From the documentation
This extension enables JSONata language support to Visual Studio Code. The extension is activated for files with the *.jsonata extension.
Is it possible to use this extension without creating a notebook?
With a *.jsonata file I can't apply any filters, or interact with the content. Other similar extensions allow for example defining filters for the current data. But in this case I have no option.

From the documentation
Is it possible to use this extension without creating a notebook?
With a *.jsonata file I can't apply any filters, or interact with the content. Other similar extensions allow for example defining filters for the current data. But in this case I have no option.