Abide in Him
“And by this we know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” 1 John 2:3-6
Abide [v.]: to remain, continue, stay; to accept without opposition or question.
If we say we abide in God; we remain in Him, we accept Him and all He is and does without question, then we should walk in the same way in which He walked. Our actions should look like God’s actions and words. When we abide in God, when our ways match what the Bible says our ways as Christians should look like, we know God’s love is in our hearts. When we understand His ways, His words, His mercy, His grace, His forgiveness, His freedom, and His love, the more our ways, our words, our love matches His.
We aren’t perfect, we aren’t going to know God perfectly on earth, we aren’t going to perfectly obey Him on earth. But the more we get to know God, through prayer, reading the Bible, resting in His presence, the more we are going to know Him. The more we are going to want to obey His commands. The more we are going to ABIDE in Him. The more our ways are going to look like His ways. The more we are going to understand His love, and His ways. It comes full circle.
What does abiding look like in your life?