On Abiding in Christ, Part 2

Today's Abiding in Christ word comes from John Piper. I particularly loved several parts of a sermon he preached in April, 2011 on this topic. Those parts are excerpted below. Please find the full message here. John Piper's words in red.

5 Questions Raised by Verse 31

....today we focus on verse 31: "So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, 'If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples.'" And I have five questions that this verse raises—all are crucial for your life:

1. What does it mean to "truly be Jesus's disciples"? ("You are truly my disciples.")
2. What is Jesus referring to by the phrase "my word"? ("If you abide in my word…")
3. What does it mean to be "in" that word? ("If you abide in my word…")
4. What does it mean to "abide" there? ("If you abide in my word…")
5. What's the relationship between abiding in his word and truly being his disciple? ("If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples.")

For the purposes of our study, we'll deal only with John Piper's answers to questions 2, 3, 4, 5. 

Answer Number 2

Our second question from John 8:31 is: What is Jesus referring to by the phrase, "my word"? "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples."

The word is singular, "my word," not "my words." This means that Jesus is thinking of the sum of all that he has taught. We could leave it at that: Jesus means "abide in the sum of all that Jesus taught." But my guess is that Jesus wants us to ponder what the sum of that word is. And surely the answer to that is: He is the sum of his word. All his words in one way or another draw our attention to him.

Words like: "I am the bread of life" (John 6:35). "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12). "I am not of this world" (John 8:23). "I am the good shepherd" (John 10:11). "I am in the Father" (John 10:38). "I am the resurrection and the life" (John 11:25). When you take all his words together, they have one great focus—Jesus himself. "These are written—all these words are written—so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God" (John 20:31). They all point to him.

All Jesus' Words Point to Him

Which is why when you get to chapter 15, Jesus can say, not only "abide in my word," but "abide in me." "If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch" (John 15:6).

So the answer to our second question would be: The phrase "my word" here in John 8:31 ("if you abide in my word") refers to the sum of Jesus' teaching which is summed up in himself and all that he is for us as the crucified and risen Son of God.

Answer number 3

3. What does it mean to be "in" that word?

Now the third question from verse 31 is: What does it mean to be "in" that word? "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples." Here's a picture of what I think it means. The word of Jesus, with himself as the center and focus of it, has a kind of force field, like a magnetic field around it. And when you are "in his word," you are in that force field. You are under the sway of that force coming from his word. So, for example:

• Part of this force field is the truth of the word. So when you are "in" the word, you are in the persuasion of the truth of the word. You are persuaded that the word is true. And you live in force field of that persuasion. You live in the truth.
• Another part of this force field is the beauty of the word (I'm referring here to moral and spiritual beauty, not stylistic beauty), and when you are "in" the word you in the attraction of that beauty. You are held by that beauty.
• Another part of the force field is the supreme value of the word, and when you are "in" the word you are captured by the preciousness of the word, and the Savior. You are drawn to treasure the word.
• Another part of the force field of the word is the power and grace of the word, so that when you are "in" the word, you made peaceful and hopeful by the word. You trust in the word. Because it can do what it promises; and what is promises is gracious.
• Another part of this force field is the word as the life-giving, soul-sustaining bread of heaven, so that when you are "in" the word, you are in the nourishment of the word. You are being fed and strengthened by the word.
• And the force field includes the word as living water so that when you are "in" the word, you are being refreshed by the word.
• And the force field includes the word as light so that when you are "in" the word, you being illumined and guided by the word. You see everything in the light of the word.

So when Jesus says, "If you abide in my word…," being "in" his word means being in

• the persuasion of its truth,
• and the attraction of its beauty,
• and the treasuring of its value,
• and the peacefulness of its grace and power,
• and the nourishment of its bread,
• and the refreshment of its water,
• and the brightness of its light.

To be "in" the word of Jesus is a whole new life. This is what it is to be a true disciple. To live "in" the word of the riches of the word of Jesus.

Answer Number 4

4. What does it mean to abide in his word?

"If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples." The word "abide" is simply the word "remain." It doesn't carry in it any special spiritual connotations in itself. It means remain in his word. Don't leave it.

This doesn't mean that you can't lay your Bible down and go to your work. No. Abiding in the word of Jesus means remaining in that force field of the word. It means not leaving it.

• Abide means not ceasing to be persuaded by its truth, and never elevating any other truth above it.
• Abide means not ceasing to be attracted by its beauty and value, and never seeing anything as more beautiful or more valuable or more attractive than the word and the Lord it reveals.
• Abide means not ceasing to rest in its grace and power—never turning away as though greater peace could be found anywhere else.
• Abide means never ceasing to eat and drink from the word as the bread of heaven and living water, as if life could be sustained anywhere else.
• And abide means never ceasing to walk in the light of the word, as though any other light could show the secrets of life.

This is what it means to be a true disciple. "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples." And the fact that Jesus puts the emphasis on abiding—remaining—gives the answer to our last question:

Answer Number 5

5. How are abiding in his word and truly being his disciple related to each other?

"If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples." Jesus is saying that the mark of the true disciple is lasting, enduring, persevering, keeping on in the force field of the word. Temporary tastes of the truth and beauty and value and power and grace and bread and water and brightness of the word do not make you a Christian. The mark of Christians is that we taste and we stay.

To whom shall we go? You, O Lord, have the words of life (John 6:68).

By John Piper. ©2014 Desiring God Foundation. Website: desiringGod.org

John Piper really knows how to get to the heart of Scripture, yes? I heard him say once that he has a reading disability (maybe he mentioned dyslexia...I can't remember, but he's a slow reader) so he doesn't get through a lot of books. He concentrates mainly on the Bible, and it shows! 

This sermon found here, at Desiring God. Thirty-seven years of sermons are available at Desiring God at this link. They're grouped by year, series, Scripture, and topic. Or you can do a search.