True Worship requires the Holy Spirit

I am a ‘detail’ person but the news is pushing me to think ‘big picture.’ Instead of one person or one family, my mind is on thousands of people who are suffering in the devastation left by tornados, hurricanes, typhoons, floods, and fires. With that, my mind is also on millions who know nothing about God and have no idea of His love for them.

Tozer describes his thoughts about the masses. He says, “It is hard for me to rest peacefully at night knowing that millions of cultured, religious people are merely carrying on church traditions and religious customs and they are not actually reaching God at all.” I feel the same for that group but also those who worship idols.

Scripture explains true worship and the need for the Holy Spirit to be able to offer that to God, yet if even ‘religious’ people are without the fullness of the Spirit, how can those who do not know anything about Him be blessed by their Creator as they go through their rituals?

I have trouble relating to mindless ritual in worship except that I did attend church for a short while before Christ came into my life and changed everything. I remember having a vague curiosity about spiritual things, but no sense whatsoever about worship. It was more a ‘thing to do’ than a religious experience. I certainly was not aware of the blessings of worship described by the psalmist:

“But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.” (Psalm 5:11–12)

In trying to imagine how the majority of people think, even religious people, my thoughts wander to one person, the woman at the well in John 4. Her focus was more on where to worship than how or who. She said to Jesus, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”

Jesus replied, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on 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.” (John 4:19–22)

Then He added what Tozer is saying — we need the Holy Spirit to worship:

“But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23–24)

The ‘in spirit’ part is about knowing God through the Holy Spirit and being filled with Him. The ‘truth’ part points to worship based on who God is and how He has revealed Himself. He cannot be a ‘made up’ god yet without the Holy Spirit, this is what sinful humanity will do — invent a god that suits their mindset and experience. Only with the illumination of the Holy Spirit can anyone know what God is really like, the truth about Him needed to worship Him.

Not only that, truth includes who, what and why I want this. There was a man in the NT who offered money to be filled with the Spirit. Obviously, his motivations were wrong. He wanted the power of God for the prestige of having it rather than to glorify the Lord with his life. I cannot worship God in the power of the Holy Spirit if I want the Holy Spirit so I can stand out in the crowd, be different or more ‘spiritual’ than others or to make me shine instead of Him.

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Lord Jesus, I cannot know my own heart never mind what motivates the multitudes. If people ‘worship’ as ritual or worship without the Spirit, that is Your concern not mine. I cannot fix it nor can I even know who needs fixing! You are Almighty God and this problem can only be addressed by You. As for me, keep me alert to what You want and to my need of relying on You. Remind me often that worship requires the Holy Spirit and a true understanding of who I am, but more importantly, of who You are.