Worship in Spirit and Truth
Worship in Spirit and Truth
John 4:21-24 (NKJV)
21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But 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. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
If God wants true worshipers, that implies that there are false worshipers. False worship is far more common than true worship today, and I'm not only referring to the worship of false gods. Errored/unauthorized worship offered to the One True God is also false worship. If you want to avoid false worship and worship in spirit and truth as God commands, you should not worship according to your feelings, but according to the clearly revealed pattern for Christian worship in the New Testament.
One might ask: "Why can't I worship according to how I feel? I am offering worship as an act of love and gratitude toward God, what could possibly be wrong with that?"
Allow the Bible to answer that question.
Proverbs 14:12-16 (NKJV)
12 There is a way that SEEMS right to a man, but its end is the way of death. 13 Even in laughter the heart may sorrow, and the end of mirth may be grief. 14 The backslider in heart will be filled with his OWN WAYS, but a good man will be satisfied from above. 15 The simple believes EVERY word, but the prudent considers well his steps. 16 A wise man fears and departs from evil, but a fool rages and is SELF-confident.
The pureness of our intentions does not justify worshiping our Almighty God in an unauthorized manner. Worship is the most important duty of Christ's followers. God requires us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, but we must make that sacrifice according to the divine instruction of God's WRITTEN word in order for Him to accept it as worship. Otherwise, it is just the noise of error.
Romans 12:1-2 (NKJV)
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, ACCEPTABLE to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may PROVE what is that GOOD and ACCEPTABLE and PERFECT WILL OF GOD.
- Eric Bullock, Evangelist
If you would like to learn more about scriptural worship, I would love to have a discussion with you about it or we can schedule a Bible study together!
Call/Text: (606) 669-3143
Email: empbullock@gmail.com
