Tag Archives: abide

August 19, 2026 · 10:06 am

The Joy of the Whole Earth: Psalm 48 and the New Jerusalem

The Mountain of God and the End Declared from the Beginning

Psalm 48 stands as one of Scripture’s luminous windows into the destiny of God’s children. It is a psalm where the earthly Zion becomes translucent, revealing the heavenly Zion behind it—the New Jerusalem, descending from God out of heaven. The psalmist sings of a city whose glory exceeds the boundaries of history, whose permanence defies the rise and fall of nations, and whose beauty anticipates the consummation of all things.

“Great is Yahweh, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in His holy mountain.” (Ps. 48:1)

This is not merely a celebration of ancient Jerusalem. It is a prophetic declaration of the end from the beginning. The psalmist beholds Zion not only as she was, but as she shall be—established forever, radiant with divine presence, the joy of the whole earth.

The earthly city was the shadow; the heavenly city is the substance. Psalm 48 is the Spirit’s whisper of Revelation 21 long before John saw the city descending in glory.

II. Beautiful for Elevation: The Joy of the Whole Earth

The psalmist continues: “Beautiful for elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion… the city of the great King” (Ps. 48:2). No earthly Jerusalem has ever been the joy of the whole earth. But New Jerusalem is described precisely this way: “The nations of them which are saved shall walk in her light” (Rev. 21:24).

Psalm 48 lifts our eyes beyond geography to eschatology [having to do with the time of the end].  Zion’s “elevation” is not merely topographical—it is spiritual, eternal, and cosmic. It is the city where God dwells with humanity, where righteousness reigns, where the Lamb is the lamp, and where the redeemed abide forever. The psalmist sees what Abraham saw: a city whose builder and maker is God.

III. God Known in Her Palaces: The Manifest Presence

Psalm 48:3 declares: “God is known in her palaces as a refuge.” This anticipates the climactic promise of Revelation: “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them.” (Rev. 21:3) In the earthly Zion, God was known through temple rituals, sacrifices, and shadows. In the New Jerusalem, God is known face‑to‑face. His presence is not mediated through priests or altars; it is immediate, radiant, and abiding.

This is the fulfillment of the abiding promise:

  • “Abide in Me, and I in you.” (John 15:4)
  • “We will come to him and make Our abode with him.” (John 14:23)

Psalm 48 sings of a city where abiding becomes permanent, unbroken, and glorified.

IV. The Kings of the Earth and the Terror of Glory

Psalm 48:4–6 describes a mysterious scene: “The kings assembled… they saw it and were troubled… fear took hold upon them.” This is not merely historical memory. It is prophetic foreshadowing.

The kings of the earth will one day behold the unveiled glory of God’s city and tremble. Revelation 6 echoes this: “The kings of the earth… hid themselves… for the great day of His wrath is come.” Psalm 48 anticipates the final confrontation between the kingdoms of this world and the kingdom of our God. Zion stands immovable; the nations tremble. The city of abiding becomes the city of judgment, where divine righteousness is revealed and human pride collapses.

V. The Ships of Tarshish and the East Wind of Judgment

Psalm 48:7: “With the east wind You break the ships of Tarshish.” Tarshish represents the farthest reaches of human commerce, strength, and ambition. The east wind symbolizes divine intervention—swift, sovereign, irresistible.

In the eschatological vision, all human systems that exalt themselves against God are shattered. The New Jerusalem is not built by human hands; it is established by divine decree. The psalmist sees the collapse of earthly power before the rising of heavenly glory.

VI. “God Will Establish Her Forever”: Eternal Zion

Psalm 48:8 proclaims: “God will establish her forever.” Earthly Jerusalem has been destroyed, rebuilt, besieged, and divided. Only the New Jerusalem fits the description of a city established forever.

Revelation 21:2: “The holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven.” Psalm 48 is not nostalgia; it is prophecy. It is the Spirit’s assurance that the dwelling place of God will one day be unshakable, eternal, and filled with His abiding presence.

VII. Walking About Zion: The Pilgrimage of the Redeemed

Psalm 48:12–13 invites: “Walk about Zion… consider her towers… tell it to the generation following.” This is not mere sightseeing. It is covenantal inheritance. In the New Jerusalem, the redeemed will walk its streets, behold its foundations, marvel at its gates, and drink from its river. They will see the architecture of salvation, the geometry of grace, the symmetry of divine wisdom. The psalmist’s invitation is eschatological: Come, behold the city prepared for the abiding ones.

VIII. “He Will Guide Us Over Death”: The Promise of Resurrection

Psalm 48 concludes: “For this is God, our God forever and ever; He will guide us over death.”

The Hebrew phrase for “over death” carries the sense of being led through death or beyond death. It is resurrection language. The God of Zion is the God who leads His people through the valley of the shadow into the light of eternal life. The New Jerusalem is the city where death is abolished: “There shall be no more death.” (Rev. 21:4) Psalm 48 ends with resurrection hope—just as Revelation ends with resurrection reality.

IX. Zion and the Theology of Abiding

Psalm 48 is not merely about a city; it is about a people in whom God dwells. Zion is the eschatological expression of abiding. It is the consummation of John 15, the fulfillment of John 14:23, and the eternal realization of Emmanuel—God with us.

In Zion:

  • Abiding becomes permanent.
  • Presence becomes visible.
  • Judgment becomes righteous.
  • Pilgrimage becomes inheritance.
  • Death becomes passage.
  • God becomes all in all.

Psalm 48 is the song of the abiding ones, the anthem of the redeemed, the prophecy of the city where God and humanity dwell together forever.

X. Conclusion: The City of Our God, Forever and Ever

Psalm 48 is a glimpse into the future of the people of God. It is a prophetic vision of the New Jerusalem, the city of abiding, the joy of the whole earth. It declares the end from the beginning, revealing the destiny of those who dwell in God and in whom God dwells.

This is our God. This is our city. This is our inheritance. This is abiding, consummated and glorified. kwh

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May 8, 2025 · 7:53 am

The Anointing, the Abiding, the Additions

Before we can receive God’s indwelling Spirit, we must understand three crucial concepts found in scripture: the anointing, the additions, and the abiding.

We learned earlier that Christ has given us several new commandments regarding what we need to do. One of these is to “purge out the old leaven.” Christ warns us five times to beware of the old leaven, which represents the sins, falsehoods, untruths, and errors in the teachings of old man Adam.

Old leaven symbolizes mankind’s sinful nature and the misleading concepts that lead to spiritual death. Understanding sin and its removal through Christ’s crucifixion is essential. Dying with Christ and believing in His resurrection allows us to live anew in Him. When we believe that He rose from the dead after three days and three nights, we also believe that we have risen with Him. His faith becomes our faith in Him.

The abiding of us in His Spirit and His Spirit in us happens through our reckoning it so (Rom. 6:11). The abiding is Christ’s life “made manifest in our mortal flesh.” By faith in His word and His promises, we acknowledge it to be as He says. We may count it done because He has decreed it accomplished.

Christ instructs us to purge out the old leaven to receive God’s anointing, as His word is truth. After our spiritual death and resurrection with Him (Romans 6:1-12), we still carry faults and errors—seeds of old leaven. As we begin, through His strength, to eliminate these false teachings, Christ starts to anoint us. This spiritual anointing is truth (I John 2:27). Christ’s Spirit takes up residence in us gradually—not all at once—as we get rid of erroneous concepts and abide in Him.

The Anointing:

God anoints prepared vessels who have purged out the old leaven, which symbolizes falsehoods. When we purge the old leaven teachings, God will anoint us with more truth. By us eliminating falsehoods, God reveals more and more truths to us. We must remember that it’s the “unsearchable riches of Christ.”

Christ’s words are truth. He said, “Thy word is truth…I am the way, the truth and the life.” And this word (Logos) is the precept of Oneness. We heard it at the beginning, before anything else existed; we dwelled in Him and He in us. It’s “the word which ye have heard from the beginning.” That word is the Oneness of Agape Love—us in Him and He in us all.

It is the oneness of the Father in the Son, and this truth abides in us; we are members of the Son’s body. The anointing = the truth = the Holy Spirit of Truth = God. The additions to the faith are seven facets of God’s divine nature to be added to the Son’s faith that we now have (II Peter 1:1-12).

All of the above are the steps He has laid out to fulfill His purpose: To reproduce Himself—in us.

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November 23, 2024 · 10:17 am

Guarding the Logos

As Christians, we have feelings for Christ. We see His love for us, and it touches our hearts. But do we love Him the way He desires us to? Let us learn from the Master Teacher how to love Him more deeply.

Christ said, “If a man love Me, he will keep my words” (John 14:23). Let’s dive a bit deeper. Let’s focus on the words “keep” and “words.”

“Keep” is translated from the Greek word that means “to guard from attacks.” The word “words” is translated from the word logos. This is the same “logos” used in the famous verse of John 1:1. “In the beginning was the Logos…and the Logos was God.” The logos is the mind of Christ. It is His thoughts and words of His purpose and plan.

Therefore, Christ is saying, If a man loves Me, he will guard the logos; he will guard the Word, the mind of Christ, from any assaults from the enemy. He will stand guard against any attack on His thoughts and His mind. Guarding the logos means not allowing the enemy to sully His purpose and plan.

Starting with Our Own Minds

And it starts with us. First, we must start by guarding our own minds from the attacks of the devil. This entails putting on the “whole armor of God.” We, with the Spirit’s help, must start “casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (II Cor. 10:5). This is guarding the Logos.

Since we are to have the same mind of Christ, we are to guard His thoughts that are developing within our own mind. We do this through purging and pruning away old false concepts about Him. We then begin to share the truth by the Holy Spirit. This truth is found in His thoughts concerning His kingdom.

The mind of Christ is the Logos. It is the whole plan and purpose of God. We are to guard this truth, this Logos, in our own minds and then protect it as we grow spiritually for His sake. He said, “If a man loves Me, he will keep [guard] my words [logos]…” He is saying, The person who loves Me will watch, guard and protect the Logos. He will stand watch and guard the mind of Christ. By this, we show Him our belief and dedication to His cause. This is us abiding in Him.

When we guard the Logos, then something wonderful happens. Christ says, “And My Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him” (Jn 14:23). This is God abiding in us.

First, it is us abiding in Him. This opens the door to Him abiding in us. Again, this glorious presence happens when Christ sees us guarding His logos, when He sees us “keep His words.”     

Kenneth Wayne Hancock

[If you have read this article to the end, you must like the content. Please hit the like button; I’d like to know how many have read these words of truth. Yes, the Spirit is taking us into deeper living water. He did say that the Spirit of truth “will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). This essay will soon become a chapter in the new book that we are working on, called The Abiding. I hope you enjoyed the preview. Meanwhile, get all crazy and make a comment or send me an email. Tell me what you think about it. Ask a question. Start a dialogue. I would love to know better the “few there be to find” life (Mat. 7:14).]

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March 28, 2024 · 7:43 am

Reconciliation and the Abiding/Continuing

We must continue to believe that Christ through His death has reconciled everyone and has made peace between God and mankind.

That is the truth. The Father is the Spirit of truth. There is one Spirit, and He dwelled in the Son and did miraculous works (Eph. 4:4; John 14:10). Christ promises that the Father “shall be in you,” also (14: 17).

This promise is astounding! But what is the catch? What activates this promise of the Father taking up residence in us? What knowledge brings the promise into a reality in our Christian lives?

We need to know that it is a conditional promise; it sets up like this: If you do this and this, then He will abide in you. The promise is that the Father, who is this invisible Spirit, will come and dwell in us—if we continue in the faith. If we abide in the faith. If we dwell in the faith. If we remain in the faith. If we continue in the faith.

Faith. Belief. In what exactly? There is a whole lot of invisible action going on here. It takes faith to believe that the invisible Creator Spirit God would take up residence inside our bodies. But this is what He is asking us to do—trust Him. To maintain the Father’s presence in our hearts in a powerful reality, we must “continue in the faith.”

We see “continue in the faith” in Colossians 1:23. “If indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard…” The thing we must continue to believe is that Christ through His death has reconciled everyone and has made peace between God and mankind (Col. 2:20-22).

That sounds wonderful, but Christ’s death and the reconciliation involves so much more. The question becomes: How does His death bring about reconciliation with God? Reconciliation comes through our old sinful self dying on the cross with Christ. Then we are buried with Christ, and then by faith in His resurrection “we are raised to walk in a newness of life.”  Our sin has died with Him. “The soul that sins must die,” the law says. We fulfill that at the cross.

The Spirit through the apostle Paul lines this out clearly. “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin–because anyone who has died has been set free from sin” (Romans 6:3-7 NIV).

Christ the Lamb of God took on the sins of everyone. “He was made to be sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). Our sins died with the sacrificial Lamb, for He carried our guilt and sin to the cross, and when He died, our old sinful self died, was buried, and—Praise Yah—was resurrected with Him!

[Someone reading this will say, “I knew that about the cross.” Yes, many have experienced the cross, but can they teach it to others? Is your belief of Romans 6 strong enough to weather the storms and trials both past and future?]

Back to the beginning of this article: Reconciliation with God is when we are at peace with Him, when there are no doubts and worries about our relationship with Him. For it was the sin nature that separated us from Him. When we realize that our sinful old self has already died on the cross with Him, things begin to clear up. The scriptures open to us. Things make sense.

This clarity He honors and reveals more of His truth. Reconciliation with God happens if we “continue/abide in the faith.” If we continue believing what He did for you and me at the cross and walking in that truth as seen in Romans 6: 3-12, then we will be ready through reconciliation to go deeper by adding His “divine nature” to the faith. [The Additions to the Faith is my latest book. Peter talks of seven additions that are vital to our growth in Christ (II Peter 1:1-12). If you have read this far, I know that this book is for you. The book is free with free shipping. It is my offering to God. Instead of money in an offering plate, I give a book to you…Please share your testimony in the comments section. It is very edifying to hear how God has touched your life.  Be sure and share this and give us a “like,” if we have edified you].    Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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November 3, 2021 · 9:55 am

The Abiding—Christ in You and You in Him

The Abiding is the most precious spiritual pose that we could ever be in. The Abiding is a two way street. Yes, He has promised that He would abide/stay/remain/continue in us. He has commanded us to abide in Him. But first we must abide/stay/remain/continue in Him (John 15:4-5).

How does one abide in Him and Him in us? First, we must be free from error about Him. He is the Truth [“I am the way, the truth and the life…”]. We cannot cling to any false conceptions about Christ and expect Christ the Truth to abide in us. This means that we must tune out the distractions of the world. We must turn a deaf ear to the tired erroneous platitudes of the false church and its teachings. We must abide in His thoughts and teachings and continue in His concepts and precepts. In order to abide and continue in Him, we must get rid of false teachings and concepts about Him.

If we do not, then these false concepts, like yeast, will spread all through the lump of dough that is destined to become the bread that feeds the minds of His followers. Tainted bread. Not good. Christ warns us about the old leaven. “Purge out the old leaven,” we are commanded, “that the lump may be holy.” The Spirit of Truth cannot come and abide in us if our thoughts about Him are tainted with the false concepts of man’s wisdom. The Spirit of Truth will not share a body with false doctrines. They do not mix.

It’s a War

Getting rid of the false doctrines is a real battle. It is an all-out war as we struggle face to face with our enemy, the devil. But it is all so deceptive. How are we to know which teachings are true and which are false? The answer, of course, is in the Scriptures of Truth.

But knowing that the truth is found in the Bible is obviously not enough to not be deceived. It takes studying the word of God. But that is not enough. It takes studying for the right reasons. Studying just for knowledge’s sake is not it. We need to examine ourselves according to the written word in order to purge out the old leaven teachings. It is the only way of getting rid of false teachings.

But it takes a heaven-sent strength to look in the mirror and tell yourself that you have been wrong about God and His plan. Ferreting out falsehoods in our belief system is like when you as a kid first began to see that Santa Claus was not real. You had to either renounce the whole idea or play along with the adults who had perpetuated the myth. As a child that lacked strength to swim against the stream of falsehoods, you for a time played their game. But now that you have become a spiritual adult, you have put away the myths of childhood. It is the same scenario with all of the false doctrines.

It is a war, and we need to arm ourselves with the thoughts of the mind of Christ. We must “put on the whole armor of God” if we are to survive this war. Those who continue to “play church” will be left out in the cold as the five foolish virgins were (Matthew 25:1-13). We must study out the old leaven false doctrines and the armor of God that protects us from their deception. [For more on this, order my latest book The Eleventh Commandment. It is free with free shipping Free Copy of The Eleventh Commandment | Immortality Road (wordpress.com) .

What Stunts the Growth of the Overcomers?

And when we get rid of old leaven doctrines and arm our minds with His thoughts, Christ takes note and has promised to abide in us! He has promised in that same holy word that He would come down and inhabit us with His Spirit! He has promised to live in us and walk in us, and use our mouths to speak to those out there struggling. I know that you long for power to do apostolic works like healing the sick and standing for righteous justice for all the world. This must take place first.

Many readers of this blog have already made stupendous strides of spiritual growth. You have already had several experiences that have proven to you that God is your loving Father. You have grown, but perhaps lately some have hit a plateau where they feel they are just not getting closer to the “mark of the prize of the high calling…” Something is stunting their growth. I submit that it could be the old leaven concepts that need to be repented of [See Chapter 44, p. 166 in The Eleventh Commandment]. 

The Overcomers

Christ’s elect are chosen to be the overcomers who will sit with Christ on His throne (Rev. 3:21). That is the top of the mountain, the fulfillment of the highest calling. They will know firsthand of Christ’s precious love for them.

But to get to Christ’s throne, the elect will have to repent of several faults. Christ says that these Christians in this last Church Age of Laodicea are lukewarm in their works, neither cold nor hot. It is so distasteful to Him that He will spue them out of His mouth (3:15-16).

Those whom He has called during the time of the end, have hit a plateau of growth and have become half-hearted. They are not on fire for Christ like they use to be. They have tapered off. The vision has grown cold.

Christ explains why are they are lukewarm. “Because you say, ‘I am rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing.’ And you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked” (3:17). What a rebuke to the future overcomers who may—if they pass the test—enter Christ’s throne room four verses later. What’s their problem? “I am rich,” they say. This is not worldly riches. Christ said that His words are “spirit and they are life.” Lukewarm Christians think that they already know all they need to know about Christ. They are saying they have the truth and the others need to listen to them. They are like the Pharisees. It is religious pride; every denomination thinks that they are the true church.

Christ then gives the answer on how to repent of lukewarmness. “I counsel you to buy of Me  gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich, and white raiment that you may be clothed that the shame of your nakedness does not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that you may see” (3:18).

[Many Christians will stop right here and say to themselves that they don’t know what this is all about. Some are not willing to dig deep for the knowledge. Here is where studying should engage with a white hot desire to seek His wisdom and to know Him and His thoughts. Yes, ask Him to reveal what these terms mean: “gold tried in the fire.” Look at I Pet. 1:17 for a dot to connect to. “White raiment.” Study out “white” and “raiment” and “white raiment.” Look up these terms in the Greek and cross reference them with other Greek words. The English translators sometimes used three or four different English words taken from one Greek word. And “eye salve.” The blind are those who have not added the seven additions to the faith (I Peter 1:5-9). Look up blind and blindness. As you study hard, you will show Him that you mean business—His business.

Brothers and sisters, His government and kingdom is real, and it is coming, and He has planned to share with us His administration. We are auditioning for a job as a helper, an administrator, a prince or princess, an ambassador, a governor—you get the idea. This is real! He will not promote us to be His officers under Him if we do not study all of this out. Any other way borders on lukewarm child’s play.

If we are aspiring to the throne to sit with Him ruling this earth, we better “prove all things.” Do not take my word for any thing that I write. Do not take your preacher’s word for it. Ask Him to inhabit your mind; take His word and eat it, all of it, and do not look back. Make it yours. Prove it out to yourself.

If Christ’s rebuke seems a little too harsh, remember this: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous, therefore, and repent” (Rev. 3:19). We are here and have been rebuked by Christ for our religious pride. And because some have not studied out their shortcomings, He has issued this rebuke. But the rebuke proves His love for us. Only the ones He has chosen to come to His throne will get this rebuke. The others will not be able to see, for they are blind and need the eye salve. If you have hit rough times and you are feeling His lash, smile and know that He loves you.

He is looking for a few people who will answer the challenge to become just like our Creator, to have the same purpose, plan and power to make it all happen. Who among us will receive with humility His rebuke? Who will study out their faults as per His direction? Who will repent and praise Him for His love?

Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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