Day 335 Bible Reading

1 John 3: 6 and 9 (ESV)

“No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.”

“No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.”

What struck me about these two lines from 1 John 3 is the word “abide”. From the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word “abide” has these meanings:

As an Intransitive verb (no direct object needed

 -      to remain stable or fixed in a state

 -   to continue in a place - SOJOURN

Using these definitions, the lines would read “No one who [is fixed] on God can keep on sinning” and “For God’s seed is [stable] in a believer, and they cannot keep on sinning because they have been born of God.”

I like the idea that as a believer “God’s seed” is stable and fixed on me, so even when I sin or dwell in darkness, God will help me to come to the light. But as a believer, I have to do my part and be “fixed” on God by reading his words and the Bible, by meditating and praying to him, and keeping him always at the forefront of my mind in all my decisions. The seed of God is within me to help me, but like any plant that seed needs to be watered to grow and thrive.