Young Adults' Group

Offering True Worship

by Pastor Mark
March 05, 2020

Adjusting to a new approach to worship

It has been a few weeks since we suspended our morning worship service due to the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Many of us do miss our usual morning worship at Bethany on Sundays.

As a church, we have sought to adjust to this current situation and to take a new approach to our worship of the Lord. We have been seeing and hearing the Sunday message given by Pastor Charles through an online video.

It has been great to hear about how different people are approaching their worship. Some are worshipping individually. Some are worshipping as a family. Some are also gathering together at each other’s houses to worship together. We thank God for the way the church has responded in making this adjustment. It is this kind of spirit that we want to continue to have. As we go through this time of “wilderness”, we are not going to complain about it but rather to learn to adjust accordingly and to be thankful for what we have.

God is Spirit

When the Lord Jesus was speaking to a Samaritan woman, He corrected her concerning her understanding of the locale of worship. (John 4) He revealed to her who are the true worshippers of God. It was not about being on Mt Gerizim where the Samaritans worshipped or at Jerusalem where the Jews worshipped. (John 4:21) Jesus revealed that “God is Spirit”. (John 4:24) He is Spirit. He is not restricted by a physical locale. He can be worshipped anywhere. A true worshipper of the Lord is not restricted to a single place. Let us appreciate that God is Spirit and let us be challenged to give true worship to Him.

The kind of worship God is looking for

“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)

1. Worship in spirit

Who is a true worshipper of God? Firstly, he worships “in spirit”. There is the involvement of the spirit which is expressed by the mind and the heart. He is mindful of God and all that He is as he worships. He seeks to worship Him in his heart by being moved to offer praise. It is not about giving perfunctory worship. We can go to church and offer ritualistic worship which was what the Samaritans and Jews were doing then. Wherever we are, let us engage our heart and our mind in our worship. Let us be challenged to give worship to God in spirit.

2. Worship in truth

God is also looking for worshippers who worship in truth. We thank God for the truth that is preached in Bethany. We thank God for the continuing ministry of the Word of God that is taught by Pastor Charles each Sunday through the video message. Every word that is preached is truth that is drawn from the Scriptures. It is through knowing the truth that helps us to worship correctly, that is pleasing to the Lord.

The use of the Greek word “kai” or “and” is seen as a coordinate “kai”. It means that both the spirit and the truth are coordinate. Both are equally important and one cannot do without the other. We cannot truly worship in spirit only or truth only. Let us worship both in spirit and truth. Wherever we are, let us be challenged to continue to offer true worship to God that is in spirit and truth.

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