Paul once said, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” (Colossians 3:16).  Without doing this, we will not have success as Christians.  More has to be done, however, if we want to thrive as God’s children and gain victory over our adversary, the devil.  We must not only allow the Word of Christ to dwell in us, but must abide in the Words of Christ. 

John 8:31-32 (ESV)
³¹  So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, ³²  and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Three things are accomplished when we continue in the Words of Jesus.

First, we show ourselves to be true disciples of His.  It is a great privilege to be a disciple of Christ.   It means that we are learning from Him, the greatest teacher of things spiritual that there could ever be.  It is always a special claim to be taught of a great teacher, and Jesus is the greatest teacher of all. As His disciples, we learn not only things about the here and now, but also of things relating to eternity. Only Jesus has the wonderful words of life (John 6:68).  It is one of the great blessings of life to be able to sit at the feet of Jesus and learn of His wisdom.  Never take that for granted.

Second, we are free, not from a physical standpoint, but spiritually.  There is no greater bondage than that of sin; thus, there is no greater deliverance than that from sin. There is only one way to obtain this freedom and that is by abiding in the words of Christ, i.e., by obeying and standing in the gospel (Romans 6:1-18). As long as we stay away from sin, our former master, and serve our new master, Jesus Christ, we are free. This happens when we abide in the words of Christ. We must be determined not to turn back and serve sin again.

Third, Jesus said we will know the truth. Knowing the truth is vital to any soul. Without the knowledge of the truth, one cannot be saved, for it is truth that teaches us how to take advantage of the salvation that flows from Calvary. It was the truth that taught us to believe (John 8:24), repent (Luke 13:3), confess Christ (Romans 10:9-10), and be buried in the waters of baptism (Romans 6:4), and it is the truth that allows us to maintain our salvation in Christ.  Peter said that God has given us “all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence” (2 Peter 1:3).  Our job is to walk in this truth.

3 John 1:3-4 (ESV)
³  For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. ⁴  I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

We can only walk in truth if we know the truth, and we know the truth by abiding in the Words of Christ.  

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.