An Approach to Abiding in Christ
I preached a sermon at Friendship United Methodist Church on abiding, obedience, and abundance. In it I tried to show how becoming a fruit bearing Christian flows from a place of abiding, but I did not explain to them how they could begin to abide in Christ.
Sometimes preachers take for granted that people know how to do things the Bible commands us to do, but the truth is we live in a largely secular culture. Ours is a culture in which people do not know how to be religious. It is unlike the culture of the Bible in which religion was the order of the day for many people. So the writers of the Bible could write with a prevailing assumption that people knew how to put into practice the things that they were teaching without going into the details; if not, they knew that people could learn by watching them or someone else.
Since pastoral ministry now has the most visibility on Sunday morning it is hard for people to learn by watching their pastors life. Therefore it is necessary to help people begin by providing helpful steps towards the life that God has for them. Since I didn't do so in my sermon I'd like to do so here. This is a modest approach to abiding in Christ; there are several means of doing so, but if this helps some begin, to God be the glory!
1. Believe in the omnipresence of God.
In order to abide, dwell, live ones life in the enfolding and in-filling presence of the Trinity, one must first come to believe that God is everywhere, and can be known and interacted with.
One comes to believe something by regularly interacting with the object being considered (by drawing close to it). So to come to believe in the omnipresence of God one should read passages in the Bible that speak of God's omnipresence.
Here are some that could serve as a starting point: Genesis 16; Joshua 1:1-9; Psalm 139; John 14:15-17; Hebrews 13:5-6.
Read these and others, and consider what life would be like if this was true.
2. Plan your days so that God is an active part of it.
Dallas Willard once told John Ortberg, "You must arrange your days so that you are experiencing deep contentment, joy and confidence in your everyday life with God" (italics added). If we do not intentionally plan to be with God, we will be intentionally planning to exclude God from our days.
This needn't be an endless Bible study (although this can be beneficial), but one can begin by simply creating a plan for remembering God through out the day. See, for instance, the examples of how to do this in Scripture: Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Daniel 10, especially verse 10; Luke 4:16.I think a necessary part of each plan must include a morning renunciation, or giving up control of ones life (Luke 14:33; Romans 12:1-2). As CS Lewis said:
The real problem of the Christian life comes where people do not usually look for it. It comes the very moment you wake up each morning. All your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in. And so on, all day.
This does not need to happen with an elongated face, as if surrendering to God is drudgery—we really need to stop thinking holiness is misery—but one could just wake up and say, "Good morning, God. You're in charge today. Let's go!"
Along with planning your day, one should include intentional listening throughout the day. When people are with one another, they must listen in order to be truly together.
3. Carry out your plan.
In the brilliant words of William Wordsworth (what a name!), "To begin, begin." Execute the plan, and use any means available to help remind you to live in the Presence until it becomes a habit. I have often used the calendar on my phone to remind me of my plan.
It is also important to remember that this is training, not trying. You will fail; when you do, learn, adjust, and keep training.Another thing I have found helpful is to err on the side of obeying what I sense God is telling me to do as I live in the Presence. Obviously the sensed word must be in line with something God would do—thus the importance of being familiar with God's ways in the Bible. This has helped me learn how to discern God's voice from all the other voices, including my own. But if we always wait for certainty we will never grown in our ability to discern his voice or live by faith. Not everything requires a Gideon's fleece type of response. Just do what you think God is asking you to do because you know it is the kind of thing God would want.
4. Adjust your plan.
At first this may seem like work because we are unaccustomed to life this way. We may begin by doing things because we've seen or heard that other great friends of Jesus did them. This is good, but if putting on their practice makes you feel like you're wearing a suit that's too large, cut it down to size. Adjust the practice, in conversation with God, until you find one that helps you abide throughout the day.
5. Remember that abiding takes place in the context of love.
God does not want you to act like he is your boss. Yes, he is the all powerful creator of the universe, and is to be feared, respected, and obeyed, but he desires for us to know him as father. This is the most important step to remember; it will keep us from thinking that the key to our abiding is our practice. It is not, the key to abiding is knowing that the love of Christ has drawn us into this relationship with him.
The best parental or friendly human relationships cannot easily be damaged based off of a fault. If that is true of the earthly variety, how much more would it be true of those relationships that originate in the divine?
These recommendations are offered in humility, if another approach works abandon these with joy. The goal, after all, is not about an ironclad method, but about growing into a deeper union with Christ. This will happen increasingly as one learns how to abide in Christ.
I recently heard something pastor Tony Evans said about abiding in Christ. He likened it to brewing tea. He says,
There are 2 ways to brew tea: dipping the tea bag in and out of the water or letting the tea bag sit undusturbed in the water. Letting the tea bag sit in the water is "abiding"—keeping it in constant contact with the water rather than moving it in and out. People who prefer the "dipping" method say the "sitting/abiding" method makes the tea too strong!
While some may not prefer their tea too strong, I think we can say with certainty that God prefers his children as steeped in Christ as possible! Therefore, abide!
Lastly, I am always helped by reading the stories of people who learned the secret of abiding. When I see the manner of life they had, it encourages me to give all the more effort in growing my relationship with God. Some of the people who have done this for me are found here.
Peace and Goodness.