John 4:23-24 (NKJV) 23 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. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

JOHN 4:23-24 The Worship Of The Church

We continue our study together looking at the distinctiveness of the church With all of the many denominations around us, how do we know which one is the true church? If they all teach and practice different things, can they all be right?

The Worship Of The Church Our last study together we looked at how one becomes a member of the church we read about in the NT So once we become a member, is that it? Is there any more required of a Christian?

The Worship Of The Church We see both through command and example the actions of those who were a part of the early church One thing we see is the worship practices of the NT church What does the worship of the church look like?

Three Fold Command Jesus speaks of worship in John 4 He was asked about worship by this Samaritan woman (v. 20) His response to her revealed that the location of worship did not matter (v. 21) She was ignorant of God (v. 22)

Three Fold Command Jesus then reveals some truths about worship (vs )  There are true worshipers (as well as false worshipers - Matt. 15:8-9)  True worshipers worship in spirit  True worshipers worship in truth  God is seeking true worshipers

Three Fold Command Jesus teaches us here the 3 characteristics of what God is looking for in a worshiper:  They worship the right object (Father)  They worship with the right attitude (spirit)  They worship with the right action (truth)

Object Of Worship It is imperative that we worship God and Him alone Jesus reminded Satan of this truth in Matthew 4:10 Worshipping anyone else other than God is forbidden (Rev. 19:10; 22:8-9)

Object Of Worship There are some religions today who worship others besides God, or who they claim to be God Worshipping the virgin Mary, Muhammad, Peter (or any “Pope”), or any other religious figure is wrong The God of the bible is who we worship

Attitude Of Worship Jesus pointed out that it is a must to worship God in spirit That can be summed up as the mindset with which we come to worship Being distracted or not there mentally can mean that we are worshipping God in an improper way

Attitude Of Worship We are expected to please God in all we do (Col. 1:10; I Jn. 3:22) Jesus described those who “draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me” (Matt. 15:8) Solomon said to “walk prudently” when we worship Him (Ecc. 5:1ff)

Attitude Of Worship We should be glad and joyful to come and worship God (Ps. 122:1) Are we thankful to God? (Ps. 100:4) Do we examine ourselves to see if we are worshipping God with the correct attitude and mindset, with reverence and fear? (Heb. 12:28)

Action Of Worship Jesus also set forth that we must worship God in truth How can we know what is true and what is false worship? We can only know if God has revealed it to us…in His word (Jn. 17:17; II Tim. 3:16-17)

Action Of Worship When we look through the scriptures we see the commands and examples of what we should do and when we do it Jesus commanded that communion be done in His remembrance, the way He set it forth (Lk. 22:14-20) We see this repeated in I Corinthians 11

Action Of Worship How often do we do it? “Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread…” (Acts 20:7) Paul said that they did this when they came together as a church (I Cor. 11:18)

Action Of Worship We also see the example of the collection that was taken, also on the first day of the week (I Cor. 16:1-2) Paul recounts the attitude that we should have when giving (II Cor. 9:5-7) We know that prayer was a part of the Christian life and worship

Action Of Worship Christians gathered to pray (Acts 2:42; 12:5, 12) We see commands to pray for one another (Js. 5:13-18) We are to pray everywhere and without ceasing, which would include in the assembly of worship as well (I Thess. 5:17; I Tim. 2:8)

Action Of Worship We see preaching as a part of their coming together as well “…Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight” (Acts 20:7) The early Christians continued steadfastly in doctrine (Acts 2:42)

Action Of Worship Paul told Timothy to “Preach the word!” (II Tim. 4:2) Paul also gave the command to teach others, so that they in turn may teach and instruct others (II Tim. 2:2) The Great Commission including teaching and preaching (Mk. 16:15)

Action Of Worship The Bible gives us the command to worship through singing as well “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” (Eph. 5:19) God’s desire is for our voices to be lifted up to Him in praise

Action Of Worship “…teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Col. 3:16) Everything we do should be done with God’s approval (Col. 3:17) That certainly includes our worship!