As we gather here in this space of the Prodisee Pantry we are thankful for the generosity of the Prodisee to permit us this space.  And I thought how appropriate it would be to reflect over the conversation that Jesus had with the woman at the well and particularly what Jesus mentioned about the place of worship.  I want to talk about three essential aspects of worship this morning coming from Jesus statements.

The first essential is that worship must be about the person of God, not the place of worship.   The place of worship is certainly important.   But the focus on the person of God must always remain the true center of our worship.   I find it quite interesting as you look at the different places in biblical history where people worshipped, particularly, the patriarchs.  If you look through the book of Genesis, you will find different places where a person met God or God encountered that patriarch… And then there were markers to identify that as a “holy or sacred place”.   It may have been stones.  It may have been an oak tree or trees.  Different places in nature where they had an experience with God and then they erected an altar.  So, it became a significant place for them.   Then, that would become their worship place.

I am sure that there are places that are sacred for you.  Perhaps the place where you first came to saving knowledge of Christ.  Or a place where you seem to feel or notice the Presence of God unlike anywhere else.  There may be a place of special or sacred value that each of us can recall or name in our own lives today.

Going back again to biblical history… Later in Exodus, God laid out for Moses a tabernacle or tent of meeting.  The tabernacle was a place where they met with God and gave their offerings to God and made sacrifices God. I was thinking about trying to put a tabernacle in South Alabama.   Just think about that for a moment, especially in August when it’s 95 degrees.  People would be passing out. Maybe not slain in the spirit but from heat exhaustion!  I have been to some tent revival meetings.  In earlier days those were quite popular and for a season were greatly used by God.  But the ancient Israelites worshipped in a tent of meeting under Moses and then Joshua.

Still later came the temple.  David wanted to construct a temple and of course, God told him that he, being a person of blood, a man of war, would not build a temple.  That task came to his son, Solomon, who built a beautiful costly temple. That temple was destroyed by the Babylonians around 606 BC.  And the people of Israel were taken into exile for 70 years. Hard to imagine, such a beautiful temple was destroyed! Many years later the Herodian temple during Jesus’ time was constructed.  It was a marvel of ingenuity.  Then a known wonder of the world.  You can still see the stones which are the base of that temple if you visit the Holy Land today.  Please note this…related to our theme… Jesus talked about the temple being destroyed and built back in 3 days (John 2:19).   And the Jewish people of that day didn’t quite understand. The essence of this is Jesus was talking about his body, and they were thinking about a physical temple. Jesus was talking about his person, and they were only thinking about the building.  They were Place oriented regarding worship and Jesus was Person oriented regarding worship.    Now matter how magnificent the temple, it is only a place to achieve a greater end to worship the Person of Jesus.

Now let’s come to this unfolding story in John 4. The woman drew reference to a debate that had been going on about the place of worship. The key question raised was:  Is it in Jerusalem or is it at Mt. Gerizim?   That name is not given in the text but that is the mountain the woman is referencing.  Of course, that debate had been going on for years between the Jews and the Samaritans.  The Samaritans were despised by the Jews and seen as unclean because they intermarried during the return of the exiles.  They were viewed as outcasts and impure people.  This led them to different places of worship in their history.  But Jesus made one thing very clear in this passage. And this is what we are stating all through this first essential of worship… In effect Jesus is saying that the place is not nearly as significant as the Person you worship.   The temple in Mt. Gerizim had previously been destroyed and the temple in Jerusalem would be destroyed as Jesus predicted. In Luke 21:5-6 Jesus stated that not one stone would be left on top of another on the temple. And we know from historical writings the temple was destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70.  But again, the focus of that was not on the physical temple but upon himself and of course, his resurrection after those three days.  His person, not the place.

Let’s go later in Acts 2.  On the day of Pentecost, we witness the coming of the Holy Spirit.  Where did this happen?  The believers were all together where? In the Upper Room. It was not a temple or synagogue but in an upper room where the Spirit came to fill believers.    And from there the church expanded through the missionary journeys.  Further, if you look through the book of Acts and Paul’s missionary journeys, many churches started meeting in the synagogue but then they went into homes or houses.  And it was in homes where worship and expansion of the church really took place.  Not necessarily in the worship center, temples or synagogues… but in the homes of people where worship was taking place and where the church was expanding.   So, there was a lot of variation in the place of worship in biblical history and church history…but not the Person!

Today, do you know where the church is growing the fastest in the world?  Guess?  It is in China.  But the church is an underground church.   Much like what was happening in the book of Acts. Worship and church gatherings are happening in the homes of people and the growth of church is taking place in numbers we cannot really know.   Do you know where the church is in greatest decline?  Western Europe, N America…USA and Australia.   Interesting that it is declining in the places that have the most incredible church buildings and sanctuaries.  Perhaps it is an indication that we may be missing the essential…focusing more on the place of worship…more than the Person of Worship.

I have made many visits on mission trips to Costa Rica.  Several of you here today have made those trips also.   When we first went down to Costa Rica, they were meeting for worship in what we would call a very meager garage or hut.   Through the church and our efforts, we helped construct a nicer church building, which we did with the help of others.  And we were working on another church where the construction was still going forward.  But I can tell you that God was very much alive in Costa Rica and in the worship experiences of the people there. The spirit of God was alive in the people as they are worshipping God with vibrance and enthusiasm. There’s an excitement about coming to God because they were totally focused on God.  It’s right with this first essential.  It’s not so much about the place as it is about the person of God.   The place can be meager, or it can be majestic.  The place can be small or large. It can be a marvel of architectural design, or it can be a straw hut.  It can encompass a crowd to fill up a large football stadium or only 2-3 people gathered in a tiny room.   But the focus of worship is not the place but always on the person of God.  That’s the first essential of worship.

The second essential is that worship must be about relationship with God, not about religious acts or rituals.  It’s easy to come to worship and to check it off and say, well I’ve done my religious duty today.  I’ve done my religious obligation today and be more focused on the external rituals… I have said my prayers… I have given my offering… I have listened to a sermon.…BUT… these are always a means to the greater end of knowing God and deepening our relationship with God.  The scripture speaks very clearly about being careful not to focus on external rites and rituals.  These are important, but they are not most important.

So, Joel 2:13 reads, “Rend your hearts, not your garments.”   It’s not about external acts and signs as much as it is about the condition of the heart.

Psalm 51:16  “Lord, you do not delight in sacrifice or I would bring it.  You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  My sacrifice O God is a broken spirit, a contrite heart, God.  You will not despise.”

Another example is when King David was chosen by Samuel from his brothers as the least likely candidate to be the king, the scripture reads, “Man looks on the outside.  God looks at the heart.”  So, in worship, if we’re not careful we can get caught up on the external things of worship and we miss the real essence, the matters of the heart and what God wants to do in our lives and in our minds and hearts.  That is worship in spirit and truth!

It is quite possible that a person could come to church for years and say the Creed and Lord’s Prayer and experience the hymns and go through all the rituals and never really have a relationship with Christ.   I have even known of clergy where this was the case.

Here is another great part of this…The real focus of worship is not what we do or give but focusing on what God has done. Yes, we are here to participate and give our praise and gifts to God. But our worship is first and foremost a response to what God is already working or doing in our lives.  It is a response to what the risen Christ is doing through the Holy Spirit working in our lives right now.   I hear people talking about seeking God.  And that is good.  Certainly it is a part of our worship.   We’re coming because we’re seeking after God.   But I want you to note here what Jesus says, God is seeking us.  Verse 23 God is seeking worshippers.  So, it’s the activity of God seeking us more than our seeking after God.  So, again it puts the focus on God’s action first in our lives.   And our worship is a response to what God is doing and when we see that…it evokes praise and worship!

For many years, our family has taken a vacation to Sanibel Island.  We were heartbroken by the terrible effects of Hurricane Ian that devastated the area.  We hope to return in the coming year. But on this beautiful island on the west side of Florida off the coast of Ft. Myers, it’s easy to get caught up in the creation and miss the Creator.   It has a beautiful ocean view, sunrise/set over the ocean, aquatic life flourishing, different species of birds flying over, panoramic view.  Wow!   It’s easy to get caught up in the view and miss the message behind the scene.  I think it might be the same process here in Spanish Fort as well. We live in a beautiful area.   But I think the beauty around us is a message from God to us.   A message from God of how much God loves us and what God is giving to us and what God allows us to experience. As the Psalmist declares: The creation reflects the glory of God.  One of our great Chrisitan hymns is How Great Thou Art…It reflects how worship is evoked in us… When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur and hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze…Then sings my soul my Savior God to Thee… How Great Thou Art…How Great Thou Art.   The creation is meant to move us to praise and adoration…to worship God!!    So, it’s about relationship and what God is giving to us. The beauty that surrounds us is God seeking us and invoking us to worship like what Steve Green sang a few years ago.  Let all creation great and small lift their voices one and all in a symphony of praise.   It is not about creation.  It is about the Creator!   

And when it comes to corporate worship in the gathered community of faith as here…

 It is not about rituals. It is not about external rites and symbols, no matter how beautiful.  Now as I say this…it is hoped that the external rituals lead us into a deeper relationship with Christ. But again, we can go through multiple rites and rituals and say all the right things and still not have a personal relationship with Christ.  We are singing the music, but we miss the Maestro. Then we are missing the essence of true worship.  This is what the woman in this story came to realize.   Let me move quickly to the third and last essential to worship.

The third essential is that worship must be in truth not in deception or what I would call artificial.

In this conversation it became much more personal!  Jesus made this woman face the truth. Let’s review it quickly, though I did not read it.  Jesus told her, Go call your husband. She replied with misinformation, I don’t have one.   Jesus confronted her denial and distracting from the truth.  He said… That’s right.  You’ve had 5 husbands.  The person you are living with now is not your husband.   She wanted to use religious conversation as a cover, a smokescreen for the sins and hurts of her life.  And I’ve discovered after many years of ministry that we can do that also.   Worship can be very artificial and religious events can cover hurts that are never healed and sins that are never forgiven.

There are a lot of artificial things in our world. Think about this in matters like food.  We eat a lot of artificial food.  We eat a lot of artificial ice cream.   I do.  We purchase a lot of products that are artificial.   And here’s the kicker.  We get so used to the artificial stuff that we miss or forget what the real thing tastes like or feels like.  Someone pointed out that now we even have instant grits.   But the worst part about that is that we like them!

Perhaps the deeper spiritual lesson in this part of the story is like this woman… we come to the same old well to get the same old stale water.  Maybe we do this in worship on Sundays.  If not careful, we can go through the motions of worship and miss authentic worship, miss the living water.  We settle for the stale, well water and miss the living water!  God is calling us to experience more.  God desires that we worship in spirit and truth.

I want you to notice again who is doing the seeking in this story.   Here’s a clue.  You have a 50% chance to get it right.  It’s not the woman.  Jesus is seeking her.  Jesus asked her for water.  Boy that blew her mind. She responded: You being a Jew asked me a Samaritan, no less a woman, for a drink of water.  Jesus broke down a lot of cultural and social barriers by simply asking this woman for a drink of water.   But the real essence of the story…the story within the story… is that she was hiding.  And she was using religion as a smoke screen to cover over things that were fouled up in her life.

Catherine Marshall told a wonderful story about a man who was converted in an inner-city mission where she was doing work. After many months, the young man gave his life to Christ and he gave a testimony one night.  He said, God did his part.  God sought after me and sought after me and sought after me…in every drug deal I participated…in every item I stole…in every fight I started… in every lie I told… God was seeking after me. He would not let me alone. And I did my part.   I ran and I ran, and I ran… until I could not run any more.   God was seeking him.  Just like Jesus was seeking this woman. And you better believe that God is still seeking true worshippers today.  We might be like this woman, maybe coming here Sunday after Sunday hiding right in the chairs where we worship, the very place where we are to meet God. And maybe Sunday after Sunday you’re drinking from the same old well.  Perhaps the hurts and injuries and regrets, guilt and you can fill in the blank in your own life.   Life goes on and on and on with unresolved, unreconciled, and unredeemed and unforgiven experiences. Jesus was creating a place where this woman would be honest and truthful about her life.  And that is what Jesus is seeking for in us.  That’s being truthful and authentic.  Perhaps for the first time you might drink from the living water.  Perhaps for the first time you may get a clearer picture of what worship in spirit and truth is all about.   It’s about the person of God not the place.  It’s about a relationship with God not just religious acts that we perform. It’s about rending our hearts, not our garments.  It is about being truthful and honest, real and authentic.  Here I am Lord…speak what is true… this is the real place of worship where we meet with Jesus and drink from the living water!

And perhaps as we close this service today you might spend some time reflecting in your own life about your worship.  And maybe one of these essentials is missing or misdirected with you.  I must be honest with you.  I’m a task-oriented person.  I like checking boxes.   I have to be careful that I’m not just checking boxes but that I’m truly meeting with God.   And that I’m drawing closer in my relationship in authentic worship with our living God.   And I want to drink from the living water.  And I want all of us to drink from the living Water…even as we named ourselves 5 Rivers…Let’s go to the real Water of Life…Let’s all drink for the Living Water, who is Jesus.

May we pray. Lord, I pray in these moments even as we sing this great hymn that your Holy Spirit would work in our lives so that we might taste/drink from the living water, Jesus Christ.  And Lord I pray that all the things that might be artificial or superficial, the boxes that we might check off, God that we would focus truly upon you, your person today and every time we worship.   We pray in Jesus’ Holy name.  Amen.