{"id":748,"date":"2019-01-22T06:00:31","date_gmt":"2019-01-22T06:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/nextsteps\/?p=748"},"modified":"2019-01-14T02:52:14","modified_gmt":"2019-01-14T02:52:14","slug":"worshipping-spirit-truth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/nextsteps\/2019\/01\/worshipping-spirit-truth.html","title":{"rendered":"Worshipping in Spirit and Truth"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"unsplash-logoRachel
Rachel Lynette French<\/span><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The following is a devotion from my message series\u00a010 Steps to Freedom<\/a>. I hope these devotionals help you experience lasting freedom in Jesus!<\/em><\/p>\n

STEP SEVEN: day 2<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Fully engage in worship<\/strong> to strengthen your soul<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

In John 4 Jesus has an engaging conversation with a Samaritan that wanders over from water to the meaning of worship. In the midst of this back and forth we see some powerful instruction about the nature and meaning of worship.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSir,\u201d the woman said, \u201cI can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain,\u00a0but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWoman,\u201d\u00a0Jesus replied,\u00a0\u201cbelieve me, a time is coming\u00a0when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.\u00a0You Samaritans worship what you do not know;\u00a0we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.\u00a0Yet a time is coming and has now come\u00a0when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit\u00a0and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.\u00a0God is spirit,\u00a0and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.\u201d <\/i>John 4:19-24<\/span><\/p>\n

Here Jesus connects our spirits with the concept of worship. Later the Apostle Paul would write to first century Christians and describe singing as a primary way that we can engage in the soul-strengthening act of worship (Ephesians 5:18-20). Worship is more than songs or music. It\u2019s a state of reverence, an inner bowing or kneeling before God in deference and humility. Connected with the idea of surrender (step two), worship is a practical tool you can use to strengthen your soul, which fuels your will, determination and inner strength.<\/span><\/p>\n

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. How much do you like to sing? Why do you think God created humans with the ability and capacity to sing? <\/span><\/li>\n
  2. How often would you say you fully engage in worship through singing? Have you experienced a strengthening of your soul through worship?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    You can read other devotional entries\u00a0for 10 Steps to Freedom\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The following is a devotion from my message series\u00a010 Steps to Freedom. I hope these devotionals help you experience lasting freedom in Jesus! STEP SEVEN: day 2 Fully engage in worship to strengthen your soul In John 4 Jesus has an engaging conversation with a Samaritan that wanders over from water to the meaning of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":607,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[316,2],"tags":[65,112,246,236],"class_list":["post-748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-10-steps-to-freedom","category-next-steps","tag-jesus","tag-spirit","tag-truth","tag-worship"],"yoast_head":"\nWorshipping in Spirit and Truth - Next Steps<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"An ancient conversation Jesus had reveals a powerful truth about the nature of worship.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, nofollow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Worshipping in Spirit and Truth - 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