Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
If you've ever felt unworthy to worship, you're not alone. I have plenty of days where the weight of my shame and my guilt for something that I've done just feels so heavy. There are days where I feel afraid to come before God. I know in all of His perfection as He sits on His throne, I am so far from His standard of goodness.
Feeling Drained and Empty
There are days where I just feel so drained and so empty, where I even wonder, God, do I have the energy to bring You anything of worth today?
If you're feeling that today, I want to encourage you with our verse from the Gospel of John. John chapter 4, verse 24. "For God is Spirit, so those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth."
Jesus at the Well
In this passage of Scripture, Jesus is with His disciples, and they get to the outskirts of a town called Samaria. Jesus is waiting at a well outside of the city gates, while the rest of the disciples go inside to find food. As He's sitting there, He finds this woman—the only other person at the well—and He asks her for a drink.
This might not sound like anything crazy to us today, but at the time this would have been a scandalous move. Not only was Jesus asking a woman for a drink and having a conversation with her, this woman was a Samaritan—somebody that the Jews viewed as a religious and national traitor. They had dirtied the bloodline of Israel, and they had begun worshiping other gods in addition to Yahweh.
An Outcast of Society
Beyond that, in their conversations, it's revealed that this woman is an outcast of society for incredible moral failure. She's had five husbands, and now she's in a relationship with a man who's not her husband. Here Jesus is talking with her as an equal, asking her for a drink.
The Question About Worship
This woman realizes that Jesus is a Jew. In the midst of their conversation, they start talking about worship. And in a sense, she's trying to divert the conversation. But she says: "The Jews say you must worship in Jerusalem. We have a mountain here that we believe Moses said is the place of worship. What's true?"
This is a great question from somebody who, to the Jews' perspective, had no right to worship God at all. She was unworthy to worship Yahweh.
Jesus Offers a New Paradigm
Jesus, in His usual fashion, offers a new paradigm. I'm going to read one verse before our verse today, John chapter 4, verse 23. Jesus proceeds by saying, "But the time is coming—indeed it's here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship Him that way."
It's Not About Where You Worship
Jesus essentially says: It's not about where you worship, it's about how you worship. It can be in Jerusalem. It can be in here. You could be a Jew. You could be a Samaritan. The Father is looking for people who will worship Him in spirit and in truth.
It's not just for those who feel worthy. In fact, it is specifically for those who know that they are unworthy, but know how desperately they need the one who is worthy of all their praise and adoration.
The Woman's Response
The one who hears the truths of God like this woman does, and then responds by lifting up her soul, by being unable to contain the joy of what she's come to realize—that the Messiah has come and He is saving, and the Father is calling people to worship Him.
Don't Wait to Feel Clean
Don't wait to praise God after you feel like you've cleaned yourself up, after you feel like you've mustered up the energy to bring anything worthy before God. He doesn't care what your background is. He doesn't care what you've been through. He doesn't care who you are or what you've done.
All God Cares About
All God cares about is you knowing who He is, knowing the truth about all that He's done, and giving Him the entirety of your heart, mind, and soul. This is what it means to worship God in spirit and in truth.
Don't hold back. God is waiting for you. Let's worship Him with our entire lives.
