"By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him"
- John the Apostle, 1 John 4:13-16
"So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, 'If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.'"
- Jesus, John 8:31-32
Abiding is a word I hear Christians say, but don't fully understand or practice (myself included). The Webster's definition of abide is "to wait for; to endure without yielding; to bear patiently; to remain stable or fixed in a state; to continue in a place". While this may be the definition of the word "abide", I think it's inadequate to describe the full message both John and Jesus are giving. One mistake that has become apparent for me is my equating of abiding with rest. Rest is a part of abiding, but an overemphasis of rest leads to passivity. To the concept or rest I would add perspective and uniting.
A realization of the power of perspective has shed new light on abiding. I've found I operate from two basic perspectives contentment and consumerism. My working definitions are:
- Contentment - viewing life from the perspective of what you have
- Consumerism - viewing life from the perspective of what you don't have
Contentment seem inherent to abiding, consumerism stands in contradiction to it. The impact of this on my understanding of abiding is simply this ... I've realized it is impossible to have all that I want, I have been given more than I realize (or deserve), and in Christ I have all that I need. To know this as true is crucial, to commit and live this truth is transformational.
More on the uniting idea later. If asked the question "what is abiding", what is your response?
1 comments:
I've listen to your message (and I would encourage all to check it out: The Journey To Perfection), so I know your definition of abiding.
What is abiding? I'd say it's communing with our Lord and His people on the path to completeness.
Ted, thanks for this message. It has stirred many tangential thoughts. For example, you talked about perfection as something more than rule-keeping. Perfection is wholeness. That alone helps so much as we think on and practice abiding love.
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