“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.” (1 John 4:16, ESV)
Something changes when you’ve been born again, born of God, taken a stand with Christ. Your priorities become God-centered. Your values change, resembling a Christ-like life. Things of this world mean less. Things of God mean everything. Worship isn’t just a habit or a duty. It becomes a cherished time in God’s presence.
1 Peter 1:23 mentions that when you are born again, you will feel that change. This verse explains that those who are born again have “the living and abiding word of God”. What does that mean? To understand that, we will have to look at the words “living and abiding”.
The word of God is a phrase that means a lot of things. Taken at face value, it means the words that come from God. This will include things like the Bible, the prophesies of the Old Testament, the gospel, and the words that the Holy Spirit will bring to your mind and heart. Any means which God uses to convey HIS will to you involves the word of God. In 1 Peter 1:23, it speaks of the “living word of God”. This means that word of God that is “alive” in you, it speaks to you, it strengthens your resolve, it encourages your soul. The living word of God is powerfully active when the Holy Spirit is speaking to you, whispering to your subconscious, or conveying God’s will.
According to 1 Peter 1:23, the living word of God must “abide” in you for you to be born again. When saved by the redeeming grace of Christ, God’s word becomes active in your life. It is “living”. It also “abides” in you. It hangs around. It is always present. In the Bible, the word “abide in God” applies to those who are saved. What abides or stays with the saved? 1 Corinthians 13:13 explains that “faith, hope, and love” abide in the faithful soul. In John 15, Jesus describes an abiding connection with Him as similar to a vine and branches. Jesus is the vine that brings nutrients to the soul. We are the branches of that vine. We are constantly connected to Jesus so that we can receive His love, feel His presence, and be directed in His will. Scriptures also mention that the Holy Spirit, the commandments, and God’s love abide or “hang around” in the life of those who are true to God (John 15:10; 1 John 3:14,24).
In our scripture reading for today, the word “abide” is mentioned three times. 1 John 4:16 confirms that “whoever abides in love abides in God”. It also asserts that when God’s love abides in you, God actually abides in you. God’s Spirit is in your life. God’s presence is in your day. You are connected to God in Christ. By repeating the word “abide”, 1 John 4:16 shows that when you are right with God, God stays with you, redeems your life, and directs your steps. God’s Word infuses every part of your heart, mind, soul, and actions. You are intimately connected with God in Christ.
For a long time, David M. felt he was a Christian. He was raised in church. His parents attended faithfully. They brought David to Sunday School and made sure he prayed daily. At meals, David and his family gave God thanks. When David got married, he made promises not only to his wife but to God. It was all part of the wedding worship service. David felt a closeness to his church and to God.
When David turned forty-four, he found out he had cancer. His wife was devastated. David’s children were frightened to think of losing him. David prayed to God for healing while going through surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. David’s doctors thought everything was going well. David understood that as good news. However, something was bothering David. Something nagged at his soul. Was God telling David that the cancer was coming back? Was God preparing David for his own death? David was unsure.
One Sunday morning just before worship, David’s best friend approached him. In his friend’s hand was a brochure about a weekend prayer retreat sponsored by the church. Initially, David said he was too busy with medical tests, office visits, family responsibilities, and more. As the day went on, David began to feel in his heart that the retreat was something he was supposed to do. David signed up for the weekend retreat, unsure of why he was even going.
As David left for the retreat, he hugged and kissed each member of his family. They all mentioned how they would miss him over the two days he would be gone. His wife’s eyes were reddened by tears as she told him to have fun. Again, David wondered why he even signed up for this thing.
Two weeks later, David approached his pastor. David explained that the retreat had been one of the highlights of his life. David told his pastor that for the first time in his life, he felt a strong connection with God. David’s prayer life deepened. Scriptures seemed to jump out to him. For the first time, David felt intimately bound to God, open to God’s will, and full of the Spirit.
I would say that David experienced the “abiding love of God”. In doing so, he was “abiding in God” and God in him. Like the branches were connected to the vine, David’s soul was not only fed by the Spirit, but it was nurtured by God’s word that was living and abiding in him.
I believe you are born again. However, if God’s love doesn’t abide with you, if God’s word is not living and abiding in your life, if the gospel of Jesus Christ has not transformed your life, you cannot be born again. My prayer for today is for you to examine your relationship with God in Christ. Is Jesus intimately connected to every part of your life? Is the Holy Spirit active every day? Does God’s love abide in your heart? Do your prayers reflect that deep bond with your Savior? You need the “living and abiding word of God”. It will cement not only your connection with Jesus but will prepare you for eternal life in God’s Kingdom.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY (Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi):
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
1 Peter 1:23 mentions that when you are born again, you will feel that change. This verse explains that those who are born again have “the living and abiding word of God”. What does that mean? To understand that, we will have to look at the words “living and abiding”.
The word of God is a phrase that means a lot of things. Taken at face value, it means the words that come from God. This will include things like the Bible, the prophesies of the Old Testament, the gospel, and the words that the Holy Spirit will bring to your mind and heart. Any means which God uses to convey HIS will to you involves the word of God. In 1 Peter 1:23, it speaks of the “living word of God”. This means that word of God that is “alive” in you, it speaks to you, it strengthens your resolve, it encourages your soul. The living word of God is powerfully active when the Holy Spirit is speaking to you, whispering to your subconscious, or conveying God’s will.
According to 1 Peter 1:23, the living word of God must “abide” in you for you to be born again. When saved by the redeeming grace of Christ, God’s word becomes active in your life. It is “living”. It also “abides” in you. It hangs around. It is always present. In the Bible, the word “abide in God” applies to those who are saved. What abides or stays with the saved? 1 Corinthians 13:13 explains that “faith, hope, and love” abide in the faithful soul. In John 15, Jesus describes an abiding connection with Him as similar to a vine and branches. Jesus is the vine that brings nutrients to the soul. We are the branches of that vine. We are constantly connected to Jesus so that we can receive His love, feel His presence, and be directed in His will. Scriptures also mention that the Holy Spirit, the commandments, and God’s love abide or “hang around” in the life of those who are true to God (John 15:10; 1 John 3:14,24).
In our scripture reading for today, the word “abide” is mentioned three times. 1 John 4:16 confirms that “whoever abides in love abides in God”. It also asserts that when God’s love abides in you, God actually abides in you. God’s Spirit is in your life. God’s presence is in your day. You are connected to God in Christ. By repeating the word “abide”, 1 John 4:16 shows that when you are right with God, God stays with you, redeems your life, and directs your steps. God’s Word infuses every part of your heart, mind, soul, and actions. You are intimately connected with God in Christ.
For a long time, David M. felt he was a Christian. He was raised in church. His parents attended faithfully. They brought David to Sunday School and made sure he prayed daily. At meals, David and his family gave God thanks. When David got married, he made promises not only to his wife but to God. It was all part of the wedding worship service. David felt a closeness to his church and to God.
When David turned forty-four, he found out he had cancer. His wife was devastated. David’s children were frightened to think of losing him. David prayed to God for healing while going through surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. David’s doctors thought everything was going well. David understood that as good news. However, something was bothering David. Something nagged at his soul. Was God telling David that the cancer was coming back? Was God preparing David for his own death? David was unsure.
One Sunday morning just before worship, David’s best friend approached him. In his friend’s hand was a brochure about a weekend prayer retreat sponsored by the church. Initially, David said he was too busy with medical tests, office visits, family responsibilities, and more. As the day went on, David began to feel in his heart that the retreat was something he was supposed to do. David signed up for the weekend retreat, unsure of why he was even going.
As David left for the retreat, he hugged and kissed each member of his family. They all mentioned how they would miss him over the two days he would be gone. His wife’s eyes were reddened by tears as she told him to have fun. Again, David wondered why he even signed up for this thing.
Two weeks later, David approached his pastor. David explained that the retreat had been one of the highlights of his life. David told his pastor that for the first time in his life, he felt a strong connection with God. David’s prayer life deepened. Scriptures seemed to jump out to him. For the first time, David felt intimately bound to God, open to God’s will, and full of the Spirit.
I would say that David experienced the “abiding love of God”. In doing so, he was “abiding in God” and God in him. Like the branches were connected to the vine, David’s soul was not only fed by the Spirit, but it was nurtured by God’s word that was living and abiding in him.
I believe you are born again. However, if God’s love doesn’t abide with you, if God’s word is not living and abiding in your life, if the gospel of Jesus Christ has not transformed your life, you cannot be born again. My prayer for today is for you to examine your relationship with God in Christ. Is Jesus intimately connected to every part of your life? Is the Holy Spirit active every day? Does God’s love abide in your heart? Do your prayers reflect that deep bond with your Savior? You need the “living and abiding word of God”. It will cement not only your connection with Jesus but will prepare you for eternal life in God’s Kingdom.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY (Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi):
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.