The story of the woman at the well is filled with meaning for each of us. Jesus met this young woman where she was at in her life. Jesus loved her and accepted her past “warts and all.” That was relevant to me and perhaps to many of you.
But it was His message of worship that attracted me to ponder and meditate its deep meaning.
“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is Spirit and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4: 23-24
The woman at the well had gotten caught up in where to worship and was missing the significance and power of true worship.
We see this today in the church:
“What church do you attend?
Are you a Baptist? Moravian? Methodist? Presbyterian?
And your “worship service” – is it at 11am or at 9am?
Our worship service should be all day, every day. It should be in our homes, our cars, at work – wherever we are present. We should go about our day in communication with the Father asking His advice, thanking Him for guidance and giving Him praise for the undeserved mercy He shows us. Our place of worship should be wherever we find ourselves at any time of the day. THAT is worshiping in spirit!
What about truth? How do we worship Him in truth? For me, it’s knowing who He is, and what He said He would do. It’s standing on His promises. It’s NOT rewriting His precious and written Word on the page, but standing on biblical truth. It’s accepting whatever comes to me knowing that He allows and prohibits it. It’s knowing His will is perfect for me, and it is perfect for you.
“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”
Hebrews 10:25
The writers of Hebrews remind us that to attend church in a building with the saints and the sinners is important in these dark and troubled times. But to show up at a building for an hour and consider that worship is to miss a deeper connection with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Spend today in worship of the Father. He doesn’t need a building for you to worship Him. He just needs your heart.