Continue in His Word

I would like to encourage you with something that was freshly brought to my attention by our guide, the Holy Spirit. The reminder came from Jesus' words in John 8: ...If ye continue in my word, ye are my disciples indeed (John 8:31 - KJV). I specifically used the King James in quoting this verse because of the power of saying that we must 'continue' in His word. With that stated, I must reference the the verse that follows, which is the one most people know: ...Then you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free (John 8:32).

Now, I'll be candid and say that verse 31 is often not quoted with the subsequent verse (which generally gets all the attention and lots of amens if you're speaking to a group). In fact, many times, people can quote 'the truth will make you free', but we don't see any of the responsibility that rests on us to obey the word of God which brings liberation. The very core of what it means to be one of Jesus' disciples is to keep His word, but funny enough, we don't quote this nearly as often as we quote the verse about freedom, even though the qualifier of being a true disciple and walking in freedom is 'continuing' in His word. Much of that stems from our society's desire to have the good fruit without having to plant the seeds and tend the crops. In short, we enjoy receiving benefits without having to put in time and effort. This is why freedom often seems to elude us in certain areas of our lives.

It would be nice to shout freedom and confess it with our friends during church, in our homes, or even in the streets, but what Jesus said would make us true disciples and in turn make us free was not confessing, but continuing. Continuing in what? His word. That is the end all be all for freedom entering into the life of the true disciple. By repentance and confession of Christ we are able to enter the Kingdom, but our continuance in His infallible word is that which will keep us there, and keep us living in freedom. That revelation must be a foundational stone in our life of faith. One that is not only to be acknowledged, but to be built upon continually. It is only then that we will see the true power of His word unleashed in our lives. It is only then that we will know the truth, and that truth which we know will make us free.

Life might be busy, tough, tiring and a host of other adjectives that we could conjure up with enough time and maybe a friend (or spouse like I have) that was an English major. Regardless of this reality, there is a greater reality which is that of God's Kingdom. And with that in mind, true discipleship and freedom are ours if we will be faithful to 'continue' in His word.