The Nature of True Worship
A Study of John 4:23-24
Introduction
Though Christians find it challenging to explain the nature of worship, this is a timeless challenge. Confusion over this topic emerged in Christ’s conversation with a Samaritan woman during his pre-crucifixion ministry (John 4:1-26). This conversation climaxed with this declaration by Christ: “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” (vv. 23-24). This paper will show what this statement contributes to a proper understanding of worship. To do this, it will define a keyword and highlight a common misunderstanding. Then it will briefly examine three key factors in worship: (1) the Father as spirit, (2) worshiping in spirit, and (3) worshiping in truth. After this, it will offer some concluding application.
Defining a Key Word
This conversation focuses clearly on worship. At its climax, the word worship (προσκυνέω) appears 10 times (vv. 20-24). It means “to express by attitude and possibly by position one’s allegiance to and regard for deity – ‘to prostrate oneself in worship, to bow down and worship, to worship.’”[1] At first glance, this definition seems adequate on its own. It indicates that a believer should give allegiance to God through a respectful internal disposition and a reverential external position. Yet where this display of allegiance should occur and in what manner stands out as a focal point in Christ’s conversation with the Samaritan woman.
A Common Misunderstanding
Religious people of the first century misunderstood the nature of worship. They associated true worship with geographic locations, buildings, and sacred sites for instance.[2] The Samaritan woman revealed this tendency when she asked Christ to identify the proper place to worship God, whether on “this mountain” or “in Jerusalem” (v. 20). “This mountain” referred to Mount Gerizim, the center of worship for the Samaritan people, whereas “Jerusalem” referred to Mount Zion, the center of worship for the Jewish people. Both the Samaritans and Jews, in fact, had built their temples at these sites, respectively.
When compared to one another, Jesus affirmedthe legitimacy of Jerusalem over Gerizim, and the Jewish religion over theSamaritan one (v. 22). Even so, he downplayed the value of either one bysignaling a more authentic approach (vv. 23-24). As Borchert observes, Christ “turned the conversation away from place ofworship to nature of worship” (emphasis added).[3] Hemaintained that authentic worship does not venerate sacred sitesand structures, whether they are illegitimate (like Gerizim) or legitimate but incomplete(like Jerusalem), nor do such things does it imbue the worship of God withgreater significance.
Three Key Factors in Worship
To unveil the essence of authentic worship, Christ highlighted three key factors. Of these factors, the first (“God is Spirit”) functions as the core, foundational truth that must be acknowledged. The remaining two factors (“worship in spirit and truth” comprise the proper form (or manner) of worship based upon this truth (“and those who worship Him must worship…”). So, to understand authentic worship, a Christian must understand these three factors.
God is Spirit
To understand authentic worship, one must first understand God’s nature. On this point, Wallace notes that in the phrase πνεῦμα ὁ θεός, the anarthrous PN (πνεῦμα, “spirit”) precedes the subject (ὁ θεός, “the God”). Thus Colwell’s Construction affirms that “πνεῦμα is qualitative – stressing the nature or essence of God.”[4] D. A. Carson concurs, saying “God is invisible, divine as opposed to human (cf. 3:6), life-giving and unknowable to human beings unless he chooses to reveal himself (cf. 1:18).”[5] Since God is invisible, people are unable to relegate their worship of him to physical locations or to channel worship through physical shrines or implements. They must worship him in a way that corresponds to his nature as a spiritual being. As Vanhoozer observes, believers must acknowledge “who God is and what God has done,” and this had been revealed through Jesus Christ, not some physical religious site.[6]
Worshiping in Spirit
To worship God as a spiritual being, Christians must do so “in spirit.” This is the subjective aspect of worship. This factor highlights the nature of a believer’s relationship with God. He or she has been born again into a new spiritual relationship with God, accomplished by the Holy Spirit (cf. John 3:6-8). Gangel suggests, “The word ‘spirit’ refers not to the Holy Spirit but to the spirit of the worshiper.”[7] This interpretation corresponds with Wallace, who claims that the anarthrous object of a preposition (e.g., “εν πνευματι”) is often indefinite and thus qualitative. Ellsworth agrees, saying, “The heart is the center of the emotions, where we respond to Christ’s directive to worship “in spirit.”[8] Such worship corresponds with the spiritual nature of God.
Worshiping in Truth
Christians must also worship God according to accurate knowledge about him. This is the objective aspect of worship. It must, as MacArthur explains, “be consistent with what Scripture teaches and centered on the incarnate Word.”[9] Ellsworth likewise associates this truth with “the intellect” and “correct doctrine.”[10] Though doctrine as an intellectual exercise alone is inadequate for worship, Borchert points out that “no one genuinely knows God except through some form of revelatory encounter … enlightened through written or oral articulations in order that such encounters become defined to humans and not remain subjective experiences.”[11] Physical objects, buildings, and locations fail to provide this type of accurate and informative perspective about God. For this, Christians must turn to the canon of Scripture and especially to the person and work of Jesus Christ himself (5:39-40).[12]
Points of Application
This paper has shown what John 4:23-24 teaches about a proper understanding of worshiping God today. It affirms the inadequacy of worship that relies upon geographic locations and physical shrines. It further affirms that authentic worship must correspond to God’s spiritual nature. Therefore, true worship must occur in a supernatural, scriptural manner, made possible by the joint agency of the Spirit and the Son. Though such worship does not disparage physical locations and objects in worship, it transcends them. Therefore, those who lead the church in worship today must engage the hearts and minds of people towards God. To do this, they must focus squarely on Christ, using words and methods that accurately reflect and convey what God has revealed in Scripture. As such, proper goals for worshipers should be a right relationship with God through Christ (i.e., saving faith) and a right response to revelation (i.e., submissive service). In this way (as Vanhoozer observes), “We confess and celebrate who God is and what God has done.”[13]
[1] Johannes Louw and Eugene Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 539.
[2] Andreas Köstenberger, “John,” Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007), 437-438.
[3] Gerald Borchert, John 1-11,vol. 25A, New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1996),207.
[4] DanielWallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics (Grand Rapids: Zondervan,1996), 269-270.
[5] D. A. Carson, The Gospelaccording to John, Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,1991), 225.
[6] KevinVanhoozer, “Worship at the Well,” Trinity Journal, 23:1 (Spring 2001),9.
[7] KennethGangel, “Reexamining Biblical Worship,” Bibliotheca Sacra, 142:566 (Apr 1985),165.
[8] Donald Ellsworth., “An Assessment of Contemporary Worship,” Journalof Ministry and Theology, 13:2 (Fall 2009), 140.
[9] JohnMacArthur, John 1-11, MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago:Moody, 2006), 149.
[10] Ellsworth, “AnAssessment of Contemporary Worship,” 140.
[11] Borchert, John1-11, 208.
[12] On grammaticalgrounds, Carson clarifies that “spirit” and “truth” are not separate qualities ofworship, but that they describe true worship together in a mutual way. Carson, TheGospel according to John, 225-226.
[13] Vanhoozer, “Worshipat the Well,” 14.
