God is Spirit: Worship Him in Spirit and Truth
Worship in Spirit & Truth
When I was growing up, I had the idea in my mind that God was an old man with a long white beard sitting in a fancy chair in the sky. I thought we went to worship Him at His house (the church building) and then we left and would come to visit Him again next week. This childish way of thinking is actually pretty common. For me, this idea was a mix of things I heard at church, Santa Claus, and a result of me trying to make sense of God in material terms since I live in a physical world. While God did become a man in the incarnation of Jesus of Nazareth, the truth remains that God is spirit.
What does it mean that God is spirit? Jesus taught, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). Jesus is affirming that God is immaterial and omnipresent. Unlike idols, God is not confined by space or time. God does not dwell in temples (Acts 17:24). While God may, by His own will and power, cause His presence to be known more dramatically in some places and at some times, it is incorrect to think that we go to worship God in a particular place as if God is there and not everywhere else. This affirmation is not a denial of the importance of certain places of worship like the Temple in the Old Covenant or the gathering of believers in the church. Instead, it is an affirmation of a greater truth that we do not go to a place to worship God but that God is worthy and able to be worshipped in all places and at all times. Put another way, both when believers gather and when they disperse, they live to worship God always, wherever they are. If God were material or confined to a particular geography and time, we would only be able to worship Him in holy places where He resides. The true and living God is spirit, therefore, He can and should be worshipped always and everywhere.
This truth is important. It is also easy to misunderstand. Let’s dig a little deeper.
God is Spirit
Understanding the context of statements in Scripture is always important. The discussion leading up to Jesus’ affirmation that God is spirit helps us to see the true implications of His statement.
The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”
Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:19–24)
This Samaritan woman is explicitly asking a question about the correct geographical location for worshipping God. The Samaritans and the Jews agreed on the character and nature of God. What they disagreed on was the location of where God chose to cause His name to dwell. This dispute traces back to the dividing of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. (See 1 & 2 Kings — You can also check out our chart.)
Jesus makes it clear that salvation is from the Jews, not the Samaritans. The Messiah was promised to come through the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Judah. God chose to cause His name to dwell in Jerusalem in a special way. While they set up places of worship in Samaria, these were not established according to the will of God.
However, Jesus goes beyond the initial question to teach a more profound truth. This is typically how Jesus interacts with people. They ask a question. He answers what they should have asked. In this passage, Jesus answers her question directly and then goes beyond to affirm that God is seeking people who will worship Him in spirit and in truth.
Keep in mind, her question was about where should God be worshipped. Jesus answers with the type of worshippers that God seeks. Since God Himself is spirit, He seeks worshippers who worship in spirit and truth. God is not seeking those who worship by going through the motions in a particular time and/or place.
Spirit & Truth Vs. Flesh & Deceit
When I was growing up, I thought God was mostly interested in me putting in the time. I thought He wanted me to go through the motions. Keep to the appointed worship schedule. I thought, if I put in the time, then He would let me live how I wanted to the rest of the time.
This teaching by Jesus shows that the Father is not interested in worshippers who think this way. God is not looking for those who worship Him at certain times and in particular places, then leave those times and places to live according to their own desires. This may appease idols. It doesn’t appease God. Why? Because God is spirit.
Since God is spirit, He is everywhere. All the time. While there may be particular locations and times that we gather or travel to worship Him, we ought to worship Him on the way there and after we leave, too. Jesus explained the heart of worshippers that God desires. It is not those who deceive themselves and think God cares about them burning incense or making a show of piety periodically. God instead seeks those who worship Him in spirit and truth.
What type of worshipper are you?
Not Panentheism or Pantheism
There is a false view that is sometimes incorrectly equated with this teaching from Jesus about the nature of God. Panentheism is an idea that God is in His creation in the same way that your soul is in your body. That is, just as humans have a spirit contained in our physical existence, God’s spirit is contained within the physical world.
While this idea is believed by some, it is not what Jesus is teaching here. God is holy and set apart from all He has made. To think that God is in any way constrained or confined within His own material creation is to set limits upon God that are not accurate. God is not the world He has made (this is sometimes called pantheism). He is not contained by the world that He has made (panentheism).
But it was Solomon who built a house for Him. However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: ‘HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord, ‘OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?’ (Acts 7:47–50)
Nothing we could build would be sufficient to house the true and living God.
The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; (Acts 17:24–25)
God is greater than His creation. He is not confined by it or constrained by it.
Is Church Unimportant?
Some may incorrectly conclude that since God is spirit that gathering together with other believers is somehow unimportant. Nothing could be further from the truth. However, correctly understanding this idea can help believers understand that the buildings we use for worship are not the only place Christians can gather to worship God.
Believers can have “church” in a coffee shop, in their homes, and anywhere else they gather because God is spirit. We should be eager to worship God always and in all places. This does not mean we will forsake the gathering! Instead, properly understanding this truth means that genuine believers should be constantly seeking to worship God while they are alone and earnestly looking forward to times they can gather with as many other like-minded believers as possible to give God glory, honor, and praise in the assembly.
For more on this, check out our related article on our other ministry site: What’s the Big Deal About Attending Church?
Incarnation: The Greatest Miracle
Since God is spirit, it helps us to understand the greatest miracle in Scripture: The Incarnation.