Abide in Me

I was kneeling in the presence of God this afternoon, troubled and disturbed. It appeared to me that I was being assailed from different sides with a strong tempest, fierce winds and stormy seas. It was at this time when my Saviour, the Lord Jesus, impressed this word upon my heart—“Abide in Me.” I was immediately reminded of a foetus in a mother’s womb, a picture of living within. Dwelling within, the foetus draws all its needs from the mother; lacking nothing. Abiding within, the little one is secure and at rest. It is in the safest place it can be.

I am no scholar in Greek but when I looked up the passage in John 15 where our Lord spoke of Him being the vine and commanded us to abide in Him—though to me it sounded more like an appeal from the heart—I noticed that one of the meanings of the Greek word “men'-o” that our living Vine repeatedly uses for the English word abide is “to remain as one, not to become another or different”. It is just like the foetus in the mother’s womb, joined and connected and to whom flows all good things. The picture of the vine that Jesus uses is even more appropriate for the branch, unlike the foetus that has a term, needs to draw its life from the vine continuously for its entire life-span; for apart from the vine it can do nothing (Jn. 15:5). It would only wither away and dry up (Jn. 15:6).

My soul hearkens to the appeal of my Saviour for I am convinced that in Him is everything I need. In all my troubles there is no wiser one than the God of perfect wisdom to guide me—for is He not the eternal One who knows all things? Is He not the One who can never make a mistake? In the midst of disturbance, His mighty right hand directs my path, ordaining my steps with sure footedness into the way that He has known from the beginning. In the tempest, I can rest with indescribable peace for under the shadow of the Almighty I am safe.

The proof of true “abiding” is in the fruit. We know that we would be deceiving ourselves if we say that we abide in Him while what flows from us is different from the life of the true Vine. True abiding in Jesus must first and foremost desire passionately to honour God—where all that matters is God’s will alone (Jn. 4:34; Psa. 40:6-8). True abiding must of necessity bring forth the fruit of righteousness—for has not the blood of the Lamb that was slain for our sake cleansed us from all unrighteousness? True abiding must bring implicit trust in God—a trust that clings to the sovereign, all-powerful, all-wise, faithful, loving and caring God (if we reflect on each of these attributes, we will find every one of them loaded with meaning). Does not the word say that he who comes to God must believe that He is (Heb. 11: 6)? The outcome of such faith will show in the form of peace—a peace that rests in God who never fails.

One thing about abiding in the living Vine is that because He is living, everything about us will constantly change. There is never a place of ‘settling’ down. Before we make our surroundings our comfort zone, He ‘disturbs’ the soil and we appear shaken. Abiding also results in a living relationship with our Maker. True abiding will always result in a vibrant bond with God. It is for this reason that our witness of Jesus Christ is fresh and our testimony of His greatness new each time. 

Now we all know that anyone who cares for plants must include pruning as part of the process of care. All ‘pruning’ is painful, yet for those who submit, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness (Heb. 12:11). I am convinced that our Father, the vinedresser (Jn. 15:1) with overwhelming love and wisdom towards us uses the cares and troubles of this life to produce in us an eternal weight of glory, far beyond all comparison (2Cor. 4:17). The fruit that comes from His pruning (Jn. 15: 2) must and will remain (Jn. 15:16) as treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal (Mt. 6:20). The fruit that we bear glorifies the Father and proves without a shadow of doubt that we are truly disciples of Jesus Christ.

Let us therefore submit to our Maker with an attitude of total surrender. May such a surrendered heart cry: “There is nowhere else I would rather be than grafted securely in the true Vine from whom flows life and power and wisdom and grace. I remain ‘as one with Thee’ dear Lord because I desire that my source of all that I need is from no one else but Thee—for from Thee and through Thee are all things. I rest securely in Thee Oh God who sits enthroned in majesty over all things; for Thou eternal God art my dwelling place and underneath are Thine everlasting arms. May Thou in Thine abundant care and boundless love do what Thou sees fit for I believe that Thy ways are perfect and just; bearing for me a blessing on earth and a reward in heaven. And in me dear Father, be glorified.”