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Part 1 and Part 2 of this article on abiding addressed morality, belief and unbelief, the will of God, and the testing of your own heart.
As you have been examining your own heart prayerfully before the Lord, perhaps you have identified some areas of unbelief that have hindered your spiritual growth.
Do not despair!
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Do you believe He is able to graft you in, even if you have been abiding in unbelief?
He is able!
He is willing!
His Spirit will lead you from the darkness of unbelief to the Light of abiding.
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Paul addresses this situation in Romans 11:17-22.
Then he reminds us of God’s lovingkindess towards His people Israel (v. 23) and also towards us:
They also,
if they do not continue in their unbelief,
will be grafted in;
for God is able to graft them in again.
~Romans 11:23
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Let Him graft you in again
as you believe anew that
- He loves you;
- He will come alongside you as He teaches you to walk in His revealed Will through your willingness and obedience, and
- He desires to move you from darkness to light—to communing with Him!
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Everyone who believes in Me
may not remain/abide in darkness.
~John 12:46
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The beautiful metaphor of the
Vine and the branches
depicts abiding.
Have you ever seen a branch that has been grafted to a tree?
| A live branch is cut off from a tree; the live branch is wounded. |
Circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit
(Romans 2:29) |
| Then a wound is made in the source Tree where the branch will attach to the Tree.
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>He was wounded for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5). |
| Eventually the branch receives its life from the roots of the Tree, which enhances the favorable qualities of its individual fruit with the strong qualities of the Source’s vigor or Life into which it was grafted.
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He who aides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing (John 15:5).
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| The branch must remain or abide in the Tree to produce fruit. If the branch does come loose, it dies.
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As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the Vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me (John 15:4).
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| As we abide, God will prune our lives so we bear more fruit.
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Every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit (John 15:2).
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As the Spirit renews your mind,
believe!
- Believe that He is the Source of your life, like the roots are the source of the grafted branch’s life.
- Believe that He is the Head of your life, as the headwaters are to a river.
- Believe that He will move you from darkness to light as you abide.
- Believe that Christ, not practicing moral codes, will give you abundant Life.
- Believe that He loves you.
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When you continue
to obey God
in your personal conduct,
you are keeping the door open
to spiritual growth into
Life abundant.
When you believe Him
in your mind,
you begin to abide in Christ
from Whom you will
receive abundant Life.
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His Life manifests in your individuality—
mortifying what is flesh,
strengthening what is weak,
sharpening what is strong.
Just like the grafted branch bears fruit that pulses with the vigor and vitality of the foundational roots yet maintains its individual qualities, you too will maintain your individuality.
You will not be rooted in your individuality, however.
Rather, you will be rooted in Christ, Whose abundant Life will pulsate through yours.
Love
will become the hallmark of your life,
as it is of His.
As you abide,
- the Christian life becomes profoundly simple, not more complexly entangled;
- your spirit will be awakened from its slumber as you commune with Him;
- you will experience the liberty of real Life—His Life; and
- because of His Life in you, what spills out of you when you are bumped will be Christ’s abundant Life, the Will of God. Glory be to Your Name!
Lord,
thank You for Your abundant
Life!
I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but
Christ lives in me;
and the life which I now live in the flesh
I live by faith in the Son of God.
~Galatians 2:20
Other articles in this “Spiritual Growth of a Christian Woman” series:
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