Abide- The Narrow Way of Relationship

The Holy Spirit has his way when every plan stays submitted to him. Order matters, preparation matters, and the schedule can be written down, but the bottom line still has to say, “subject to change by the leading of the Holy Spirit.” God is not looking for a service where somebody says, “Now it’s his turn,” because if it is only his turn, the wrong turn has already been taken. God wants the whole way.

The staff of Moses becomes the warning. The staff got Moses out of the wilderness, stood before Pharaoh, opened the sea, and brought water out of the rock. But when God said, “Speak to the rock,” Moses still reached for the stick. The stick season was over. God’s people were not supposed to keep looking at the stick, or the man holding it, or the old way God had moved. God wanted his people to hear his voice, obey the now word, and know the power of the spoken word.

The narrow way is walked one now at a time. Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” not “I was” or “I will be.” The broad way looks like a highway, but it leads to destruction. The straight gate and narrow way lead to life. The narrow way is not Jesus trying to take something good away. Jesus takes sickness, addiction, sorrow, pain, and burdens. The narrow way is not about restriction, it is about relationship.

The laser is powerful because it is focused. The river is strong because it has banks. Marriage is powerful because two lives remain together. The believer is powerful because the branch abides in Christ. Peter walked on the water because Jesus said, “Come,” not because the water changed. Moses failed because he acted from yesterday’s instruction instead of today’s word.

John 15 brings the whole thing back to abiding. Jesus says, “I am the true vine,” and the Father prunes every fruitful branch so that it may bear more fruit. Abiding means remaining, dwelling, continuing, making a home. Jesus is not asking to be a Motel 6, an Airbnb, or a spare room in the house. Jesus is the bridegroom, not a roommate.

The towel picture shows what relationship really means. Knowing someone means learning their ways, even when the old way feels easier. The believer has to keep going back to the source, even for truths that sound familiar. Matthew 7 joins the same truth: the house must be built on the rock, not the sand of religion, feelings, or success. Jesus cares about the destination, but he also cares about the ride. Every mile with him is an opportunity to know him better.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Stick season must end God may use a staff for a season, but yesterday’s tool can become today’s disobedience. Moses was not rejected because the staff had never worked, but because God had given a new word. Faithfulness means staying sensitive enough to hear when God says, “Speak,” even if hitting the rock used to work. [54:55]
• 2. The narrow way is relationship The narrow way is not Jesus building a life of petty restrictions. Jesus narrows the path the way banks strengthen a river and focus gives power to a laser. The limits of Christ are not cages, but the shape of communion, fruitfulness, and life. [52:21]
• 3. Abiding means making home Abiding is more than visiting Jesus when need gets loud. It means remaining, dwelling, continuing, and giving him the whole house, not just a room in the back. A life that abides does not treat Christ like temporary lodging, but like the true home of the soul. [63:07]
• 4. Pruning proves the Father’s care The Father may cut what seems fruitful because he sees farther than the branch can see. Fruit can be real and still need pruning so that more fruit can come. Trust grows when the believer stops accusing the knife and starts recognizing the vinedresser. [58:49]
• 5. Jesus cares about the ride Heaven is the destination, but Jesus is also interested in the journey there. The presence of Christ is not only the ticket at the end, but the companion in every mile, every turn, every slowdown, and every “now.” Abiding means not wasting the ride by scrolling through life while Jesus is right there.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [36:12] - Letting the Holy Spirit Lead
• [38:25] - The Schedule Is Subject to Change
• [40:34] - Moses, the Staff, and the Old Way
• [42:19] - Stop Looking at the Stick
• [46:50] - The Narrow Way, One Now at a Time
• [49:06] - Jesus Speaks About the Straight Gate
• [52:21] - Narrow Is Relationship, Not Restriction
• [53:30] - Peter Walks on the Word “Come”
• [57:17] - Staying on the Narrow Way
• [58:06] - John 15 and the True Vine
• [63:07] - Abiding Means Making a Home
• [66:16] - Learning His Ways Like Folding Towels
• [71:29] - Does Jesus Have the Whole House?
• [74:27] - Building on Rock, Not Sand
• [77:05] - Jesus Cares About the Journey
• [86:59] - Prayer to Abide in Christ

Bible Reading

John 15:1-5
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 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.” [58:06]

Matthew 7:13-14
“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” [49:17]

Numbers 20:7-12
“And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.’ And Moses took the staff from before the LORD, as he commanded him. Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, ‘Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?’ And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.’”

Matthew 7:24-25
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” [01:14:54]

Observation questions

1. In Numbers 20, what did God tell Moses to do to the rock, and what did Moses actually do instead?
2. In Matthew 7:13-14, what two ways are set before people, and where does each way lead? [49:33]
3. In John 15:1-5, what words or pictures are used to describe the relationship between the Father, Jesus, and believers?
4. What are some of the pictures used to show why narrowness can be life-giving rather than limiting: a laser, a river, marriage, and a branch? [52:21]

Interpretation questions

1. Moses used a tool that had worked before, but it became disobedience when God gave a new word. What does that show about the danger of relying on yesterday’s instruction when God is speaking something fresh today? [54:55]
2. Jesus says the narrow way leads to life. If the narrow way is relationship and not mere restriction, how does that change the way a person hears commands that first feel limiting? [52:21]
3. John 15 says fruitful branches are pruned so they can bear more fruit. How might pruning be an expression of the Father’s care rather than a sign of his distance? [58:49]
4. Building on the rock means hearing Jesus’ words and doing them. What is the difference between a life built on Christ and a life built on religion, feelings, or outward success? [01:16:12]

Application questions

1. “Stick season” must end at some point. Is there any old method, old habit, or old way of responding to God that once helped but may now be keeping you from obeying his present voice? [55:31]
2. Abiding means making a home with Jesus, not just visiting him when life gets hard. If Jesus were to walk through the “rooms” of daily life right now—thoughts, time, money, relationships, private habits—which room would most need to be opened wider to him? [01:11:29]
3. The narrow way is walked one “now” at a time. Where is there a strong pull right now to live in regret over the past or anxiety about the future instead of listening for what Jesus is saying today? [47:21]
4. Pruning can be painful even when it is loving. Has there been anything good, fruitful, or familiar that was cut back in this season? What might it look like to trust the vinedresser instead of resisting the knife? [59:02]
5. Knowing someone includes learning their ways, even in small things. What helps you slow down enough to recognize the ways of Jesus again when you have gotten spiritually distracted or unsure? [01:07:53]
6. Jesus is not a roommate who shares an address; he is the bridegroom who wants living fellowship. What does it look like for you, in plain everyday terms, to enjoy his presence instead of only talking to him in emergencies? [01:09:31]
7. Jesus cares not only about the destination but also about the ride. During an ordinary week—driving, working, cleaning, resting, waiting—when do you most often “scroll through life” instead of taking that moment as an opportunity to be with him? [01:21:26]