A Disciple Abides in the Word – Abide in the Vine

“To abide,” former procrastinators, means “to remain stable or fixed in a state.” (Merriam Webster)  “To live or stay somewhere.”  (Cambridge)  Jesus uses it to describe another characteristic of his disciples.

“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  John 8:31-32

There’s a definition of abide that means “to tolerate or put up with.”  Do we act like that’s the definition we use regarding God’s Word?  Do we politely sit while the pastor preaches but pay no attention?  Do we help our kids learn Bible verses because Bible club requires it?  Do we disregard scripture in decision-making and instead look to self-help ways to decide what to do?  These are examples of putting up with God’s Word when we feel we have to be nice about it – but we actually do not voluntarily seek it or do what it says.

How that must grieve the heart of our Lord!  He has given us the most amazing written communication ever – His holy Word, the Bible.  What a privilege to even possess our own copies of it.  People elsewhere in the world crave the Word more than life.  They risk all to hear scripture spoken or to hold a page of the Bible in their language. They value God’s precious Word above everything else.

Do we pick up our personal Bibles on the way to church and afterwards put them “in their  place” until next Sunday?

The rightful place is in our hearts, our minds, on our tongues and in our actions.  To “dwell, to remain in” is the meaning of abide here.  We abide in the Word.  The Word abides in us. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.  (John 1:14) Jesus is the Word.

“The hand” illustration used by the Navigators ministry is very helpful for how to take in the scriptures.  Picture your hand and the strength of each finger named:

Hear – your pinkie

Read – ring finger

Study – third finger

Memorize – index finger

Meditate – thumb

We should take advantage of every method of intake.  The strength and ability to grasp the Word increases as we move from pinkie to thumb.  Only hearing a sermon gives us a weak hold.  Memorizing and meditation do the most to cement scripture truth within us. Use them all and we increase our grip significantly.  

But we must ACT on what we learn in our heads.  Then it becomes real to us, applied in our personal lives.  We grasp the reality of God’s truth and God’s truth grips us.

To abide in the Word is to make our decisions according to what His Word says, to fashion our lives and values according to His.  We trust Him that what He says is correct even if we’re inclined to think otherwise.  We may not see yet what He knows to be true.  Trust and obey. We will be stable.

What do you do to dwell in His Word?