Jesus said: Remain (abide, continue, dwell) in Me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit. Apart from Me you can do nothing… As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Now remain in My love. If you keep My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commands and remain in His love. (John 15:4-10, excerpts)
In our last two posts, Remaining and Abiding in Christ (Part 1), and Remaining and Abiding in Christ (Part 2), we began to study Jesus’ words above from the night before He sacrificed His life for us on the cross. The analogy of the vine teaches us of the vital living relationship between Christ and His believers. God the Father is the Gardener, Jesus is the central Grapevine, His followers are the branches, and Holy Spirit fruit is what He produces in us. The ESV translates John 15:4 as “Abide in Me,” and the verb “abide” appears 11 times in verses 4-10. The NIV translates it as “Remain in Me,” and that’s more accurate.1 It’s the Greek word meno, and can also be translated as continue, live, lodge, or dwell.
Clinging to Christ through the Night
In John Bunyan’s allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian, the main character, passes through a terrifying, pitch-black territory that symbolizes the “dark night of the soul”: spiritual depression and struggle, Satan’s temptations, and doubts about his salvation. On the left side of the narrow path is a deep ditch where spiritually blind people have led others into ruin. On the right side is a dangerous swamp where even godly believers have temporarily fallen in and gotten stuck. In this tough part of Christian’s dangerous journey, he remembers 3 Psalms:
I called, “LORD, save me!” The LORD is gracious and righteous. Our God is full of compassion… I will go in the strength of the Lord God. I will make mention of Your goodness… Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. (116:4-5, 71:16, 23:4)
Christian is living by faith during this impossible experience. He’s sticking close to Christ, even when the Lord feels far away. He’s remaining and abiding in Jesus. Christ eventually leads Christian through these extreme physical and spiritual perils into the sunshine, and he rejoices in God’s rescue. Then he remembers 2 verses from Job: “The Lord brings utter darkness into the light… God watched over me, His lamp shone on my head, and by His light I walked through darkness!2,3
The Psalmist wrote, “I remember, Lord, Your ancient Scriptures, and I find comfort in them… In the night, Lord, I remember Your Name, that I may keep Your commands.”4
Remembering and living by the Bible is a key to remaining in Christ.
Rescued out of Darkness
Isaac Ruiz Immanuel is a contemporary Christian songwriter who suffers from brittle bone disease. He had severe bone fractures in the womb, and doctors doubted that he would survive, but he was born safely in 2005. Since then, Isaac has endured over 300 bone fractures and more than 30 surgeries! Instead of being overwhelmed by his physical challenges and severe pain, he chooses to worship Christ and point others to his Savior. Isaac agrees with Pastor John Newton, “Through many dangers, toils and snares I have already come. God’s grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.”5 The chorus of Isaac’s song, “Out of Darkness,” goes like this:
Oh, praise His holy name, the One who heals the blind, sick, and lame.
Out of darkness, we were saved.
The Lord Almighty reigns, the One who parts the sea and makes a way.
Out of darkness, Jesus saves.
The Apostle Paul reminds us, “God rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption and deliverance, the forgiveness of sins.”6
Remembering, declaring, and praising God for what He has done, is doing, and will do for us is another key to remaining in Christ.
Restored to God’s own Heart
The Bible describes King David as a person whose soul was eager to seek and honor God, and who sought to align his values, affections, and decisions with God’s commands. David loved hearing from the Lord in the Scriptures and talking to God in prayer.
Much of the time, David trusted the Lord more than his own desires, yet he also failed miserably. David committed wicked sins, including adultery and murder. But when confronted with his wrongs, David responded with deep, painful regret and repentance. He was eager to be restored to fellowship with God. In Psalm 51, we see his humble confession and prayer. By admitting his failures to his King and choosing to walk in God’s direction, David remained, abided, and continued with the Lord.7
The Apostle John wrote, “If anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”8
Frequent confessing and turning from our wrongs is still another key to remaining in Christ.
Hanging on in Troubled Times
When he wrote Psalm 63, David was in the Desert of Judah, heartbroken, thirsty, and desperate. His son Absalom’s armies were chasing David to kill him. By faith, David said,
You, God, are my God. Earnestly I seek You. I thirst for You, my whole being longs for You in a dry and parched land where there is no water… Because Your loving-kindness is better than life, my lips will glorify You. On my bed I remember You. I think of You through the watches of the night. Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your wings. I cling to You. Your right hand upholds me. (Psalm 63, excerpts)
Notice how God-focused David was. He showed us what abiding looks like. He glued himself to the Lord because he had no other Helper, no backup plan, no way out. David chose to remain with God when everything went wrong, because God was his only hope. In time, David received assurance, comfort, and encouragement from the Lord. As he hung on to God, Jesus’ strong, righteous hand secured and supported him. God rescued David many times, and He will do the same for us.
David said in another Psalm, “Show me Your ways, Lord. Teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long.”9 David wrote about half of the 150 Psalms we have in the Bible.
Notice how David stayed teachable, submissive, seeking, and waiting on the Lord. He lived near to God, but still wanted to be nearer. Abiding and remaining means we stay close to the Lord, who stays closer to us.
Prayer
Holy Spirit, help us to remain in Your Scriptures, the Old and New Testaments, so that we see Jesus’ glory, are transformed by Your truth, and live lives that please our Heavenly Father. Help us to do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of Christ’s believers. Help us abound in Your fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Help us to follow Christ and not to let the unbelieving world squeeze us into its mould. Keep us close to You and living in humble and joyful reliance on Jesus, the true Vine. Amen.10
Here’s a contemporary song that expresses some of these ideas:
You hear my cry, my deepest pain. You listen patiently as long as it takes.
You whisper truth over the lies, the words that bring me back to life.
You are the strength when I am weak, the only One that leads my soul to perfect peace.
And I will sing my way, through the night, the words that bring me back to life.
Everything’s going to be all right. Your love will be my song till all my fears are gone.
And I believe, oh I believe, You’re working all things for my good.11
Notes (various Bible translations): 1 The word “remain” does not directly come from the Greek word meno (μένω), but they share a deep common ancestor in Proto-Indo-European. 2 Job 12:22, 29:2-3. 3 This section paraphrases Pilgrim’s Progress: Updated, Modern English, Donna Sundblad, editor (2014), p. 73-76. 4 Ps 119: 52, 55. 5 John Newton, “Amazing Grace,” 1779. 6 Col 1:13-14. 7 David’s infamous sins with Bathsheba are recorded in 2 Samuel 11, and his repentance is seen in Psalm 51. 8 1 John 2:1-2. 9 Psalm 25:4-5. 10 Prayer expanded from kevinhalloran.net, Feb 3, 2026. 11 Ryan Ellis, Ben Cantelon, Ethan Hulse, “Gonna Be Alright,” 2022.