The Savior’s conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well is notable for several reasons. First of all, as the woman points out, “The Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans” (John 4:9). There was an old grudge between these two groups (it’s a long story), and most Jews considered the Samaritans unclean and unworthy.
So it’s already unusual that Jesus is talking to her. When He tells her to call her husband to join them for the discussion, the woman responds, “I have no husband” (John 4:17). Jesus says He knows that’s technically true—she’s been married five times, but she’s not married to the man she’s living with now (see John 4:18).
The Savior doesn’t tell her she’s an awful person. Instead, He helps her learn more about who He is. When she says that she knows that the Messiah is going to come someday, Jesus tells her flat out, “I that speak unto thee am he” (John 4:26). The scriptures only record a few times during His mortal ministry when Jesus directly claimed to be the Messiah—and the first time was to this Samaritan woman.
The woman believed Jesus and went around telling everyone about her experiences with Him. This one conversation had a huge ripple effect! Soon “many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him” (John 4:39) and gained testimonies of their own (see John 4:42).
What lessons can we learn from this story? Perhaps that the Savior knows us individually and cares about us. We can learn that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God who was sent to bring salvation even to sinners. Or we can learn the positive impact that one person’s testimony can have no matter how imperfect they are. So much good stuff!