What does it mean to "abide"?

Sherwood Oaks Christian Church Podcast

The word Abide means to remain or to live. In the Bible, the word abide is used to describe a deep and unwavering commitment to God and His word.
Hi, I’m Maggie Mobley from Sherwood Oaks Christian Church.

In John 15 Jesus uses a beautiful metaphor of a vine and branches to talk to us about our relationship with him. He says “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

Then verse 5 in the Message paraphrase translation says “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relationship intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing.”

Jesus is the vine, God is the gardener who cares for the branches, and we are the branches. So we use this metaphor to see how we should be connected to Jesus. We should be asking ourselves if we are cultivating a deep and unwavering commitment to God and His word.

It can be hard to live a life abiding in God – life is hard, life moves fast, and things can easily get in the way of making God a priority.
But if you take the time to experience God in the way that He longs to know us, then you will experience the true, natural, and organic taste of God’s presence. Don’t allow life to get in the way of taking time and effort to grow your roots deep in connection with God so that you can truly experience all that He has for you. Abide with Him.

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