God is a Spirit,
and they that worship Him must worship Him in
spirit and in truth.
-John 4:24
In the 4th Chapter of John, Jesus spoke these words to the woman at the well:
But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. Jhn 4:23. What does it really mean to be a ‘true worshipper”?
Worship Him in spirit
Being a “true worshipper” doesn’t necessarily mean running the aisles, jumping up and down, and shouting at the top of our voices. Oh, the Pentecostal worship we are use to is a part of it, but “true worship” is worshipping God with our spirits aligned with Gods Spirit. The Bible tells us
1Cr 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned. To be a true worshipper of God our human spirits, converted by God, is aligned with the Holy Ghost. Paul said:
Rom 8:5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
This story of the woman at the well is a classic example of one who was “minding the things of the flesh“. Her initial interaction with Jesus was on a human level. She was as Paul would later say “carnally minded”.
Rom 8:6 Notice the human traits this woman used in her interaction with Jesus:
Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Racial/religious prejudice: Jews and Samaritans had no dealings with one another. (vs. 9). God’s love is all encompassing, and those who segregate themselves from others along racial lines are not aligned with God’s will and purpose for humanity. The worlds racial bigotry shows how far we are removed from God’s love. Religious bigotry is as bad if not worse. Sometimes I think Pentecostal people are the worlds biggest religious bigots. I’ve heard Pentecostals say they would not worship with other Pentecostals because of doctrinal differences. These are not true worshippers.
Human effort: In spiritual matters this woman was clueless. When Jesus offered her “living water” , she immediately looked with carnal eyes. How could He give her water? He had nothing to draw water with. But Jesus wasn’t referring to natural water- He was referring to everlasting springs of life giving water. Jesus said,
“If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee…”. She had no clue that it was the Lord of Glory speaking with her. Jesus would later say:
Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also. If she was in touch with the Father, she would have known who Jesus was.
The fact is, this woman’s spirit was so out of touch with God, she failed to know Jesus. To be a “true worshipper” our spirits must be aligned with God’s Spirit. Have you ever tried to worship God when your spirit was out of step with God’s Spirit? Maybe a conflict at work caused you to be “in the flesh”. Maybe you’ve not prayed, or read the Bible, or are holding a grudge against someone. Any number of things can cause us to be out of sync with the Spirit of God. But, in order for us to be “true worshippers”, its imperative that we align our spirits with God’s Spirit.
Worship Him… in truth.
More often than not, this word “truth” is often mistakenly applied as “doctrine”. The implication is that to be a “true worshipper” one must be doctrinally correct. That isn’t what Jesus was saying at all. King Saul was ordered by the Prophet Samuel to perform a certain task. Now Saul had already gotten his spirit out of alignment with God’s Spirit. Saul was so out of touch with God that the Spirit of God had departed from him and he was under the influence of evil spirits.
1Sa 16:14. But, in order to keep up the appearances of being a spiritual man, Saul went through the motions of obeying God. But, his carnal nature led him to “modify” Gods command. And he lied to cover up his rebellion.
To be a “true worshipper” we have to be truthful with God. The word “truth” here is subjective and means “candor of mind which is free from affection, pretence, simulation, falsehood, deceit” Samson is another example of one whose spirit slipped away from God. He relied on his past experiences with God to carry him through. But he had laid his head in the lap of secret sin one time to many and lost out with God. Instead of confessing his sin and repenting- he went through the motions of being right with God, but was so out of step with God, didn’t even know God’s Spirit had departed from Him.
Jdg 16:20. Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Ghost and paid the ultimate penalty.
This woman at the well, was not truthful in her interaction with Jesus when she said:
"I have no husband." Jesus sees through our deceit and falsehoods. He sees beyond our pretense and sees us for what we really are. He sees our shortcomings, our faults and failures, and if we hope to be “true worshippers” we need to be honest and truthful with God. We need to confess and repent before God… and get our spirits right with Him.
If we sing “Oh, how I love Jesus…“ while harboring a grudge against a brother or sister, we are not where we need to be in Christ. If we come to church with our minds on carnal things, then our spirits are not aligned with God’s Spirit- and we won’t receive the blessings of the Lord. Have you ever been to church when everyone around you is being blessed, while you, yourself, feel nothing? We wonder, “Well, there’s something wrong with this church“. Maybe the fault is not with the church. Maybe it was that unresolved conflict with your spouse… or those harsh words you spoke. Maybe you haven’t been “walking in the Spirit”.
I was on my way to a meeting in N. Carolina one time. I had to travel a long winding road through the mountains. The car in front of me was moving at an incredibly slow pace. With no place to pass, I did what all men do. I became exasperated and “said” some things to that slow poke that I shouldn’t have. I finally got around that person who, I had said, ‘shouldn’t even be allowed to drive“, and made it to the church. A few minutes before services started, guess who drove up and parked? Yep. That very same slow poke.
Services started and God began to bless… everyone, that is, but me. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t get my spirit aligned with God. Oh, I “pretended” to worship. But…it was as hollow and empty as could be. The pastor introduced the speaker. It was me. I couldn’t think of anything to do…or say…except one thing. Before I even opened my Bible I pointed at the slow poke and confessed the indignation and exasperation I had directed at him. I then asked him (and God) to forgive me. My spirit was then “re-aligned” with God’s Spirit. I was truthful and confessed my sin. And God rolled back the brass that seemed to hide His face from me.
Do you want to be a “true worshipper” of God? Keep your spirit aligned with God’s Spirit. If you are out of step with the Spirit, confess your short comings truthfully and get back on track. . Because
“…. the Father seeketh such to worship Him“.