“Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort.” Psalm 71:3
Dear Ones:
I believe it was John Wesley who had such a hard time coming to grips with salvation by faith, and faith alone. One very wise brother in Christ told him, “Preach it until it becomes real.” And such is the case with us, as it was with the disciples. He called them to believe a truth that they had a great deal of difficulty getting hold of. He said: “Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works’ sake.” (John 14:11) The disciples had come a long way in their faith, in their walk with the Lord. But in order for them to know the reality of the “mystery among the Gentiles,” (Col. 1:27), which was the truth of “Christ IN you, the hope of glory,” they would need to be brought further. So, how does the Lord Jesus deal with them? In essence, He tells them to “preach the truth,” (believe it…) until it becomes a reality to them. There can be a vast difference between something being true of someone, and their experience of that truth. Christ bridges the gap between the two states of mind and experience by calling the disciples, and us, to BELIEVE Him, His words, until they “become us.”
To reveal to us the difficulty that the disciples had coming to grips with the greatness of the revelation of God to them in Christ, we find Philip asking the Lord Jesus, “Show us the Father, and it will suffice us.” (Jn. 14:8) There is no rebuke in Jesus’ response, only a question: “Have I been so long with you, and yet hast thou not known me Philip?” (v.9) He then declares the truth that is hard to grasp: “He that has seen Me has seen the Father.” The Lord then proceeds to lay the groundwork, the foundation, for the disciple’s faith, in providing them with the truth of the union of the Father with the Son. He also declares to them: “Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me.” (v.11) Why is this truth so very important? It is because the same truth will apply to every disciple of Christ. It is a truth whereby that disciple will live by Another Life, by God the Holy Spirit, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” But here, we must grasp Christ’s method. He declares the truth, even though it may not understand or grasped fully. His call to us is to believe HIM by taking Him at His word.
The Lord goes into great detail to then reveal to the disciples the ministry and power of the Spirit of God, who was to dwell IN them. (Jn. 14:17) It will be by Christ’s ever-present, and victorious Life, that the disciples will be called upon to trust. This will be made possible by the quickening, or life-giving, Spirit. This ever-present Spirit will teach them all things, and bring to remembrance, which the Lord Jesus had said to them. He also will be their very Power, for He is their “…very present Help.” (Ps. 46:1) So, then, how did the disciples learn to “dwell in God?” Moses points the way in Psalm 90.
Moses begins, as Jesus did, with TRUTH. He writes: “Lord, Thou hast been our dwelling place in ALL generations.” (v.1) This is reality. But there again is a difference between KNOWING the truth and experiencing it. Hence, Psalm 91. “He that dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” (v.1) The psalmist declares that we are called to believe, and to choose, to LIVE in Christ. He is that place of refuge, even our fortress…”My God in whom I TRUST.” (v.2) The Lord Jesus tells us that God is waiting for us in the “secret place,” that place unseen by men, where we are alone with God. It is in the secret of His presence that we are called to abide.
Dear Father, give us grace to abide in Thee, in thy Son, to whom we belong. We thank Thee for the promise that Jesus gave concerning abiding in Him, “…and I in you.” (Jn.15:4) Give us grace, not only to believe the truth, but to appropriate by faith the reality and the blessing. We thank Thee in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad