To Abide in Christ

The practices I am following to develop my devotion.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

The script-writers and narrators of Abide, the Christian guided meditation app I have been using to aid my sleep, frequently encourage their listeners to “abide in Christ.” That was a concept I wasn’t conversant in, so this morning I interrogated ChatGPT about it. Here is the resulting exchange:

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What does it mean to abide in Christ?

To abide in Christ is a fundamental concept in Christian theology and spirituality, often drawn from passages in the Bible, particularly in the New Testament. While interpretations may vary among Christian denominations, the core idea is to have a deep, intimate, and ongoing relationship with Jesus Christ. Abiding in Christ involves the following aspects:

1. Faith and Trust: It starts with faith in Jesus as the Son of God and Savior. Believers are encouraged to trust in His promises and rely on Him for salvation and guidance.

2. Obedience: Abiding in Christ means following His teachings and obeying His commandments as laid out in the Bible. This includes living a life of love, humility, and righteousness.

3. Prayer: Regular and earnest prayer is a way to abide in Christ. It's seen as a means of communication and communion with God through Jesus. Praying for guidance, strength, and a deeper connection with Christ is essential.

4. Reading and Meditating on Scripture: Studying the Bible is a way to understand the character and teachings of Jesus. Meditating on Scripture helps believers internalize His principles and apply them in their lives.

5. Dependency: Abiding in Christ involves recognizing one's dependence on Him for spiritual nourishment, wisdom, and strength. Just as a branch depends on the vine for life and fruitfulness, believers rely on Jesus for their spiritual vitality.

6. Fruitfulness: Jesus used the metaphor of a vine and branches in John 15 to emphasize the importance of bearing fruit as a sign of abiding in Him. Fruitfulness can be seen in the form of good deeds, love, and a transformed character.

7. Community: Abiding in Christ isn't just an individual pursuit; it also involves being part of the Christian community, the Church. Sharing in worship, fellowship, and serving together helps believers grow in their relationship with Christ.

8. Grace and Forgiveness: Recognizing the need for God's grace and forgiveness is crucial. Abiding in Christ means understanding that, despite imperfections and sin, His grace is sufficient for salvation and transformation.

9. Perseverance: Abiding in Christ is a lifelong journey. It requires endurance through trials and difficulties, trusting that Christ is with you every step of the way.

Ultimately, abiding in Christ is about living in a state of spiritual union with Him, where He becomes the central focus of one's life, and His presence and teachings guide and shape every aspect of one's existence. It is a deep and ongoing relationship built on faith, love, and commitment.

What is the definition of "abide" applicable here?

In the context of "abiding in Christ" within Christian theology and spirituality, the word "abide" means to remain, dwell, or stay connected to Christ in a continuous and close relationship. It implies a state of enduring faith, trust, and intimacy with Jesus Christ, where individuals maintain a steadfast and ongoing connection with Him in their thoughts, actions, and beliefs. It's not just a fleeting or occasional connection but a deep and lasting commitment to live in accordance with His teachings and principles

Is "abide by" also applicable here?

Yes, the phrase "abide by" can also be applicable in the context of abiding in Christ within Christian theology and spirituality. To "abide by" means to adhere to or follow a set of principles, rules, or commands. In the context of abiding in Christ, it signifies the act of faithfully following and obeying the teachings, commandments, and moral guidelines laid out by Jesus as described in the Bible. This includes living a life in accordance with His values, showing love, compassion, and righteousness in one's actions and decisions as a demonstration of one's commitment to Christ

Where did the phrase originate?

The phrase "abide in Christ" or similar expressions related to abiding in a spiritual sense find their origins in the Bible, particularly in the teachings of Jesus and the writings of the apostles. The concept of abiding in Christ is deeply rooted in Christian theology and has been a central theme in Christian spirituality for centuries.

One of the key passages that emphasizes abiding in Christ is found in the New Testament, in the book of John, chapter 15, where Jesus uses the metaphor of the vine and branches to illustrate the importance of remaining in Him. Here's an excerpt from John 15:4-5 (NIV):

"Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."

This passage and others in the New Testament serve as the foundation for the concept of abiding in Christ, emphasizing the idea of a close and continuous relationship with Jesus as essential for spiritual growth and fruitfulness.

The specific phrase "abide in Christ" may vary slightly depending on the translation of the Bible used, but the concept of remaining, dwelling, or staying connected with Christ is a central theme throughout the New Testament writings. It has been expounded upon and developed in Christian theology and spirituality by theologians, scholars, and pastors throughout history.

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The chatbot’s answers seem to conform with the contexts in which I’ve heard the concept used and my general understanding of Christian doctrine. But if any reader is more familiar with the concept and notices any errors or gaps, I’d very much appreciate any guidance.

It seems to me that “abiding in Christ” is also intimately related with, if not identical to, the Biblical concepts of following the Holy Spirit (the aspect of the triune God that dwells within us and is our “helper”/“counselor”) and “walking with God.”

This mode of living seems to be what engenders what the Bible refers to as spiritual “peace.” Incidentally, I suspect that such spiritual peace tends to manifest psychologically in what psychologists call “flow states.”

I want to abide in Christ all day every day. Alas, I have not. At some point every day, I stumble and my connection with God weakens. I start chasing comforts and whims and fleeing the challenging calls of the Holy Spirit within me. I fall in thrall to rogue, unintegrated material urges to the detriment of my genuine ideals and my loyal service to God. As a result, my inner peace and joy are displaced by inner discord and torment.

What has mitigated such straying, and what I hope and pray will in the future minimize it, are daily devotional practices, especially at the end and beginning of every day. I explained how I think such practices work in my June 7 post “Make Time for Contemplation of the Ideal.”

Here are the daily devotional practices I’m focusing on now:

Pre-Bedtime Prayer

Before I go to bed, I pray with my 10-year-old daughter Evie (except when I forget to, which has happened far too often). Right now our prayers are simple, focusing on thanksgiving and petition. I want to figure out how to integrate confession soon.

Abide App during Bedtime

To end my day closer to God and to help me fall asleep, I listen to one of the Abide app’s many “Sleep Stories.” These Sleep Stories guide the listener through settling his mind and body, then imagining himself in a soothing yet uplifting scenario, then contemplating a related passage from Holy Scripture.

Each Sleep Story has versions of varying durations. I generally choose the shortest duration, which is fifteen minutes. Since my sleep recently improved, I generally fall asleep before the story is over.

I still generally wake up in the middle of the night after only four or so hours of sleep. However, Abide has helped with that, too. Previously, I would be unable to go back to sleep, or if I did, it was only after staying awake for more than an hour. But now if, immediately upon waking too early, I open Abide and tap on the big “Play Another” button it helpfully displays, I am generally able to return to sleep again within fifteen minutes. I’ve done this for as many as three wakings in a night to accumulate a full night’s sleep.

Moreover, I find the miniature sermons embedded in Abide’s Sleep Stories quite edifying and helpful for renewing and strengthening my commitment to abide in Christ.

Morning Bible Study

In the morning, my first devotional practice—and my first mental exertion of any kind—is Bible study. For a while now, I’ve been working my way through the King James Version of the Gospel according to Saint Matthew one “pericope” at a time. (Pericopes are the short Biblical passages that scholars have demarcated with interpolated subheadings.)

I follow a checklist I’ve developed for taking notes (both scholarly and reflective) on each pericope and for digitally filing my notes as well as verses that seem especially important. I also often study the pericope and its context by reading the footnotes in the Kindle edition of the King James Version Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Thomas Nelson, reading commentary and translation notes on the King James Bible Online, and using other online resources including Wikipedia and ChatGPT.

Steeping my mind in the Word of God, and especially the teachings, life, and passion of Jesus Christ, has helped me immeasurably in my efforts to abide in Christ.

Morning Prayer

My second devotional practice, immediately after Bible study, is prayer. While many Christians may counsel starting the day immediately with prayer, I have found that I am better able to perform the introspective and creative task of praying properly after my spirit and intellect are fully awakened by Bible study.

I choose one specific subject for my morning prayer: generally related to what I regard as my most important challenge of that day. Then I follow a prayer formula I’ve developed, even filling out a form for drafting a prayer outline. Then I refer to the outline as I offer up my prayer either vocally or in my head.

I know that might sound to some as overly-calculated or even antithetical to the spirit of prayer. All I know is it really seems to work for me: that adopting this approach has made my prayers so much more meaningful and transformative than when I just “winged it.” In case anyone’s interested, here is the basic structure of my current prayer formula. I intend to elaborate on its meaning and rationale in a future essay.

• Heavenly Father…

• Adoration of works and thanksgiving for blessings

  • General creation

  • Specific blessings

• Reconciliation

  • Confession of sins, especially failures to make use of and thus honor the above blessings

  • Penance: specific resolutions to remedy and thus redeem the above sins

• Petition

  • For forgiveness, grace, and deliverance from evils resulting from the above sins

  • For guidance, strength, and devotion in performing the above penance

  • For related blessings, including good outcomes from the above efforts

• In Jesus’s name I pray, amen.

Morning Essay

The capstone of my morning devotional routine is writing and publishing an essay. After Bible study and prayer have awakened and properly oriented my mind and soul, and when I’m at my daily intellectual and spiritual peak, I set myself to one of my most challenging, creative, and important tasks of the day: writing a Developing Devotion essay like this one.

I select a subject based on what I seem to be most urgently called to say that day. First and foremost, the act of writing the essay should advance the development of my own understanding of God’s truth (including truths about any aspects of Creation, from human psychology to human health to human economies and societies) and my own devotion to God’s will.

The essay should formulate, solidify, connect, and clearly articulate ideas and learnings that have been coalescing in my mind. It should bear good fruit from the seeds that have been germinating in my soul.

By “learning out loud” through my writing (and at times public speaking), I also hope to inform and inspire readers and listeners like you who may be at a similar stage in your own journey of learning and development. It seems to me that this is the educational approach practiced and preached by Jesus and his apostles, as well as by one of Jesus’s modern-day followers, the apostle of liberty Leonard E. Read.

Whenever I write and publish a morning essay after the above fashion, it invariably brings out the best in me and paves the way for a great day (that is, unless I let myself get pridefully preoccupied in compulsively checking for appreciative responses). For more on this, see my essay from a year ago, “Write Your Way Into a Great Day.” Such writing elevates my reasoning and strengthens my devotion, making it more likely that I will hear, understand, and follow the Holy Spirit’s calls.

Now that I have studied the Bible, prayed, and offered up this morning essay to God and to you my dear readers, I pray that God will grant me the inspiration and discipline to abide in Christ throughout the entire coming day.