The phrase to worship the Lord “in spirit and truth” is derived from John 4:23-24 where Jesus says:
But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
So what is the concept of worshipping the Father in spirit and truth? Why is God seeking after people who will worship Him in spirit and truth?
In context beginning with John 4:6-30, Jesus was having a conversation with a Samaritan woman at the well. During the conversation Jesus and the Samaritan woman began to discuss about places of worship.
The woman stated that Jews claimed the proper place of worship was at Jerusalem while the Samaritans believed that the true place of worship was at Mount Gerizim.
However, Jesus then corrects the Samaritan woman by teaching her that the physical place of worship does not matter to God anymore. Instead, God is looking for people who will worship Him with a genuine, sincere and authentic heart or mind. God is not looking for religious, hypocritical or ritualistic people but God is looking for people who seek a genuine and personal relationship with Him. He is looking for those who will worship Him out of a pure heart and pure motives.
1. In John 4:24 Jesus says:“God is spirit…”This speaks to the nature of God in that God is a Being who is not confined to physical spaces or to a geographic location. Therefore, God’s presence is not limited to man-made structures. Instead, God is a spirit Being who is omnipresent and therefore He can be everywhere at the same time.
So in regard to places of worship, Jesus was teaching the Samaritan woman that God can be worshipped anywhere or any place in the world. Furthermore, God can be worshipped at any time.
2. In John 4:24 Jesus continues by saying “…and those who worship Him must worship in spirit”
For us to worship God in spirit means that we must worship God from a place of authenticity and sincerity. We desire to worship Him out of a pure heart and pure motives. We worship Him out of a desire to truly know Him and fellowship with Him. Therefore, our focus of worship is not related to outward appearance or ritualistic and hypocritical worship. Instead, the focus is related to our inner spirit and internal transformation as a result of our worship and relationship with God.
3. In John 4:24 Jesus also says that those who worship God must worship Him “in truth”This means that the worship of God must be guided by the word of God because truth is only found in the Scriptures. Therefore the Bible must be the true guide for how to worship and relate with God.
Ultimately God is looking for true worshippers who are convicted by the desire to obey His word and people who seek Him out of a genuine heart.
God who is all knowing is able to see the hypocrisy and superficial condition of the hearts of many people. But His true desire is to fellowship with anyone who will approach Him with sincerity and a pure heart and motive. God is looking for those people who seek to obey His word and uphold the truth of His word because it is through a love and obedience to His word, that we can truly worship Him.
