Abiding

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.   John 15:4-5

As Holy Week was coming to an end Jesus again takes the opportunity to teach the disciples. There is a long discourse of what they need to do; take a few minutes to read and meditate on John chapter 15.

I believe He is speaking to His disciples as well as Christians today. Here are some highlights:

Verse 1:

Jesus is the vine and His Father is the husbandman. God takes care of us.

Verse 4:

Abide in Jesus and He will abide in you. Abide in the Greek means to stay (in a given place), dwell, endure, be present, remain.

We need to stay right next to Jesus. When we abide in Him we will receive all the strength we need to get through each and every day.

Verse 5:

Jesus is the vine we are the branches. To bear fruit we must abide in Him. Without Him we are nothing. Without Him is the same thing as separated from Him. Albert Barnes says, “As the branches, if separated from the parent stock, could produce no fruit, but would immediately wither and die, so Christians, if separate from Christ, could do nothing.”

Verse 6:

When we do not abide in Him, we will wither away (or dry up). We have a choice, accept or reject Him.

Verse 8:

Jesus wants the disciples and us to bear much fruit. We need to apply the “fruit of the spirit” to our lives to show forth and share with others.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23  Meekness, temperance: … Galatians 5:22-23

Verse 9:

As God loves Jesus, Jesus loves us, continue in His love. Show His love to others in word, action and deed.

Verse 10:

When you keep His commandments you will abide in His love. Abide means to stay in a given place. We will be close to Him. Jesus is trying to stress that the disciples need to abide. Abide with Him.

Verse 12:

Love one another.

Verse 13:

No greater love than when a man lays down His life for His friends. Jesus loves us so much he was willing to die for us.

Verse 14:

We are His friends if we do what He says.

Verse 17:

Love one another.

Verse 26:

Jesus will send a Comforter which is the Holy Spirit.

This was one of the last times the disciples were with Jesus before He was killed. He was preparing them for the time after He was physically gone.

We need to abide in Him. When we pull away from the vine all strength is zapped out of us. We cannot get nourishment unless we are attached to the vine.

Abide in Him today.

Have a blessed day,
Donna

Lessons from Esther: Standing firm

After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him. 2 And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. 3 Then the king's servants, which were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's commandment? 4 Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai's matters would stand: for he had told them that he was a Jew. Esther 3:1-4

The tide is changing, sometimes the tide turns slowly and takes many hours, however if you travel to the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia the tide quickly changes. Such is the “tide” of this chapter.

Mordecai was sitting at the gate and hears the news. Haman is promoted and he “is above all the others”. As soon as Haman appears all the servants bow and give him reverence. One of the meanings of reverence is “to worship.”

Mordecai “stood out” among the others because he would not bow or give reverence to Haman. Everyone was watching this display of noncompliance and questioned Mordecai. “Why are you not bowing down to show “respect” to Haman?” After much prodding Mordecai told the others he was Jewish. It appears that this is all he had to say. People around him obviously knew that Jews do not bow down and worship anyone but God.

The servants went to Haman to tell him what they had discovered. They were wondering if this would matter to Haman. Join me the next time to discover Haman’s reaction.

Lessons learned:

He was willing to stand alone.

Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. 

I Corinthians 16:13

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Ephesians 6:11

Mordecai did not follow the crowd.

Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment: Exodus 23:2

Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.  Romans 14:9

Mordecai remembered God’s word.

I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. 

Psalm 119:16

He knew Who to obey

… We ought to obey God rather than men. Acts 5:29

Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? Romans 6:16

He knew Who to worship

Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. Psalm 29:2

For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: Exodus 34:14

O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. Psalm 95:6

There may be a time when we are called to “stand alone” for Jesus. Will we be strong and follow Jesus or hide in the shadows? Christ will give us the ability to do right, but we need to start now!

Do others know what you believe by how you live?

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. 

I Peter 2:12

Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf. I Peter 4:16

Have a blessed day,
Donna

Happy 4th of July

  I am thankful that I live in the United States. I praise God for allowing me to be born here. Our country is not perfect, but last I checked no country is perfect. The United States became independent from England in 1776 with the writing of The Declaration of Independence.


Take a moment to read a few quotes about liberty and freedom.


Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed - else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die.  ~Dwight D. Eisenhower

In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved.  ~Franklin D. Roosevelt

We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls.  ~Robert J. McCracken

True liberty consists in the privilege of enjoying our own rights, not in the destruction of the rights of others. ~ George Pinckard

It is impossible to enslave, mentally or socially, a Bible-reading people. The principles of the Bible are the ground work of human freedom. ~ Horace Greeley

 Those who desire to give up freedom in order to gain security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one. ~ Benjamin Franklin

Have a wonderful 4^th.   True liberty comes from knowing Jesus as your Savior.

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1 

Have a blessed day,
Donna