This is one of my favorite things to discover in our gospel, good news, message from Jesus, lover of His Father, steadfast encourager of us.
Sometimes it becomes so clear after a bit of explanation, I get a "funny feeling" which I have come to identify as "strong shoulders." Why are we blessed in so many aspects of our lives?
The excerpt below highlights verses described by Jesus how He and His word abides in me, when I ask of Him all my concerns through prayer, it is done.
Jesus abides as the Word and the Life in you and me; we ask what we ask, and Jesus hears his Words and remembrance of His Life with us. Prayer "is" because Jesus "is" -- Because "I am," you "are." [See John 15:7 as reference.]
When I become aware of this type of argument in the Bible, I kind of have a feeling in my shoulders, I get a feeling of "attachment." I feel as if I belong and I feel capable; as Jesus abides in me, I will ask for and find peace, love, joy, happiness ... and all functions of Jesus's wholeness. It feels like a wrap.
What follows is excerpt of a sermon on prayer. If you click on the source link you can see the entire article.
[SOURCE]
Three Steps to Answered Prayer Matthew 7:7-8
by Robert L. Cobb
-Administrator, News For Christians Dot Com
II. THE PRINCIPLE OF ABIDING seek, and ye shall find
The second great principle of answered prayer is to seek. This word, "zete", means to seek in order to find out by thinking, meditating,and reasoning; to inquire into. God continually calls on His people to seek Him in His fullness.
Mat. 6:33
But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Psa. 27:8;
8 When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; My heart said unto thee, Thy face, Jehovah, will I seek.
Psa. 119:2;
2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, That seek him with the whole heart.
Pro. 8:17;
17 I love them that love me; And those that seek me diligently shall find me.
Isa. 55:6;
6 Seek ye Jehovah while he may be found; call ye upon him while he is near:
Jer. 29:13;
13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Heb. 11:6
...that he is a rewarder of them that seek after him.
Jesus expounded on this condition of continual seeking in the Gospel of John. He called it "abiding."
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
To abide in the Vine (in Christ) is a threefold proposition. We abide in Him in relationship to place, time and condition.
We abide with Him wherever He is, all the time, and in whatever condition we find ourselves.
This is the fullness of the Christian life! This is the ultimate of Christian living! This is the place where we find answers to our prayers!
There is a living connection between the vine and the branch. The life and fruitfulness comes from the vine to the branches.
Jesus says Without me ye can do nothing. We can be successful only by Christ dwelling and abiding in us. We can be pleasing to Him only by abiding.
Notice especially verse 7: If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Contrast this verse with James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
One commentator called this the "absence of holy desire," and surely it is. There is no "asking amiss" when we abide in Him, for His desires and blessings flow from the vine to the branches. We are one in our prayers! (Cobb, Robert L. 2006. Three Steps to Answered Prayer Matthew 7:7-8)
Sometimes it becomes so clear after a bit of explanation, I get a "funny feeling" which I have come to identify as "strong shoulders." Why are we blessed in so many aspects of our lives?
The excerpt below highlights verses described by Jesus how He and His word abides in me, when I ask of Him all my concerns through prayer, it is done.
Jesus abides as the Word and the Life in you and me; we ask what we ask, and Jesus hears his Words and remembrance of His Life with us. Prayer "is" because Jesus "is" -- Because "I am," you "are." [See John 15:7 as reference.]
When I become aware of this type of argument in the Bible, I kind of have a feeling in my shoulders, I get a feeling of "attachment." I feel as if I belong and I feel capable; as Jesus abides in me, I will ask for and find peace, love, joy, happiness ... and all functions of Jesus's wholeness. It feels like a wrap.
What follows is excerpt of a sermon on prayer. If you click on the source link you can see the entire article.
[SOURCE]
Three Steps to Answered Prayer Matthew 7:7-8
by Robert L. Cobb
-Administrator, News For Christians Dot Com
II. THE PRINCIPLE OF ABIDING seek, and ye shall find
The second great principle of answered prayer is to seek. This word, "zete", means to seek in order to find out by thinking, meditating,and reasoning; to inquire into. God continually calls on His people to seek Him in His fullness.
Mat. 6:33
But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Psa. 27:8;
8 When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; My heart said unto thee, Thy face, Jehovah, will I seek.
Psa. 119:2;
2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, That seek him with the whole heart.
Pro. 8:17;
17 I love them that love me; And those that seek me diligently shall find me.
Isa. 55:6;
6 Seek ye Jehovah while he may be found; call ye upon him while he is near:
Jer. 29:13;
13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Heb. 11:6
...that he is a rewarder of them that seek after him.
Jesus expounded on this condition of continual seeking in the Gospel of John. He called it "abiding."
*[NOTE: If you, as my brothers in Christ, never hear another word from me, whatJohn 15:4-7
follows from Brother John's text is the most important discovery in my personal search for meaning, hope and truth. We all have at least one verse that we have memorized: mine happens to be Matthew 6:33 which is written more than three times, in different words all with same meaning, in various other books, as is shown here in John chapter 15. patdarnell]*
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
To abide in the Vine (in Christ) is a threefold proposition. We abide in Him in relationship to place, time and condition.
We abide with Him wherever He is, all the time, and in whatever condition we find ourselves.
This is the fullness of the Christian life! This is the ultimate of Christian living! This is the place where we find answers to our prayers!
There is a living connection between the vine and the branch. The life and fruitfulness comes from the vine to the branches.
Jesus says Without me ye can do nothing. We can be successful only by Christ dwelling and abiding in us. We can be pleasing to Him only by abiding.
Notice especially verse 7: If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Contrast this verse with James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
One commentator called this the "absence of holy desire," and surely it is. There is no "asking amiss" when we abide in Him, for His desires and blessings flow from the vine to the branches. We are one in our prayers! (Cobb, Robert L. 2006. Three Steps to Answered Prayer Matthew 7:7-8)
