Lessons From the Secret Place – Intimacy- Lesson 10b: Dwelling /Abiding in Christ.

Today we will finish our study on Intimacy in Christ by looking at Psalm 23:6b.

Psalm 23:6b, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (ESV)

We must make the Lord our dwelling place by abiding in Him.

John 15:4, Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. (ESV)

To abide means to stay where you are. The Christian has been placed in Christ; that is his position. In daily walk, he should stay in intimate fellowship with the Lord. A branch abides in a vine by drawing all its life and nourishment from the vine. So we abide in Christ by spending time in prayer, reading and obeying His Word, fellowshiping with His people, and being continually conscious of our union with Him. As we thus maintain constant contact with Him, we are conscious of His abiding in us and supplying us with spiritual strength and resources. The branch can only bear fruit as it abides in the vine. The only way believers can bear the fruit of a Christ-like character is by living in touch with Christ moment by moment. i.

When we learn to abide the Lord becomes our refuge. We find our safety, comfort, and peace in his presence.  

Psalm 91:9-11, Because you have made the Lord your refuge, and the Most High your dwelling place, There shall no evil befall you, nor any plague or calamity come near your tent. For He will give His angels [especial] charge over you to accompany and defend and preserve you in all your ways [of obedience and service]. (AMPC)

The psalmist's personal experience encourages people to embrace the way of wisdom by making "the Most High" one's "dwelling". In him they find "refuge," and they can be confident that whatever happens on earth is with his knowledge. ii.

It is our duty to be at home in God, to make our choice of him, and then to live our life in him as our habitation, to converse with him, and delight in him, and depend upon him; and then it shall be our privilege to be at home in God; we shall be welcome to him as a man to his own habitation, without any let, hindrance, or molestation, from the arrests of the law or the clamours of conscience; then too we shall be safe in him, shall be kept in perfect peace, Isa. 26:3. iii.

In Psalm 91, the Psalmist lists three benefits of making God our refuge and dwelling place.

First, protection from evil.

Isaiah 54:17, No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.” (ESV)

2 Thessalonians 3:3, But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one. (ESV)

Second, protection from sickness.

1 Peter 2:24, He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (ESV)

Isaiah 53:5, But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. (ESV)

Psalm 41:3, The Lord sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness you restore him to full health.

Third, angel defenses. 

Hebrews 1:14, Are they [angels] not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? (ESV) [Added for clarity.]

Psalm 91:11, For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. (ESV)

Psalm 34:7, The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. (ESV)

As we wrap up our study on Intimacy with Christ, I want to challenge us to learn to abide in Christ.  To walk daily in the knowledge and awareness of his constant presence with us.  To turn to him first in every situation and with every question.  He is both the giver and sustainer of life (John 1:3, Colossians 1:17) and in the words of Jesus, “apart from him we can do nothing.”  

May we learn to allow our Good Shepherd to lead, guide, provide for, and protect us as we travel this journey, we call life.  “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:1-2a (ESV)

Works Cited:

i. Believer's Bible Commentary Copyright © 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 2016 by William MacDonald.

ii. Expositor's Bible Commentary (Abridged Edition): Old Testament Copyright 2004.

iii. Matthew Henry’s Commentary

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