CHALLENGING WORSHIP!

CHALLENGING WORSHIP!

John 4:23-24

23 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.

24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

John 4:20

20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

I am almost always up early. I have already made coffee and finished my first cup. I am, by nature, contemplative. I like to think. I like the peace and quiet that dwells in the morning hours. No one is awake to give me their opinions and I am free to challenge my own.

In these morning hours I like to challenge my patterns and practices, evaluate my priorities and re-think those things that have become commonplace. In this quiet time I can question whether truth is still truth or ever was. Truth never fears honest evaluation! Truth will emerge unscathed after the challenge is done and error will be, as it should be, eliminated.

The woman at the well didn’t care which mountain was proper for worship! She had chosen neither! She probably pointed to Mount Gerizim, at the foot of which the town of Sychar was situated and the well upon which Jesus sat. The patriarchs had worshipped here. Jacob built an altar on this mountain, and worshipped the true God. See Gen 22:2; 33:20. Thus she could say, “Our fathers worshipped in this mountain.”

She pointed out the difference and the ongoing controversy hoping to dismiss both. It is amazing how knowledgeable this woman was about her faith but it is clear that she was not a worshipper! The bitter practicalities of life had ripped the heart from her theology.

Some people are absolutely convinced that true worship can’t be done without special garments and sanctified tools. Their worship is structured and formal. It is the same every time. On the other end of the spectrum are those who seem to have no structure at all. One seems to have removed all emotion while the other seems to have removed all order. Each accuses the other of error and both may be wrong.

Dare we to let our spirits soar without some structure and order? Dare we maintain strict order and structure without heart? What is clear – because Jesus said so – is that worship must be in spirit and in truth.

Dear Lord, I love you. I do not love you enough and I fear that I am clumsy about, it but I do love you. Receive my worship today and let it be acceptable in thy sight. AMEN