Oh, friend, here’s the secret to everything having to do with the Christian life. Here’s the power! Here’s the way! It’s to abide (live, dwell, remain) in Christ!
Now, let’s look at how to remain in Christ:
“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” John 15:7 (NIV)
Question 7. According to John 15:7, how do we remain in Christ?
When Jesus said, "...my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish" He has defined what it means to remain in Him. We live in Him as His words live in us, and as His words live in us, we pray them back to Him, and He makes us fruitful.
We're talking about being consistent in the Word of God, studying it, looking for the gospel in it, and believing what we read. Then, as we talked about in an earlier lesson, we pray those words back to God. Since we are praying His Word, God answers and makes us fruitful.
If we are in the Word of God, we are learning to believe it, embrace it, and replace the world's words, systems, methods, and labels with God's words. Remaining in Christ shows us the cross, fills our hearts with love, and sets us free, which is something the world cannot experience.
In closing, I will share with you something that happened in my study of God's Word today. I was reading in Exodus and came across this passage:
“Fasten a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban; it is to be on the front of the turban. 38 It will be on Aaron's forehead, and he will bear the guilt involved in the sacred gifts the Israelites consecrate, whatever their gifts may be. It will be on Aaron's forehead continually so that they will be acceptable to the Lord.” Exodus 28:37-38 (NIV)