Word connections…
I always find word connections and origins interesting, and discovering them often opens up a whole new depth of meanings and associations. Look for a moment at a key word in Elder Don’s message this past Sunday.
He began his message by reminding us of the very basic obligation of every believer to Abide in Christ. I commented on this in Monday’s blog.
From the Online Etymology Dictionary…
abide (v.)
Old English abidan, gebidan “remain, wait, wait for, delay, remain behind,” from ge- completive prefix (denoting onward motion; see a- (1)) + bidan “bide, remain, wait, dwell” (see bide).
Originally intransitive (with genitive of the object: we abidon his “we waited for him”); transitive sense “endure, sustain, stay firm under,” also “tolerate, bear, put up with” (now usually with a negative) is from c. 1200. Related: Abided; abiding. The historical conjugation was abide, abode, abidden, but in Modern English the formation generally is weak. Abide with “stay with (someone); live with; remain in the service of” is from c. 1300.
“In Him we live and move and have our being,” cited Paul [Acts 17:28 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides]. In short, Paul is saying Christ is where we live — we abide in Him… He is our abode.
More word connections…
Bide = to endure, bear, wait it out.
Abide = to stay; continue in a place; be left.
Abode = where we abide.
Reside = to dwell permanently, or to remain for a long time.
The Christian is to bide his or her time on this earth while continuing to abide in Christ until He brings us to our heavenly home where we will reside forever.
Our abiding will strengthen us in our biding until the day of our residing. Of these three only one requires our disciplined attention – abiding.
“Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening… the Lord said… There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it…” (see Luke 10:38-42 – NLT)
Have you spent time listening to Him today? Are you abiding in Him right now? It’s the one thing you need to do.
Press on…
To hear Elder Don’s complete message, go to the Lincoln Baptist Church website and look under ‘Media’ for the Sept. 8 message.
thebrokenrunner 
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