Worship in spirit and truth

by ABRAHAM PULICKAL
12/05/16
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Worship in spirit and truth.

God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.

John 4:24 NKJV

The Samaritan woman considering Jesus to be a Prophet shifts the conversation to the topic of ‘worship’, and out of eagerness to know the right place to worship God asks Jesus about His opinion? ‘The mountain where our fathers worshiped or Jerusalem where the Jews worship God?’ 

The Lord expresses His displeasure for both the places as queried by the Samaritan woman and reveals to her and to all of us what true worship really is, ‘it is not a particular place located at a particular altitude and magnitude’, thus ‘the place’ does not decide the genuineness of the worship, it’s how we worship God that actually matters and God’s requirement of true worship acceptable to Him is the worship offered in ‘Spirit and in truth’.

Worship is not just the fulfilling of a ceremonial duty towards God; rather it is giving thanks to Him for all His goodness and grace towards us.

Those who experience God often know the fact that God gives to those who truly love Him much more than they deserve, and thus He elevates us by His favors towards us which often we do not deserve.

Amongst the greatest gifts one can receive from God, ‘forgiveness from God’ holds high importance, for even if it be in a common family scenario, we can never be at ease with anyone with whom we hold a grudge or a state of un-forgiveness.

Luke: chapter seven records an account of a sinful woman who wept at the feet of Jesus and anointed His feet with the fragrant oil and when this act of her was doubted by the Pharisee who was hosting Jesus; this is what Jesus had to say:

“…her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”

Luke 7:47 NKJV

If worship for the Pharisee was to seat Jesus in a good place and offer Him a ceremonial welcome in accordance with the norm and tradition of his time, for the sinful woman it was offering of thanks with her tears and whatever best she had to offer to the Lord for the forgiveness she received which she never actually deserved, yet the Lord had granted to her.

Worship in Spirit and in truth erupts from the depths of the heart, which actually is an overflowing of the gratitude towards God for all His mercies and the joy in beholding His beauty and power, which is awesome and everlasting.

Thus, let this not bother us much as to where we shall worship God, let’s yearn for the true worship in ‘Spirit and in truth’, for if we will out of the depth of our heart with hope and gratitude sing to the Lord even as Paul and Silas did when they were imprisoned (Acts 16:25), we will surely experience the deliverance of the Lord right where we are.

God Bless,

Abraham