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But a time is coming and is already here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit [from the heart, the inner self] and in truth; for the Father seeks such people to be His worshipers. - John 4:23 AMP
I grew up believing that the people who raised their hands, fell down and cried during worship were super close to God. Those people had to be really dedicated and have some kind of special connection to behave the way they did. Right? They must really believe.
What's interesting about the photo above is that we can't really determine if it was taken at a worship service or at a concert. Perhaps the people in this photo do believe in God, but what does that mean?
A believer is anyone who believes in the power and might of God. There are many people on this Earth who believe in God - millions of them. Even the devil himself believes. So do the demons, and they tremble with fear.
You believe that God is one; you do well [to believe that]. The demons also believe [that], and shudder and bristle [in awe-filled terror—they have seen His wrath]! - James 2:19 AMP
The bible also tells us that the demons fell down and worshiped at the feet of Jesus. Before Jesus cast out the legion of demons from a man it says "when he saw Jesus a long way off, he ran and bowed in worship before him—" (Mark 5:6 MSG).
Whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they fell down before Him and screamed out, “You are the Son of God!” - Mark 3:11 AMP
In an article written about Dylann Roof, the Charleston Church shooter, it states that Dylann had participated in a bible study and worshipped with the parishioners for 45 minutes before he proceeded to pull out a gun, empty 47 rounds and kill 9 people. (https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/death-sentence-upheld-man-who-killed-9-south-carolina-church-n1277667)
Given this evidence, is it enough to say that we believe and worship God? Or does there need to be something more?
In John 11:25, Jesus says that anyone who believes in Him will be saved. But the word that Jesus used that we have translated to "believe" carries much more weight than we think. John 6:40 in the Amplified Bible gives a little more perspective:
For this is My Father’s will and His purpose, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in and cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.
Jesus didn't just expect people to believe in Him, He expected that belief to result in action. He expected people to follow Him. Matthew 4:19 talks about how Jesus calls Peter and Andrew: "And He said to them, “Follow Me [as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk], and I will make you fishers of men.” (AMP)
So what does it mean to follow Jesus? What does it mean to be His disciple?
Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself [disregard, lose sight of, and forget himself and his own interests] and take up his cross and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying, also]. - Matthew 16:24 AMP
According to this scripture, in order to be His disciple we must completely deny ourselves and our life must conform to His example, entirely. In John 12:26, Jesus says that in order to serve Him, we must follow Him and that wherever He is, His servant will be also. Only then will God honor us. Without this, our songs of praise are meaningless.
James 2:17 states that "In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." In 1 Peter 2:21, it says "To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." The bible is clear that simply being a "believer" is not enough. Action is required. We must be followers. How do we know when we're truly following Jesus? How do we show that we are His disciples? By our fruit. (Luke 6:43-45)
This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. - John 15:8
The last command of Jesus was to go and make disciples. The only way to carry out the Great Commission is to first make sure that we are truly following Him so that by our changed lives, we can encourage others to do the same.
I urge you to take an objective look at your life. Examine your fruit. Are you a follower of Jesus Christ, or just a believer?