know him and be changed by him and saved by him. And the disciples are coming with some food and they're going, What's going on? I could just imagine Peter said, Why? And he holds back and he doesn't say anything. He's trying, almost said what everybody else was thinking. What are you doing talking to this woman? But they just stood there. And then everybody was, and Jesus probably turned to Peter with a big smile on his face. And Peter didn't know what to do with that. What is going on here? And just a few moments of nothing, silence, just an awkward silence. And then, verse 28, the woman left her water pot and went her way to the city and said to the men, Come and see a man who's told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ? And they went out of the city and came to him. So in that moment, she's like excited, he's excited. The disciples are going, What is going on? She drops her water jug and runs off. Okay, that's interesting, Jesus. So what's going on? In the meantime, while she goes to the city, the disciples continue to talk to him and urge him to eat. Rabbi, eat. You've we left you, you were exhausted, and now you're kind of acting crazy. You need to eat. And Jesus, with a big smile on his face, he says, I have food to eat of which you do not know. And therefore his disciples said to one another, Has has anyone brought him anything to eat? Did somebody else come and give him something to eat? What is he talking about? I think he's hallucinating a little bit. I don't know. Verse 34, and Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Jesus not only knew what his call was and he was determined to do it, but he found great joy when he saw the fruits happening. Can you relate to that? Have you been involved with ministry and you obviously see God working in your midst and touch some people? And either they come to faith for the first time, their eyes are open, or they've been Christians for a long time and they come to a passage and they see something that they hadn't seen before, and their eyes get all open and excited because this was a life-changing message that happened to them, and you might have known that before, but you saw it in somebody else, and it just excites you, doesn't it? I know we were the last time we were together for the fruit of the spirit study, where we're talking about the fruit of joy. And I was reflecting how I was reflecting going through the study. And you know, some of the times of greatest joy in my life came in ministry circumstances. When we're ministering and pouring our lives into other people, and you see God move in the in the circumstance, and and things change. That just it's something, it does something to you, doesn't it? It pumps you up, it gives you this joy to keep on going no matter what. And Jesus was experiencing the same thing. But you know, he said something similar and not such an exciting situation. Uh you remember at the beginning of his ministry after he got baptized, it was in Matthew chapter 4, Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. This was not a joy-filled time. And when he had fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, he was he was hungry. He was hungry. And the tempter came to him and said, If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread. And that's what the enemy will do. He will come and twist and and take advantage of the situation in your flesh. But you know, Jesus had a way of lording over his flesh. When he told his disciples that I'm not hungry, he didn't really say that. I'm doing the this this other food is really what gives me excitement, what gives me sustenance, what keeps me going is doing this ministry and seeing seeing people's lives changed. That doesn't mean he didn't need food. We all need food, we all need to take care of these fleshly bodies that we have, but we need to change the tables. We need to flip the tables where we, our spirits, are in charge of our bodies. We know what our bodies need and we take care of our bodies, but we don't allow our bodies to tell us what to do. To say, you gotta eat, you gotta eat, you gotta eat, you gotta drink, you gotta drink, you gotta drink, you gotta go do this, you gotta do that. So often we, you know, in our old man, we are are led by our flesh instead of by our spirit. And Jesus isn't our Jesus is our example of how he was led by the Spirit and subdued the flesh. But that doesn't mean He He didn't take care of his flesh. He did. It's called stewardship. And how he answered the enemy, he said, It is written that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. More important than food that sustains our body, not that we don't need food, but more important than that is the word of God that changes us from the inside out, that changes us forever, not just for the next few hours after we ate. In a couple of chapters, we'll see uh a conversation between the crowd and Jesus. Jesus was saying to his disciples in this instance, My food is to do the work of the Father and do it till it's done. I've finished that work. And so in a couple of chapters, we'll see the crowd, and they're gonna ask him, What shall we do that we may work the works of God? And Jesus answered and said to them, This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he sent. If you're looking for doing works that please God, the works that please God is believing him. If you go back to our study in John chapter 3, you realize what to believe means. It's not just an intellectual thing, yeah, I believe this, but it's it's a life-changing thing. It's a commitment, it's a it's a surrender. It's I believe with my whole heart that this is the fact. And when we have given our lives to the Lord because we believe in what He's done and we build that relationship with Him, then we can be used by Him to do the works of God, which is to proclaim the good news and to see other people come to faith and grow in their knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And when it happens, it's exciting, isn't it? It's a joy that's unspeakable when you are used by God to touch somebody else, especially when you recognize in truth what a wretched man that I am. We're all wretched. Paul says he was the worst of the worst, and yet God used him in some great ways. So, whenever we're used by God, it's an exciting thing, even in bad situations. Later on, the the apostles would experience this in Acts chapter 5, and the city authorities called them in, and and they they told the apostles after beating them, they commanded them that they should not speak in the name of Jesus and let them go. You need to stop talking about Jesus. And what was their reaction? They departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for the for shame for his name. And daily in the temple and in every house they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ. You know, we're told we're supposed to uh submit to governing authorities, and uh, for the most part that is true until they tell you to do something that goes against what God told you to do. God told us the most important for thing for us to do is to share the gospel. And if the government says don't share the gospel, you say, Well, thank you, sir. I respectfully disagree, I have to do this, but we're gonna beat you. Beat me. This life is temporary, eternity is forever, and the Lord has given me this opportunity to bring others along with me. So I'm gonna share about Jesus. Do you know Jesus, sir? May the Lord give us that heart. And that is part of this joy that Jesus is talking about. He's hungry, he's thirsty, and you know, I go back to that scene, and did she ever give him any water? I don't think they ever got that far. So he's still thirsty, he's still hungry, but he has this renewed energy in him because God was at work. And I trust you feel the same way. But I know that we don't always feel that way, do we? What gets in our way of experiencing this joy of working in and of God working in and through us? Well, Mark talks about it. Jesus is saying this to his disciples the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. Unfruitful. You know, without the Lord we can do nothing. And now he's given us the opportunity to walk with him and allow him to grow fruits in our lives, spiritual fruits. And one of those fruits is joy. We were talking about that last time in our fruit of the spirit study. But I would tend to say that a lot of us don't always experience that joy. I can relate to this. The cares of this world, there are a lot of cares in this world, aren't there? And we don't purposely go and idolize these cares of the world, but they get in our way and they and they distract us. And one of the enemy's greatest tools against us is distracting and uh causing us to be depressed or discouraged. Discouragement is one of his greatest tools. And when we see all these things that come our way, we have to pay the rent, we gotta pay grocery bills. Have you seen how much groceries cost these days? And we see our income go down and our expenses go up, and and we, as they say, we we can't see the forest for the trees. And we really need to back up and see the Lord at work. And when we see the Lord at work and join him in that work, that joy is reinstated within us. Well, one of the verses we looked at during that fruit of the Spirit study was a blessing from Paul in the book of Romans, chapter 15, verse 13. This is something we need to encourage each other with. Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you might abound by the power of the Holy Spirit. That joy that we fill, that we feel, is because we're filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, and we sense the Holy Spirit working in and through us, and we see the effects of it in other people, and it brings that excitement and that joy. May the God of hope fill us all with that joy and bring us back to focus on the things that are most important. Jesus isn't saying, I don't need any food. He's saying, Look, I want to teach you something. Food is important, yeah. But doing the work of the Lord is even more important. Sharing the gospel and seeing lives changed forever, for eternity. That's the most important thing. That is why we're here. And God takes care of us, he feeds us, but don't get distracted by those things. Keep your eyes focused on him. Look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was laid before him, endured the cross. And we too can endure and experience this joy that goes beyond understanding as we focus on him and allow him to work in our lives. Amen. Well, back to our story. Jesus said, Do you not say there are still four months and then comes the harvest? He's expanding a little bit more about doing the work of the Father, and that's his food. And there was a proverb, a saying that they had back then that it was kind of uh still four months and then comes the harvest. It kind of reminds me of old uh the old barber in uh Little Rock, California, Leo the Barber. Little Rock, one word, by the way. Little Rock, a little smaller than the other little rock that you might know of. Leo was a Hispanic, and up on his uh up on his billboard there, he would say, free haircuts, minyana. What does minana mean? Tomorrow. Just come back, and tomorrow we have free haircuts. You come back tomorrow and say, Oh no, no, no, minana. It's always down the road, right? This four months until the harvest, we've got plenty of time. In fact, you can't do anything now. I mean, it's only May, and harvest is in September or October, you know. You can't harvest what's not ripe yet, so don't worry about it. You've heard that saying, Jesus says. But he says, Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest. No, no, no, no, no, no. Don't say it's coming, it's down the road. It's here, Jesus says. It's here, and you're gonna see something in a few minutes here that's gonna blow you away, Jesus is saying. But he goes on to say, He who reaps receives wages and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. Jesus sows and we get to come behind and reap, and we get to get rewarded for that. And we rejoice, we are excited, he's excited, the people that are getting saved are excited. For in this saying it is true: one sows and another reaps. I sent you to reap that which you did have not labored, and others have labored, and you have entered into their labors. This is all part of the body of Christ at work, with Jesus the head working through the power of the Holy Spirit in his people. It's not about any individual, although God uses individuals in this process of bringing people to the Lord. He's been working, John the Baptist has been working. In our lives, when we come across people, um, chances are that God has been working on that individual through others coming up to that time. And sometimes you get to come upon him when they're ripe for harvest, when they're ready to hear the gospel, when they've been pondering and praying, and you present it to them, and it opens up their eyes and they are changed. It may be you're one of those who come behind and plant seeds, and you might never see that harvest, but you are part of the work. Jesus said, This is part of the food I'm talking about. This is the work of God that you are invited to be a part of. Another way he described this was in Matthew chapter 6, beginning at verse 35. Jesus was all about, was went about the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But but when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered like sheep having no shepherds. They would come for healing, and there was great things, but but people were not, they were still kind of haphazard. They didn't know where to go and what to do. They needed a shepherd, somebody to guide them in the ways of the Lord to the Lord. And he said to his disciples, the harvest is truly plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. There are people that are ready to hear the gospel. Are they being ignored because the harvesters are not going out? And as you pray for harvesters, many times the Lord will say, Yes, I know just the right person. You. Go out and share the good news. Now, this is a good harvest. This is a harvest that are bringing people into the kingdom. But there's another harvest at the end of the age that uh has more of a negative concept. Revelation chapter 14. We read, I looked and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat one like the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown, and on his hand a sharp sickle. And an angel came out of the temple crying out in a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, thrust your sickle and reap. For the time has come for you to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe. So he who sat on the cloud thrust his sickle onto the earth, and the earth was reaped. This is a harvest of judgment that's coming at the end of the age. And Jesus kind of gave a picture of it when he shared his parable of the wheat and the tares. You remember that? Matthew 13, we'll go through it real quick. Another parable he put forth to them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while men slept, the enemy came and sowed among the wheat, sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came to him and said, Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares? And he said to him, An enemy has done this. The servant said to him, Do you want us to go and gather them up? But he said, No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. And at that time of harvest I will say to the reapers, First gather the tares and bind them in bundles and burn them. But gather the wheat into my barns.

Pray For Laborers In The Harvest

SPEAKER_00 24:07

That's Pastor Carl of the Mountain Cross on Come On Up. We're currently going through the book of John. We're so glad you've been with us, and we know there's so much to get out of this gospel book. One of the most powerful moments is in a well-known passage in John chapter 3. Jesus is meeting with Nicodemus and explaining what it means to be born again, not physically, but spiritually. As you might have memorized, Jesus speaks this to Nicodemus, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. What a promise from God! It sounds so easy, right? But sometimes the pressures of life can push you further away from wanting a relationship with God. Let me tell you, the most important decision you'll ever make is being in right relationship with God. He wants you with him for eternity. So don't be waiting around for the right moment. The best time to choose Jesus is now. If you'd like to learn more about what all of this means, head over to themountaincross.com and click on How to Know God. The Mountain Cross is a group of believers in Jesus who seek to grow in faith by simply teaching the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter. We meet on Sundays at 10 a.m. at the Smoky Mountain Cinema in Waynesville. We look forward to worshiping with you. Well, that's all for today, but come on up to the mountain with us again as we seek to learn more from the Lord through His Word. Come on Up is sponsored by the Mountain Cross, a Calvary Chapel fellowship.