Abide…

Abide…

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. ~ John 15:5

The word ABIDE has several descriptive definitions – none of which is without significance within the context of our verse. Consider these thoughts as you contemplate what it means to abide:

To remain stable or fixed in a state
To continue in a place
To conform to
To accept without objection
To wait for
To endure without yielding
To bear patiently

Jesus affords us a great metaphor on what it means to abide in Him … to remain in closest relationship with Him. Our search for the deepest meaning of life is satisfied in this one word: ABIDE. For when we abide in Jesus … when we come forth as an extension (branch) of His life-giving being (vine) … we will have a meaningful life that bears fruit in the likeness of Him. Apart from Jesus, we will become lifeless and dead. He said, “No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” (John 15:4)

Jesus began His teaching with this: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:1-2) So, we understand that the work of God is to promote the growth of each branch in the vine. The Father desires fruit that will bring Him glory! As Paul expounded: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)

The question arises: “How do we abide in Jesus? How do we continue to remain in His presence? Well, Jesus Himself provides the answer:

John 14:15-18 (NKJV)

If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper (Comforter), that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

John 14:23-24 (NKJV)

If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.

Notice there are branches (plural) in the Vine. All the branches are interconnected to the same life-giving source. Yes, all are dependent upon Jesus to give them true life in Him and with one another. Indeed, we see John reinforcing this truth:

1 John 3:23-24 (NKJV)

And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment. Now the one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

My friends, to have a meaningful, purposeful life, we must abide in Jesus. And the grace of abiding in Him requires obedience to His commandment – to love one another as He has loved us. I will leave us with this thought: Abiding Through Love

1 John 4:12-16 (NKJV)

No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. 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 the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in Him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

It is my prayer this mediation will encourage you … in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Have a Blessed Day!

Thoughts…

Thoughts…

For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. ~ 1 Corinthians 2:11-12

Thoughts are mental cognitions – our ideas, opinions, and beliefs. They are framed by what we perceive through our senses and our human experience in this world. And yet, there is a much deeper component found within the spirit God breathed in each of us. (Cf. Genesis 2:7) As the text indicates, our thoughts find their origin within our spirits … the “essence” that animates us and gives us “life”. And through human speech or language, we have the capacity to express our thoughts; and therefore, express what resides within our individual spirits. And it is the expression of thoughts through our words and actions that reveals the nature of our true spirits in relational terms.

When we examine the “sin nature” of man, it is rooted in our spirits. Genesis 6:5 states: “The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.” It is the depravity of our spirits that God calls into account. As Jeremiah noted: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” (Jeremiah 17:9-10) The Prophet Amos confirmed as well: “He who forms the mountains, who creates the wind, and who reveals His thoughts to mankind, who turns dawn to darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth— the Lord God Almighty is His name.” (Amos 4:13)

I am thankful our merciful God has expressed His thoughts on these matters through His Spirit to the Prophet, Isaiah, and provided this instruction:

Isaiah 55:7-9 (NIV)

Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and He will have mercy on them, and to our God, for He will freely pardon. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

As Paul explained in our text, the thoughts of God reside with His Spirit; and it is through the expression of His Spirit in words and actions that His thoughts are revealed. Indeed, as Paul notes, until we are regenerated (born-again) by the Spirit of God (Cf. John 3:3-8), our spirits will not be joined with His so that we may understand what the Father has freely given us. Indeed, “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 2:14) And perhaps I should add: “The god of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the Gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4)

My friends, the core message here is that as image-bearers of the Triune God, our thoughts reside within our spirits as well. And our thoughts are expressed through words (and actions). But the unfailing love of God has afforded us a solution for our depravity: His Thoughts! Our Creator has revealed His thoughts through His Spirit. It is known to us as the “Word of God.” Yes, when we are born-again of the Spirit, we receive the mind of Christ. We are able to process and understand spiritual thoughts (the words of God) because the Spirit explains spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words! (1 Corinthians 2:13) And Jesus confirms the Word of God is Truth! (John 17:17) Further, Jesus affirmed: “I AM the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) I pray we will embrace the Word of God and its power to transform and renew our minds! (Romans 12:2)

Have a Blessed Day!

Have The Same Mindset…

Romans 15:5-6 (NIV)

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Our Verse of the Day reminds us to have the same attitude of mind … the same disposition and character … that Christ Jesus had when He lived among us. Paul requests that Father God, who gives us patient endurance and great encourage in our walks of life, would give us a correct mindset in our relationships with one another. So, why is this important for us to consider? Paul answers, “That we might be united … one mind and one voice … in order to glorify God!” Let’s look at the passage in its broader context:

Romans 15:1-13 (NIV)

We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. For even Christ did not please Himself but, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.” (Citing Psalm 69:9) For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy. As it is written: “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles; I will sing the praises of your name.” (Citing Psalm 18:49) Again, it says, “Rejoice, you Gentiles, with His people.” (Citing Deuteronomy 32:43) And again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles; let all the peoples extol Him.” (Citing Psalm 117:1) And again, Isaiah says, “The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; in Him the Gentiles will hope.” (Citing Isaiah 11:10) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

What I love about this passage is its affirmation of WHO affords us endurance in our walk of faith … WHO encourages us in our trials and challenges along the journey … and WHO gives us the wisdom of His Word to equip us with a proper perspective on how we are to extend these same blessings to those around us. Indeed, it is God the Father who richly gives us all these things through His Son – the Living Word who became flesh and made His dwelling among us. (Cf. John 1:14) Yes, I am reminded where Paul wrote to the Church at Philippi the same exhortation to have the mindset of Christ:

Philippians 2:1-8 (NIV)

Therefore, if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage; rather, He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!

And the Apostle John exhorted:

1 John 2:3-6 (NIV)

We know that we have come to know Jesus if we keep His commands. Whoever says, “I know Him,” but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. But if anyone obeys His Word, God’s love is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must live as Jesus did.

My friends, it is clear that we need to clothe ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ. (Cf. Romans 13:14; Galatians 3:27) We are to be in Him … live in Him … have the same mindset as Him. We are to humble ourselves to one another … esteem others better than ourselves … look out for the interests of others. Yes, these are the things that conform us to His image and bring glory to God the Father. And so, I will conclude with what Jesus admonished:

John 15:5-14 (NIV)

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.

So Now You Know…

Have a Blessed Day!

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. ~ Ephesians: 4:22-24