15.7 SIT – Abiding in Christ
Today, we will explore the concept of “abiding in Christ” vs. “performance through self-ability”.
A lot of Christianity is powered by self-effort – be it going to Church, keeping good attendance, being active in activities, doing witnessing, keeping moral standards, etc. When someone becomes a Christian, they usually attend a follow up class where they are taught what are expected of them as Christians. Thereafter, it is a journey to keep more and more expectations – or to perform the Christian life. The Pharisees kept all the religious requirements diligently but yet did not know Christ.
That is not true Christianity. So what is true Christianity? Christianity is summarized as follows – “abiding in Christ & the indwelling of Christ”. Jesus used the analogy of the vine and branches. Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. When we abide in Him and He indwells us, then we are transformed from the inside to bear fruit, which becomes evident on the outside. The fruits result in powerful actions that impact people.
John 15:5
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
When Christians perform without abiding in Christ, it is like walking without first sitting. Jesus said that without Him we can do nothing of value. But when Christians abide in Christ, they are sitting – which then results in walking right. Just as we are to sit before we can walk, likewise we are to abide in Christ and the result is bearing much fruit.
Christianity without Christ is an empty self-powered religion that does not bear fruit. It is burdensome and results in frustration. Perhaps this explains why there is so little joy in many traditional churches.
We are to abide in Christ – we are to believe who we are in Christ according to what He has accomplished on the cross. When we see ourselves in Christ, the branch is connected to the vine, and the life of the vine flow to the branches (Christ’s life is manifested in us). We are to sit, and when we have done so, we will know how to walk.
Note: next Grace Fellowship is on Thursday 29th Jan 09, 7:45pm Singapore. Please contact Jeffrey Teo at 81119307 if you would like to join us for a wonderful time of fellowship in the Word and Spirit.
A lot of Christianity is powered by self-effort – be it going to Church, keeping good attendance, being active in activities, doing witnessing, keeping moral standards, etc. When someone becomes a Christian, they usually attend a follow up class where they are taught what are expected of them as Christians. Thereafter, it is a journey to keep more and more expectations – or to perform the Christian life. The Pharisees kept all the religious requirements diligently but yet did not know Christ.
That is not true Christianity. So what is true Christianity? Christianity is summarized as follows – “abiding in Christ & the indwelling of Christ”. Jesus used the analogy of the vine and branches. Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. When we abide in Him and He indwells us, then we are transformed from the inside to bear fruit, which becomes evident on the outside. The fruits result in powerful actions that impact people.
John 15:5
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
When Christians perform without abiding in Christ, it is like walking without first sitting. Jesus said that without Him we can do nothing of value. But when Christians abide in Christ, they are sitting – which then results in walking right. Just as we are to sit before we can walk, likewise we are to abide in Christ and the result is bearing much fruit.
Christianity without Christ is an empty self-powered religion that does not bear fruit. It is burdensome and results in frustration. Perhaps this explains why there is so little joy in many traditional churches.
We are to abide in Christ – we are to believe who we are in Christ according to what He has accomplished on the cross. When we see ourselves in Christ, the branch is connected to the vine, and the life of the vine flow to the branches (Christ’s life is manifested in us). We are to sit, and when we have done so, we will know how to walk.
Note: next Grace Fellowship is on Thursday 29th Jan 09, 7:45pm Singapore. Please contact Jeffrey Teo at 81119307 if you would like to join us for a wonderful time of fellowship in the Word and Spirit.
posted by Joshua Lye @ 9:01 PM
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