Those Who Worship in Spirit and Truth

This passage deals with the scene in which Jesus proclaims what the essence of true worship is. At the time, Gnostic ideas had spread within the church and were unsettling the faith of believers; the Gnostics claimed that salvation came through supernatural knowledge, or only to a particular class of people. The apostle John rejects these false ideas and stresses that Jesus Christ came as a fully human being and accomplished his atoning death on the cross.

The sermon points out that to be set free from Satan's temptation and the powers of darkness, believers must worship in spirit and truth. It makes clear that the work of God is not relying on the pleasures of the world or on human wisdom, but believing in the one whom God has sent. As in David's confession, it shows that listening for God's voice and pleading with him is what worship in spirit and truth actually looks like.

Believers must not stop at their own judgment or knowledge, but live in the assurance of the sacrifice and love of the cross. God listens to the prayers of believers and leads them into a safe and blessed life even in a dangerous world. It considers what special blessing and protection those who worship in spirit and truth receive from God, and how this worship changes the everyday lives of believers.