Experiencing the abiding love of Christ

My research into Ellen White’s views on “Christ’s abiding love” reveals she first used the phrase in a manuscript dated February 16, 1893, from New Zealand.¹ The context surprised me with the practical, life-relevant application of her words. In her letter to the church in Battle Creek, she stressed the members’ mistreatment of widows and orphans, as well as the neglect of youth and children. She admonished them for lacking “the grace of God to administer to their necessities in tender, pitying love for Christ’s sake”.²

In short, she focused on what matters to God: the value of human life. Then, she voiced her motherly plea regarding the members’ lack of Christ-like efforts for her son, Edson White.  

Who had ever come to his side in love for his soul? Who has conversed with him in real, deep earnestness, evidencing a lively interest to save his soul? His soul is precious in the sight of God, but who has taken any genuine burden in his case? Who has the tender sympathy of a father in Israel? He is in the enemy’s snare, but who has the interest to save him?³

In this context, Ellen White stressed the believers’ need to understand the abiding love of Jesus. For her, this involved grasping the mind of Christ and reflecting the tenderness, sympathy and kindness. She expressed a similar sentiment in an article published in Signs of the Times on July 3, 1893. “In contemplating the matchless charms of Jesus, in realising the light of his presence by faith, we have a foretaste of the joy of the heavenly world.”⁴ She continued to highlight its life-energising qualities: “He who cherishes the softening, subduing influence of the love of God, will not be coarse and rough and unforgiving, revengeful and full of bitterness. The true Christian will make his home a type of heavenly home, and this he can do only as he has the abiding love of Christ in his soul.”⁵

Again, the phrase abiding love appeared in an article entitled “Cheering Words for Mothers”, published in Bible Echo on September 1, 1893. She began the article by expressing unreserved trust in Christ’s loving care. “Jesus knows the burden of every mother’s heart. He is her best friend in every emergency. His everlasting arms support the God-fearing, faithful mother.”⁶  Again, her words focused on a home environment. “The prayers of Christian mothers are not disregarded by the Father of all, who sent His Son to the earth to ransom a people for Himself. He will not turn away your petitions . . .”⁷ She continued:

The true Christian will make his home a type of the heavenly home, and this he can do only as he has the abiding love of Christ in his soul. Souls about us are perishing for sympathy which is never expressed . . . As the heavenly home would not be a home of bliss without the presence of Christ, neither can the earthly home be a happy one without his abiding love.⁸

I wonder why such emotive words were prominent during her ministry in Australia and what the phrase “abiding love” meant for Ellen White. 

First, she described the early days of her stay in Australia as the time of “the most terrible suffering of my whole life”.⁹ Constant pain limited her ability to work, and the prognosis put forth by the doctor indicated she would never be able to walk again. The intensity of her suffering fuelled her reliance on God. “I am thankful I had this experience because I am better acquainted with my precious Saviour. All through my sickness, His love, His tender compassion, was my comfort, my continual strength.”¹⁰  

Second, her maternal love longed for the conversion of her son Edson. On June 21, 1893, she penned a heartfelt letter, which he received at a crucial moment in his spiritual journey. Edson replied on August 10, 1893, sharing the details of his conversion. “I have surrendered fully and completely and have never enjoyed life as much as I do now.”¹¹  

In the article “Cheering Words for Mothers”, she used the phrase “abiding love”. Even though, at this stage, she may not have received Edson’s reply, I suggest the vision she received on June 21 inspired her to write to her son spiritually inspirational and comforting words. She reflected on the depth of Christ’s affinity with the trauma of human life. Consequently, her words seemed to flow from the lips of a heartbroken mother who experienced the touch of Christ’s abiding love and assuring presence in her personal life. She wrote, “He who gave back to the widow her only son as he was carried to the burial, is touched today by the woe of the bereaved mother.”¹² In this context, she referred to Christ’s abiding love as of the One who is “woman’s best friend today, and ready to aid her if she trusts Him”.¹³

So, what did Christ’s abiding love signify for Ellen White? During the agonising moments of her illness and struggles as a mother, grasping the depth of Christ’s abiding love inspired her to envision its practical relevance in the milieu of Christian life. “Through Jesus Christ, households are to have blissful harmony and unity, and parents are to live together in peace and love, neither speaking nor thinking evil of one another. Parents and children are to be kind, forbearing, forgiving, having hearts softened by the grace of Christ.”¹⁴

However, it implied much more. When writing to Edson in September, she may not have known the outcome of her plea to her son, but her words conveyed the joy of hopeful expectations and unreserved trust in the assuring promise of Christ’s abiding love.¹⁵

No wonder she wrote, “The prayers of Christian mothers are not disregarded by the Father of all, who sent His Son to the earth to ransom people for Himself. He will not turn away your petitions.”¹⁶

For Ellen White, experiencing the assurance of Christ’s abiding love created a space for sharing tears and grappling with various frustrations, anxiety, emotional pain, anger and sleepless nights. The depth of such intimate, trust-oriented communion with God surrounds human life with a new vision and conjures a new heightened level of spiritual responsiveness to human needs. She noted it “deepens our efforts to promote the happiness of those around us”.¹⁷

Understanding the depth of Christ’s abiding love was not a dry theory but a life-transforming power that enabled faith to survive immense disappointments, particularly during the seeming absence of God’s presence. In her mind, abiding love describes an enduring and unchanging quality of love, an attitude that persists through all life challenges. It generates a mindset that fosters the wellbeing of people needing comfort and encouragement. In other words, Christ-like sharing of hope in a messed-up world. 

1. Ellen White, Ms 32, 1893.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Ellen White, “Seek Those Things Which Are Above”, Signs of the Times (July 3, 1893).
5. Ibid., 2.
6. Ellen White, “Cheering Words for Mothers”, Bible Echo (September 1, 1893).
7. Ibid.
8. Ibid.
9. Ellen White, Manuscript 75, 1891.
10. Ibid.
11. Edson White, August 10, 1893.
12. Ibid.
13. Ibid.
14. Ellen White, Signs of the Times (July 3, 1893).
15. Given the distance and time required for the correspondence to reach America, the article was likely written when Ellen White’s thoughts were published in the MS on February 16, 1893, or just before that date.
16. Ellen White, Bible Echo (September 1, 1893).
17. Ellen White, Signs of the Times (July 3, 1893).

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Dr John Skrzypaszek is an adjunct senior lecturer at Avondale Seminary.