SPIRIT AND TRUTH
By: Micaiah Wesler
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. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.
John 4:23-24 NKJV
Many times, in the modern church when we talk about worship, we really mean the time where we play music and sing as a congregation. Don’t get me wrong— I love music, but music is not the same as worship. What Jesus is saying in this scripture is that true worship is done on a heart level. Up to that point in history, worship was done by going to the temple and offering sacrifices. Jesus comes in, flips the script, and declares that it’s not about what you do externally, but what you do internally. It is so important that God actually seeks out people to worship Him in spirit and truth. God is looking for people who have worship flowing out of their hearts. The song “Heart of Worship” by Michael W. Smith perfectly explains where our hearts should be in worship to God:
WHEN THE MUSIC FADES, ALL IS STRIPPED AWAY AND I SIMPLY COME.
LONGING JUST TO BRING SOMETHING THAT'S OF WORTH THAT WILL BLESS YOUR HEART.
I'LL BRING YOU MORE THAN A SONG FOR A SONG IN ITSELF IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE REQUIRED.
YOU SEARCH MUCH DEEPER WITHIN, THROUGH THE WAY THINGS APPEAR.
YOU'RE LOOKING INTO MY HEART. *
God is looking for people who aren’t going through the motions and singing songs without ever meaning what they sing or say. He doesn’t want Sunday drones that know the rituals of church services. He is looking for those who will worship Him with everything they have, whether there is music or not, whether there is a church service that day or not, and whether they feel like it or not.
If you haven’t worshipped God yet today, go find a place and worship Him where nobody can see except you and God. Then tomorrow go and do it again. Then the next day, do it again. You’ll find that amazing things begin to happen around you because you’ll have the attention of God like you never had before!
*Redman, Matt. Thankyou Music, Capitol Christian Music Group, 1999.
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. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.
John 4:23-24 NKJV
Many times, in the modern church when we talk about worship, we really mean the time where we play music and sing as a congregation. Don’t get me wrong— I love music, but music is not the same as worship. What Jesus is saying in this scripture is that true worship is done on a heart level. Up to that point in history, worship was done by going to the temple and offering sacrifices. Jesus comes in, flips the script, and declares that it’s not about what you do externally, but what you do internally. It is so important that God actually seeks out people to worship Him in spirit and truth. God is looking for people who have worship flowing out of their hearts. The song “Heart of Worship” by Michael W. Smith perfectly explains where our hearts should be in worship to God:
WHEN THE MUSIC FADES, ALL IS STRIPPED AWAY AND I SIMPLY COME.
LONGING JUST TO BRING SOMETHING THAT'S OF WORTH THAT WILL BLESS YOUR HEART.
I'LL BRING YOU MORE THAN A SONG FOR A SONG IN ITSELF IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE REQUIRED.
YOU SEARCH MUCH DEEPER WITHIN, THROUGH THE WAY THINGS APPEAR.
YOU'RE LOOKING INTO MY HEART. *
God is looking for people who aren’t going through the motions and singing songs without ever meaning what they sing or say. He doesn’t want Sunday drones that know the rituals of church services. He is looking for those who will worship Him with everything they have, whether there is music or not, whether there is a church service that day or not, and whether they feel like it or not.
If you haven’t worshipped God yet today, go find a place and worship Him where nobody can see except you and God. Then tomorrow go and do it again. Then the next day, do it again. You’ll find that amazing things begin to happen around you because you’ll have the attention of God like you never had before!
*Redman, Matt. Thankyou Music, Capitol Christian Music Group, 1999.