“In some form worship is all but universal. Wherever on earth man is found, there he presents to the Power above the offerings of his devotion. Doubtless there are cases without number in which worship has degenerated into mere superstition. Yet, where worship is at its best, it is one of the very highest manifestations and exercises of human nature.” Jesus cast more light upon this subject in His few words to the distraught woman at the well at Sychar than in any other event (cf. John 4:21 - 23).
I do so want to worship my Savior more seriously, more pleasingly to Him, and more effectively from my heart. It is with this in mind that I dare broach this subject. John 4:24 tells who God is and how we are to worship Him. “God is Spirit.” When I delved into that I was shockingly disappointed. In my ignorant years I anticipated the day I would see Him face to face, fall before Him, and cast my crowns at His feet. I thought that while I could not see His face on this earth I would certainly do so in Heaven. Well, this is where we dig. “God is a spirit, for He is an infinite and eternal mind, an intelligent being, incorporeal [having no material body or form], immaterial, invisible, and incorruptible. If God were not a spirit, He could not be perfect, nor infinite, nor eternal, nor independent, nor the Father of spirits” (Matthew Henry Commentary).
God is infinite, but I shaped Him to fit my finite ideas! My worship may have been true yet it was not pure and entire. No wonder I was left wanting, cold and dissatisfied when I “worshipped.”
Whom are we to worship? Idolaters worship natural objects such as the sun and moon or the works of their hands, as images made of wood which they can hold. Those of perplexed minds have worshipped an “Unknowable God.” We Christians worship the God who is revealed by the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is He?
“God as the Spirit, apprehended [seized] not by the senses, but by the soul. The Divine Being, spiritual in nature, everywhere present, everywhere conscious, everywhere acting, is the proper Object of human worship” (The Pulpit Commentary). Ponder that for a long time. It is profoundly deep.
“God the Father, who is not distant and unapproachable, is very near. To Whom we owe our being, who supplies our wants, exercises over us a constant care, and trains us for the future by a moral discipline. Such is the affectionate relation which is sustained to us by the great Object of our adoration” (The Pulpit Commentary). Ponder some more. Ponder deeply.
If we do not worship God, who is spirit, we neither give Him the glory due His name, nor do we perform an act of worship (Mat. 15:8).
God has credentials! When we really know Him and what He is constantly doing for us, we will worship Him in spirit and with sincerity. Our hearts and His will be knit together in a bond that is inseparable and unexplainable. Know Him. Study Him. Praise Him. Worship Him.
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