Worship in Spirit & Truth

John 4:23-26 The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”  The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

We wrapped up our Friday Small Group study of “worshipping” with an in-depth look at How & where those who are now members of the body of Christ (Believers / Disciples / Followers) are to worship God. The word worship in this passage is the Greek word proskuneo. It means to fall on the knees, or to prostrate on the ground (bow down). It also could means to express respect or to show obedience, honor, or reverence to a divine being. When the woman at the well and Jesus talked about worship, the Samaritan woman was thinking of physical worship, but the Lord redirected the focus to the source of true worship – in spirit & truth. Jesus knew that the veil that separated God and man would be torn in two, meaning that there would be a new and living way to enter into the holy place and worship God (Hebrews 10:19-20).

Philippians 3:2-3 “Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation! For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.”

True worship is not a matter of externals, or of rituals, but of the spirit. We are made up of three elements – body, soul & spirit) It is the spirit that died within us by sin and is regenerated the hour that we first believed in the Savior of the world. Not only must we profess our faith and bring the message; we must possess it and be the message. What the Lord is saying is that it’s not a matter of the body (the physical senses and action) or of the soul (mind, will & emotion) – although both might participate in worship, but rather true worship engages the regenerated spirit of man; not in the feelings, posture and experiences of the flesh, but in the heart of the inner man (aka spirit). How vital is truth in the life of a child of God? Being truthful with ourselves, speaking the truth in love to one another, walking in the truth, earnestly contending for the truth? Worshipping God in truth – sanctified(made holy, set apart from sin, and consecrated (sacred – dedicated to God)?

Psalm 96:9-13 ^“Worship the Lord in holy attire; Tremble before Him, all the earth. Say among the nations, “ The Lord reigns; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity.” Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth  rejoice; Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord.

The enemy of our soul will do anything he can to keep us from worshipping God in spirit and truth. How we need to be aware and never forget the greatness of our God and our so-great-a-salvation (from spiritual death to spiritual life eternal). He has wrought (brought this about) for us! True worshipers worship the Father in spirit and truth. Remember that the Father is seeking people like this.

In Christ, Brian