'Spirit & Truth'
who will adjudicate these issues (someone else or Jesus). It is a fascinating string of issues that elucidate a lot. Let’s focus on the heart of the worship question: spirit and truth.
“God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24)
Jesus tells the woman that the only way to worship the Spirit of God is by personally engaging your spirit in worship. Worship is not a set of rituals, certain things to say or do when to sit, when to stand, saying the creed, or singing the doxology. None of these are bad, but they simply are not enough. How many times have you come to worship and found yourself going through the motions? Have you thought about lunch during the prayer or your grocery list during the creed? Have you sung a song thinking about the tune and glossing over the words? If we are honest, (and I hope you are all honest!) then we have to say yes. We have all been caught in the trappings of faith without the heart of faith. When Jesus talks about worshipping in spirit, he means with our whole being. A good translation of the Hebrew word for spirit is wind. It is the very breath that is within us, the energy that makes us alive and vital. Worshipping God in spirit means with our whole beings intently focused on the Spirit which is the source of our spirit.
Jesus also tells us to worship in truth. This is important. Too often we let our feelings and emotions lead us. We want to be ‘moved’ and ‘impassioned’. We want to ‘feel’ the Spirit. None of these are wrong, mind you, but they are the byproduct of true worship. The Truth of God needs to be our guide. We are worshipping the one who teaches us the truth of who He is, what He has taught, and what He has designed us for. We are gathered to worship the GOD, not a god. We don’t usually go on an aimless journey. We pick a destination for a particular reason about what we will find and experience there. We get in a car or plane as the mode of getting there. We have a map to guide us there. The same is true for worship. We need to be reminded of where we are going – to the one true God – and why –because God is the source of our lives. Our mode of getting there are personal devotional times and corporate times of worship. Our maps are Scripture, prayer, songs, creeds, and communion. Jesus put it this way, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but by me.”
I encourage you to take time this week to examine your life and practice. How are you entering into the heart of God? Is it in Spirit and in Truth? What can you do today that will help you reach that destination where we will find all that is important in life?
Seeking to worship in Spirit and in Truth,
Jonathan