Abide in His Love

Transcript

Hello, my friend… so glad you're with me today. This is By God's Call — day 237, Abide in His Love.

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love." John 15, verse 9.

Slow down with that for a moment. Don't rush past it. Because Jesus is not giving a routine instruction here — He is opening a window onto something that has existed since before time began.

"As the Father has loved me…" Think about what that means. The love the Father has for the Son is eternal, boundless, without bottom. It is the oldest love in the universe. And Jesus looks at you and says: that love — that exact love — is what I have for you. He does not invent a new love, a lesser love, a second-rate version. He takes the very love He receives from the Father and hands it to you whole. You are being loved with the deepest love that exists. Let that in.

And that love did not stay in words. It became flesh. It became pain. It became the cross. Christ did not love you from a distance, sending messages down from heaven. He came down. He came all the way to where you were. To where the hurt is real, to where the failure is real, to where the darkness is real. And He stayed. That is the love being offered to you right now.

And then Jesus says: abide. Stay here. Inside this.

Notice the word carefully. He does not say "earn it." He does not say "achieve it." He does not say "work until you deserve it." He says: stay here — inside what is already yours. Abiding is not a demand. It is an invitation. It is as if He is saying: I already opened the door, I already prepared the place, I already loved you to the very end — now, simply, don't walk away.

In John chapter 15, this invitation has a living context. Jesus is talking about the vine and the branches. And the central point is this: fruit does not come from striving. Fruit comes from union. The branch does not force the grape into being — the branch simply stays connected to the vine, and the life flowing from it produces everything. That is how it works for you. The fruitfulness of your life — in your relationships, in your work, in your calling — does not come from pushing harder. It comes from staying connected to Him. The life that flows from Christ's love is what produces lasting fruit.

And there is more. Jesus says, just a few lines on, that these words have a specific purpose: that His joy would be in us and our joy would be full. Abiding in His love is not a heavy obligation. It is not a dry discipline. It is the path to the fullest joy you will ever know. The love of Christ does not drain you — it fills you.

So today, before breakfast, before you open your phone, before anything else — stop. Speak out loud to Jesus. It doesn't need to be long. Just this: "I choose to abide in your love today." And then name one situation — a hard conversation, a decision that is weighing on you, a moment you already know is coming where you will need something solid to hold onto. Place that moment inside His love now, before you get there.

That is abiding. That is faith in motion.

Stay close to God. Pray — then act. I'll see you tomorrow, my friend.