Worship in Spirit: Abiding in Jesus’ Word

Introduction

Appreciate Ed song selection, bringing us at least in spirit to John 15 with the idea of Christ being the vine and we are the branches, as we just sing. That relates in a big way to what we’ve been talking about the past two weeks about worshiping in spirit and truth. Really, we’ve been talking about both. I’ve just kind of have broken them into separate segments. And so we’ll see some more of that this morning as I’m going to try to focus a little bit more on the truth aspect of this. But the reality is they kind of work together inevitably. If we are doing this the right way, then spirit and truth are combined in this process. They’re not separate entities that work separately. In fact, if we try to do that, we’re going to go about things the wrong way.

And so the desire, the will to do things and to submit our will to God’s will is going to then produce in us the desire to have truth in that in that whole paradigm. Right? And so the idea of being connected to the vine, one in connection. We talked about that a couple weeks ago, that God created us as spirit beings.

And in worship, it is our spirit reaching for his.

And once they finally realize who he is and he departs, you may remember that phrase, our hearts burn within us. That’s how spirit and truth work together. Jesus is the embodiment of truth. And in the presence of truth itself, their spirit was alive. They were being engaged on a level that they couldn’t quite understand. And the feeling or the way that they express that is that their hearts were burning. They were yearning for truth. And we as created beings, those who’ve been created with eternity in our heart, we yearn for truth. I don’t care if it’s someone who doesn’t believe in God, who doesn’t believe in the same way that we believe, they still are yearning for truth, some sort of truth. They may be grossly mistaken on what they think is true, but no one wants to follow error.

We all want to be moved by the truth, and we all think we are moved by the truth, even sometimes when we are mistaken. And so the goal here is to be critical, to think carefully about what we’re doing and make sure we are actually seeking and finding truth in our life. And that’s a process that takes a whole lifetime. But in that process, if we are going about this the right way, our spirits are engaged as well, which takes us to John 4, a text we’ve been staying with for quite some time now. When Jesus encounters this woman, and there’s so many great aspects of this story, but once she realizes, as she says, he’s a prophet, he’s someone special, she immediately wants to ask about worship.

Now, this makes a lot of sense if we understand the way we understand how we’re created. She has a spirit, she’s yearning for truth, and she’s recognized that a truth speaker is before her. And so she wants to know how is it that I can honor God properly? And so this encounter happens where Jesus says, You worship what you do not know, verse 22. 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. And then there’s this discussion about the Messiah coming, and all of this is relevant to where I ultimately want to go this morning.

1. Abide in Him and Truth Will Set You Free

But I want to turn your attention a few pages later in your Bible to John 8, a text you’re probably pretty familiar with in the Gospel of John. Jesus is here speaking to the Jews. He’s just proclaimed that he is the light of the world. This comes all the way back to John 1, that he is the light, he is the life of men, and he’s going to continue this sort of thing all the way to John 14 and beyond. I am the way, the truth, and the life. There’s no way to the Father except through me. These are the kinds of claims that Jesus is making. And if we believe him, if we accept him, if we engage that and connect with him, it does things in our life.

But he has this to say, beginning in verse 29. This is John 8, verse 29. And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him. As he was saying these things, many believed.

As I said earlier, truth comes in various forms. Sometimes it’s very simple. I see this quite often in Texas, and it always amazes me because it’s flat. But sometimes, have you ever seen that massive moon low on the horizon? You’re out somewhere and you turn your head and huge, amazing. There’s an element of truth that touches us in a moment like that. It’s a moment in which we see the truth in the reality of an amazing creator. Something that sort of blows our minds. We can’t even comprehend how all of this works. And we can even be moved by the reality as Job ultimately was, as he was figuring things out in his life, that God’s creation is actually too complex for me to even comprehend.

We just sang a song from Psalm 19, the law of the Lord, but actually that psalm begins with the testimony of the world. The truth that exists all around us. The heavens declare the glory of God. And then in verse 7, he says, the law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. Truth is around us and it can affect us on a spiritual level. And what Jesus is trying to help them see here is if they will abide in him, right? We are the branches. If we will abide in him, if we will seek truth through him, that truth will set us free. That which is false is binding. That which is error is restrictive. It keeps us from the connection that we need with God.

And what Jesus wants them to understand is that if they will listen to him, if they will come to him, if they will give themselves to him, he will free them.

2. True Worship Is Grounded in Revelation

That’s what 2 Corinthians 3 talks about, as we talk about last week. But I want us to understand the importance of truth this morning as we’re working through this. It’s not just about feelings or expressions, even as we talked about last week. There’s something deeper there because feelings and expressions, emotions can be wrong. They’re also fleeting. We might feel a certain way in one moment and then it kind of goes away. We can be affected even by truth in different ways. You may weep when you hear truth. You may rejoice with joy when you hear truth. So emotions are reactions, ultimately they ought to be, reactions to what is true and what is real. And in that way, emotions are great, and we are created with them by a creator who is emotional himself.

But truth is the substance beneath that. And so true worship that is in spirit and truth, is actually grounded in revelation. It’s grounded in knowledge and the knowledge as it is revealed to us. Have you ever been at a coffee shop? And you’re on your phone and you see there’s a Wi-Fi signal. It’s strong, all the bars are there.

It is 100% possible for you to be connected to this Wi-Fi router. But you have to have the password to get on. Often the password’s a mystery. Maybe they don’t want you to have it, or they only want customers to have it. So sometimes maybe at the checkout counter, there’ll be a little sign, you know, a chalkboard or something like that has their password. The mystery is revealed. And through having that mystery revealed, now you have access. And there is connection. The same kind of connection we talked about in the past two weeks. Things are aligned now. Now you have access to that powerful source, the internet. I want us to see maybe, and of course, examples have limitations. I’ll just admit that up front.

But this is sort of an alignment what we’ve been talking about, in connection spirit to spirit with God. You may desire to be connected to him, but you don’t have the password. Now it’s not all that hard to get, right? The mystery, it’s not still mystery. The mystery has been revealed. And it is in here. He’s revealed it to us. And in Colossians, it says the mystery is Christ. I want you to know, he says, how great a struggle I’ve had for you and for those at Laodicea. This is Colossians 2, that their hearts may be encouraged to reach all the riches of full assurance, of understanding, and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ. Christ is the answer. And this is why he says, if you abide in me, it’s why when he comes to the woman, and the woman is asking these questions about worship, he responds with saying, You don’t know.

Your heart may be good. Maybe you’re just sincerely confused, but you don’t know what you worship. We know what we worship, but he says there’s hope in all of this because it’s all changing if you will just listen to me. And she gets the point, right? Because she responds in saying, I know the Messiah is coming, who is called Christ. When he comes, he will tell us all things. She’s got that much. She knows the answer, the mystery, the password, the way to get access to God is through the Messiah, through the Christ. And then Jesus says, I am he. I’m the one who’s talking to you. And immediately she drops everything and she runs into town and she starts telling everybody about Jesus. This guy who’s told me about my whole life.

Come and listen to him. And of course, the people respond, they come, they believe this woman. And ultimately, as we’ll get to in the end here in a little bit, they respond to who Jesus is himself. And they will proclaim that to everyone. Multiple times in Colossians, it talks about Christ being the mystery back in chapter one. Paul’s talking about his ministry, that he’s going to make known the word of God, verse 25. The mystery hidden for ages and generations, but now revealed to his saints. This was God’s plan from the beginning. And it was something that man could not have predicted. But what Paul’s saying is, I’ve been given this mystery, and now I’m revealing it to you. And we all can have it now.

And what he’s saying is, this mystery now has been revealed, and he has chosen to make this known to the Gentiles the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you. Jesus Christ is the mystery revealed. If you know Jesus, you know God’s plan, you have access to him. So much of what’s going on in the Gospel of John is Jesus’ testimony, him bearing witness. This is who I am. I’m the Son of God. If God, if you’ll just listen to me. If you will believe me, then you will have life. And if you do not believe me, you will die in your sins. He says this multiple times. He’s the answer. And so knowledge is the foundation, understanding the plan of God.

And Jesus, he’s willing to tell her that she has flawed worship. The woman in John 4. It’s just, you’re not right. He doesn’t dwell on it. But he just says, This is incorrect. But what is correct is what I’m telling you now, because I’m the Christ. And if you’ll listen to me, amazing things will happen. I want us to understand that Jesus speaks today. We have it before us. In fact, he told his apostles. They are going to be the messengers of truth, and the Spirit of truth was going to guide them. And John 16, it says, when the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears, he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. John 16, 13 and 14. Pretty simplistic. He says, When I leave, the helper is going to come, and these men who’ve been selected as special messengers, we call them apostles, they are going to be guided into all truth by the Spirit, who’s taking from me and giving to you. And we call that the New Testament. This is the message of truth. It is God’s mystery revealed. And then he tells the apostles to go and to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. But it’s this next phrase I want us to catch, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

So, yes, loving the Lord with all our heart and with our mind. All of that is vital and important, as we’ve talked about in the previous weeks, but also it is understanding the needed humility to submit to the will of God as it is being taught the truth and as is being revealed through Jesus Christ.

3. True Worship Rejects Man-Made Ideas

And then also understanding that true worship is one in which we reject man-made ideas. Man-made religions. These are incorrect passwords. Isn’t that frustrating? When you want access and you say, how do I get onto this network and someone gives you and you type it in, it doesn’t work, and it doesn’t work. You know, or maybe they give you the right thing and you don’t do it right. You know, and it still doesn’t work. If you don’t do it the right way, you don’t get access. It’s frustrating. And it’s very precise. And unfortunately, in the world, often truth is very distorted. Distorted truth interferes with connection to God. And the only way that we can grow stronger on our connection to the Lord is through truth, through truth growing in our life.

As we draw near to God, he will draw near to us. As I said, this is a process, and I don’t have it all figured out, and neither do you, but we are on a journey to seek and to find truth in Jesus Christ. And as we do that, we are drawing closer and closer and closer to Him. But we have to beware of the things that are obstacles that interfere. Colossians 2 has quite a bit to say about that, and I won’t go in great depth because Chris Emerson just preached on this not too long ago. You might remember the little four quadrants he had, and he’s saying the answer is Christ in the middle. But men come up with all kinds of other ideas that try to draw people away toward man-made religion and ideas.

So I’m just going to note those, and then I want to get to where I actually want to get here in the sermon this morning. If you look at Colossians chapter 2, there’s a number of ways in which we can be pulled away to the things of the world and of the things of human thinking. And verse 8, Colossians 2 and verse 8, it says, 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. This actually captures a few of these. This is the idea of kind of the elitism of the world. We know best. The philosophical thinking in the world, the reasoning that comes, the way of life, which is kind of apart from Christ, right?

We’ve got an answer for you. If you listen to us, we can make your life better. And ultimately, what scripture is trying to help us see is there is no better without Jesus Christ. There is no better apart from God, as Ecclesiastes says.

Going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, not holding fast to the head. The head is Jesus. Right? So whether it’s emotionalism, legalism, traditionalism, whatever these ideas are that sometimes we get pulled away by in human thinking, they are not holding fast to the head. We’re trying some other password. We are trying to access God through something that is not the way to access God. The access is through Jesus Christ Himself. He said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. And so we have to beware. We have to watch out for these empty philosophies, these deceits that men try to bring to us, deceitful doctrines that pull us away. All of these things we need to be aware of and be focusing on the truth of Jesus Himself.

4. True Worship Is Forged Through Confession

But what I really want us to get to this morning, our ultimate aim is understanding what true worship is. And so that’s where I want to take us for the rest of our time. And that is true worship is forged through confession. It is formed in the realities of the world in our life, not just the knowledge of it, but the acknowledging of it. There’s a difference between those things. In fact, in Hebrews chapter 10, it talks about the reality that once you know what Jesus has done, you understand God’s plan, and you continue to go on sinning, there no longer remains a sacrifice. What that means is you can have it in here, you can have the knowledge, and you cannot accept it. You can decide, I know what God did and I know who Jesus is, but I’m gonna go a different way.

So knowledge is the foundation, it is the groundwork of worship, but there’s got to be something more. There has to be belief, there has to be action, and that is the idea behind the term confession. Now, in our vernacular, we don’t typically use it that way. If I said, how would you define confess? If I hadn’t prompted you with some other information already, you’d probably say it relates to admitting sin or saying you did something, which is all very legitimate. The word just means to acknowledge or to speak together with someone, and so that does involve things like admitting sin. Even in a biblical way, it’s talked about that way sometimes. But it’s bigger than that. The idea of confession is just the idea, its root term and idea is the idea to acknowledge.

Galen in his prayer this morning started out with that very idea. We acknowledge who you are as God. That’s confession. It’s the center point of worship. It is this idea that there’s something bigger and greater and grander, something beyond me, and I’m acknowledging that. I’m laying myself down before it in humility. I’m coming before God and submitting my will to his. I’m acknowledging that I cannot do this myself. And in a congregational way, we make these kinds of acknowledgments in a variety of ways in the Lord’s Supper. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11, what we’re doing there is we’re proclaiming the Lord’s death until he comes. It’s a proclamation, it’s a statement of belief and faith. It’s a confession of what Jesus did for us and what it means to me, what it means to you.

What we’re doing here is we’re reaching for the Spirit of God and we’re admitting how desperately we need him, but it is founded and grounded on knowledge that we are willing to acknowledge in this kind of setting to those who are around us. As we confess, we speak together about the truths and the realities of God. 1 Corinthians 14 tells us a number of other ways in which this happens, even within collective worship. It’s speaking about the congregation being together. It happens through song and through prayer, 1 Corinthians 14 and verse 15. It happens through instruction and lessons, verse 26. He uses the word prophecy or prophesying, but there that’s the idea of just speaking truth. Remember, they don’t hold a new testament. They have people who have the gifts of prophecy, and they’re speaking the truths of God to those who are around.

5. More About What Is Done Than How

And here’s the thing the more lies are spoken and distort the truth, the more willing we are to listen to them. And so it is vitally important from a discipline standpoint as we worship to frequently be speaking words of truth and reality amongst ourselves and to people in the world, bearing witness to the reality of God and his son Jesus Christ and who they are and what they do for our life. And I would say it’s more about what is done than how it is done. Sometimes God tells us how he wants things done, exactly. But most often he’s pretty free and how we go about many of these things. Let me just give you an example that I think probably most of us will agree with.

Four-part harmony is nice.

What we do now. That’s not how singing has always happened. We would probably be pretty uncomfortable with chanting. But that’s how people sing for quite some time. Or maybe something like call and response, Psalm 136 is probably an example of that. Where someone is speaking some truth, and then there is a response to that by the group, and they kind of go back and forth. You can go look at Psalm 136 later and see what I’m talking about. Or just singing in unison. We don’t have to sing in four-part harmony. It’s just what we like to do. And there may be a variety of reasons for that, but God did not say you must sing in four-part harmony. It’s just what we’ve chosen. To express a general idea of what God wants us to do in worship and acknowledging him and who he is.

But there are other options and how we do that. But what matters and what scripture tells us matters is that the word of Christ is dwelling in us richly. That we’re teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Or as Paul says it in Ephesians, do not get drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart. That’s what actually matters. And we all have various opinions about old songs and new songs and how we sing certain songs, and but that’s what actually matters. Are the words of Christ dwelling in my heart? Am I filled with the Spirit so much so that those words are coming out and I’m teaching and admonishing you, and you’re teaching and admonishing me.

6. Let Truth Become Praise

This is what scripture says is important. And while there can be reasons why we want to sound good, you know, maybe it’s less distracting or that sort of thing, ultimately how we sound doesn’t even make that much of a difference. The melody is being made to the Lord in our hearts. And while he does want to get us on the emotional level in the heart, it is based on the truths that are being spoken repeatedly as we come together and we sing and we acknowledge him for who he is and we praise him. And so let me encourage all of us to let truth become praise in our life. Through him, speaking of Jesus, the Hebrew writer says, Let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God.

That is the fruit of lips that acknowledge or confess his name. Hebrews 13 and verse 15. Our spiritual heritage is a curriculum our young children use. And one of the things I love about it is it teaches praise. They’re taught truths and they’re given praise verses. They’re given words and vocabulary of praise. Even in their prayer, they’re taught how to praise as they pray. They’re given a model, things about God. God, you are, those kind of things. I encountered a song that reminded me of this process. I really wanted art is amazing, and truth can be displayed through art. We’ve got some artists here this morning, and you understand this very well. It can be done through paintings and drawings and that sort of thing, but also through lyrics, through music.

And some of us love that sort of thing as truth is displayed through artistic work. And that can happen through the lyrics of songs as well. We have them in scripture, in the Psalms, inspired poetry, which is artistic, which is meant to move us. And so when I heard this song and the lyrics of the song, it reminded me of what we’re trying to do with our children and hopefully with ourselves as well. That we are moved by truths and we are moved to praise God for who he is. It’s not about Moses and David and Samson and the spies. It’s not, they’re not the heroes. God is the hero. And those are the lessons we’re trying to teach. And so the song says, I’ve witnessed your faithfulness, I’ve seen you breathe life within.

Imagine these stories. I wanted to put a montage of like stories of scripture as we’re reading this, so you can experience. These are what the stories are trying to get us to see. It’s what we want our children to open their eyes and realize as they see these stories in Scripture. I’ve witnessed your faithfulness. I’ve seen you breathe life within. So I’ll pour out my praise again. You’re worthy, God. You’re worthy of all of it. You’re good, and I’ve witnessed it. You’re strong and I’ve witnessed it. You’re constant, I’ve witnessed it. And I’m confident I’ll see it again and again. You love and I’ve witnessed it. You heal and I’ve witnessed it. You save and I’ve witnessed it. And I’m confident I’ll see it again and again.

Your promises never fail. I’ve got stories I’ll live to tell, so I’ll pour out my praise again. You’re worthy, God. You’re worthy of all of it. The song goes on to say, To the broken, I’ll witness it. To the lost, I’ll witness it. And as we’re thinking about the stories of Jesus Christ Himself, how he’s bearing witness and giving testimony about who he is, we are called as his people to witness this to the world, to the people in our lives to talk about Jesus, to those who are broken and those who are hurting. We are to witness the glory of God and his Son Jesus Christ and let truth be turned into praise in our life. And so worship can be found in a place like this, but it also can be found as we serve and we work in the world, declaring and proclaiming and confessing the truths of Jesus Christ to bring healing to the broken and bring hope to the lost.

Conclusion

That’s what the stories of Scripture show us. It’s not that these different characters, Abraham and Isaac, that they’re so strong and they’re so consistent and they’re so faithful. Sometimes they are, sometimes they’re not. But it’s actually a story about God’s enduring faith and God’s magnificent power and God’s wisdom, that God makes great plans. And when we worship, we acknowledge him for who he is. It is an action of which we are submitting our will to the will of the Father. And so truth matters. It is the means, the method, the avenue by which spirit touches spirit. It’s how God works through us, not just for connection, but ultimately for transformation. And that’s why the Hebrew writer can say, Let us draw near with a true heart and full assurance of faith.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering. For he who promised is faithful. That’s the good news.

Sanctify them by your word. And we have it right here. We can look through it. It is the answer. We can proclaim it to people around us. We can give them hope and purpose and meaning in life. And we can show them that as well, the way we live, if we are living, walking in the light and walking with the Spirit. Maybe this morning you realize you need that in your life. You felt the brokenness, the emptiness, the desperation of living apart from God, living apart from Jesus Christ, and you know that’s not the answer. You need healing. Things are not right, and you’re looking for what is right in the world. And God says He’s going to ultimately make all things right through the Messiah.

He’s going to take this world that is subjected to futility, that when we look around, we say, That’s not right. The things I see are not right, but there’s a God who is powerful, who’s going to change it all, who’s going to turn it from ashes to beauty, he’s going to make it wonderful again, and that’s only going to happen through Jesus Christ his son. Will you give yourself to him this morning? Will you say you’re going to die to yourself, be buried with him in baptism, be resurrected to newness of life, and begin this life walking with Jesus Christ and being transformed by him? Can we help you? Why don’t you come as we stand and we sing?