1 John 4:4
4You, little children, are from God and have overcome them, because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.
In this world of bad news, it’s good to know you’re on the side overcoming the bad news. However, you’re only on that side, if you’re living the life.
John 15:4 -7 “ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
But how can one abide in the vine? It takes effort. Well, the Parable of the Sower gives an idea of what effort is needed daily.
Mathew 13:1-8
13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.
Basically, this is saying that if you can resist persecution (the rocky soil) and temptations of the world (the thorns), then you can be a successful Christian (the good soil). It’s as simple as that, but not so simple. As noted, it’s something requiring real effort.
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