Here is an interesting factoid I came across while reading a Biblical commentary:
"One of the apostle John's favorite Greek words to describe the nature of a believer's relationship with God was 'meno.' Most often translated as 'remain,' 'abide,' 'live,' or 'continue,' this word occurs 112 times in the New Testament. Of these occurrences, 66 are found in the writings of John (40 in the Gospel of John, 23 in I John, and three in II John).
"Some scholars have suggested that 'meno' actually signifies something beyond simple fellowship with God. The progression is given as: 1. knowledge of God; 2. fellowship with God; 3. abiding in God. Clearly, John desired the deepest possible relationship between God and His children."
I really struggle with the third part of that progression.
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2 comments:
Very good post! I also struggle with 'abiding in God'. I had not even considered such a progression beyond fellowship with God. I am familiar with John 15:5 where Jesus states "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing" and I have considered the verb "abide" but I guess it got too complicated for me and I left it at "apart from" Him I "can do nothing".
Very good thought-provoking post!
Last Friday, I purchased the Penguin Classics edition of St. Augustine's "City of God." I've made my to page 587 (out of 1091 total pages). Talk about "thought-provoking" ... indeed.
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