Our Home is in the Master

I had two thoughts, totally separate from each other, which I am going to fuse together in this post, because they do that really well.

The first one I had a long time ago, which stemmed from John 15, which has a whole section in which Jesus talks about Himself as being a vine, and we are the branches. I'll just pick a couple verses to highlight, but you should really read this whole thing, cause it's worthwhile.

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (John‬ ‭15:5)

“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.” (John‬ ‭15:9‬)

I have always thought of the word "abide," in this passage, to mean something like "stay," or some translations even say "remain." This isn't wrong, it means both of those things, but it really struck me a while ago as I thought about it that "abide" really means to "live" somewhere. Not just to breathe and be living, but to dwell, to reside somewhere.

When God says He wants us to abide in Him, He means He wants us to make Him our home. To abide in His love is not just to stay in His love, but to stay AT HOME in His love.

Home is where you are most comfortable, it's the place you always come back to, it's the place you can fully be yourself, and it's your shelter. Your protection. Anything outside of your home is foreign but anything IN your home is safe. This is what God wants to be for us. Home.

The other thought I had just this morning came from Psalm 27.

“One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple." (Psalms‬ ‭27:4‬)

"That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life."

At first I thought about being in the Lord's presence all the days of my life, ("all the days," by the way, means ALL the days. Not just when I get to heaven, but to live in His presence on earth.) But then I realized that dwelling in the house of the Lord means more than just living in His presence.

It means living in a home that He is the master of.

If I am going to live under my parent's roof, I have to follow their rules. I have to be respectful of what they want done in their house, and honour the virtues that they uphold. If I want to be a representation of the household I live in, I am not only going to obey their rules, but I am going to conform to them. I'm going to take to heart the correction and teaching they give me so that their values become my values, so that my heart looks like their heart.

This is what it means to dwell in the house of the Lord. Every Christian I come in contact with is another beloved child of the Master of the house, and should be treated as such. Every unbeliever I come in contact with, is like a guest of the Master of the house, and should be treated as such.

I am living under His authority and protection, and He gives me freedom as well as responsibility, as a Father does who trusts His daughter, I need to recognize this, and honour Him.
He is my father, my friend, and the Master and Authority of this house. He deserves my respect,my love, and my allegiance.

 I'm just going to add another verse to help tie the two concepts together.

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?” (I Corinthians‬ ‭6:19‬)

Not only can we dwell in the house of the Lord, and be at home in His presence, but Jesus says "He who abides in Me and I in him, bears much fruit..."

We live and make our  home in Him, but He also lives and makes His home in us. This is not to say that we are the master over Him since He "lives in our home," because when we surrendered to the saving power of Christ we gave Him authority in every area of our life! No, rather it is to say that He is Lord over all. Our physical realm to which He has been invited, and His spiritual realm to which we have been invited, He is Master of both.