Worship in Spirit and in Truth

Hello to all of our friends and partners,

This scripture is from the story of Jesus being with a Samaritan woman at a well in Samaria.

John 4:21-24

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 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. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Jesus met this woman at the well in the hottest part of the day and asked her for a drink. Out of the ensuing conversation, this woman questioned Jesus about what real worship looked like. She questioned the difference between the Jews worshipping in the temple in Jerusalem and the Samaritans fathers worshipping on the mountain in which the well, which the patriarch Jacob dug, was located. It sounds like nothing much has changed in 2000 years when you hear different peoples opinions on what is anointed praise and worship and what is not. When Jesus responds that the Father is seeking those who will worship Him in Spirit and in truth, the Greek word translated to worship is proskuneó which means to:

• to kiss

• to fawn or crouch to

• to fall face down (prostrate) in adoration

• a physical act of lowering oneself in humble submission with an attitude of utmost adoration or respect {literally or figuratively}

Before this statement, worship was being debated as a series of acts. How easy is it to sing a song to the Lord yet you be thinking of everything in the world except God, yet this word used by Jesus describes an intense sense of devotion, intimacy and focus that is sadly missing in a lot if our worship experiences. Why is this?

Psalms 100:4
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

The Old Testament is a type and shadow of the life we have in Christ in the New Testament. In the Old Testament you had to go to the temple and enter by the outer courts and this is where they would offer their sacrifices. You did this with thanksgiving. The Hebrew word translated to thanksgiving here is the word Towdah, which means an extension of the hand, adoration, confession, (sacrifice of) praise, thanks (giving, offering). You can say that this is what we do when we make a decision to praise God and offer Him the sacrifice of praise no matter how we feel or how well things are going because regardless of anything, He is God and worthy of our praise.

It then says that we enter His courts with praise. His inner court was behind the veil, in the Holy of Holies where the presence of God dwelt. This word praise is Tehillah which is a Hebrew word that means “praise”, “song” or “hymn of praise” that often implies spontaneous, unrehearsed expressions of praise, often from the heart. This sounds more like the worship that Jesus was talking about. When we make a decision to praise God as a decision of our will regardless of the songs, how we feel and what’s going on in our life and fighting for our attention, we can get to a place a connection and worship from our heart that is in Spirit and in truth. A place where even in a room full of people, it is just you and God. People of God – it’s time to get your praise on! The higher the praise, the deeper the worship. Make a decision to start every day praising God with everything that you have and watch your worship and your walk with the Lord get deeper and more connected.

Cristie and myself are settling back into being home in Australia after six months away. We have so much happening so please continue pray for us. We are off to New Zealand ministering in a couple of days as well as putting on two major worship training events, one here on the Gold Coast and one in Perth. We are also organising a national youth camp. If you would like to attend the Gold Coast Worship Intensive then scan the QR code on the graphic or click the link on the Perth event if you are in WA. Please pray for these events as we have a passion to train teams to move powerfully in the Holy Spirit in worship. If you would like to sow into or help serve at either of these events or our youth camp here on the Gold Coast on the 30/9/26-2/10/26, then please contact us. We would be grateful for any help. If you would like to become a partner in this ministry then please click the link below. We love you, pray for you and believe God’s very best for you.

Much love and blessings,

Peter & Cristie