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“Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.” (John 4:21 NKJV)
Under the Old Covenant, worship is primarily a physical, rigid, and monotonous religious exercise. It mainly involves “offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.” (Heb. 10:11 NKJV). It is purely an external or superficial service!
The focus is chiefly on the externals—the animals for the sacrifice, the place of worship, the time of worship, the dress code for worship, and religious rites or ceremonies.
In those days, the place of worship was very significant. Sacrifices must only be offered to God at the location He chose.
Deuteronomy 12:5-6 – NKJV
5 “But you shall seek the place where the LORD your God chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His name for His dwelling place; and there you shall go.
6 “There you shall take your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, your vowed offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.
Under the Old Covenant, it is a sin punishable by death for any worshipper to offer his sacrifice to God anywhere other than where God had chosen to be worshipped (Lev. 17:3-5). Therefore, it is no surprise that the children of Israel exalted and revered the place where they worshipped more than the God they worshipped.
In those days, the conflict between the Jews and the Samaritans arose from debate and disagreement over the right place to worship God.
Having wrongly perceived that Jesus was a prophet from God, the Samaritan woman wanted to know God’s mind concerning the right place to worship, so she promptly asked Jesus, saying, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. “Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.” (John 4:19-20 NKJV).
But the Lord responded, saying, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.” (John 4:21 NKJV).
While the woman was still pondering in her mind on the Lord’s shocking answer, the Lord further revealed to her, saying, “But 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.” (John 4:23-24 NKJV).
Sadly, some believers today, like the Samaritans and the Jews of those times, are still confused about the right place to worship. Some still argue, debate, or quarrel over the best place to worship God. Some even revere the place they worship more than the God they seek to worship.
When the Lord Jesus led Peter, James, and John up on a high mountain where He was transfigured before them, and when Moses and Elijah appeared to discuss with Him, Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” (Matt. 17:4 NKJV).
Like the Samaritan woman, Peter also had his mind set on the place to worship rather than the person to worship. Having witnessed the transfiguration of the Lord Jesus and seeing His glory as God on this mountain, Peter was fully persuaded that he had found a new, perfect place of worship.
Therefore, Peter proposed that Jesus consecrate the Mount of Transfiguration as their new abode and place of worship. That is consistent with the mindset of worshippers under the Old Covenant. They always raised altars and offered sacrifices to God wherever He manifested His presence and glory to them (Gen. 12:7-8, 26:25, 33:20).
The Lord’s response to Peter’s good proposal must have shocked or perplexed Peter. Not only did the Lord reject Peter’s bid for the consecration of a new place of worship that was in perfect harmony with the style of worship under the Old Covenant, but the Lord also commanded them, saying, “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.” (Matt. 17:9 NKJV). Why?
Because the Lord didn’t want people to turn the Mount of Transfiguration into a new place of worship.
While there is nothing wrong in consecrating any place as a place of worship, the truth is that under the New Covenant, God is no longer concerned about the place of worship but rather the worshipper’s heart and the object of his worship.
Like the Samaritan woman, if you also ask the Lord today about the best place to worship Him, the Lord’s response would be, “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24 NKJV).
Unlike the Old Testament saints who sought to worship God only at the places where He manifested His presence and power to them in the past, the New Testament saints are free to worship God anywhere with pure hearts and clean hands, in spirit and truth, according to the revelation of God in the New Testament.
Dear friend, let no one deceive you into thinking that the place where you worship is better than any other place where God’s people worship God according to the revelation of God in the New Testament.
It is sheer ignorance to boast about or exalt a place of worship above another. No place of worship is holier or more special to God than others. Under the New Covenant, the focus is not on where you worship but on whom you worship or the object of your worship.
God is not seeking some holy and beautiful physical temples to be worshipped, but for true worshippers who will worship Him in spirit and truth, according to the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Jesus revealed this truth in His clear answer to the Samaritan woman who questioned Him about the right place to worship God.
John 4:21-24 – NKJV
21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.
22 “You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.
23 “But 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.
24 “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
Beloved, don’t fall into the error of loving, esteeming, or revering any physical place, altar, or structure consecrated as a place of worship above the God you seek to worship.
Your devotion, passion, and affection must not be set on the place you worship but on “the Person” you worship, the true God.
Friend, seek not just to worship God in a holy and beautiful place but also to worship God with a pure heart and clean hands, in spirit and truth, and according to the revelation of God in Christ Jesus and that which was given to the early apostles of Christ by the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. That is what matters most to God when it comes to worship.
You are a New Testament saint. So, stop seeking to worship God according to the Old Testament’s old written code of worship, but according to the New Testament’s revelation of the Holy Spirit.
Focus chiefly on the “Holy Person” you are called to worship and not on “the holy place” where you worship.
Prayer:
My Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for opening my eyes to understand the new shift in worship under the New Covenant. My Dear Holy Spirit, teach and help me daily to worship God in spirit and truth, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Our mandate is to preserve the faith of the Apostolic Generation.
Eniyekpemi Fidelis Oyinpreyebi.
AWH, Blogs.
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