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But his delight is in the law of
the Lord, and in his law
he meditates day and night. Psalm 1:2 NASB
There are many spiritual disciplines that make up
the life of a Christian: prayer, fasting, simplicity, study
and meditation,
to name a few. Some of these are more foundational than others.
Memorizing Scripture leading to Biblical meditation is one of these.
Biblical meditation is at the heart of
a life being transformed. Some might ask,
“I have been a Christian
for a long time;
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Artwork by Jan Darrow Geist.
...walk in a manner worthy of the calling…
Ephesians 4:1 NASB |
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why is my life so void of Christian
victory?” If this is the case for you, maybe you need to evaluate
how much of your life is devoted to biblical meditation. Without
biblical meditation, our minds do not have the spiritual food necessary
to be transformed. "Head knowledge" is knowing a lot of facts but not
having them
applied to the heart. Meditation is a key to unlocking "heart knowledge,"
where the Scriptures come alive within us and do the miraculous work of
changing us.
Biblical meditation is drastically
different than Eastern meditation. The former is based on filling one’s
mind, whereas Eastern meditation is based on emptying one’s mind. As
believers in Christ, we are told to set our minds on things above and to let our
minds dwell on whatever is true, honorable, right, pure and lovely.
Romans 12:2 states that the transforming process is a renewing of our
minds.
So, how are our minds renewed? Without
God, our minds are filled with the garbage of this world. It is not
enough to empty our minds of the garbage. We need to be filled with
that which is of the Lord. We have been given a tool in the Word of God,
which He gave us in order that we might know Him. When we fill ourselves with the Scriptures, we begin
the process of knowing Him.
It is best to meditate on only a small
portion of Scripture at a time. With too many verses, how can one
effectively think about what is being said? If verses are
memorized, how much easier it is to meditate on them, chew on them, ponder
them throughout the day. When we meditate on verses, they become
"hidden" within our hearts. When the Holy Spirit needs to convict us,
the verses are easily recalled to do their instructing work. If they
have not been memorized, it is much more difficult for the Word to
become our Sword (Ephesians 6:10-17).
Memorization of Scripture in itself,
however, is not
our end goal, because memorizing Scripture does not change
lives. The challenge is how to allow the Scriptures to come alive within
us. Biblical meditation is the answer. The goal is a life transformed,
which brings glory to the Lord Jesus
Christ.
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