John 4:23-24
Notice that John
differentiates between worship and the true worshippers as he begins the 23rd
verse… You have to be about
the business of God at every turn of your life to be a qualified member of this
statement… There are too many people seeing another side of you when you are a
around them instead of seeing the worship and adoration that you have for
Christ… John goes on to say in the 8th chapter, “Then you will know the
truth, and the truth will set you free." I recite this verse to reinforce the point that God knows you by
your actions which display the truths that live within you… A lot of us are
still captive to the past failures or mistakes of yesterday because we have not
acknowledged our wrongdoing and allowed the truth to set us free… Since we have
not aligned ourselves with the truth, we also find ourselves incapable of
worshipping God in the true spirit which He requires… This alone can be the
very picture that someone needed drawn today to know the reason behind why it
feels as though God has not moved on your behalf or that you prayers are going
unanswered… You must be truthful in your spirit with the Lord, He knows your
deepest and darkest secrets; however, He is waiting for you to turn your life
over to Him so that He can in turn take you to another level… Make no mistake
about it; this journey of a Christian is filled with ups and downs… The
experiences of highs and lows can quickly turn one to question their belief and
desire to follow the call of God… Understand today, not only do we all have to
face persecutions, but that these very trials that we face separate the true
Christians from the impostors… There is a story in the bible that talks about “a wise ruling…” In 1 Kings 3:16-28 the bible records two
prostitutes which lived together in a house… Each of them conceived a son;
however one of them lay upon there son in the night and accidentally killed
him… The story goes on to say that the woman who had killed her son got up and
swapped babies with the other, leaving her dead son at the side of the other…
When the lady arose to feed her son, she found him dead but soon realized that
this was not her child… The matter was taken to the courts where the judge had
told the women that he would have the baby cut and half and each would receive
a part… At this, the real mother of the child decided that she would rather let
the child live with another woman than to have him killed… Once she said this,
the judge knew who the real mother was and awarded her the child… This story brings
thoughts to my mind about our spiritual walk because we have to be willing to
remain faithful even in the most difficult situations… So might say, why was
this woman willing to give up her son and the reason is because of the love she
had for him but also because of the faith she had in God… This is the kind of
worshippers that John is speaking about in these verses… The time of people
talking about faith as ended; we must show the faith we have by the life that
we live… Notice the characteristics of a true worshipper… They worship in
spirit and in truth… The spirit is
indwelling; it lies within and leads our actions and emotions…When we worship God in spirit we worship Him
in the most secret of places (our heart)… We worship Him from deep down inside
and sometimes in true worship our emotions can get the best of us… True worship
was shown when David danced out of his clothes, true worship was shown when
John stood at the foot of the cross, true worship was shown when Stephen was
stoned to death and the greatest worship was Jesus laying down His life on the
cross… God isn’t looking for men pleasers, He is looking for people who have
experienced His favor, who know that it is a privilege to be alive and who
trust Him with their whole heart… Notice that Judge says, the hour has come… We
have been playing long enough, we have allowed people around us to suffer long
enough… It’s time for you to
take a stand in your homes, it’s time for you to take a stand on your job, and
it’s time for you to take a stand in your relationship… Stop allowing your faith to be hidden or
trampled on, stop allowing people to deny the power that God has or the will He
has planned for your life… In the midst of trials, don’t focus on the problem;
instead praise God in advance for the solution… My sister once told me, when
you face a storm, don’t tell God how big your storm is; instead tell the storm
how big your God is… We must learn to do that today… This is true worship, the
ability to honor, adore and appreciate God even in the worst of times… True
worship isn’t praying when something goes wrong, it’s praying without ceasing… True worship isn’t praying when you are sick,
it’s thanking Him for each and every day that you have already seen knowing
that He has kept you… The true worshiper
doesn’t question God when the foundation of their life is rocked, but continues
to (wait on the Lord) knowing that there strength will be renewed. Peter
worshipped God; however in the face of opposition he left the courtyard
weeping… When the spirit of the Lord came upon him and he was faced with
opposition again, we see him take a stand and 3,000 souls be saved… The
question today is, are you a true worshipper? If so, please stand up?
BE BLESSED!!!
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