What Does It Mean to Abide in Christ?

What does it mean to abide in Christ? That's just one of the questions we'll be answering on today's edition of CORE Christianity. Well, hi, I'm Bill Meyer along with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. This is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day. If you get our voicemail, feel free to record your question there. You can also post your question on our Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts, and you can always email us at questionsatcorechristianity.com.

First up today, here's a voicemail from one of our listeners named Michelle. I'm reaching out to him and trying to talk to him about the World Mission Society religion, and he is really getting a grasp on him with this. But I was doing Bible study with my son, and then he invited a person, and really it's scary because they believe in God the Father and God the Mother. Everything I would talk about or read, he was associated with God the Mother, and talking to my son about we don't celebrate Easter because it's not Christian. So I'm just looking for some passage to talk to my son.

Any help is appreciated. Thank you. Michelle, I'm so sorry to hear about this situation. It's always heartbreaking to me when I see Christians, people who have been baptized, who believe in Jesus Christ, being led astray by false religion, by sects, by cults. Usually when you've got a big, long name like that as a religion, that's what you know. That's the first red flag. I've interacted with some people from this cult before, actually where I'm at in Southern California for a while.

They were pretty big on college campuses. Basically what they do, and this is what all cults do, is they take passages of scripture and they twist them. They twist the scriptures to their own destruction with regard to this idea of God the Mother.

This is one of the things that they will oftentimes talk about. They'll go to passages like Galatians chapter 4. In Galatians chapter 4, Paul gives this sort of allegory, if you will, these two mountains. He's talking about Hagar and he's talking about Sarah. He says, Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia. She corresponds to the present Jerusalem, and she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written, Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear. Break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor. For the children of the desolate one will be more than those of the one who has a husband.

Now just stop me right there. This is not saying that God is our mother, the heavenly mother and the heavenly father. Here Paul is talking about the Jerusalem above, the heavenly city, if you will, the kingdom which God has built, which we're a part of, and he uses the imagery here of her being our mother.

This is our motherland, if you will, our country. It's really basic stuff, but again, what false teachers will do, what cults will do is they'll take those basic things and they'll twist them. They'll read things into them. That's what we call eisegesis, reading into the text something that isn't there. The interesting thing is in this same book of the Bible, the book of Galatians, is the one where Paul so sternly warned at the very beginning in chapter 1 verse 6 saying, I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and turning to a different gospel. Not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ, but even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. That is, let him be eternally condemned.

This is how serious it is. When people take the truth of God and twist it and begin to compromise the gospel, and that's precisely what this organization does. That's what others have done throughout the history of the church. That's why we need to be vigilant to know what the word of God teaches. I would say, Michelle, warn your son and say, look, this sect, this cult, it's just this sort of new thing on the block.

They have no history. It's just a brand new interpretation, a brand new twisting of the scriptures, and it's out of line with what the Bible actually teaches, what Christ has revealed about his gospel, about how we experience his grace. I would say if these friends are leading your son astray, I would encourage him to, one, pick new friends, at least for the time being if this is a serious issue, and to be rooted in a solid church where he's going to hear the word of God faithfully taught and the Bible rightly handled.

May the Lord be with you, Michelle, and bless you, and grant you wisdom in this time. You know, Adriel, you mentioned that this particular cult is active on some college campuses, and I think it really behooves us as parents who have, say, teenagers who are heading off to college, to make sure they are really well-grounded and they have a firm Christian worldview and apologetic, and they are able to defend their faith and also to search the scriptures and not get led astray by one of these cults or sects when they go off to college. Yeah, absolutely.

I mean, it starts now in the home, right? And this is why it's so important for us to be having these kinds of conversations about God, his word, sound doctrine, and as you said, you know, apologetics. What does it mean to not just know what we believe but to be able to defend it?

Because otherwise, we're sending our kids out into the world where there's every wind of doctrine, and they're not prepared to respond to the things that they hear on the basis of scripture. And so we definitely want to encourage people to be doing that. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. We want to take a moment to say thank you to a special group of people who have committed to support this program. We call them our inner core, and you are actually invited to join the inner core, and we actually have a very special event coming up for inner core members we're going to tell you about in just a second. Yeah, if you benefit from the answers we give on the show, then we'd like to invite you to become a member of the inner core. As an inner core member, you'll receive a signed copy of the book, Core Christianity, Finding Yourself in God's Story, by our founder, Dr. Michael Horton.

Exclusive updates and bonus content from the team. And when you join the inner core in the month of March, we'll send you an invitation to join us on a live virtual meeting with me, some members of the core team, and other inner core members. This meeting will be an opportunity for you to ask me questions about the Bible and the Christian life, as well as ask me any questions about the core Christianity mission and organization. So if you're an inner core member already, please be on the lookout for that invitation in your email. You can become an inner core member by signing up with a recurring donation of $25 or more, and your support allows us to continue sharing the gospel and answer tough questions about the Christian faith for people all around the world through our live radio broadcast, web articles, free resources, and Bible studies. Thank you to all of our current inner core members, and we hope you'll join us.

Talk to you soon. And if you are an inner core member, that virtual meeting that Adriel mentioned is coming up. It's scheduled on Wednesday, April 18th at 5 p.m. Pacific.

So you might want to note that on your calendar. Wednesday, the 18th of April, 5 p.m. Pacific for that special inner core meeting. So you can join that video call, and we'd love to have you join. If you've never considered joining inner core before, just go to corechristianity.com forward slash inner core to learn more. That's corechristianity.com forward slash inner core. Let's go to a voicemail we received. This is a one from one of our listeners named Elias. My question is just, what does it mean when Jesus says regarding us abiding in him, and what does that look like with regards to being in the word and in prayer? Thank you.

Yeah, great question. That word abide is a word that we especially see in John's writings in the Gospel of John and elsewhere. And I think that the key text to go to when we're thinking about abiding in Christ is John chapter 15. Jesus said in John 15 verse 1, I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine dresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes that it may bear more fruit.

Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine. Neither can you unless you abide in me.

I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. Now again, this language of abiding is something that we see throughout John's Gospel.

Back actually in John chapter 6 in verse 56, listen to what Jesus said there. This is in the context of talking about his body as true food and true drink. He says, whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him. And there in John 6 it's sort of parallel to believing in Christ, receiving him by faith. So abiding, I mean it looks like resting in, receiving, here specifically receiving the body and blood of Jesus Christ, the picture if you will of the Gospel by faith, his redemptive work for us. And we're told in John 15 that there is this fruit that's created by abiding in Christ.

And the one who creates that fruit, if you will, is Christ himself. It's his life flowing in and through you, the believer. When you believe in Jesus Christ, you're united to him by faith. The Holy Spirit fills you. You're connected to Christ. You have the Spirit of Christ living in you, Paul said in Romans chapter 8. And the Spirit of Christ is at work in you to produce this fruit that Jesus himself talked about there in John chapter 15. And part of this looks like following the Lord, obeying his word.

You see this again later in John. It looks like a life of prayer, prayerfulness. Jesus talks about abiding in him and asking him, praying in verse 7, if you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. And so I think oftentimes when we think about this idea of abiding in Christ, we focus on what do I need to do in order to abide in Christ. But I think that the emphasis even from Jesus himself is on this idea of receiving and resting in him. What he said there in John chapter 6, he who feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood, that person abides in me. And so the question is, are you in Christ? Are you resting in him and what he's done for you?

And as you do and the life of Christ is in you, flowing through you, he begins organically, if you will, to produce that fruit in your life. And you asked the question, does prayer help? Does reading the word of God help?

Well, insofar as prayer is one of the ways we commune with Christ, reading the word of God is one of the ways we experience the presence of Christ in our lives and we come to know him better, I would say the answer is yes. And so pursue the Lord through those things and rest in him and what he's done for you. Great answer. Thanks for that, Adriel. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. By the way, we have that core question called How Do I Live the Christian Life? If you'd like to check that out on our website, go to corechristianity.com forward slash free offers. And again, it's called How Do I Live the Christian Life? Well, here's an email question that came in from one of our listeners named Dean.

He says, I have an apologetic question for you. Surely you've encountered folks who say that it's foolish to believe the Bible. One of the big arguments they make is that the Bible being thousands of years old was written for people thousands of years ago, and applying it to the 21st century is putting it out of context, and that some of it simply isn't relevant anymore. How would you respond to those people?

Yeah. I mean, you know, when I hear this question, sometimes I wonder, have these people really read the scriptures? Have they meditated upon them? Because the more I've studied the Bible, honestly, with humility, right, you're approaching the word of God, you're saying, Lord, give me understanding, fill me with your Holy Spirit. The more I've studied the Bible, the more I've been, one, just blown away by the majesty of the whole, if you will. It really testifies to the fact that it is inspired by God. But two, just how practical it is, how it speaks to our deepest needs. I mean, if you're looking to the scripture to help you figure out how to fix your washer and dryer, you're not going to find that answer there.

But if you're looking to the word of God for how to find peace in the midst of a world where there isn't a lot of peace, well, wouldn't that be relevant today, right? Isn't that what people are longing for? How about rest? So many of us are exhausted, tired, overworked, longing for rest. And I don't just mean a nap, I mean that deep soul rest. And you think of what scripture says, what Jesus said, come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in spirit, and you will find rest for your souls. See, the word of God, the scriptures, reveal to us and offer to us what we actually need more than anything else.

That deep rest that comes through Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of our sins. And so the issue is not that the Bible is irrelevant or not relevant. Maybe we're just asking the wrong questions or we're looking to the scriptures for the wrong things. We need to recognize that God is the one who sort of sets up even the questions we should be asking in terms of what does it mean to have a right relationship with God? And how can I trust God in the midst of the difficult things that are going on in my life? Well, again, the word of God speaks to that and not just the New Testament, the entire Bible testifies to these realities.

I just finished preaching through the book of Genesis and it was amazing to me the things that we learn in Genesis, the stuff that we see there in terms of family conflict, family feud, reconciliation, forgiveness. I mean, these are the things that people in my church struggle with, that I struggle with. And yet they're right there for us to see throughout the pages of scripture and to see how God worked even in and through those circumstances.

So I just don't buy it for one second. When people say the Bible is irrelevant, I looked at it, but it just didn't prove to be helpful. I just say, look, you didn't look close enough and we need to humble ourselves, open up the scriptures and dig into them, recognizing that God speaks in and through them. And I think as we do that, we realize, yeah, God has a lot to say.

The question is, am I listening? Amen. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. By the way, we have a YouTube channel. And if you want, you can check out our YouTube every day at eleven thirty a.m. Pacific time.

You can see Adriel live in the studio and actually interact with him by sending him a question through the YouTube channel. Here's one from Michael watching on YouTube. He says, I recently heard a pastor say, you cannot please God unless you are a Christian. Is God not pleased by non-Christians who save others' lives like non-Christian firefighters?

What a great question, Michael. First, let me just say, I do believe that God is pleased even when non-Christians do things that are good and right, and a reflection, if you will, of his law and the fact that the moral law is written on everybody's heart. We all have this sense of God, if you will.

Now, more often than not, here's what we do is we turn away from that. We suppress the truth of God and unrighteousness. That's what Paul says in Romans chapter one. The Psalms tell us there is none righteous, no, not one. So when it comes to pleasing God for our salvation, that's where we just can't. The author of the Hebrews said in Hebrews chapter eleven, I believe it's verse six, without faith, it is impossible to please God, for he who comes to God must believe that he is and that he's a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. So if we're talking about the doctrine of salvation and justification and approaching God rightly, we can't please God in and of ourselves through our own works.

We need Jesus, a mediator. But just generally speaking, we think about God's good creation, the fact that God made all things and sustains all things. When he looked at the world that he made, he said, this is good, this is very good. It was pleasing to the Lord. And I think insofar as humanity, mankind still continues to be made in the image of God. There is a degree of delight that the Lord has in his creation. Now we sin against the Lord and grieve the Spirit of God, and God brings about judgment, but that doesn't mean that there aren't still good things just by virtue of common grace and the fact that we're all made in the image of God. And things that I think are pleasing to the Lord in a different sense, if you will. And so I want to be careful.

We want to make sure that we're not just painting with a broad brush, if you will. Specifically, as I said, when we're thinking about the doctrine of salvation, there's nothing that we can do in and of ourselves, apart from the Lord, apart from his Spirit, apart from Jesus, that can please God and earn our way into his good graces. But we know also that God is good and that he created the world good, and our sin, through our sin we've fallen away, but God still delights in the world that he created, even as he calls that world to repentance and faith. Thanks for your question. You're listening to Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. Just a reminder, we'd love to have you join our inner Core, that group of people who support this broadcast on a regular basis. And we also have an opportunity for you to get a copy of Dr. Michael Horton's book, Core Christianity, excuse me, and that special Zoom meeting coming up that we mentioned coming up in April. So check it out at corechristianity.com forward slash inner core.

Let's go to a voicemail that came in from one of our listeners. This is from Mary. My question is about a church that has made the policy that a couple that is living together cannot get married in the church unless they start living apart. My friend believes that Jesus would be welcoming and let people get married in the church.

What do you think? Yeah, a practical pastoral question. And I hesitate to answer because with these situations, oftentimes there's a lot more to the story.

And I don't know the situation specifically. If I had two people in my church that were claiming to be Christian that were not married and they were cohabitating and engaging in fornication, then there's a serious issue here, right? There needs to be, well, one, repentance and obedience to God's word, obedience to God's law. And I would just hold them to that standard on the basis of the fact that they're claiming to be believers, that they're Christians. Paul in 1 Corinthians chapter 5 says, you know, what have we to do with judging outsiders? God judges outsiders, but we do as Christians, and we must judge, quote, unquote, our brothers and sisters in the church who have been baptized and are, you know, members in the church and claiming to follow Jesus, but are living in ways that are directly contrary to his word, to his law. Now, there might be some pastors who say, well, you know, repentance for them, maybe they just want to get married, so I'm just going to marry them, and it doesn't matter that they're living together. I probably would say, no, there needs to be some repentance here.

This issue needs to be addressed. And ultimately, that would be about wanting to help this couple, these two people, presumably, you know, professing believers, deal with this issue with what seems like some confusion around God, his word, and even just relationships. But I want the priority to be on Christ and what the scripture teaches, and in that way, entering into a healthy marriage, not just, we're going to do what we want, we want the church to give us a stamp of approval. Too often, tragically, I think that's the approach that people take is, hey, I'm going to live however I want, and the church is there to just sort of affirm me in my decisions, even if those decisions are not in line with what the Bible teaches. That may not be what's happening here, and like I said, this is why it's tough to answer these kinds of really sort of sticky pastoral questions.

I'm not 100% sure. And so I think, obviously, I would hope and pray that the church that they're a part of is faithful, wants to shepherd them, pastor them well, wants to highlight the seriousness of sin, but also encourage godly Christian marriage and walk alongside of this couple if that's what they're wanting to pursue. And I think a part of pursuing that would be, first things first, let's repent of our fornication and cohabiting. We shouldn't be living together right now.

We're not married. And let's seek to approach this in a way that would be pleasing to the Lord and that would be a good witness to the people around us. And so my thoughts, I don't know if you want to add anything before the program ends there. No, I think that's a great advice. And you know, people will spend tens of thousands of dollars on a wedding and reception, but they won't spend six weeks on a premarital counseling. So that's another thing I would add that's really key in the church.

Yeah. Once again, brothers and sisters, you know, we appreciate you listening to the program and we want to help you in all things honor the Lord and follow Jesus. Sometimes it's not an easy thing to follow the Lord at all times, but we want to follow him and honor him with all that we do. Thanks for listening to Core Christianity. To request your copy of today's special offer, visit us at CoreChristianity.com and click on offers in the menu bar or call us at 1-833-843-2673. That's 833-THE-CORE. When you contact us, please let us know how you've been encouraged by this program and be sure to join us next time as we explore the truth of God's word together. Thank you.