Gospel of John, Chapter 4 (The Woman at the Well)
Chapter 4 of John focuses primarily on the "Woman at the Well." We've already seen the image of Christ as the bridegroom and of the wedding feast. Here, we meet his bride. That's us. All of us. Jesus has to come to his bride -- normally, she would not even give Him the time of day. From the exchange, we find that, not only does she not have the right answers, she doesn't even have the right questions. Jesus tells her, "[i]f you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." Remember, now, that, to John, water is both cleansing and transformative -- a symbol of the Holy Spirit.
Once she does ask for this water, Jesus asks her to bring him her husband.. This is where we see who this woman is -- an unfaithful wife. When the Samaritans returned to Israel, they came back with 5 other tribes; 5 different gods; 5 other husbands. (Or so says Tim Gray. I haven't been able to find more information on this.) By this time, it appears to me, that they've put away their false gods, but haven't been able to find the true God again. Jesus had to come to them and re-reveal the one true God.
Once we know God, though, the story doesn't end. We learn that God is Spirit (John 4:24), but we are matter, and our purpose is to be images of the one true God. So, we move from water (spirit) to food (material expression of that spirit). The woman, filled with the spirit of God, drops her old water jar to share the news of the Christ, the Messiah with the townspeople. Jesus then turns to his disciples and teaches them that, "my food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work." (John 4:34)
Notice the correct order here. Spirit, then action. Without the Spirit, without the Truth of God and the witness of Christ, these lost Israelites, the Samaritans, would have remained lost. (According to Wikipedia, about 700 Samaritans remain lost today.)
The chapter ends with the healing of the royal official's son. Jesus tells the man that his son will be healed. Then the Evangelist tells us that the man "believed him." We tend to use the word "faith" in two distinct senses. One is to trust, and the other is to be obedient. But, in practice, these things go hand in hand. If we trust in God, then we follow his commandments. It appears that this boy was healed by God because of his father's faith. The Samaritans were unfaithful to God in both senses, and so were exiled. But it's always God who brings us back, who heals us and forgives us.