Abiding in the PsalmsSample

Remain in Him

Paul prays this prayer over the Philippians in his letter to them. It is a beautiful prayer and one that we can learn a lot from. Paul had a close relationship with the Philippians; he knew a lot about them and the way that they worshipped, their theology and how they treated each other. 

The love that Paul is talking about is not a blind love. It was a love that had knowledge and discernment, it was a love that was pure and blameless. 

How can we have this kind of love?

Love is a fruit of the Spirit and in John 15, it speaks about how we can attain this fruit. 

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain 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.

To bear this type of fruit, we must remain in Jesus. We must look to Jesus and the way He loved in order to love properly and wholeheartedly. The love that Jesus displayed to those who He encountered was like no other, and the love He displayed on the cross was a love that conquered death. Let’s pray that we can love the way that Jesus loved, because the way Jesus loved changed the world, and we must point to the One who changes hearts and who changed eternities. 

Questions

Who can you be praying this prayer over?

How can you love those around you with knowledge and depth of insight?

Pray

Father, help me to be filled with your love, so that I can go and love others as an overflow of the love I receive from you. Amen.