“Search the Scriptures daily, as mines of gold wherein the heart of Christ is laid.”
Thomas Wilcox
In the Fourth Gospel, Jesus gives us a test, a diagnostic tool, a method of evaluation, and a definition all rolled up into one. How does Jesus define discipleship? His answer is found in John 8:31-32, “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” The passage begins by referring back to a group of Jews who had “believed” in him. Belief in the Gospel of John is a tricky thing. It is always encouraged and is properly the theme of the entire book, but it is also evaluated. And closer inspection of those who had believed reveals that some of their foundations were not too secure.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is careful to instruct the crowd that the difference in their lives will be determined by whether they build their lives on his teaching: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” (Matthew 7:24-25, ESV) In the Fourth Gospel, Jesus calls those who are truly his disciples the ones who abide in his word. They fill their lives with his teaching. The deeply appreciated scholar, D. A. Carson, has this to say about the passage: “A genuine believer remains in Jesus’ ‘word’ (logos), his teaching: i.e. such a person obeys it, seeks to understand it better, and finds it more precious, more controlling, precisely when other forces flatly oppose it. It is the one who continues in the teaching who has both the Father and the Son (2 Jn. 9; cf. Heb. 3:14; Rev. 2:26). [D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John, PNTC, 349.] Today, do you seek to obey his teaching? Are you pursuing a deeper understanding of it? Is it growing more precious to you? In a world opposed to Christ and his teaching, do you find it to be more of a source of guidance? If so, then you are abiding in his teaching. You are truly one of his disciples. Have a blessed week and we will see many of you on Sunday.
In Christ’s love,
Pastor Dale
