TRUE or FALSE? ~ Precious C Philip

There is a profound pronouncement made by Jesus in the book of John. It reads, “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” John 4:21-24

Jesus reveals to us in this scripture above that there is a particular kind of worshipers God the Father seeks. Jesus calls them the true worshipers. Who are these true worshipers? Those that worship God the Father in Spirit and in truth. In other words, those that worship God in the power of the Holy Spirit and from their heart (genuine worship). The question then is: are you among the true worshipers of God?

God is three Persons in One:

God the Father

God the Son Jesus

God the Holy Spirit

Christianity therefore is the worship of God the Father, through God the Son Jesus, by the power of God the Holy Spirit. This is the reason Jesus commands us in John 3:3-7 to be born again. Because being born again is accepting and believing in Jesus as the Son of God and as your Saviour who died for your sins and was raised by God the Father on the 3rd day for your justification. 

And, when you genuinely accept Jesus into your heart and confess Him as your Lord and Saviour, God the Father gives you God the Holy Spirit to dwell in you and supply you with the power to live a life pleasing to God; that is why the scripture says our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). So God the Holy Spirit lives in you after you have given your life to Jesus and you're now required to read the word of God, pray and receive grace, power and help from the Holy Spirit in daily prayers to live in obedience to the commandments of God the Father.

If a supposed Christian is not worshipping God the Father in Spirit and in truth, they're worshipping God in the flesh and from their lips.

How do I know if I'm worshipping God in the flesh? I will manifest/exhibit these works of the flesh: "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;  idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions  and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." Galatians 5:19-21

Do you live in sexual immorality, drunkenness, envy, jealousy, hatred, anger... and yet claim to be a worshiper of God? If you want to be a true worshiper of God, you must first purge yourself of these vices.

How do I know if I am rendering lip worship/service to God? When my heart is not involved in my worship of God. I don't really know God neither do I have a personal relationship with Him nor constant fellowship with Him. I just engage in religious activities and follow rules given to me in church. I don't pick up my bible to read because I want to know God and understand His commandments and obey them. I just do what I am told to do in church or what society expects of Christians: go to church, cover your head when praying, don't drink, don't smoke, read the Bible once in a while, pray when I wake up and before I eat... I just follow rules, rituals, and routine.

"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules." Matthew 15:8-9

How do I know if I'm worshipping God in the power of the Holy Spirit?

I will bear and manifest the fruits of the Spirit: "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives." Galatians 5:22-25

So, I will love God by keeping His commandments (1 John 5:3) and love my neighbor (people generally). I will have peace and joy. I will have self-control. I will be gentle, kind, good and patient with people, and patient with God to fulfil His promises to me. I will be faithful in my worship of God (and not run after other gods/idols when challenges of life comes) and be faithful to people that God expects me to be faithful to.

Lastly, how do I know I'm worshiping God in truth - from my heart and with all sincerity? 

My heart, spirit, soul, mind and body will be involved in my worship of God. Matthew 22:37 "Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’"

Deuteronomy 6:5 "And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength."

Are you a TRUE WORSHIPER of God or a FALSE WORSHIPER?

Remember, if God seeks true worshipers, it therefore means He is only pleased with true worshipers of His, which further reveals that only true worshipers would He welcome into His heavenly kingdom when they die and leave earth. This is important! If you want to live forever with God in His kingdom, you MUST become one of His true worshipers.

When you go to church on Sunday and sing and dance and praise God, but immediately you get back home, you throw your bible under the bed or drop it somewhere and never touch it till another Sunday, you know sincerely that you're not one of the true worshipers of God. When you live life as a professing Christian without caring about the commandments of God to know them and keep them and live according to the will of God, you show God that you're not one of His true worshipers.

God seeks true worshipers; He does not want false worshipers. And, I do believe one of the reasons you're a Christian or you chose to be a Christian is because you want to spend eternity in the kingdom of heaven when you die, so, why not do all it takes to make heaven? Why not become the true worshiper God is seeking for so that He will allow you to enter His kingdom when you leave earth? Make that good decision today.

Prayer: Lord, please help me to become one of your true worshipers as I decide today to worship You in Spirit and in truth in Jesus' Name.

God bless you. Another sumptuous spiritual meal awaits you next Monday. Do well to come and feed on it on this blog. Stay blessed.