Sermon Tone Analysis

- God Seeks True Worshipers

Let’s think through this conversation about worship.

The Samaritan woman recognizes the difference between Jewish and Samaritan worship: Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you [Jews] say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.

She knows the history of the Jews, she knows her own people’s history, and the difference between the two.

The significance of Jerusalem is clear in Scripture; it’s the place where God commanded the Israelites to worship and build the temple ().

The significance to Mount Gerazim to the Samaritans is a matter of historical fact.

They believed that Mount Gerazim is where Abel offered his sacrifice, and where God commanded Abraham to offer up his son, Isaac.

They believe that Mount Gerazim was the highest place on earth before the flood, and was not covered by the waters of the flood.

Jesus corrects her, but not the way people would expect:

We see that the time is coming when worship will be not offered exclusively from any particular place.

Since Old Testament worship was inseparably tied to PLACE, this is a shocking statement.

Both Jewish and Samaritan priesthoods mediated with God on behalf of the people, the Jews truly, and the Samaritans falsely, according to their tradition.

In both systems the people were prohibited from mediating on their own behalf.

First, the time is coming when worship will be offered exclusively from either place.

Since worship was inseparably tied to PLACE, this is a shocking statement.

Both Jewish and Samaritan priesthoods mediated with God on behalf of the people, the Jews truly, and the Samaritans falsely, according to their tradition.

In both systems the people were prohibited from mediating on their own behalf.

Jesus corrects her, but not the way people would expect.

For Jesus to say that a time was coming when PLACE would not matter essentially disassembled each system and rendered each one pointless, ONCE the change He described took place.

Notice what Jesus says in : true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him.

God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth.

Jesus continues,

Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father."

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This is a more significant change than might appear.

Jerusalem and Mount Gerazim were at the center of worship because of the temples that were located there.

The Jewish and Samaritan priesthoods mediated worship for the people, and the people were utterly prohibited from taking any aspects of those priesthoods upon themselves.

Each system of worship was very intricate and complicated.

So for Jesus to say that a time was coming when worship would not involve those places means that worship would not require a priesthood, dedicated mediators, a division between the priesthood and so-called laity, which simply means people.

Jesus continues,

“You worship what you do not know.”

- the Samaritans worshiped God but did not know God.

“We worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.”

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Worship, even worship of God, is not right worship just because its offered, even if it’s offered with sincerity.

The Jews worshiped the God they knew, because they had received the Word and the Law, and God had revealed Himself in His Word.

The Samaritans worshiped Yahweh, but not according to His commands, and so what they called worship was actually disobedience.

Worshiping God in spirit and truth means worshiping according to God’s nature and God’s Word.

That is, true worship is personal and biblical.

If what we do is only an outward activity, then it is not worship.

If what we do is not according to the Word of God, then it is not worship.

- Two Offerings, Two Outcomes

In the Old Testament, God set a very high standard for worship.

Let’s turn to .

Here we see the story of two offerings, once of which God accepted, and one of which God rejected.

The first offering is described in :

lev 9

Aaron carefully followed the instructions given by Yahweh through Moses.

It was painstaking; he took great care to follow every step.

Three times we are told that he did what Yahweh commanded.

Twice we are told that he did what Moses commanded (that command also coming from Yahweh).

Once we are told that he followed the rule.

What was the result?

The glory of God was manifested before all the people.

describes the second offering and the result:

It’s all right there; we don’t need to even examine it all that closely.

Aaron’s sons ignored God’s commands regarding worship, and died in sudden judgment from God.

Whatever the reason – perhaps they jealous of the result their father achieved – the two decided to, in modern terminology, follow their hearts, exercise their artistic creativity, and show some initiative.

But God rejected their so-called worship, and put them to death.

They offered up unauthorized fire, holding God in contempt, and suffered the consequences.

And the Lord graciously explains why: "Among those who are near me I WILL be sanctified, and before all the people I WILL be glorified."

Worship is about God, for God, according to God's claim upon us.

He requires those who draw near to Him to sanctify Him; that is, to recognize His absolutely authority and holiness and right to have His requirements met.

To follow His instructions faithfully is to glorify Him before all the people.

To ignore His instructions is to dishonor Him before all the people.

In response, they died in sudden judgment from God.

They offered up unauthorized fire, that which God had not commanded, and suffered the consequences of their contempt for the God they CLAIMED to honor.

, that which God had not commanded, and suffered the consequences of their contempt for the God they CLAIMED to honor.

And the Lord graciously explains why: "Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified."

Worship is about God, for God, according to God's claim upon us.

He requires those who draw near to Him to sanctify Him; that is, to recognize His absolutely authority and holiness and right to have His requirements met.

To follow His instructions faithfully is to glorify Him before all the people.

To ignore His instructions is to dishonor Him before all the people.

Nevertheless, Jesus says,

What a relief that God changed His attitude toward creative, inventive worship practices!

“But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers 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.”

().

Or, did He?

That is, true worship is offered according to the nature and character of God.

God is Spirit.

Worship must be offered to Him from our spirit, not merely in physical rituals and practices, but from the heart, soul, mind, and strength.

God is Truth.

Worship must be offered in truth.

We know what is true because of His Word, and so worship must be biblically sound.

True worship is personal and biblical.

If what we do is only an outward act, or is not according to Scripture, then it fails to meet the test of right worship.

- Another Offering & Outcome

We know that the Lord's standards for worship are very, very high.

In the Lord gives specific instructions to Aaron, and Aaron followed those instructions to the letter:

On the eighth day Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel, and he said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a bull calf for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering, both without blemish, and offer them before the Lord.

And say to the people of Israel, ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both a year old without blemish, for a burnt offering, and an ox and a ram for peace offerings, to sacrifice before the Lord, and a grain offering mixed with oil, for today the Lord will appear to you.’ ” And they brought what Moses commanded in front of the tent of meeting, and all the congregation drew near and stood before the Lord.

And Moses said, “This is the thing that the Lord commanded you to do, that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.”

Then Moses said to Aaron, “Draw near to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and for the people, and bring the offering of the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.”

He offers the sin offering for himself:

So Aaron drew near to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.

And the sons of Aaron presented the blood to him, and he dipped his finger in the blood and put it on the horns of the altar and poured out the blood at the base of the altar.

But the fat and the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver from the sin offering he burned on the altar, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The flesh and the skin he burned up with fire outside the camp.

He offered the burnt offering:

Then he killed the burnt offering, and Aaron’s sons handed him the blood, and he threw it against the sides of the altar.

And they handed the burnt offering to him, piece by piece, and the head, and he burned them on the altar.

And he washed the entrails and the legs and burned them with the burnt offering on the altar.