Jesus said we must worship God in spirit and truth (John 4:24).  To worship in spirit has to do with having the right attitude and focus whenever we worship God.  We have to avoid just going through the motions when we worship.  God wants our minds to be engaged in every act of worship that we offer Him.  

Romans 12:1 (ESV)
¹  I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

The word spiritual in this passage is logikos which means rational or reasonable and points to our intellect.  In reference to Romans 12:1, Vine says “The sacrifice is to be intelligent, in contrast to those offered by ritual and compulsion; the presentation is to be in accordance with the spiritual intelligence of those who are new creatures in Christ and are mindful of ‘the mercies of God’” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old Testament and New Testament Words).

To worship is to pay homage to God, and we cannot do that by accident.  It is a reasoned choice that is motivated by our love and reverence for our heavenly Father.

To worship God in truth has to do with following God’s Word when we worship.  We must do what He authorizes us to do and nothing more.    Furthermore, we must follow the pattern of worship that we find in the New Testament.

What kind of music did the New Testament church make when praising God?  Did they make different kinds of music when they worshipped God?  No, they did not!  They made one kind of music and that was vocal.  That is the pattern, and we must defend that way of worshipping God because authority is necessary for all that we do religiously (Colossians 3:17).

The church in the first century not only used vocal music exclusively when praising God, but they also had other specific acts of worship.  For example, they gave on the first day of the week (1 Corinthians 16:1-2).  We must do the same thing because that is the pattern.  The church did not tithe; they gave as they were prospered by God.  Be sure to read the passage.

The church also observed the Lord’s Supper every first day of the week.

Acts 20:7 (ESV)
⁷  On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.

Faithful churches of Christ do the same thing.

Worship is a critical part of our lives as Christians, but we must do it right, meaning that we do it with the right attitude, and according to the pattern of truth set forth in the New Testament.  We must be set to defend this truth because all other worship is vain.

Matthew 15:9 (ESV)
⁹  In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.       

As you wind down for the night, think about these things