3rd Sunday of Lent 2026: March 8

Our Lenten journey continues with the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2026, as we explore the theme of thirst—both physical and spiritual. The Israelites cry out for water in the wilderness, and Jesus offers living water to the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well. Today’s readings invite us to reflect on our own spiritual thirst and where we seek to fulfill it. Join us for worship as we discover that the water Christ offers becomes a spring of living water, welling up to eternal life.

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The Collect for the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2026

Almighty God, you know that we have no power in ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Readings for the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2026

Old Testament: Exodus 17:1-7

From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moses, nd said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

The Epistle: Romans 5:1-11

1 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. 8 But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. 9 Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. 11 But more than that, we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

The Gospel: John 4:5-42

5 So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

7 A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8 (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11 The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12 Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” 13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come back.” 17 The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!” 19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.”

27 Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” 28 Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” 30 They left the city and were on their way to him.

31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” 32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” 33 So the disciples said to one another, “Surely no one has brought him something to eat?” 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work. 35 Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest’? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. 36 The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. 37 For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

39 Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I have ever done.” 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 truly the Savior of the world.”

Reflection on the Readings for the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2026

Join us as we explore our thirst for God!

Old Testament – Exodus 17:1-7

The Israelites journey through the wilderness and camp at Rephidim, where there is no water. Faced with intense thirst, they quarrel with Moses and test the Lord, asking, “Is the Lord among us or not?” Their complaint is sharp: Did you bring us out of Egypt just to let us die of thirst?

Fearing for his safety as the people become angry enough to stone him, Moses cries out to God. The Lord instructs Moses to take his staff and strike the rock at Horeb. When Moses does this, water flows out for the people to drink. The place is named Massah (meaning “testing”) and Meribah (meaning “quarreling”) as a memorial to Israel’s lack of trust. Even after witnessing God’s deliverance from Egypt, they doubt His presence among them when faced with hardship.

Psalm 95

This psalm begins with a joyful invitation to worship the Lord, who is the Rock of our salvation. We are called to come before God with gratitude, to bow down and kneel before our Maker. God holds both the depths of the earth and the heights of the hills in His hands; the sea and dry land are His creations. We are His people, the sheep of His pasture.

However, the psalm quickly shifts to a warning: “Oh, that today you would listen to His voice! Do not harden your hearts.” The psalmist recalls the wilderness experience at Massah and Meribah, when the ancestors tested God despite having witnessed His works. Their hardened hearts and wayward actions prevented them from entering God’s rest. The message is clear: today, while we can still hear God’s voice, let us not harden our hearts as they did.

Epistle – Romans 5:1-11

Paul celebrates the blessings of justification by faith. Through Jesus Christ, we have peace with God and stand in grace, confidently boasting in our hope of sharing in God’s glory. However, Paul takes it a step further; we also boast in our sufferings because suffering produces endurance, endurance builds character, and character generates hope. This hope is not disappointing, as God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.

Paul highlights the remarkable nature of God’s love: Christ died for us when we were still weak, still sinners, and still enemies of God. If God reconciled us to Himself through Christ’s death while we were His enemies, how much more will Christ’s life save us now that we are reconciled! We rejoice in God through Jesus Christ, through whom we have received reconciliation.

Gospel – John 4:5-42

Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well is one of the longest conversations recorded in the Gospels. Tired from his journey, Jesus sits by the well at noon. When a Samaritan woman arrives to draw water, he asks her for a drink; a surprising request that crosses multiple social boundaries.

Their conversation unfolds in layers. Jesus speaks of living water that will quench thirst forever and become a spring of water leading to eternal life. Initially, the woman, thinking literally, asks for this water. Jesus then reveals his knowledge of her personal life, acknowledging that she has had five husbands and is currently with someone who is not her husband. Recognizing him as a prophet, she poses questions about proper worship.

Jesus teaches her that true worship happens in spirit and truth, rather than being tied to a specific location. When the woman mentions the coming Messiah, Jesus reveals his identity by stating, “I am he.”The woman becomes an evangelist, leaving her water jar behind and bringing her entire town to meet Jesus. Many Samaritans believe in him, first because of her testimony and then because they encounter Jesus themselves and recognize him as the Savior of the world.

Reflection Wrap-up for the 3rd Sunday of Lent 2026

The central theme of these readings is spiritual thirst and the living water that truly satisfies.

The Israelites experience physical thirst in the wilderness and begin to question whether God is really with them.

The psalmist warns us not to harden our hearts as they did but to hear God’s voice today.

Paul teaches us that even our sufferings can produce hope because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.

Jesus offers the Samaritan woman—and, through her, an entire community—living water that satisfies eternally. This water is not drawn from Jacob’s well but flows from Jesus himself, the source of eternal life.

The woman’s testimony reminds us that encountering Christ transforms us into witnesses who invite others to “come and see.” As we continue our Lenten journey, we are invited to acknowledge our spiritual thirst and recognize that only God can truly satisfy it.

We are encouraged to drink deeply from the living water that Christ offers. The question posed at Massah and Meribah remains: “Is the Lord among us or not?” The answer comes in Jesus, who crosses every boundary to offer us life-giving water and calls us to worship in spirit and truth.

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