In John 4 the Lord Jesus was speaking with the Samaritan woman. He offered her living water, of which, if she drank, she would never thirst again. She was very interested, but then the devil distracted her with one of the political issues of the day. Was it acceptable to worship God without going to Jerusalem? Jesus said,

John 4:23-24
23 . . . the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (KJV)

I have heard interpretations of this verse which assert that God wants believers to worship in a spiritual and a physical way. This would equate spiritual with spirit and physical with truth. This is an unfortunate interpretation in that it goes against the context of the passage. The Lord Jesus was emphasizing that it really does not matter to God where a person worships in the physical world. The spiritual reality of the heart is where real truth lies. Therefore, “in truth” simply gives further definition to “in spirit”.

John 4 continues developing the concepts expressed by the Lord Jesus in John 3. As you may recall, the Lord Jesus told Nicodemus he needed to be born again because

John 3:6
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (KJV)

The physical world will always have a tendency to draw believers away from the Spirit of God. The natural human body is at war with the Spirit of God. Paul wrote:

Rom 7:23
23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. (NKJ)

The Spirit of Christ is the only hope believers have of overcoming the destructive pull of the physical body.

Rom 8:2
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. (NKJ)

Even the things of the physical earth have a tendency to draw the believer away from God. Therefore, Paul said:

Col 3:1-2
1 If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. (KJV)

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

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http://www.peacechurch-ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch-fw.com/