Transcript of “True Worship”

Reflections on Scripture with Dr. Leins

Time StampTranscript
0:08today
0:10let’s talk about true worship
0:14in the fourth chapter of the Gospel of
0:16John
0:17Jesus is leaving Jerusalem and going to
0:20Galilee
0:21but this time he does not take the long
0:23Route Around Samaria he decides to take
0:27the shortcut and go due north straight
0:30through Samaria
0:33after several hours of walking Jesus
0:36stopped in psychar a city at which was
0:40the well of Jacob
0:43the disciples go into the city to get
0:45some food and Jesus Waits at the well it
0:49is the sixth hour of the day
0:51we would call that 12 noon the heat of
0:53the day
0:54and a woman came to draw water
0:58and one might ask why would she come at
1:01the heat of the day
1:02by which he choose that time
1:05I suspect so that she would not have to
1:08listen to the whispering
1:10and slandering of the other people who
1:13come to draw water
1:14but they come typically in the cool of
1:17the day in the early hours in the
1:19morning or in the late afternoon
1:22so she chose to come in the heat of the
1:24day
1:26to endure the heat rather to endure
1:29rather than to endure their derision
1:34a rabbi was seated there she did not
1:36expect him to speak but in just a few
1:38moments he did
1:39he greeted her and then he began to
1:43shock her by telling her everything that
1:46she had ever done all about every
1:48personal relationship
1:49but not to condemn her
1:52for he went on to talk about living
1:54water that he had
1:56and eternal life
2:01at this point the conversation became
2:04memorable monumental
2:07what Jesus said changed her life
2:12I’m going to begin reading verse 20
2:14which is about halfway through their
2:15conversation she has now realized that
2:18Jesus is a holy man perhaps he might be
2:20a prophet she thinks and she begins to
2:22talk with him about religious things
2:24from her Vantage Point she says our
2:26fathers worshiped in this mountain and
2:29you people say that in Jerusalem is the
2:32place where men ought to worship
2:34Jesus said to her woman believe me an
2:37hour is coming when neither in this
2:41mountain nor in Jerusalem shall you
2:43worship the father
2:44now what’s going on
2:47you see the Samaritans worshiped on
2:50Mount gerazim
2:52because they believe that Moses
2:55commanded that he commanded that they
2:57protect it and as a sacred place that
3:01they worship there
3:02so they built a temple on Mount gerizim
3:06furthermore the patriarch Jacob and his
3:10well-known son Joseph were from that
3:13area that region
3:14the Samaritans claimed that this was the
3:17most holy spot in all the world
3:19and that their history stretched back
3:22700 years before the birth of King David
3:26as such it was Superior to David’s Royal
3:30City Jerusalem and to the temple that
3:33was built in Jerusalem
3:35the woman was asking Jesus so which is
3:37better the Temple of Mount gerizim or
3:39the temple in Jerusalem Jesus didn’t
3:42answer at all
3:43at least not that question but he had a
3:46different answer he said
3:51an hour is coming
3:53when neither in this mountain garazim
3:55nor in Jerusalem
3:57shall you worship the father
3:59now Jesus had just been in Jerusalem
4:01where he had stated destroy this Temple
4:04and I will raise it again in three days
4:06the people mistakenly thought he was
4:08talking about the temple building he was
4:11talking about his body the temple
4:13that when he was crucified
4:15and his body destroyed that he would
4:17raise it again in three days
4:19now the point is
4:21that Jesus was going to make the two
4:24temples garazim and Jerusalem
4:27obsolete
4:29there was a new Temple that was being
4:31built
4:32where all people would worship that
4:35Temple
4:36was Jesus himself
4:38he was the location where true
4:41worshipers would come to worship
4:45now he continues verse 23 but an hour is
4:49coming and now is when the true
4:51worshipers shall worship the father in
4:54spirit and Truth for such people the
4:56father seeks to be his worshipers
5:00the father seeks those who Worship in
5:03spirit and Truth now it’s possible that
5:06someone may Worship in half truth or
5:09pseudotruth yes that’s possible
5:11and it’s also possible that someone may
5:14may worship and
5:17pseudo-spirit or false Spirit yes that’s
5:20TRUE
5:21but the father seeks worshipers who
5:24Worship in spirit and Truth
5:27genuine faith is the work of the Holy
5:29Spirit and the word of God
5:31and genuine Faith inspires confession
5:35and Contrition and repentance
5:38and by God’s grace God provides the
5:42truth of the word of God
5:44that is that the father
5:46has sent his son
5:47to be the atoning sacrifice for our sin
5:51that the son Jesus Christ forgives
5:54that he saves that he provides
5:57eternal life
6:00this is the worshiper that God seeks the
6:03one who worships in spirit and Truth
6:06finally the woman begins to understand
6:08that Jesus is a holy man and she starts
6:10to talk about Messiah
6:13I think that this is this is the work of
6:15the holy spirit that she would begin to
6:17talk about Messiah
6:19and Jesus then discloses this fact
6:23he says I who speak to you am he
6:28now that’s good English but it’s not
6:30directly what he said has translated
6:32from the Greek
6:33a much more literal translation is this
6:35I am
6:37he who speaks to you
6:40notice
6:41Jesus used the name of God I am
6:45to speak of himself
6:47I am is the name of God that God used
6:49when he told Moses his name and I am is
6:53the name of God that Jesus so often uses
6:56when he says for example I am the
6:58resurrection and the life I am the Good
7:00Shepherd
7:02I am the way the truth and the life now
7:04he says I am he who speaks to you
7:07my question did
7:11did the Samaritan woman recognize and
7:13realize that Jesus is I am
7:16that Jesus is God in flesh
7:19did she know that Jesus was the location
7:22of true worship that Jesus is the true
7:25Temple
7:26and did she grasp that the word that
7:29Jesus was speaking to her was actually
7:31giving her faith
7:33so that she could
7:35Worship in spirit and Truth
7:39did the Samaritan woman
7:41no
7:42that confessing her sin and looking to
7:45Jesus as Savior
7:46was Worship in spirit and Truth that the
7:51heavenly father was seeking
7:54well the scripture doesn’t answer those
7:55questions
7:56because at this point the disciples
7:58returned
8:00um
8:01pardon me Lunch is ready
8:04and the woman well they were surprised
8:06that Jesus was talking to a Samaritan
8:09woman and she scurries away quickly the
8:11scripture tells us that she is quick to
8:13go back to the Village
8:15and I think that’s very interesting
8:17because it appears to me that she was
8:21quite reluctant to be around the
8:22villagers before
8:24at uh at time to draw water she wasn’t
8:26with them
8:28but now suddenly
8:30she was anxious to be with him I think
8:32everything was new
8:35she was openly testifying about her sin
8:39and about her conversation with the
8:41Messiah Jesus and though the scripture
8:44doesn’t say explicitly that the woman
8:46had true faith
8:48one can surely gather something of that
8:52nature
8:53because the scripture tells us that many
8:56came to faith quote because of the word
9:00of the woman who testified
9:03that’s the language that the Bible has
9:05she testified out of her heart and out
9:08of her mouth came the word empowered by
9:10the holy spirit that gave them Faith
9:13many came to Faith because of the word
9:16the woman testified
9:19so did she know that Jesus was the
9:22temple of God
9:24the location of the sacrifice for sin
9:28and the location of God’s promise for
9:32Eternal forgiveness
9:34it appears
9:36that Jesus the savior
9:38did his proper work
9:40and another sinner was saved by grace
9:42through faith in Jesus Christ
9:45but in some real way
9:48this story is not so very different from
9:51your story and mine
9:53Jesus met you at your well
9:57wherever your well was
10:00and he confronted you with your sin and
10:03he introduced himself
10:05as your savior
10:07God’s word worked
10:10whether it was his written word or his
10:13spoken word or his sacramental word the
10:16word of God works
10:18and the power of God’s holy spirit
10:21moved
10:23and you repented
10:26and you believed
10:30therefore
10:33you are a true worshiper of God
10:38the Father in Heaven smiles
10:41because
10:42you too worship Him in spirit and in
10:45truth
10:46and Jesus says
10:48for such people
10:50the father seeks
10:52to be his worshipers
10:56amen