The Abiding Cycle: Knowing God by Experience through Obedience

If the “point” is that we were created to enjoy an intimate relationship with God and the practical outflow of that relationship is abiding, then abiding in Christ is arguably one of the most significant teachings in Scripture. Even though the terminology is exclusive to John’s Gospel and his epistles, the principles of abiding are the practice of all of the major characters in the stories of the Bible. God’s purpose is as unchanging as he is.We will begin our study in the focal text where Jesus defines abiding: John 15. It will become very clear as we study the context of the teachings on abiding that Jesus was revealing not only its significance for the dis-ciples but also its historical and future significance. Take a look at the context of the teaching.