"39 Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days.41 And many more believed because of his word. 42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Saviour of the world.”
John 4:39-42
Two remaining points must be underlined before we leave this wonderful passage. The first relates to the contrast between the Samaritan's attitude and that of Jerusalem. Jerusalem rejected and repudiated Jesus' testimony, and therefore He had gone up to Samaria, where they besought Him to tarry with them (40). In Jerusalem, Jesus did many miracles (2:23) but few were won to real faith; in Samaria, He did no miracles, but only gave the Word, and many believed unto salvation. Secondly, we should note the transition from faith that has come through dependence on the authority of another, and the assurance that arises from personal experience. This is a transition that must always be made. We generally start with a faith that has come about because of what we have been told about Jesus - faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. We believe on the basis of the testimony that has been borne to Jesus by witness or by preaching. The Samaritans believed on the strength of the woman's testimony concerning Christ. But then there came the transition to true assurance of faith arising out of personal experience. It is always so. We begin by standing on the bare word of Christ as it comes to us in the gospel but this always leads to personal experience of Christ as a living and loving Saviour. As the Samaritans said, 'we have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world'.