Abiding in God's Word -- A Word Study

“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’” ~John 8:31-32

What does it mean to "abide in" God's Word?  Today, let's do a little word study.  Together we'll examine the Greek word, some cross-references, and a few commentaries before discussing our application.  So let's begin!

Greek Word

The Greek word for "abide" is "menō."   The Outline of Biblical Usage reveals this about the meaning behind meno.

to remain, abide

1. in reference to place
1. to sojourn, tarry
2. not to depart
1. to continue to be present
2. to be held, kept, continually
2. in reference to time
1. to continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure
1. of persons, to survive, live
3. in reference to state or condition
1. to remain as one, not to become another or different

to wait for, await one

We learn here that in order for God's Word to abide in us, it must sojourn, dwell, or stay with us; much as one would dwell at a home.  It's not just a two week stay, but, as meno describes, it must continue in and endure with and in us.  See how much we can learn from digging a little deeper into the word?

Cross-References

Next let's look at a few cross-references. Comparing Scripture against Scripture takes the passage deeper in meaning and allows us to better understand what the author means. Note: the first five cross-references are all written by the same author: John. This makes them especially useful for cross-referencing purposes, because we get more insight into what the author actually meant.

John 15:7 “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

Abiding in Jesus and abiding in His words are very similar. We should not just abide in one, or just abide in the other. Rather, we must dwell in both and allow both to dwell in us. When we do, we will bring our requests before God and He will hear them. Why does He promise this? When we abide in God's Word, we better understand His heart and know what He desires. When He lives in us, we do not live there and our self will be out of the way. We will align our hearts with His will, instead of praying for a new car or a million dollar job.

1 John 2:14  “I have written to you, fathers,Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.I have written to you, young men,Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,And you have overcome the wicked one.”

He is praising these young men because God's Word abides in them.  He also mentions that they are strong and that they have overcome the wicked one.  How can we overcome the devil? Through wielding the Sword of the Spirit--which is the Word of God.  So here again we must be abiding in God's Word so that we might overcome the wicked one.

1 John 2:24 “Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.”

What did they hear from the beginning? The Word of God. And if that word abides in them (and in us as well) we will also abide in the Son and in the Father. The key to abiding in God is to abide in His written word--for it is there that He has revealed Himself to mankind.

2 John 1:9 “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son.”

Again we see that if we abide in the doctrine of Christ--another way of saying God's Word--we will abide in both the Father and the Son. This practice of abiding in God's Word serves great purpose if we desire that Christ might indwell in us. Remember, if we are not abiding in the vine, we will bear no fruit, for without Jesus Christ we can do nothing (John 15).

John 5:38 “But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.”

What is one of the purposes or results of abiding? Belief.  If we do not truly believe in Jesus Christ, then we are not truly abiding in His Word.  As we remain in His Word, we grow deeper in our faith.

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

The command of John 8:31 is echoed here in Colossians 3:16.  We must let God's Word dwell in us.  How?  Richly!  Not just halfheartedly or begrudgingly, but richly!  And in all wisdom.  Or it could also be translated, "unto all wisdom."  Our goal as we let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly is to gain a heart of wisdom--spiritual wisdom.  Wisdom concerning the will and character of God.

Commentaries

Now that we understand a little more of what it means to abide in God's Word through cross-references, let us take a look at a few commentaries to see what additional insight we can gain into abiding.

"If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples." This doesn't mean that you can't lay your Bible down and go to your work. No. Abiding in the word of Jesus means remaining in that force field of the word. It means not leaving it.

• Abide means not ceasing to be persuaded by its truth, and never elevating any other truth above it.
• Abide means not ceasing to be attracted by its beauty and value, and never seeing anything as more beautiful or more valuable or more attractive than the word and the Lord it reveals.
• Abide means not ceasing to rest in its grace and power—never turning away as though greater peace could be found anywhere else.
• Abide means never ceasing to eat and drink from the word as the bread of heaven and living water, as if life could be sustained anywhere else.
• And abide means never ceasing to walk in the light of the word, as though any other light could show the secrets of life.

~John Piper

Because we don't have time to discuss the application today, I want to give you time to think. What does it mean to abide in God's Word? What practical application can we carry from this passage? What are some ways we can abide in His Word? As you consider these things, write your thoughts below and maybe they'll make it into the next article!