THE TRUE WORSHIP

DO YOU WANT TO DEEPEN YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR HEAVENLY FATHER? THIS SERIES GIVES YOU WAYS YOU CAN DEEPEN YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD BY GIVING HIM THE WORSHIP HE SEEKS

A) KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

If a day old royal child is kidnapped and kept away from the kingdom until the child grows up. The person would not know his/her identity until it is revealed. The coming of Jesus was not only to free us from our captors but also to reveal to us the Fatherhood of God, " to open the eyes of the blind".( Lk 4:18)

John 17:26 says "I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

The Greek word for " made known" as used in our text is " gnorizo" which means to gain thorough knowledge of.

So, we can see from the verse that the Spirit of Jesus in us will continue to give us thorough knowledge of God. So we can give God the true worship He seeks. This is why we have to stay in fellowship with the Spirit through word meditation. Amos 3:3 says. "Can two walk together if they don't agree"

For this reason Jesus spent his time teaching, He told the disciples who believed in him “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31‭-‬32

Just as the day old kidnapped royal child, we have stayed too long away from our Heavenly Father and our kingdom that we don't know who we are and who our Father is. Jesus revealed to us our identity; "When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.- (John 14:20)

Let's build on this revelation, and nothing shall be impossible for us. That is the life Jesus lived on earth. The life of " the Father is in me, and I am in the Father.”(Jn 10:38) "The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me" (Jn 14:10)

Remember, God is Spirit, his children are spirit beings and we live and function in the spirit. It doesn't matter what we do for a living we will always be a success because the Spirit of our Father who lives in us does his own work. That is why the Lord said "‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, (Zech 4:6 )

B) DO ALL IN THE NAME OF JESUS

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Christianity is more of a lifestyle than a religion, we reflect the life of God in us in every aspect of our lives. The disciples were named Christians because of their lifestyle, and not because of their religion. So our lifestyle should be lived in the spirit for it is a worship to God. That is why Col 3:17 says "whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him".

In Jesus we are made complete in God. When we offer our worship to God in the name of Jesus, this includes offering ourselves, every essence of our lives, such as finances, marriage, etc, Jesus is the one offering it, this makes it a perfect and true worship to God. That is why it doesn't matter whatever we do for a living or where we live,for we are perfect and complete in Jesus and will always live a glorified life.

For this reason the Lord said "do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear... Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? - Matthew 6:25‭-‬26

Who provides for the birds? Our heavenly Father. The same principle applies to us. So, it is neither by the job nor by the money, rather by the Spirit of our Father in us. That is why we offer everything to God through Jesus in thanksgiving, for " it is not by might or power, but my Spirit says the Lord". This way there is no limit to the height we can attain because it is by the Spirit of our Heavenly Father.

C) SELF AWARENESS

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Think of how people will volunteer themselves to be used for clinical trials on a drug or vaccine they don't know about, but will not offer themselves to be used by God. We prefer living the ordinary human life to the life from above, Eternal life, God-kind of life Jesus gave us. Hosea 4:6 says " My people perish for lack of knowledge"

In John 14:10, the Lord revealed to us our new life. He said "Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work."

Let's be conscious of what we say or do, because once we get baptized, instantly, we become "am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work." This is our new nature. That is why 2 Cor 10:3 says "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does."

We have to be aware that we are Holy Tabernacles of the Most High. What comes out of us defiles us. Our words or deeds, this includes our lifestyles, we offer to God through the Spirit of Jesus. For instance Heb 9:14 tells us that "Christ through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God". This way our words or deeds including our lifestyles are sanctified as we are sanctified.

D) SELF DETACHMENT

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Through baptism, we are dead to this world and alive in Christ, so we must worship God as one who is dead to the world and alive in Christ. Nothing in this life should come between God and us. It has to be him first, this is the true of worship He seeks.

Worship doesn't mean only praying and singing, rather it involves everything we do in life, our lifestyle, we live to the glory of God. Romans 6:13 says "Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness."

A life like this prevents fear, worries, anxiety, conflicts, idolatry etc. Idolatry is not just worship of another god, rather preference or reverence for something other than God. Example life, family, friends money, food, drinks, clothes, etc

That is why the Lord said "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.(Luke 9:23‭-‬24 )

Human life cannot give God the true worship He deserves. For this reason the Lord said “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again." (John 3:3). Why, because through baptism, we are dead to this world with all it's desires and alive in Christ.

Therefore, as the scripture says "put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. (Eph 4:22‭-‬24)

E) KNOWLEDGE OF THE WORD OF GOD

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Couple of years ago, I told my 2 year old, who is 4 now, to choose a movie for me, she was busy choosing paw patrol, peppa pig, name it. That kind of taught me how we give God baby worship thinking that we are giving him the worship He seeks.

Romans 8:14 says " those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God." To worship God in spirit is to allow the Spirit of God to lead us, to be incharge. Remember, we are united with him and only him knows the thoughts of God, hence reveals to us the true worship God seeks.(1Cor 2:12)

The Lord said " The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.

(John 6:63). So to be led by the Spirit is to be led by the word of God. This means that true worship comes from the knowledge of the word of God.

Since Christianity is a lifestyle thing, we need good knowledge of the word of God to live on. For instance, Through Scripture we learnt that we are dead to this world and alive in Christ. So, we offer ourselves to God as those who are dead in the word but alive in Christ.

Knowing the deeds of God is different from knowing the ways of God. Psalms 103:7 says

"He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel". When we were in elementary school, we learnt 1+1=2, but in university, we learnt how to apply it in different fields to achieve a result. The same way, as we grow in the knowledge of God through the scripture we will no longer know God's deeds but his ways.

F) BE WHO GOD SAYS YOU ARE

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

Jonah 4:11 NIV

Niniveh committed great sin against God, but God saw them as " The great city of Nineveh. Never you look down on yourselves or others, or let our circumstances define us. Instead let's look inside from the spirit and see ourselves the same way God sees us, that is justified, glorified, His chosen and special treasure. We have to learn how to live in the spirit for that is the life we live forever, and a true worship to God.

Hebrews 2:11 says "Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters."

Imagine if Christ is not ashamed to call us his siblings, why should we look down on ourselves?

The same way the Holy Spirit gave birth to Jesus, He also gave birth to us through the word of God. We were created in the image and likeness of Jesus when we were born again. Romans 8:29 says "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

The only difference with us now is that we are not wearing our celestial body now. Why? Because we are partners with Jesus, we share in his sufferings so as to share in his glory? So, never judge ourselves by our present circumstances for they don't define us, always go by the spirit, so as to give God the worship He seeks.

G) ALWAYS BE MERCIFUL

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Did you know that a sin as unforgiveness can send someone to hell fire? In the parable of the unmerciful servant, Jesus explained to us how a master forgave his servant who owed him ten thousand bags of gold, but the servant went out and saw a fellow servant who owed him 100 silver coins and began to choke him.

The master found out and In anger handed him over to the jailer to be tortured, until he pays back all he owed. And the Lord said “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”(See Matt18:21‭-‬35 )

Jesus forgave us even while we were sinning, yet we cannot forgive one another.

Romans 8:8 says "Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God." The best way to flee the sin of unforgiveness is to live our true life, which is those who have crossed over from death to life. This is a true worship that God seeks.

We sometimes wonder why our prayers are not answered. We think God does not answer prayers, but He does, only that we are the one that is hindering it with our unforgiveness. " forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.(Matthew 6:12 )

Remember the words of the Lord "For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.(Matthew 6:14‭-‬15 ) This is one of the reasons why our prayers are hindered!

H) WE DON'T LIVE FOR OURSELVES

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Imagine if your 3year old wakes you up in the morning telling you to take shower and go to work, grabs your car keys to drive you to work, givies you orders about how to go about the day. How would you feel ?

This is how it is when we serve God in the flesh instead of serving him in the spirit. We are united with Jesus, the Rock greater than we are, He leads us, we don't lead him. We call Jesus, "our Lord" that means He owns us, yet we live for ourselves, as if we are in charge, forgetting that "we were bought with a price." He decides what comes in and out of us. Since all of us were bought with the same price, we don't have the right to judge one another or think ourselves highly than others.

Even our conversation with one another should be edifying and only words of grace should be coming out from us.This is because it is a worship to God and must be offered through the Spirit. Acts 1:2 says this about Jesus "until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen."

2 Cor 5:15 says "And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." Let's ask ourselves, are we living for him or for ourselves? This determines the manner of worship we give him, hence the course of our lives.

St Paul said "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (Philippians 1:21)

I) KNOW YOUR NEW ENVIRONMENT

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

Every child of God should learn how to live in our new environment, that is to live in spirit so as to be fruitful and give God the worship He seeks. Remember, we live in Christ and Christ is Spirit, so living in Christ is living in spirit. In Christ, everything is carried out by the Spirit not by our power or might. That is why Zechariah 4:6 tells us that " it is neither by might nor by power but the Spirit of Jesus in us.

Let's not spend time trying to figure out "how" it will happen because it is done by the Spirit's own mechanism and no one can predict the things of the Spirit. Remember when virgin Mary asked the Angel "How will this be,” “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, Lk1:34‭-‬35 . So whenever the thought of "how" comes, only answer "the Spirit will do if"

It is the same mechanism that pulled down the mighty walls of Jericho with songs and trumpets, the same mechanism that feeds the birds, that also fed 5000 people with 5 loaves of bread and two fish. It is the same today, for the Spirit of God does not change.Good understanding of our new environment places us above our needs,lacks and worries, so we can give God the worship He seeks.

The things of the Spirit are beyond human reasoning. That is why the Lord said "the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. .(John 14:17) The world lives by sight, but we live by faith. We don't feel him sometimes because He is in our spirit and not in our senses. Romans 8:16 says "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children."

J) LIVE AS PRIEST OF THE LORD

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:24 NLT

When we were baptized, we were born anew as priests of the Most High God. The duty of a priest is to offer gifts and sacrifices on behalf of ourselves and others to God. 1Peter 2;5 says "you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." And, “We are priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.”Psalms 110:4

We are not just ordinary priests, rather royal priests, King priests. As priests of the Lord, be selfless, we intercede for one another and not judgemental. Instead of thinking I don't want these people to infect me, think of praying for them to be healed.To be a priest means that we can ask and receive for ourselves and others. Ps 99:6 says "Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel was among those who called on his name; they called on the Lord and he answered them.

As priests of the Most High, it is our duty and our salvation to offer sacrifices of praises and thanksgiving to him everyday, everywhere and everytime. Psalm 66:2 says "Make His praise glorious."

Just as ordained priests that are taken care of by the church community, God faithfully takes care of us in a unique way. Isaiah 61:6 says " And you will be called priests of the Lord , you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast." In another place " I will satisfy the priests with abundance," Jer 31:14

It is a great honor to be a king and priest of the Most High, Remember He chose us and not us ourselves, He didn't make us priests for nothing. His Holy temple is in us so we cannot be destroyed. 1Samuel 2:10 says "He will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.” in another place it says "He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing love to his anointed,(Psalms 18:50 )

Know that God is righteous and faithful, if we do our duty as his priests, we enjoy our benefits, if we don't, we get nothing.

PRAYERS

WE PRAY FOR THE GRACE TO GROW IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD AND WHO WE ARE SO AS TO GIVE HIM THE WORSHIP HE SEEKS TO THE GLORY OF GOD THE FATHER IN JESUS NAME, AMEN!

THANK YOU JESUS!