The Overwhelming Importance of Believers Abiding in Christ, while He Abides in Them!

18 May 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

John 15:7.       ‘If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto (for) you.’

Sunday morning, Victoria Day long weekend, celebrations in the air, though with the strong winds that are blowing again like yesterday, those celebrations may have to be mainly indoors.  But first, fellowship with the Father and each other! Yes friends, that’s always the most important part of a Sunday, for without that we would not be invigorated and inspired to go out and do another good week’s work in Jesus’ name! And for that wonderful sense of confidence and faith rebuilding, we give Him much thanks and praise, of which He’s so worthy! And all God’s children said a loud and grateful, ’Thank You Jesus!’ 

Today we’ll open our fellowship session with a wonderful old hymn ‘Abide With Me,’ written by Henry Francis Lyte (1793-1847) which captures that faith and trust we have in Almighty God. It appears that young Lyte was adopted from an orphanage at nine years old by an Irish Minister, Dr. Robert Borrows, who, although he already had five children put Lyte through school up to Trinity College in Dublin, where he won prizes and scholarships for poetry. 

After graduating in 1814, he became an ordained Anglican Minister. Then it seems he threw himself into his work with great fervour, and with his wife Anna, spent his days caring for the sick and needy, which made him ill, he contracted tuberculosis and had to journey to France every winter to regain his health. But apparently in early September of 1847, he gave his farewell sermon which included the lyrics to ‘Abide With Me,’ and died shortly thereafter from his illness. So, let’s offer up our sweet sacrifices of praise in a soulful rendition of this marvellous hymn, one that’s basically a prayer for God to stay with the speaker throughout life and in death. 

Singing: ‘Abide with me; fast falls the eventide; the darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, O abide with me. Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day; earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away; change and decay in all around I see; O thou who changest not, abide with me. I need thy presence every passing hour. What but thy grace can foil the tempter’s power? Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be? Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me. 

I fear no foe, with thee at hand to bless; ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness. Where is death’s sting? Where grave thy victory? I triumph still if thou abide in me. Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes; shine through the gloom and point me to the skies. Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee; in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.’ 

Oh my people, what marvellous words and sentiments that catch the very essence of our God! What can be wiser than asking God to stay with you as the darkness falls, for He is the Great I Am; the Omnipotent One, the Lord and Sovereign of the Universe, and no one else can protect you better than Him! And what about these words? ‘When other helpers fail and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, O abide with me.’ Our God is indeed the Help of the helpless and the God of all comfort,’ as Bruh Paul writes to the church at Corinth. 

‘Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble (tribulation), by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.’ (2 Cor. 1:3-4) What a great scripture that is my brethren, and every time I read it, the very idea of our heavenly Father comforting us so that we can comfort others, touches something in me, raises my appreciation of our awesome God. 

Then, while the joys of the world grow dim, its glories pass away through changes and decay, whom do we call on but ‘Thou who changest not.’ And the prophet Malachi tells it like it is: ‘For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.’ (Mal. 3:6) And this commentary explains that verse thus: ‘It emphasizes God’s unchanging nature and His unwavering character. This immutability serves as a source of comfort and assurance, highlighting that God’s promises and character remain constant, providing a foundation for faith.’ 

James, Jesus’ brother also informs us that, ‘Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness (variation), neither shadow of turning.’ (James 1:17) There again we see the unchanging and very stable nature of our God, upon whom we can cast our complete trust.  And do we ever need His presence every hour, for it’s only His grace can help us to thwart Satan’s power, and we clearly see that when Bruh Paul asks for the thorn in his flesh to be removed. The Lord simply informs him: ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.’ (2 Cor. 12:9a) 

As one commentary says: ‘This implies that when we are facing challenges or weaknesses, God’s grace is available to provide us with what we need to overcome them, even if the weakness remains.’ Glory be to the Most High God Jehovah! For whom else can guide and keep us like thee eh? As Bruh David says of the Lord in Psalm 32: ‘I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.’ (Ps. 32:8) 

And what confidence and trust these marvellous words and sentiments bring: ‘I fear no foe, with thee at hand to bless; ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness. Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory? I triumph still, if thou abide with me.’ Now that’s for sure my people! We will triumph because Christ has triumphed over, hell, death and the grave. As Bruh Paul writes to the Corinthians: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave (hades), where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (1 Cor. 15:54b-57) 

Now aren’t those all great reasons for wanting the Lord to abide in us? Of course! But there’s also another side to the coin, as Jesus puts it: ‘If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto (for) you.’ (John 15:7) And the best way to do that is as Bruh Paul advises. ‘Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, for asmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain (futile) in the Lord.’ (1 Cor. 15:58) 

And we could not get any better advice than that, so please, this Victoria Day Sunday, let’s take it and run our race of faith with it nuh! Much LOVE!

…only as we abide in Christ…and He in us…can we ever defeat the evils of this world…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 August 2021 Luke 24:29.

15 Aug 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Luke 24:29.     But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.

And then, once again, it is Sunday; the day we gather to worship our wonderful God, be it in physical or technological togetherness, the important thing being that we are in corporate worship in one form or another on the Lord’s Day. Now, the Lord is anxiously awaiting His praise and thanksgiving, so please let’s not tarry and open with a wonderful hymn written by the Anglican Scottish priest Henry Francis Lyte (1793-1847) some weeks before he died from tuberculosis. 

Apparently in 1818, ‘he underwent a great spiritual change, which shaped and influenced the whole of his after life, the immediate cause being the illness and death of a brother clergyman. Lyte says of him:- “He died happy under the belief that though he had deeply erred, there was One whose death and sufferings would atone for his delinquencies, and be accepted for all that he had incurred”; and concerning himself he adds:- “I was greatly affected by the whole matter, and brought to look at life and its issue with a different eye than before; and I began to study my Bible, and preach in another manner than I had previously done”.’ 

It seems the dying priest ‘convinced Lyte that both had earlier been mistaken in not having taken the Epistles of St. Paul “in their plain and literal sense.” So, he began to preach ‘following the example of four or five local clergymen whom he had previously laughed at and considered “enthusiastic rhapsodists.’ Ah mih people, life certainly takes us through changes we never expect! And the accumulation of all that led to the writing of the marvellous hymn ‘Abide with Me.’ So let’s sing these powerful, encouraging and uplifting words in all sincerity and truth, in good soulful gospel fashion. (smile) 

‘Abide with me; fast falls the eventide; The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide; When other helpers fail and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me. Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day; Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away; Change and decay in all around I see— O Thou who changest not, abide with me. I need Thy presence every passing hour; What but Thy grace can foil the tempter’s pow’r? 

Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be? Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me. I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless; Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness; Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory? I triumph still, if Thou abide with me. Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes; Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies; Heav’n’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee; In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.’ 

Ah friends, if you have the thoughts expressed in that hymn, filling your hearts and souls, then you can’t go wrong in this life! The author just captures all that Jesus is: He is the light in the darkness; the helper who never leaves, when others do; the help of the helpless; the One that changes not; only through His grace can we foil Satan’s attacks; the guide and fortress of His people. And don’t forget that with faith in Him we fear no foe, troubles don’t bother us, and tears have no bitterness. Therefore the grave and death hold no power over us, for Christ has won the victory! And once He abides in us, and we in Him, life nor death can ever separate us! 

Wow my faithful brethren! The hymn is just a chronicle of the benefits we enjoy when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour! So, who, knowing all that, would still refuse to enthusiastically answer His knock on the door of their hearts eh? Unfortunately, a lot of people foolishly do it. But we are not giving up on them, we will continue to preach His word and live the kind of life that He died for us to have; be good examples of His mercy and compassion. 

And isn’t it interesting to find that the verse of scripture which most likely influenced the title of the hymn is not one where Jesus is inviting someone to abide in or with Him, but rather the two travellers along the road to Emmaus inviting Jesus, not knowing who He was, to abide with them at the end of a day’s journey. The Good Book tells us that along the way: ‘And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he (Jesus) expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.’ (Luke 24:27) And the scholars explain that verse: ‘24:27. The entire Old Testament is indispensable for a grounded grasp of the identity and significance of Jesus.’ 

But getting back to the Good Book: ‘And they drew nigh (near) unto the village, whither they went: and he (Jesus) made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.’ (Luke 24:28-29) It’s interesting to wonder if Jesus would have kept on walking in the darkness of the unsafe Palestine road, if the two disciples had not insisted He tarried with them. 

Although it would not have really mattered, for as Bruh David declares in Psalm 139 – The everlasting presence and power of God. ‘Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee (is not dark to thee); but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.’ (Ps. 139:12) Yes friends, as far as God is concerned, everything is light, there is no darkness whatsoever, so walking in what we consider darkness would have been no problem to Jesus. 

And I want to end by just highlighting two other instances in the Good Book of insistence on tarrying, or abiding. The first is right at the beginning, where two angels visit Lot in Sodom, and ‘with his face bowed to the ground, he said, Behold, now my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night (spend the night) … And they said, Nay, but we will abide in the street (open plaza) all night. And he pressed upon them greatly (urged them); and they turned in unto him, and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.’ (Gen. 19:1-3). 

I guess that instance and Abraham’s in Gen. 18:1-3, caused the author of Hebrews to pen this line: ‘Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.’ (Heb. 12:2) Yes my brethren, we must always be courteous to strangers, for we know not what importance they might eventually have in our lives. 

And the second instance of insistent tarrying is found in Acts after the woman Lydia is baptized by Bruh Paul. The Good Book tells it thus: ‘And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought (begged) us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.’ (Acts 16:15) 

We can then end with these words of Jesus on the subject of abiding. ‘If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto (for) you’ (John 15:7) That means, if my teaching abides in you, and controls your thoughts and movements, guides and inspires you, then your prayers will surely be answered. That goes for us in these modern times also my brethren. Much LOVE!

…abiding is extremely important…especially where Jesus is concerned…                                                                                                                    

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