A Lenten Guide to Spiritual Wholeness: Part 3 – Worship in Spirit and Truth

This Sunday is the Third Sunday in Lent. The Gospel text is a familiar story of Jesus and his encounter with a woman at a well. (John 4:5-42) In this encounter Jesus speaks truth to this woman and it made her thirst for living water. Later in the conversation, Jesus responds to her desire for worship with these words “God is spirit, and those who worship God must worship in spirit and truth.” In order to do this, she had to first be able to recognize the truth.

This is also true for us in our lives and society. For example, the problem that has delayed a comprehensive approach to confronting and dealing with the pandemic known as “Coronavirus,” in the U.S. stems from a lack of trust and disregard for scientific truth about this virus. Some even call it a hoax. This lack of trust in science and distortion of the truth of this virus carry consequences that in real time are proving to be catastrophic.

This is true of our faith when we trust and believe in a distorted view of God. Fortunately for this woman in John 4, she was talking to The One who was “The Way, The Truth and The Life.” (John 14:6) She experienced first-hand what it meant to worship God in truth with her attitude, actions and words inclined toward Jesus. Because of her experience, along with her testimony, her entire village comes to faith in God through their encounter with Jesus.

This week “Our Lenten Guide to Spiritual Wholeness” teaches us that “God is spirit, and we must worship God in spirit and truth.”

Join us this Third Sunday in Lent for worship at Covenant. Using this encounter between Jesus and the woman at the well, Part 3 of my Lenten Sermon series is “Worship in Spirit and Truth” based on “John 4:5-42.

About Author