IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH

It would be difficult to find a Bible text much more important for our day than John 4:23, 24. Before the Body of Christ can reach its full potential, and be ready for the final conflict, there must be a genuine unity on what God calls for in this text.

"The time is coming and is already here when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for anyone who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:23, 24.

 Whenever Christ is speaking we need to pay particular attention.  In this instance Jesus is defining what it means to be a “true worshiper.”  Dare we be any other kind?  This balance between spirit and truth is a must, not an option.  What an opportunity this text affords to test ourselves against the Lord’s own standard!

 True worshipers are those who worship the Father in spirit and in truth.  There is no sidestepping this issue; Christ says that we must worship this way or not be counted in the ranks of true worshipers.  This is a vital message, especially for those of us living just prior to his coming.

CHRISTIANITY’S SHAMEFUL DIVORCE
The sanctity of marriage is confirmed by the fact that it predates the advent of sin.  God in the Garden of Eden instituted it, and what applied there should be the pattern for all time.  We believe that Adam and Eve remained married until “death did them part,” but today nearly half of all marriages end in divorce.  Even Christians are not immune to this serious problem.

 But even worse than literal divorce is spiritual divorce.  Paul spoke of a vital marriage ordained of God.

And my preaching was very plain, not with a lot of oratory and human wisdom, but the Holy Spirit’s power was in my words, proving to those who heard them that the message was from God.  1 Cor. 2:4.

For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true.  1 Thess. 1:5. 

Since the Holy Spirit is the author of the Word, only he can explain it adequately; only he can grace the words of Scripture with power.  How was Peter able, for the first time in his life, to speak with such power that 3,000 cried out, “Just tell us what to do!”  It was due to a Pentecostal marriage between the Word and the Spirit.  Jesus consistently performed mighty works, because in him the marriage always was complete and whole.

 God intended a divine marriage between the written Word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit that never should be broken, but the church long ago decided on divorce.  For the most part, Christendom has been divided into two opposing camps; those who champion the Word, and those who focus on the ministry of the Spirit.

 The first group says, “We stand by an inerrant and infallible Bible.  We cleave to the doctrines; we have ‘the truth.’  Let’s beware that emotional stuff.”  The other camp says, “We have experienced the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.  We know the gifts, and have seen miracles.  The doctrines of Scripture are not all that important.”  In viewing this shameful divorce, I note Christ’s comment:

Jesus said, “Your error is caused by your ignorance of the Scriptures and of God’s power!  Matt. 22:29.

It’s not a matter of either or, it’s both and.  When the marriage relationship is broken, neither party has the fullness of truth and is subject to error.  God will never be pleased until this shameful divorce ends in remarriage.

 A.W. Tozer sounded a wise caution in his book The Divine Conquest.

 “While it is never possible to have the Spirit without at least some measure of truth, it is, unfortunately, possible to have a shell of truth without the Spirit.  Our hope is that we may have both the Spirit and the truth in fuller measure.”

Tozer is at least hinting that if we err more greatly on one side than the other, it is our neglect of the Spirit as opposed to the Word.  God wants a divine balance, but we have leaned more heavily toward “truth.”  We battle over doctrines, but leave emotionalism to the ballpark.  Anything more than a medium-sized “amen” will draw cold stares in many congregations.  Really praising God might even be considered demonic.  Many congregations would come unglued if confronted with the mighty praise service described at the dedication of Solomon’s Temple.

How the Levites were praising the Lord as the priests came out of the Holy of Holies!   .   .    .   The choir was accompanied by 120 priests who were trumpeters, while others played the cymbals, lyres, and harps.  The band and chorus united as one to praise and thank the Lord; their selections were interspersed with trumpet obbligatos, the clashing of cymbals, and the loud playing of other musical instruments—all praising and thanking the Lord.  Their theme was “He is so good!  His loving-kindness lasts forever!”

And at that moment the glory of the Lord, coming as a bright cloud, filled the Temple so that the priests could not continue their work. 
2 Chron. 5:12-14.

It is important to note how God responded to this exuberant worship; he personally and dramatically placed his divine blessing on the whole affair.  I’ve suffered through too many church services that were more funereal than praiseworthy.  God has been so good to us that worshipers shouldn’t be denied the privilege of praising him with fullness of joy.

FULL COMMUNION
I’ve never been to a communion service but what both the bread and the wine were offered.  It just wouldn’t be a complete blessing without employing both emblems; the full message would be lost.

When Christ said that true worshipers would worship in both spirit and in truth, he pointed to the fullness of worship.  The “truth” he spoke of is the bread, the Word.  The “spirit” he referred to is the “wine” of the Holy Spirit.  We need both.

For no prophecy recorded in Scripture was ever thought up by the prophet himself.   It was the Holy Spirit within these godly men who gave them true messages from God.  2 Peter 1:20-21.

Before the written Word (Logos) was the spoken Word (Rhema).  What holy men of God wrote in Scriptures was given to them by the Holy Spirit.  But “truth” did not supercede “spirit:” the two operate in unison. One of the most exciting experiences recorded in the Bible is that of Philip the evangelist ministering to the treasurer of Ethiopia, as recorded in Acts 8:26-40.  You may want to turn to this portion of Scripture right now to refresh your memory.   This was a divine appointment.

The encounter began with the Rhema, oral word, or “spirit.”  First the angel told Philip to go to a certain place in Gaza.  Next he told him to walk alongside a certain chariot.  The rest of the Gaza meeting deals with Philip explaining Scripture to the Ethiopian, so there is a switch to the Logos, written word, or “truth.”    One never contradicts the other, they work together perfectly. 

There are those who claim that when the canon of Scripture closed, the need for Rhema ended.   Not so, we still need to hear God speaking orally today as well.  Jesus himself said that that true worshipers must worship God in both “spirit and in truth.”   Don’t let anyone talk you out of hearing every word possible from the mouth of God.