Worship In Spirit & In Truth

Intro:

How ought we to worship God?

Simple or flashy?

House or Cathedral?

How we worship is important

John 4:7–26 NASB95

7 There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 11 She said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? 12 “You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?” 13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw.” 16 He said to her, “Go, call your husband and come here.” 17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.” 19 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 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 (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

1. Worship That God Will Accept

John 4:24 (NASB95)

24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

SPIRIT

Image of God

Genesis 2:7 “7 Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.”

Genesis 1:26 “26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…”

Hebrews 12:9 the Father of spirits

Zechariah 12:1 forms the spirit of man within him

Isaiah 42:5 “5 Thus says God the Lord, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread out the earth and its offspring, Who gives breath to the people on it And spirit to those who walk in it,”

Our spirit

It can jump higher & reach farther than our own bodies…

It is the seat of communication we have with our creator!

It is the sanctuary, the temple where we worship

Romans 1:9 “9 For God, whom I serve in my spirit…”

It is who we TRULY are! For our spirit shall live on forever v

TEMPLE

Hebrews 9:8–12 “8 The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed while the outer tabernacle is still standing, 9 which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, 10 since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation. 11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; 12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

Hebrews 8:10 “10 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts. And I will be their God, And they shall be My people.”

Ephesians 2:21–22 (NASB95)

21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord,

22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

2. Worship That God Will Not Accept

‘Outward’ worship

When your heart is not present in your worship

When you sing with your mouth but not your spirit

God cannot accept it

How can there be REAL communion with God… if you walked in here unwilling to offer any spiritual sacrifice unto God?

God CANNOT, accept worship that isn’t given from the heart

Is God glorified when you take the bread and drink the wine?

People eat and drink all kinds of stuff EVERY DAY!

And if you come to be baptized this morning in the little bit of water we have… are there not greater bodies of water that God would delight more in? The beautiful Rivers/Streams/Oceans?

What’s the difference! …

The difference is your HEART!

If you rest in the outward form of worship alone, you are no better than the Jews!

Who after they brought their bulls & goats, kept their holy days, consecrated their priests, presented their offerings, it wasn’t enough!

Did not Christ, & the prophet Isaiah say:

Matthew 15:8–9 “8 ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me. 9 ‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’ ””

The worship of the NT is GREATER than the old! Praise God!

If we rest in any outward form, even if God prescribed it… then are idea of God is carnal in every way

What God wants is our heart/soul/love/trust/ the confidence of rational human beings, not robots

Now the form of worship that God prescribes is good. How is that!!!

Well… they are good, because they teach us the truth of what they are there for.

There is great meaning behind baptism, great meaning behind the Lord’s supper… but without the heart they are as useless as an empty shell or an empty glass

I remember walking into St. Peter’s Basilica

Gold ceiling

Multiple crucifixes

Old painting of saints & angels

People in robes

Music, incense, candles

Is God glory in those things? … no

If He desired a painting, He’d view the stars of heaven

If He desired incense, then thousands of flowers would shed their fragrance up towards Him

God is glorified by our HEARTS!!!

Acts 17:24–25 “24 “The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; 25 nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things;”

‘Outward’ Prayer

A prayer that attempts to glorify oneself… is not prayer

A prayer that is void of one’s heart… is not prayer

A prayer that is repetitious & just mere words… is not prayer

From a child my mom & dad taught me how to pray

In humility, In truth, In love, In respect, In submission

But if one is to pray today without humility, without truth, love, respect, submission… then it is an OUTWARD prayer, and thus is not a prayer at all

But be on guard, for Christ told the pharisees:

Matthew 6:2 “2 “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men.”

Matthew 6:5 “5 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.”

Every last one of us should pray from our HEART!! NOT as a poet to be published in a book somewhere!

Oh but Jake, what’s wrong with a little repetition?

Don’t we sing the SAME SONGS every time we come to worship??

And your right!! But should we not mean EVERY WORD that we sing? Likewise, we should mean every word that we pray… and not rumble quickly through it like a running-back trying to get in the end-zone?

Having thoughtful prayers is GREAT!!! … but thoughtful prayers that lack a thoughtful heart, is not a prayer at all

If anyone is to view worship as solely outward, or just a routine or formality… I pray that God would open your eyes to see the truth this morning

Hebrews 13:15 “15 Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.”

Inward Corruption

When we come with a defiled heart

When we come with a contentment to keep sinning in our life and don’t want to repent, but still want to keep Sunday clothes warm, hear me… God does not accept that kind of worship

When we sing “All hail the power of Jesus name” .. yet we reject His WORD!!! … it be not worship at all

Conclusion

Thanksgiving

Psalm 50:14–15 (NASB95)

14 “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving

And pay your vows to the Most High;

15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble;

I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.”

Let us worship the Lord with thanksgiving in our hearts

We were lost, but Christ came top seek & save the lost

We we were wicked & filthy sinner, but Christ led us to that divine fountain filled with blood!

Revelation 5:12 ““Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.””

Psalm 103:1 “1 Bless the Lord, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name.”

When our loved ones die… health begins to fade… everything we have is gone… may we say:

Job 1:21 “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.””

God accepts our genuine thanksgiving

Have you thanked Him recently for the breath of life

Have you thanked Him often for the food you eat, and the mission we have given?

In these pews, you may have done many things:

Finished the crossword puzzle on the bulletin

Watched your child

Looked on your phone at the games for tonight

I pray you are here to worship… and worship in spirit & in truth