Thursday: Abiding in Jesus
Daily Lesson for Thursday 26th of December 2024
Read John 12:32. In what ways does this striking statement describe the authority of Jesus Christ?
As we have seen throughout this quarter’s lessons, the Gospel of John draws us to Jesus, but only if we are willing to know God and to do His will. Throughout John’s Gospel, people who encounter Jesus either accept the light and grow or reject the light and become blind. Nicodemus, the woman at the well, the royal official, the man at the pool of Bethesda, the 5,000 fed loaves and fishes, Jesus’ brothers, the religious leaders, the man born blind, Mary and Martha, Pilate—all encountered Jesus and made choices about the truth and light He brought.
Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com
Theology from below begins with human argumentation to determine and examine the existence and nature of God. The human perspective—flawed, fallen, and prejudiced—takes precedence over the Divine, holy, perfect, and omniscient. Theology from below is guaranteed to lead people astray, as it has done in the past and will do in the future (see Revelation 14:1-12), when human wisdom, seeking to supersede the Divine, will attempt to force false worship upon the world.
Read John 15:1-11. What is the secret of spiritual growth and health?
The secret is to stay connected to Jesus. He is the Word of God, the Bread of Life, the Light of the world, the Door of the sheep, the Good Shepherd, the Resurrection and the Life, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and the True Vine.
The Members of the Godhead and Their Word, the Bible, are like magnets. If not resisted, they will draw us to them. “The voice of God is speaking to us through his word, and there are many voices that we will hear; but Christ has said we should beware of them who will say, Here is Christ or there is Christ. Then how shall we know that they have not the truth, unless we bring everything to the Scriptures?”—Ellen G. White, The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, April 3, 1888. And then, we must surrender our own views to those presented in the Word of God.
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We have a number of cute Christian (Seventh-day Adventist) slogans, Happy Sabbath. God is Good - All the time, Abide in Him, Jesus is the reason for the season, Go with God, and so on. However, a relationship is much more than slogans and we need to live them out if Christianity is to be really meaningful.
This coming Sunday marks our fifty-fifth wedding anniversary. It is not just a marker for an event on a Sunday 55 years ago. It represents 55 years of a living relationship with one another. Those who know my story know that Carmel and I were in separate countries for the 12 months leading up to our wedding. She came back to Australia 8 days before our wedding. Despite writing long love letters to one another, when we were face-to-face again, it felt like we were strangers. We had a lot to learn about one another. Well, something worked and we are still together and are still in love.
One lesson I have experienced in 55 years is that there is still more to learn about one another. Sharing your life with another person is not about getting your own way but about sharing. And that means the good times and bad. It means being able to say sorry and to forgive freely. Married life is not all elevated heartbeats and nice warm cuddles, but must include the tough times, and even the times when you are angry with one another.
Abiding in Jesus is like a marriage. It is a long-term relationship. It is not all mountain top experiences but has deep dark valleys too. There are times when we like to shake our fist at God and yell and scream at him. The relationship with Jesus has to be tough enough to survive that.
My work in computer science involved persistent systems. A persistent system in a computer that can crash, but then be restored so that it is in a consistent state ready to continue. Our relationship with Jesus should be a persistent system. We cannot avoid the crashes, but we can be assured that when we arise out of the mess of a crash, our relationship with Jesus is in a consistent state.
What a lesson to learn from marriage experience. God help me to abide in you all the times no matter the circumstances. Thanks our Elder Maurice
Amen indeed🙏 Wishing you a Happy 55th anniversary in advance and may the good Lord continue to carry you under his wings.
"We need to live them out"? This statement to me focuses too much on our selves, don't you think, Maurice Ashton? I would say "We need to stay focused on Jesus' Words to live out our "Seventh Day Adventist Slogans."
Implicit, Pete! Implicit.😀
I truly wonder and even get concerned if my Christianity is of any meaningful value to anyone whom I come into contact with! I genuinely reflect and at times get scared what difference do I make from anyone who has no belief in God. I genuinely believe that going to church is a chance to be a “better” human being. I should be a “better” father. I should be a “better” husband. I should be a “better” employee. I should be a “better” neighbour. I should be a “better” citizen. The knowledge of God should have a transformative power in the lives of believers. Otherwise, we have lived a lie. Our theology is all in vain. Our theology should give us new understanding and revelation about God who has the power to change the heart and mind of sinners. This is the hope we have when we fix our eyes on Jesus. By beholding Jesus, we get changed (2 Corinthians 3:18).
The Bible reminds us that we (believers) are the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16). As our theology leads us to the true God, the whole world will know we have been with Jesus (Acts 4:13). The lives of Peter and John were completely transformed as they had a new understanding and revelation of their mission. Their priorities had changed. They were intimately abiding in Christ (John 15:7-8). The Samaritan woman (John 4:28-29) found in Jesus a fulfilment of her emptiness. She even forgot her purpose at the well because Jesus’ theology gave her new meaning to life. This is the theology I need; this is the theology the world needs. The living theology, the transformative theology. The Early Church turned the world upside down (Acts 17:6) because they were connected to the source of power (Jesus Christ).
No amount of theology is worth anything if not rooted (abiding) in Jesus. By abiding in Jesus, we shall produce much spiritual fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). The time has come, when all that we know about God should transform us into true worshipers.
“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23-24)
Omwenga, the "secret" to living the abundant Christian life is easier than we often make it. Living a life of regrets never transformed anyone, unless those regrets brought them into a relationship with Jesus. When we believe the scripture (Word of God) as it reads, the creative power of God's Word will accomplish it's purpose in our lives of saving and changing us. The apostles were transformed by an experience with the risen Jesus. All the head knowledge of religion and theology cannot change a person's heart, that is something that only a relationship with the living Jesus can accomplish. We are human beings, not human doings.
Apple trees don't produce fruit because they try hard, and grunt, and groan to do so. No, apple trees produce fruit because they are apple trees and they take in the blessings of God, the sunshine, the rain, the minerals of the soil. When we internalize God's Word as nutrients for the soul then the living, transformative power of the creative Word will accomplish it's purpose of producing fruit in our lives. It's easier than we often make it to be. Why? Because the power of God is providing the power, through a living relationship. A dead theological head full of knowledge, religious experience, changes no one. We need to relationally know
God. He is much more than a theory or theology.
Have you ever known someone that being in their presence makes you want to be like them, to be a better person? Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of that kind of experience. If we abide (stay with, stay connected) with Christ then we will be changed by His Presence in our lives.
I believe that there will be people in heaven who had wrong theology, but had a right heart. Conversely there will be those who will not be there whose "theology" was perfect, but their hearts were unchanged by it. You are correct that no amount of theology can change a person. Only abiding in Christ can.
Thanks Tim, for your sentiments to my thoughts. I believe nobody can "regret" without the prompting of voice from outside self. Regretting is a call to self-reflection. This is a conscience for change. I do share your sentiment that theology is not an end by itself. However, I am not sure what you mean by saying, "there will be people in heaven who had wrong theology". I seem to understand what you mean is that there is no wrong teaching about God. If this is what you intend to say, I am more doubtful about that. How can one have the right heart without the grace of God for instance. Nobody is good by self. There must be a gracious God who is merciful to make sinners right.
Omwenga, just to clarify myself. What I am merely saying is that there will probably be people in heaven who didn't know the truth about the Sabbath, the state of the dead, healthful living, the nature of Christ, the Godhead, etc..
Some theologians suggest that Zechariah 13:6 is pertaining to people in heaven that didn't have an opportunity to know about Christ in this life, but lived a good and godly life, living up to the light of the knowledge of God they had received. Titus 2:11-14 says that the Grace of God has appeared to all. Romans 12:3 says a measure of faith has been given to all.
Indeed, the Holy Spirit works upon our conscious to bring conviction which leads to regret and hopefully repentance and reformation. Regret without repentance and reformation of life is meaningless and only leads to condemnation of self.
Amen.What a way to summarise the lesson.We praise God indeed 🙏
GOD be praised for sparing yours and Carmen’s lives to celebrate 55 blessed years of marriage. Thank you also for the timeless advice you have given and continue to give for a successful marriage on earth not only with our spouses but also with the LORD JESUS.
Have a wonderful anniversary celebration with your family and loved ones. May GOD grant you many more years of joy, peace and love with each other and with JESUS.
thank you so much
Happy anniversary to you Maurice and Carmel.I just celebrated our 13th anniversary on 22nd this month and I must say with God in the family,we smile at every storm.
We pray that we continue to abide in the light of the world,the truth and the way,the true Vine,the good shepherd..
“Abiding in Jesus” means for me to have my life in Jesus through the same Spirit that dwelled in Him — sent to us as our Comforter and Guide. I see this Spirit communicating with us - the same Spirit through which the Father communicates with the Son, and we, through the Son, with the Father.
The Holy Spirit serves as the foundational bridge for all communication between heaven and earth, linking us to divine Truth and Grace. While Jesus was physically lifted up on the cross, this act also symbolizes the drawing of all humanity toward the Father’s Agape - Love. In John 12:31-33, Jesus says:“Now, judgment is upon this world; now the prince of this world will be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.”
If the essence of the Father is personified in Jesus Christ and rooted in the Holy Spirit, then what is ‘lifted up at the cross’ is not solely the physical body of Christ but Their Spirit — the Spirit through which Jesus overcame the separation from God, manifesting itself in division and strife between mankind and all nations.
His act of Agape - Love, ready obedience to do the Father's Will, prepared the way not only to cast out the adversary but also for all to witness the Father’s Mercy and Grace. Jesus embodies the Father’s Love, demonstrating it fully through His life, death, and resurrection. This Truth now goes out to all nations, confronting religious errors and dispelling the confusion propagated by God’s adversaries.
No more uncertainty in whose heart rests the authority to judge the world; by accepting the Son, we embrace the Father’s Love! As we abide in the Son, we become one with His boundless love — Agape. It is is the essence of ‘abiding in Him’, as described in John 15:1-11 - living in harmony with the Son, nourished by His Spirit, and bearing the fruit of His Agape - Love.