Most of us Christians Worship God on a daily basis — in fact, some people do almost all the time — without knowing their worship is a waste of time. Had they known that such way of worshipping the Father was wrong, they would have changed. Unfortunately, we human beings are creatures of habit. Once something becomes our habit, we tend to continue in the same act even after figuring out the habitual action is wrong.

Thank God for the lives of our preachers and choristers in church. They have gone the extra mile in teaching the congregation — times without number — that the only acceptable worship to God is the one made in Spirit and in truth based on John 4:23-24.

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.

 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

As much as they mean well, the more they mention that Bible passage, the more they leave so many confuse.

How do I mean?

Based on that Bible passage that many Christians have heard, they thought the meaning of worshipping in spirit is simply to sing in tongues like apostle Paul did in 1 Corinthians 14:15. In fact, a lot of wrong interpretations have been given to John 4:23-24. 

Truth be told, worshipping in spirit is not just singing in tongues, it involves more than that. Just hold on…I will explain it in few minutes in this article. 

Now... Let me explain…

We human beings, as we all know, are spirits in human flesh. Many people forget that because they have been told times without number that they are just human beings. In fact, the number of years some people have spent on this earth has made them accustomed to worldly things so much that they forget they are spirits.

God being spirit cannot and can never be satisfied with anything that comes from the flesh even though he had once accepted such. Now he insists the only and acceptable worship must be the one made in spirit.

To buttress my point, worshipping God in spirit means worshipping God without considering our flesh. 

How do I mean?

If our worship is motivated by the flesh, it means we are not worshipping in spirit (this is the way many people have been worshipping God…this has got to stop). 

In other words, when our so-called heart-felt worship is as a result of the contract we just won, the success in our exams, the new job we have, the house we just bought, the wonderful wife or husband God gave us, the money we earned online etc our worship, then, is flesh-inspired. 

Worshipping God at those points in time is worshipping God in the flesh…that does not mean we can't thank God when he has done something for us. Of course, that is good. However, he is not seeking such worshippers.

The kind of worship God wants is the one made in spirit. Meaning, worshipping God irrespective of what happens to us.. the situation of things at the moment must NOT have anything to do with our worship (some Christians can’t worship God when they are in crisis)  a state of sadness does not count, God forbid! The death of any of our children does not count, being prison must not be an option like Paul and Silas (some will even question why God will allow such happen to them) losing our job does not matter, ooohhh no money on us, perhaps we are in debt,  even when we fail your exam does not matter... If all the things that show we are human beings stop us from worshipping God, it means we’ve been worshipping him in flesh and not in spirit all this while.

We don’t worship him for the sole reason of answering our prayers…like I’ve been asking God for something important, let me worship him now so that he can do it…is absolutely wrong…that is also worshipping in the flesh.

Worshipping him just for who he is...in any condition we find ourself at any location — not only in church — without expecting anything in return is the kind of worship God demands and such kind of people, who will render such worship, are the true worshippers God has been seeking among his children.

God help us… 

Hope you are, indeed, a true worshipper? 

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