Abide in Christ

John 8:31-32 Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
John 15:4-11 Jesus said: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.”
A couple friends of mine asked me to write something on: what it means to “abide in Christ”? To “abide” is not a word that we use very much these days, but when we look at what the Lord is teaching us by this simple word (abide), we see the enormous implications in our faith and our life as Christians … fruitful living, the love of Christ & joy to the fullest! Merriam-Webster dictionary defines abide as 1: to remain stable or fixed in a state 2: to continue in a place The American Heritage dictionary defines abide as 1. To remain in a place. 2. To continue to be sure or firm; endure. 3. To dwell 4. To conform to; comply with. To abide is not only to remain fixed & steady, but to endure the Christian race, continuing sure and firm in His word, will and way. To conform our life to align and comply to the Lord’s teachings and commands, and dwell, make our home & live with Him. For in John 14:23 Jesus says: "If anyone loves Me, he will keep(abide in) My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” Truth rests on the Word of God, the Holy scriptures, and our experiences must rest upon that truth.
Faith and true belief are not based upon imagination … to close your eyes and try to believe, because faith (to believe that Jesus is the Son of God, died for our sins, who rose from the dead that we may have eternal life) is a matter of the mind, spirit & soul; not a matter of our will. A decision can never make you affirm the truth of a proposition, if in fact you do not believe it. How to act out our faith, to abide in Christ as Lord of our life, to desire the things of God and resolve to serve Him, is a matter of our will.
In the parable of the Sower (Luke 8:14-15), the seed being sown is the Word of God and the ground is our heart. Jesus explains; “Now the seeds that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.” Don’t be consumed by the consumables. We can not obey two Masters, and an Apostate in the Bible is one who forgets the Word of God, but the true disciple of Christ is the one that abides in His word. Let us abide in Christ and live the “abundant life”, producing much “good fruit” that glorifies our Father in heaven!