Worship in the Spirit

Walking in the Spirit requires worshiping in the Spirit. Refer to the blog below.

LEARNING TO WALK IN THE SPIRIT

Jesus tells us in John 12:24 that ‘God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship him in Spirit and truth.’

Before we can understand how God wants us to worship him we need to understand how God does NOT want us to worship him.

Jesus told his followers that religious people worship him in vain. (Mark 7:7-9)

This means that a religious or nominal Christian’s worship brings no profit. The worship of a cultural or religious institutional Christian is purposeless and empty.

This is because even though the religious person may think that their worship is sincere, God views religious worship as hypocritical. In other words the religious person’s worship is not received by God. No matter how sincere religious worship is or how many religious rites are performed, God does not accept institutional religious worship.

Jesus says that the religious person honors God with the mouth but their actions are ungodly.

The religious person claims to know God but they don’t live according to God’s word. Indeed the religious person cannot please God because Jesus said ‘you must be born again to enter my Kingdom’.

Refer to this blog.

You Must Be Born Again

For example, if I was a citizen of a particular country and I imposed myself on another country demanding citizen rights, I would probably be tossed out of that country. I would have to apply for citizenship of that country before I could participate in any of their civic activities and duties.

In order to become a citizen of God’s Kingdom we must be born of God. By becoming born of God by the power of the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus Christ alone for our salvation, we become a citizen of God’s Kingdom. A citizen of the Kingdom of God can participate in Kingdom activities. Including worship of the King of kings.

In order to be a true worshiper of God one must worship God in Spirit and in truth.

Those born of God have been transformed by God into a new creation in Christ. The old person they used to be is gone and the new citizen of the Kingdom of God is born.

The born again person has been forgiven of past sins. They have been given a new heart to worship God.

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. Ezekiel 36:26-27

Jesus said that the heart that is not born of God is filled with evil.

“For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.” Matthew 15:19-21

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Jeremiah 17:9

The heart must be transformed by God’s Holy Spirit.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17

A true worshiper of God is born of the Spirit.

God desires people to be in the truth. God’s word is truth. Jesus was the word of God made flesh.

A True Worshipper of God is born of God.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Worshiping God requires being in the truth. Being in Jesus Christ.

Refer to this blog.

IN Christ

False worship that is referenced in the Bible are the following.

Angel worship

Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind. Colossians 2:18

Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Revelations 19:10

Works or labor rather than faith in the sacrifice of the lamb of God

And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. Genesis 4:3-5
Yet you have not listened to Me,” says the Lord, “that you might provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt. Jeremiah 25:7

Idolatry (worship of false gods or worship of the dead or worship of man)

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. 1 John 5:21.

There shall be no foreign god among you; Nor shall you worship any foreign god. Psalms 81:9

Their land is also full of idols; They worship the work of their own hands,
That which their own fingers have made. Isaiah 2:8

But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up. Daniel 3:18

Thus says the Lord: “Learn not the way of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them, for the customs of the peoples are vanity. A tree from the forest is cut down and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good. Jeremiah 10:2-5

For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Matthew 24:24

Creation worship

Because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. Romans 1:25

Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets: Acts 7:42

Strange offerings

Leviticus 10:1-3; Numbers 26:61 Nadab and Abihu or Acts 5

Incense, candles, altars, cultural artifacts, occultic paraphernalia

Showmanship (to be seen of men)

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. Matthew 6:5

But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. Matthew 23:5

Fasting with wrong motives

Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. Matthew 6:16

Depriving the flesh to gain God’s approval

As many as desire to make a good showing in the flesh, these would compel you to be circumcised, only that they may not suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. Galatians 6:12

lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. 2 Timothy 3:4

These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. Colossians 2:23

With sin in the heart

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. James 4:8

You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. James 4:4

Unforgiveness in the heart

Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 1 John 3:15.

For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. Matthew 6:14

And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. Mark 11:25

Insincerity

And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,” Isaiah 29:13

See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. Colossians 2:8

This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; Matthew 15:8

Repetitive acts or rituals

In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. Mark 7:7

No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. 1 Corinthians 10:20

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. Colossians 2:16

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. 1 Timothy 4:1, 6:21

Selfishness or Greed

And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” Matthew 4:9,10

Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. Philippians 3:19

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. 1 Timothy 6:10

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 3:5

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. Matthew 6:24

He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. Ecclesiastes 5:10

For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 2Timothy 3:2

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15

True worship of God is in Spirit and in truth.

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. John 4:23

A true worshiper of God is born of God.

A true worshiper of God is in Christ.

A true worshipper of God is in the truth.

A true Worshiper of God is the temple of the Holy Spirit

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Romans 12:1

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:21-24

And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” Revelations 15:13

In conclusion, in order to walk in the Spirit we must be born of the Spirit so that we can worship in the Spirit.

Worship in the Spirit is a life filled with the Spirit walking in the truth of the word of God.

Another blog on this topic below.