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)
What does worshiping in “Spirit and in Truth” mean to you? Some people think it is referring to two separate things when it says “Spirit and Truth”. Some think worshiping “in Spirit” is talking about an excited or enthusiastic worship. Some think that the truth is referring to the inerrant written Word of God only. What do you think? I can only share with you what I have personally experienced after years of studying the Word of God and worshiping the Lord. This is my testimony. This is the way it has happened to me. Maybe it happened to you differently, but this is my story.
Jesus told us that it would be better for us when He went away because He would then send us a helper which is the Holy Spirit. He told us that the Holy Spirit would be our guide and that He would reveal the truth to us. Now, if one of the assignments of the Holy Spirit is to reveal truth to us then the truth (or parts of it) must be hidden and that is what I have found over the years. There are parts of the Word of God that are understood readily, but then there are parts of it that are hidden. It is like a tree. You can see the trunk. and the limbs and leaves, but you cannot see the roots. The roots are invisible to the naked eye. That is what the Holy Spirit can reveal. That is what is called a revelation or a “rhema” word.
In my case, when I first starting reading the Word of God, I could understand the rudimentary tenants, but I did not understand the deeper things of God. For example, I understood salvation, but I did not understand being baptized in the Spirit and walking in the Spirit. After I asked and received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, that changed everything. The Word started coming alive to me because the one that inspired the writing of it revealed it to me. I didn’t just all of a sudden get a lot smarter. It was a gift from God that is available to all believers.
What I have found is that intellectualism without the Spirit, combined with religion, usually produces legalism (letter of the law). What I mean by that is that a person can memorize the entire Word of God, but without the Spirit, it will have no life. It will become a list of rules and regulations and the letter of the law killeth. The Spirit giveth life. That is one reason we have so many cults and semi-cults that call themselves Christians.
What am I saying to you? You need the baptism of the Holy Ghost! If the Bible is just a blur (not understandable) when you read it, that can change. Jesus sent the Holy Ghost to be our teacher and guide. He helps us see the roots of that tree. He helps us see the whole truth. He is the one that reveals truth and brings revelation. That is how you worship God in Spirit and in truth. It’s not two separate things. It’s a package deal, straight from the Lord.
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