Abiding In Christ

Abiding in Christ

Abiding in something means when it's used as a noun means to conform to. The Bible tells us in Romans 8:29 that God created us to be conformed to His image. When Abide is used in the verb tense it means to bear patiently, to accept without rejection, to remain stable or in a fixed state.

Think about this for a moment... let's go back to Genesis chapter one... have you ever noticed while reading this passage that... God created something out of whatever he spoke to.
- When God wanted plants he spoke to the dirt.
- When God wanted fish He spoke to the waters.
- When God wanted animals He spoke to the ground.

Not only are all things composed of the materials they were made from, they must also remain attached to the source in order to live.
- Plants have to remain in the dirt in order to live
- Fish have to remain in the waters in order to live
- Animals have to eat plants from the ground and other animals from the ground in order to live.

Now think back to who God spoke to when He wanted to make man. Genesis 1 v 26 says then God said, Let Us make man in Our image. Who did He speak to... he spoke to Himself. He spoke to the triune God head.

So now let's recap for a moment...
- When God wanted plants He spoke to the dirt - plants have to remain attached to their source in order to live.
- When God wanted fish He spoke to the waters - fish have to remain in the water in order to live.
- When God wanted animals He spoke to the ground - animals have to eat plants from the ground or other animals made from the ground in order to live.
All of creation has to remain attached to it's source to survive. That is a physical law that God ordained in nature.

Now you probably are already ahead of me... we have to remain attached to our source in order to live. Our bodies are made out of dirt and they will go back to the ground but our inner man(our spirit) is came from God when God breathed the breath of life into the nostrils of Adam and man became a living being. And we must abide in Him in order to have Life and have it more abundantly. How do you abide in God and how do you stay attached to your source... you read and study His word. You stay attached to the vine by praying... talking to God. That is how you remain in your source... by His Word and by prayer. His Word is the bread of Life.

As we as Christians abide in Christ... have a personal relationship with Christ... we begin to bear the fruit of Christlike qualities. We begin to be conformed to His image that Romans 8:29 speaks about.

The believers heart begins to beat in perfect rhythm with the Father's heart. When this kind of abiding occurs I believe it will produce a least 4 other results.

1. Prayers are answered. This does not mean that God will become our personal Santa Clause. Our prayers will be more intune with the Holy Spirit and the will of God. We will be dying to our self and as Christ we will be more concerned with the needs of others. We would be praying like and for the kinds of things Christ would pray for. And Christ always yielded to the will of His Father... even unto death.

2. God is Glorified. God delights in seeing us reflect His character. And by praying unselfishly and praying the will of God - He will be glorified.

3. Love is stimulated. When you are attached to the vine you can not help but have love in your hearts for you brothers and sisters in Christ. You also can't help but want to reach out to those who are not attached to the vine. You will have a heart to want to see people grafted into the one true vine.

4. Joy and peace will overflow. I'm not talking about the superficial happiness that is fleeting. I'm talking about a genuine deep contentment that transcends difficulties. I'm talking about a peace that God gives that passeth all understanding no matter how low the valley is you are going through. Some of you know what I'm talking about... you've gone through some very tough trials in your life time but through it all you have had a peace that the world cannot understand.

Who said you can't judge a book by its cover... that is not in the Bible. If you are a Christian you need to bear fruit... in order to bear fruit you need to stay attached to the vine. The more you are committed to staying attached to the vine the more fruit you will bear. I hope this brief message has spoken to your heart and will encourage you as your mediate on the Word of God this week.

God Bless you,
Dwayne