How to Worship in Spirit and in Truth, part 1

“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.”
—John 4:23-24

In John 4, Jesus said some profound things about worship. Out of all the things that God is looking for (which the Bible doesn’t list a ton of things), He is looking for worshippers. True worshippers. The kind that worship in spirit and in truth.  But what does that mean? I don’t know about you, but I want to be the kind of person God is looking for. So let’s look closer at what it means to worship in spirit and in truth.

Years ago, our church hosted an up-and-coming, well-known worship leader. I was a young worship leader at the time, and I just wanted to glean from those who were further down the road. I asked one of the musicians what it meant to worship in spirit and in truth and he gave me the shortest and, what felt like, the most empty answer…I don’t even remember what it was. 

Maybe it was the wrong timing to ask such a deep question, but I was so hungry to know about true worship. Maybe you’ve wondered what Jesus meant to…and had a challenging time finding the answers.

I kept pursuing God throughout the following years.

I would pick up glimpses of “in spirit and in truth” through my encounters with God in times of worship, how my pastor would instruct me, and through others' teachings. Then, being in the prophetic environment of the Fire & Glory Outpouring helped me to put language around what it meant to worship in spirit and in truth.

In this article, I want to share some of the things I’ve learned over the years regarding what it is to worship in spirit.

(Part 2 will be worship in truth.)

1. Worship in spirit is not about location, it’s about heart posture

When Jesus spoke with the woman at the well in John 4, they started discussing the location of worship.

“Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.”
—John 4:20-21

Then He says the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.

Jesus decentralized the place of worship. It wasn’t about being on Mount Gerazim or in Jerusalem. Worship isn’t about location, it’s about heart.

The true location of worship is the heart.

It’s a heart posture of deep reverence for God, of great delight in Him.

That can happen anywhere. In fact, it does happen everywhere. You are the place of worship. Didn’t Paul write and say that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit? (1 Cor. 3:16) You are a place of worship.

You can bring an offering to God through everything you do when your heart is postured in worship unto Him.

I was recently visiting a Seventh Day Adventist church for a seminar. They opened up with a song for one of the meetings, and I could feel the pleasure of God on it. It brought me to tears. Sometimes, we think God only comes in certain “locations” of our preference. But worship is a spiritual activity that transcends locations and comes from hearts who love God. These people really loved God.

I believe spirit is also synonymous with heart.

So, to worship in spirit is to worship from the depth of who you are.

2. Worship is a spiritual activity

One of the things my pastor taught me years ago was how to keep people in spirit. Sometimes people can go up during a service and start talking away and pull people right out of the flow of the Spirit. It gets them in their heads rather than in their spirits.

It’s not that being in your head is bad; Jesus said to love God with all your mind (Matt. 22:37), but worship happens in the spirit.

So, to keep people in the spirit, you need to keep doing spiritual activity; keep it vertical. Through prayer, worship, singing in the Spirit…or something horizontal like prophecy or tongues and interpretation.

We have to learn to live from our spirit if we’re going to worship consistently in spirit.

God is Spirit (John 4:24). And we’re made in His image.

Look at what Paul said:
“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
—1 Thessalonians 5:23

You are a spirit, you have a soul, and you live in a body. You are like God—a triune being.

Worship happens in your spirit, and then makes its way through your soul (mind, will, emotions) and body (where you lift your hands, sing, dance, etc.)

Worship is a spiritual activity first.

In church services, when we keep the people in their spirit, they receive much more from God. Because God is Spirit, and He communicates in that realm.

You can’t understand the things of the Spirit without the Spirit.

This is how Jesus walked—He did only what He saw His Father doing (John 5:19). He was seeing in the Spirit.

This is how the apostle Paul functioned:

“This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.”
—1 Corinthians 2:13 NIV

“So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding.”
—1 Corinthians 14:15 NIV

Then Paul echoed Jesus’ words:

“For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.”
—Philippians 3:3

Recognize that worship transcends natural understanding. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you. Learn how to open your heart and commune with God in the Spirit.

So, then, how do you worship in Spirit?

Posture your heart in reverence to God.
Engage with God in your spirit.
Trust the Holy Spirit to help you.

Worship is a response to a revelation of who God is. Once we have seen a glimpse of His grace, majesty, mercy, or power, our hearts respond with reverence, with worship.

Seek God until you find Him. Then, respond to Him accordingly. Do that on repeat.

One of the best ways to respond to Him is through song. St. Augustine said, “He who sings prays twice.” David discovered that when he sang praise, God would come and manifest His Presence (Ps. 22:3).

God longs to commune with His people. That’s why He is looking for true worshippers who worship in spirit.

To worship in the spirit is to commune with God from the heart.

Let your heart sing!

Question: When was the last time you opened up your heart and sang to the Lord? What do you think the Lord experienced when you did that? How was your experience?