Bible Talk with Sister Deb. Beyond Church Candy and Crossed Legs: The Real Deal on Worship

What does it really mean to worship God "in spirit and truth"? Sister Deb Osborne takes us on a soul-searching journey through John 4:20-24, where Jesus reveals the essence of authentic worship during His conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well.

This powerful episode challenges our conventional understanding of worship. As Sister Deb explains, worship isn't merely about church attendance or singing hymns—it's about connecting with God on a deeper level through a genuine relationship. "Unless we learn to worship God every day of the week," she points out, "we're probably not worshiping Him on Sundays either."

One of the most striking revelations is that we've often misunderstood our role in worship. Many Christians attend services as spectators, critiquing the music, checking their watches, or mentally preparing for lunch. Sister Deb delivers this jarring truth: "We are not the audience—God is." This perspective shift transforms worship from a passive experience into an active offering that we present to our Creator every day, everywhere.

The most humbling insight comes when Sister Deb highlights that God, surrounded by millions of worshiping angels, still seeks our praise. "He doesn't need us, but He wants us," she explains, inviting listeners to embrace this profound reality. True worship requires both spiritual engagement (heart) and truth (mind), creating a balanced approach that transforms us from the inside out.

Whether you're feeling disconnected from church, struggling to make worship meaningful, or simply seeking to deepen your relationship with God, this episode offers practical guidance for becoming the true worshiper that God is actively seeking. Clear your heart of distractions, focus entirely on God's presence, and discover how authentic worship can recharge your spiritual batteries and change how others see Christ in you.

Ready to transform your understanding of worship? Listen now and discover how to worship God in ways that truly honor Him—not just on Sundays, but every moment of every day.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome to Bible Talk
• 4:14 True Worship in Spirit and Truth
• 9:20 Worship Beyond Church Walls
• 14:02 The Audience is God, Not Us
• 18:41 Becoming True Worshipers
• 23:41 Closing Prayer and Reflection

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:15

so many mountains that we try to climb so many places where we fall behind, places where we fall behind Deep in the struggle just to find our way, we lose the heart and we lose the faith. Sometimes this life can tear your world apart, but you've got to remember his love is strong. Hey, you're listening to Bible Talk with Sister Deb Osborne. You can listen to Bible Talk on WIC 88.1 Christian Radio Station every Sunday at 5 pm. You can also listen to Bible Talk with Sister Deb Osborne. You can listen to Bible Talk on WIC 88.1 Christian Radio Station every Sunday at 5 pm. You can also listen to Bible Talk and much more on the 421 Podcast streaming on Apple, Spotify or whatever platform you're choosing. If you'd like to contact Sister Deb, you can email her at OsborneDebraK at gmailcom. If you'd like to support the show, you can support it through PayPal. You can do that at PayPal slash HOR421, or you can go through the website at HOR421showbuzzsproutcom. Now we give you your host, Sister Deb.

Speaker 2: 1:23

Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. It's so good to be back doing this. Well, hello everybody, welcome to Bible Talk. And today I think we are going to talk about John 4, verses 20. I've got 20 through 24, but actually there's only one or two of them that I'm actually going to talk on.

Speaker 2: 1:46

And in John 4, 20 through 24, jesus, of course, is talking to the woman at the well, and after speaking of water physical and spiritual water and after Jesus tells her about her own private life and some things that she didn't think anybody else knew, I guess she changes the subject and they start talking about worship, own private life and some things that she didn't think anybody else knew. I guess she changes the subject and they start talking about worship. And you know, john, actually he says in John 4, verses 23 and 24, and the Bible says but the hour cometh, and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. And the purpose of, in my opinion, the purpose of all creation people was to worship the true living God in a way that he commanded to glorify God, the Father. Now I looked up the definition of true worship to see what I could find and it says, a spiritual engagement, not simply about outward expressions, but a heartfelt devotion rooted in a genuine relationship with God. See, he said in John 4, true worshipers are those who worship God in spirit and in truth. Right, the true worship is more than just going to church and singing hymns, even though those are important things. True worship people, goes much, much deeper. It involves a deep personal relationship with God. It's about our heartfelt response to His love and his grace. You know, I mean a scientist. I read somewhere that scientists had found, has never found any civilization or culture that did not practice some form of worship.

Speaker 2: 4:00

But I think sometimes people get either miss or they get misunderstood on the point of worship. And I tell you, the point has never been random or senseless. The point has always been to God's glory. Now, how often is it that we come to worship? How often is it that our hearts are usually somewhere else? How often is it that our hearts are usually somewhere else, like if we're trying to worship the Lord and we're thinking well, you know what, what's going to be for lunch today. Or you're clapping your hands and trying to worship the Lord and you glance at your watch and you're thinking well, the game comes on in an hour or I'm just going to watch this on TV tonight. But you know, if those are how we're thinking, then we've lost our sense of true worship people.

Speaker 2: 4:52

Jesus said in John 4, 23, true worshipers must worship the Father in spirit and in truth. And he said the Father seeketh such to worship him. He said God is a spirit and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. Friends, it seems that the churches today major in one or the other, but very rarely is it balanced with both aspects of worship truth and spirit. You know, on one hand we have people that really emphasize the spirit, part of it. I've seen people even go to the point of extreme. You know, they jump up on a pew and they fall over and they pass out. And now I'm not speaking of anybody personally, this is just what I have seen down the line, and you know. But then you have those who come to church and sit down and just neglect the spirit all the way around, and so their common misconceptions of worship is a lot of people think that worship only takes place in church.

Speaker 2: 6:00

But when we hear worship service, what picture comes to your mind? No doubt a room with pews and instruments and songs and hymnals, and if we define worship, if we can define worship as enjoying the presence of God and we realize that God is present with us always, then we can worship anytime, anyplace, anywhere. We can do it while driving, sitting at your desk, lying in bed, relaxing your recliner, taking a walk. I have an uncle that takes a walk and he worships the God. We can do it cleaning. It doesn't matter where or when. The scripture makes it plain that worship was never intended to be only for church services. Psalms 119 and 164 says seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgment. The truth is, people and I'm not trying to step on anybody's toes the truth is, though, unless we learn to worship God every day of the week, then we're probably not worshiping him on Sundays, right either? You know, are we just playing church? Are we just playing worship?

Speaker 2: 7:23

Friends, worship is an outward expression. You see, sometimes and I do it myself, especially sometimes you can sit quietly and you can bow your head. That is an outward expression of sitting there, praying to the Lord and worshiping God. Some people shout aloud Amen or Hallelujah, some lift their hands and some sing loudly and strong. Some of us who don't sing very well try to sing loudly and strong. But you know, the Bible commends all of these expressions and more. And I know we're all different, I know we worship differently, I know my worship may may be different from yours.

Speaker 2: 8:10

But, people, the one thing that is certain that true worship is not all about the songs, it's not all about the vocals, the band or the choir. All of these are a great expression of worship, but the true worship is when our hearts and our souls connect with the Spirit of God. You know, it's when we get right down to the nitty gritty and we talk to the Lord and we cry out to God and we worship Him. You know, sing and whatever you're doing, if it's to the top of your lungs, you know, hey, true worship is connecting our hearts and our souls with the Spirit of God.

Speaker 2: 8:54

Now I've seen some people that go to church and they act like they're an audience. They sit back in the pews, they pull out their old lady church candy and they cross their leg and they start looking at what's happening to the up-fronters. What are they doing? Is the music going to be good today? Or is Sister So-and-So going to sing or is there going to be glitches in the sound system? Friends, if this is our thinking, then we are not true worshiping God, and what we need to get in our hearts and our minds is, you know, what God deserves our very best that we can do. It doesn't have to sound good to your neighbor, it doesn't have to sound good to the whole church. I mean, I sing in this little church I've been going to. They actually let me get up and sing and you know I'm not a very good singer. Now I put on some good concerts in my truck and I put some good concerts on in my house because my dogs will sit and look at me. And now, you know, I got a German shepherd. She raises her head kind of to the side when I start singing.

Speaker 2: 9:57

But anyway, don't get me wrong. I'm thankful for great music and I know that modern technology has changed a lot of things out there. But we don't need really a lot of that. Modern technology changes. To worship God, people, we need to put the premium back on praise. We need to learn that we're not the audience God is. We don't go to church to sit up front and to watch the worship team put on a show. We are all on a platform and we all play a part in worship. If it's just sitting back there playing a tambourine, you are playing a part in worshiping God Because, people, he doesn't want our entertainment. He doesn't want our lights and our smoke. He's God. He can produce that anytime he wants. He doesn't need all of that. God created us for the ultimate priority of worshiping Him.

Speaker 2: 10:54

You know, the longest book in the Bible, psalms, is all about praising and worshiping God. And worship is not just the music. It's loving God, it's honoring God, it's knowing who he is, it's adoring Him, obeying Him when he tells us to do something, the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians, 10 and 31,. He said Whether then ye eat or drink or whatever ye do, do all to the glory of God. People of Scripture says again, I'm going to tell you that the Father seeks true worshipers to worship Him. God is seeking for worshipers who will bring Him glory, and not just for an hour on Sunday, but every day of the week, through everything that we do, everything that we say, all of our activities. God is seeking for worshipers who will bring Him glory in all of that. You know, how can we properly worship on Sunday if we aren't worshiping all through the week? You know, and check this out.

Speaker 2: 11:59

Let me give you this train of thought the fact that God seeks True worshipers and that's what his word says that should tell us that there are false worshipers out there, you know. And false worshipers, either they worship something other than the true living God or they may even attempt to worship the true living God, but they do it in ways that actually dishonor him. You know, there are Christians who are sincere, but then there are ones that they're insincere, but their worship is just sin or no man, you know, pattering their worship on the entertainment other than the Bible, drawing attention to the performers but not to the Lord. And my friends, this is the ones who, in Matthew 15 and 8, jesus said honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. In John 4, 24, again, jesus said true worshipers must worship him in spirit and in truth Must. It's a necessity, it's not optional, it's essential. It's not optional, it's essential. It's not saying you should or would you or can you, it's must worship Him.

Speaker 2: 13:23

And if you read in the book of John, really there's three musts right there that he tells us we should do. John 3 and 7 says you must be born again. That's important right. And seven says you must be born again. That's important right. John 3 and 14 says the Son of man must be lifted up Important right In John 4, 24, those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.

Speaker 2: 13:46

Important also those are musts that he put in the book of John that we need to do, and he put that worship with him in spirit and truth in there. It's a must, it's a necessity. It's not optional, it's essential. It's essential for our lives and our eternities and our future to be in the realm and worship God the best that we can and give him our best.

Speaker 2: 14:16

You know, to worship in spirit is to worship from the heart, from within, to close out all the noise and all the distractions of the world and concentrate on God. Is it hard? I'm not saying it's easy and when we worship in truth, to worship God in truth means that we worship Him for all that he is. We worship Him for His love, his righteousness, his kindness, his grace. We worship Him for what he gives us People. We worship Him for what he takes away. We have to worship Him for all of His ways. And you know we find that truth in the Bible and it's the only guide for worshiping God in truth. Feeding your mind on the truth of God moves your spirit to be able to praise him and love him.

Speaker 2: 15:00

Now, worship's not a spectator sport. It's not something that's done to us or for us. It's not something that we go and sit down and look up at the pulpit to see. It's something that's done by us. And from the beginning days of the church until now, god's people has always been a worshiping people. Read Acts 2, 46 and 47, and I'm not going to go into it, but I'll give you something to read. Until now, god's people has always been a worshiping people. Read Acts 2, 46 and 47. I'm not going to go into it, but I'll give you something to read.

Speaker 2: 15:35

And Paul told the believers at Ephesians to be speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Make a melody in your heart. That's Ephesians 5 and 19. Make a melody in your heart. That's Ephesians 5 and 19. And people also worshiping God brings healing to our soul.

Speaker 2: 15:57

David, who wrote Psalms, said in the 23rd Psalm he restores my soul and it's amazing how calm we can become when we praise our Lord and Savior. And I'm going to tell you something else that's amazing to me and I want to give you this to think about. It's also amazing that God is seeking us, little old me and you, to worship Him. He's not satisfied with the millions of angels who worship Him every day around his throne. He wants you and he wants me to worship him also. I mean, wow, what a thought, what a thought that he's got us right up there on that realm with all of these heavenly angels that worship him every day around his throne. Wow, praise the Lord. He don't need us, but he wants us. And I'm saying it again His Word says he seeks such to worship Him. You know, he seeks such to worship Him.

Speaker 2: 16:59

Brothers and sisters, I'm telling you today we need to make it a priority Our lives depend on making it a priority to become a true worshiper. That's what he wants. And worship should not be restricted to just a few minutes on Sunday. Worship should be all the time, you know, and we don't go to church to get something out of it all the time. If that's our focus, then we got it wrong, friends. Our focus should be to give God praise and honor and thanks to God, who gave his son to die for us. Again I say we're not an audience.

Speaker 2: 17:39

The real act is God, and the entire presentation of going to church worshiping the Lord, praising His name, holding His name up, is offered to Him for His glory. So the next time you go to church and you leave church and you get in your car and sit and ask yourself for just a minute did I worship God today in spirit and truth? Did I give God the heartfelt praise and thanks and glory that he so deserves? Because we know he so deserves it, every word of worship that we utter out of our mouth he deserves. Friends, today I'm going to tell you again God is seeking you to be a true worshiper and if you have not put your trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you need to start there and you need to give God your life and your heart and trust in Him as your Lord and Savior and he will make you a true worshiper. And if you have trusted God, maybe perhaps you've trusted God with your life and your heart and you've been trying and maybe you feel you've drifted off course. People get back on course because you got to give it all to God, because he's still there, he's waiting, he didn't go nowhere and he wants you to become a true worshiper.

Speaker 2: 19:05

When you go to church, clear out your mind and your hearts of the world. And when you go to church, clear out your mind and your hearts of the world. Leave all of the world and the noise and the humdrum of the world, leave it outside. Don't take it in the house of God, leave it on the doorstep, on the steps, and when you walk in there, give God everything you have in you and concentrate only on worshiping God.

Speaker 2: 19:33

Because, my friends, my brothers and sisters, I'm telling you right now, when the visual, when the emotional and even the spectacular take place of our spiritual, we've lost our way. You know, again, he doesn't want our entertainment, he wants our spiritual. He wants our entertainment, he wants our spiritual, he wants our truth, he wants our faith. People, he's only asking for our worship. And I tell you, our worship in church is not a warm-up act for the preaching. No, no, it's a battle cry. It's a battle cry that breaks chains before a word is even spoken. That's what true worship is. And you know, worship is the source of our spiritual renewal. Friends.

Speaker 2: 20:21

Real worship is when our spirit connects with the Lord and we are refreshed in His presence. Worship should change our spiritual batteries, if you will. It should charge them. When the worship time is powerful, it should be spiritual, refreshing for us spiritually. And when we worship God in spirit and in truth, we are nourished and we're strengthened in His power to do the work that he sets before us, to do the things that he wants us to do, to be at his beck and call to worship and serve him in spirit and in truth. Because people, when we have been with Jesus in worship, people will notice it. People will notice it. They'll notice that smile on your face and that happiness and that energy.

Speaker 2: 21:11

Acts 4 and 13 says Now, when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, they marveled and they took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus. It shows. It shows on your face. You know the Bible is full of scriptures on worship. Psalms 95 and 6 says it shows. It shows on your face. You know the Bible is full of scriptures on worship.

Speaker 2: 21:34

Psalms 95 and 6 says O, come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker. Psalms 34 and 1 says I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth and one of my very favorite ones, psalms 100. People, he just wants our praise and worship. He wants our true worships. He wants to make us true worshipers. He is the real deal. He's not giving us nothing fake and we should give him our true worship. That's all I have on that today. I hope and pray. People, this has blessed you as much as it's blessed me to bring it to you. I thoroughly enjoyed this. I love everybody. God bless everybody. I'm going to end this with a prayer and hope and pray to see you and hear you back next week on Bible Talk. Thank you, god bless everybody. Our Father, god in heaven.

Speaker 2: 22:45

We ask you, lord, to let these words let these people understand the true worshipers.

Speaker 2: 22:49

Let these people that's listening and that hears and that needs to hear, let them hear and let them understand what they need to do to become the true worshipers.

Speaker 2: 22:58

Let them know just to knock it all out, to leave it all out, to leave it behind and to stand up to the plate and to go with you in spirit and in truth and become the worshipers that you seek. Help them to understand. Let these words go, lord, to the ears and the heart that it needs to go to. We thank you, lord, for the opportunity to be able to raise up our amens and our hallelujahs, to be able to raise up our voice, lord, and worship you in spirit and in truth. Help us to move up, lord, to that realm that you need us to be in. We praise you, we honor you, we love you. Today, we ask you to forgive us for all of our sins and bless each and everybody out there today that's going to be hearing this and that's going to see it and that's going to be able to listen to it and let the words go where it needs to go, for we ask these and all things in Jesus' holy, sweet name. We pray Amen.

Speaker 1: 24:01

And amen. His love is strong to win the fight. His love is strong and good and right. When the heart gets weak and the road gets long, his love is strong. His love is strong. You may be walking through the darkest night, on a road that's rough, but keep believing in the morning light. Hey, you've been listening to Bible Talk with Sister Deb Osborne. If you'd like to contact Sister Deb, you can email her at osborne-debra-k at gmailcom, recorded at the 421 Studio. For contact information for all your studio needs you can email at hor421ministries at gmailcom. Phone number is 239-849-1502. His love is strong. The wind is fine. His love is strong. He's good and right. When the heart gets weak and the road gets long, his love is strong. His love is strong. When the wind is fine, his love is strong. When you rise, his heart gets weak and the road gets long. His love is strong. His love is strong. His love is strong. His love is strong. His love is strong.