The real worshippers will, however, worship the Father in spirit and truth at this time, for the Father is waiting for them to do so. Those who worship God must do it in spirit and truth because He is spirit (John 4:23–24).
Not worshiping in a particular place
These are the words that Jesus said to the Samaritan woman at the well. The woman said that while the Jews worshipped in Jerusalem, the Samaritans did so at the mountain. Jesus answered that she will eventually cease to worship in either location. We might also believe that we ought to worship at specific locations, during specific times, or both. But Jesus was not speaking of Wednesday nights, Sunday mornings, or Sunday evenings. He was speaking of a daily, moment-to-moment method of living. According to Galatians 2:20, “to live IS Christ” at all times. That’s the church.
Serving Him in spirit
God is spirit, and each of us is spirit as well: “The Spirit of God touches each of us and affirms who we are.” As father and children, we are aware of who He is and who we are (Rom. 8:16 MSG).
When we are born again, we become one spirit with God’s Spirit, and we become partakers of the divine nature: “But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6:17). The word ‘joined” is a translation of a Greek verb which is related to the word kolla which means ‘glue’. So God’s Spirit and my spirit are ‘glued’ like two sheets of paper. We are one, yet to be distinguished. We live in two-oneness. Christ is the light of the world and so are we (John 8:12; Matthew 5:14). To serve in spirit is to serve Him in the knowledge that the believer and Christ are organically one as the branch and the Vine (John 15:5). Are you in search for yourself, who you really are? You will only find it in two-oneness with Christ. He is our Life and we fellowship from Spirit to spirit. That’s also the way we read the Bible, not of the letter but in spirit: “Lord, touch my heart through Your words!” We worship Him in spirit, knowing that in spirit He speaks to us. We don’t worship God in temples made by hands (Acts 7:48), or in any other material way. God is a pure spirit and we meet Him “in spirit”.
Serving Him in truth
Only in the light of our spiritual reality can we worship and serve in truth. This gets us to the present moment, where we live by faith based on our spiritual selves. When Jesus declared, “I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life,” He revealed the solution (John 14:6).
What constitutes truth, Pilate asked. (John 18:38). Is there such a thing as truth? Naturally, no. The truth is found in Jesus Christ! Truth has a personality. For us, Christ, who is the truth, became the world’s light. That being said, He and I are the world’s light. Additionally, according to 1 Corinthians 1:30, he “BECAME to us wisdom from God, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.” We honor Him in reality by living out all that He has made us into. I mean, can I really be poor and He rich? Doesn’t my circumstance mirror His as well? Does He not exist in all of our issues? We are a part of Him, so when we suffer, He also suffers.
Since the Holy Spirit is the “Spirit of truth,” truth and spirit go hand in hand (John 16:13). Worship or service cannot be divided into two categories. Serving in spirit, we realize that we are “not I, but Christ.” (Romans 2:20). Faith plays a role in our service of truth as well. “The life I now live… I live by faith,” is what it is. When we face everyday challenges and respond, “Lord, I know who I am in spirit, and You are my truth and my daily miracle in all the pressing situations of life,” we are saying (Galatians 2:20). We worship and serve “by faith,” as we should in everything, since faith is what the just will survive.
Thank God, then, for we are truthful in heart, and we walk in truth!
“To hear that my children are walking in the truth brings me greater joy” (3 John 4).
