And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

1 John 2: 3-6

Today, I have been thinking about the last thought in the passage above. In the Gospel of John, Jesus spoke of the importance of abiding in Him. What does He mean for us to do when we abide?

The second theme of John’s first epistle is obedience and that is one of the words used to describe abiding. When we really “know Him” and love Him, we will comply with His commandments. We will stay in His presence and when we abide with Him our character will conform to His. We will know and apply His word to every aspect of our lives and as we walk His way, the love of God inside of us will grow.

When asked about the greatest commandments, Jesus responded that we should love God and we should love others (Matthew 22:37-39). If we say we love Christ, shouldn’t our actions prove our belief?