Storing And Chewing
Prov 7:2-3,Psa 119:11, 105, 41-43, Zec 4:6, Jer 15:16 , 1 Pet 3:15, Psa 63:6, Psa 119:72
Prov 4:23, Rom 12:2, John 15:7, Josh 1:8,
November 7, 2003
I. I’ve been talking about habits that we need to develop as Christians, and I’m still on the habit of spending time with God’s Word.
A. Another thing that we need to know is HOW TO MEMORIZE GOD S WORD.
(Prov 7:2-3 NIV) Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.
B. That means "Guard my words as your most precious possession. Write them down, and also keep them within your heart."
C. One of the most powerful habits that you can develop is to memorize Scripture. As you put scripture in your mind it will come to your mind when you need it most.
D. If we don’t memorize scripture we miss opportunities to solve a problem, give a word encouragement with something to back it up, to answer questions, and things like that.
II. THE BENEFITS OF MEMORIZING SCRIPTURE:
A. IT HELPS ME RESIST TEMPTATION.
1. We have a good example of this with Jesus in the wilderness. When the devil tempted Him, He quoted scripture every time He was tempted. Granted, He did write the book, so He did have a little advantage over us. But He memorized the scripture.
2. The bible tells us that memorizing scripture helps us deal with temptation.
(Psa 119:11 NIV) I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
B. Another benefit of memorizing scripture is, IT HELPS ME MAKE WISE DECISIONS.
1. (Psa 119:105 NIV) says, Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
2. There are times that I am studying or dealing with a problem, or just wondering what I am going to do now, and a verse pops into my mind. Because I had it memorized. If I hadn t have had it memorized the Holy Spirit couldn t have brought it to mind.
3. Memorizing scripture creates a situation where God has the ability use scripture that we have memorized to light our path at the time when we need a light.
C. Another benefit of memorizing scripture is, IT STRENGTHENS ME WHEN I M UNDER STRESS.
1. (Psa 119:41-43 NIV) May your unfailing love come to me, O LORD, your salvation according to your promise; then I will answer the one who taunts me, for I trust in your word. Do not snatch the word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in your laws.
2. When our children are struggling with things we want to comfort them. As our Father God wants to do the same thing, and when we memorize His Word, He can bring it to our minds to comfort us in times of stress.
3. At times when I get stressed out because things are not happening as fast as I want them too, or when I am trying to help someone deal with a problem, and it seems to be going nowhere there is a verse that pops into my head a lot. (Zec 4:6 NIV) ’Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty.
D. Another benefit of memorizing scripture is, IT COMFORTS ME WHEN I M SAD.
1. (Jer 15:16 NIV) When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.
2. Or as the New Century version says it, "Your words came to me, and I listened carefully to them. Your words made me very happy, because I am called by your name, Lord God All-Powerful."
3. A Bible on the shelf does no good at all. It has all the answers for life but if you don’t put it into you mind, so it stays with you it doesn’t do you nearly as much good. So the more you can get the bible into your mind the stronger a Christian you re going to be.
4. And the more you give God the room to bring His words to your mind through the Holy Spirit the more you will be comforted in times of stress.
E. Another benefit of memorizing scripture is, IT HELPS ME WITNESS.
1. (1 Pet 3:15 NIV) But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
2. Or as the New Century version says it, But respect Christ as the holy Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to answer everyone who asks you to explain about the hope you have,
3. Have you noticed yet that I am giving you different translations to help you see the benefit of reading in different translations?
4. When somebody comes and says to you, what does the Bible say about this or why do you believe that, if you have it memorized it s going to make you more effective as a witness, and it is going to bring you comfort when you are sad, because it is a reminder of what God has done for you and that He is always there for you.
F. So, WHEN SHOULD YOU MEMORIZE A VERSE?
1. YOU CAN MEMORIZE DURING YOUR QUIET TIME
2. If you walk for exercise you can take the verses on cards and MEMORIZE THEM WHILE YOU WALK.
3. YOU CAN MEMORIZE WHILE YOU WAIT FOR APPOINTMENTS. And it might keep you from getting mad when Doctors are late.
4. I read about a guy who has verses on cards on his car visor. Every time he comes to a stop light, he flips them down. He s memorized over 500 verses at stop lights, and has never spent any other time memorizing scripture.
5. YOU CAN MEMORIZE AT BEDTIME. It s a good thing to do to go to sleep thinking spiritual thoughts. (Psa 63:6 NIV) On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.
6. You can use anything to help you memorize scripture. The important part is to find what works for you and do it.
III. Here are some Suggestions on HOW TO MEMORIZE SCRIPTURE.
A. PICK A VERSE THAT SPEAKS TO YOU.
B. SAY THE VERSE REFERENCE BEFORE AND AFTER. The hardest part to remember is the reference, the address. So say it at the start and at the end.
C. READ THE VERSE ALOUD REPEATEDLY. Record it in your mind! You memorize by saying it aloud. You don t memorize things by reading it. You memorize things by hearing them as you say them.
D. WRITE THE VERSE SEVERAL TIMES WHILE SAYING IT.
E. WRITE DOWN A VERSE AND ERASE A WORD AT A TIME. AND REPEAT IT.
F. BREAK THE VERSE INTO NATURAL PHRASES.
G. EMPHASIZE KEY WORDS WHEN QUOTING THE VERSE.
H. WRITE THE VERSE OUT ON FLASH CARDS, AND CARRY THOSE CARDS WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES TO REVIEW.
I. PRINT THEM AND PUT THEM IN PLACES WHERE YOU WILL SEE THEM, LIKE THE BATHROOM MIRROR.
J. MEMORIZE IT EXACTLY THE WAY ITS WRITTEN.
K. PUT THE VERSE TO MUSIC.
L. Some of you are saying, "I just can t memorize anything." Baloney! We remember what is important to us. I know guys who can give you baseball or football scores for the last 10 years. There teenagers who can quote the top ten list. There are women that can give you recipes, and phone numbers of their friends, and what their husbands have done to aggravate them since they have been married.
M. You remember what you re interested in. If you re interested in memorizing scripture then you re going to be able to remember it.
N. Maybe we need to try to get the attitude that David had. (Psa 119:72 NIV) The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold. That s how important God s word should be to us to.
IV. Another thing that we need to learn is to MEDITATE ON GOD’S WORD.
A. Meditation is focusing on and thinking about a Bible verse to learn how I can apply its truth to my own life.
B. The word for meditation has the same basic meaning as the word rumination. Rumination is what a cow does when it chews its cud. The Cow chews its food again and again to get every bit of nourishment that it can from that grass
C. That s what we need to do with God s word. We are to focus our thinking, and spend time trying to drain every bit of spiritual nourishment we can from the Word of God.
D. Now there are a lot of you who can be good at meditation. If you are good worrier, you can meditate. Worry is nothing more than negative meditation.
1. When you re worrying about something, what are you doing? You re ruminating on it. You re thinking about it. You lay in bed and think and think... and go through it in every way you can. That s negative meditation
2. But if you think positive about the Word of God and good things, then that s the kind of meditation Scripture say we’re to practice.
V. Three reasons WHY WE SHOULD MEDITATE ON SCRIPTURE:
A. IT’S A KEY TO BECOMING LIKE CHRIST.
(Prov 4:23 NIV) Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
KJV Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
New Century Version Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life.
1. The truth of the matter is we become whatever it is that we think about the most. If we re constantly thinking about making mistakes, or if we think about how we ve failed again at whatever it was we were trying to do, what will happen is we will become those things or those things will happen. What you focus your thought on is what you become.
2. But if you want to become like Christ, you ve got to spend time thinking about Him.
(Rom 12:2 NIV) Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.
NCV Do not change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but be changed within by a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide what God wants for you; you will know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.
3. Meditating on God’s Word is part of that renewing process. When you meditate on Scripture, and meditate on the Lord, that s partially the way that God is able to renew our minds and replace those bad thoughts with good thoughts.
4. I like the way that 1 Corinthians 3:18 says it in the New Century Version 18 Our faces, then, are not covered. We all show the Lord’s glory, and we are being changed to be like him. This change in us brings ever greater glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. NCV
5. "As we contemplate the Lord s glory, we are being transformed into His likeness." As we think deeply about the Lord and about His Word, we become more and more like Him. If you want to become like Christ you need to meditate on the things that reflect Him and His desires for you.
B. MEDITATION IS THE KEY TO ANSWERED PRAYER.
1. (John 15:7 NIV) If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
2. What was the condition? If you are living in My word and my words are living in you then you can ask what you want and it will come true. The more you know Christ, the more your thoughts become His thoughts. So you have confidence when you pray because you know what you re praying is according to God s will.
3. People think well I can ask whatever I want and God will give it to me. That is not really true. If we meditate on the things that make us more like Jesus then the things that we ask will not be outside His will. That is the key.
4. If you re confident that your own mind is in alignment with His and you re not going to be asking for something that is totally out of His will. You can have assurance that it s going to come true.
C. MEDITATING ON THE THINGS OF CHRIST, IS A THE KEY TO SUCCESSFUL LIVING.
1. (Josh 1:8 NIV) Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
2. This is the only promise of success in the Bible where the word success is actually there. If you do this then you will have success. It s tied into meditation.
3. Some people would look at that and think it s kind of a magic wand -- if I meditate then there s a presto-chango stuff taking place and I m going to be successful. That s not it at all.
4. It goes back to what you think about is what you become. If you re thinking about the Lord Jesus and His ways and becoming like Him then you re going to have success and live in a successful way. You re going to love people instead of reacting negatively to them. You re going to be honest in business and God prospers those that are honest and have integrity.
5. So it s not a magic wand; it’s a change of mind, it just has a way of bringing our thoughts into alignment with the Lord so that He can bring success to our life.
VI. SIX WAYS TO MEDITATE ON A VERSE -- These are real simple. Meditation is not hard.
A. PICTURE IT! Visualize the scene in your mind. This works really good on passages of Scripture that tell a story. For instance, the woman at the well. What was it like to be a woman who had been married five times and was living with a man now who was not her husband and have a stranger sit down and tell of her life as if He s known her forever. What was that like for that woman? What feelings did that bring in her?
1. Picture the scene in your mind. Write down what thoughts come.
B. PRONOUNCE IT! Say the verse out loud, each time emphasizing a different word. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." I can do all things through Christ..." Me! Not just Billy Graham or somebody I think is really terrific but God says that I can do all things. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." It gives you hope and encouragement that it s not just some fairy tail out there. God says you can do it. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Not just the easy things but the things that are tough.
1. Take a verse and emphasize different words as you go through it. You get a new meaning each time you do it.
C. PARAPHRASE IT! Rewrite the verse in your own words. If you re having a hard time understanding what a verse means, if you can somehow put it into your own words, it will give you a lot better idea.
D. PERSONALIZE IT! Replace the pronouns or people in the verse with your own name. Stick your name in a promise. That is particularly helpful if your are feeling discouraged and you start thinking that God s word was maybe meant for everyone else but you. If you put your name in a verse then it helps reassure you that "God s word is for me. He really did intend this word for me. This is a promise for me."
E. PRAY IT! Turn the verse into a prayer and pray it back to God. If you re reading in the Psalms and you hear David saying things like, "How long, 0 Lord, will You turn your face from me." Maybe that day you re particularly feeling that exact same way. Take that prayer and pray it right back to God. It s not unspiritual to do that. You re not copy-catting. It s Ok to do that. Take the prayers that are in the Bible and pray them right back to the Lord.
F. PROBE IT! A good way of meditating is if you come to a word and find can t get anything out of it, Probe into the meaning of it! Don’t just skip over it, research it.
G. Rick Warren has made up and a acrostic that he calls the S.P.A.C.E.P.E.T.S. questions. You can use it to do a quick Bible study in just a few minutes.
1. S stands for - IS THERE A SIN TO CONFESS? As I m looking at this passage of scripture do I see a sin here that I need to confess from my own life.
2. P stands for - IS THERE A PROMISE TO CLAIM? Is there a promise from God in the passage that I need to claim in my life?
3. A stands for - IS THERE AN ATTITUDE TO CHANGE? Is there an attitude in the passage that I need to change in my life?
4. C stands for - A COMMAND TO OBEY? Is there a command in the passage that I need to obey? God does not give us options in His Word. He doesn’t say, "Would you please love each other if you re having a nice day and everything s going ok." God just says, "Love each other from the heart. A lot of what God gives to us are flat out commands that we are to obey whether we feel like it or not.
5. E stands for - IS THERE EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW. Is there an example to follow in this scripture? Think of Paul in prison, feet and hands bound, there for years. But what was Paul s attitude? To whine and complain? NO! Paul s attitude was joyous. That tells me there s an example that I need to follow. In the difficult circumstances of my life instead of responding with whining and complaining, I m to respond like Paul did. With rejoicing.
6. P stands for- IS THERE A PRAYER TO PRAY? This is also one of the specific ways to meditate but you can also use it in this SPACEPETS step of finding a prayer as you go along and pray it back to the Lord.
7. E stands for- IS THERE ERROR TO AVOID? Do you remember Ananias and Sapphira in the book of Acts. They did a real stupid thing. They lied to God. Because they lied to God, God killed them on the spot. That tells me that is an error to avoid! I don’t want to lie to God.
a. So when we come to Scriptures like that, write it down. There s an error to avoid. I don t want to be like that person. I don t want to follow what they did.
8. T stands for- IS THERE A TRUTH TO BELIEVE? The same as with commands to obey, there are some difficult truths in scripture. We have the obligation and responsibility to believe them whether we understand them or not. If you come across some passage of scripture and think, "This doesn’t make sense at all" rather than arguing with God about it, rather than saying, "Until I understand it I m not going to obey it," you just say, "God, this is a truth You ve said. I m going to believe it and trust that in the days and years to come, You will make it clear to me what You meant by this."
9. S stands for - ALWAYS LOOK FOR SOMETHING TO THANK GOD FOR. There is always something in Scripture that you can praise the Lord for. It s either about Him, His character, something He s done for you or someone else. Cultivate that heart of gratitude as you read through scripture and meditate.
VII. It is vital to growing up as a Christian to spend time with God’s Word. We need to learn to Memorize and meditate on God’s Word so we can understand it and know how to apply it to our lives.
A. I hope that you will make a commitment today to putting these things into practice, so that God’s Word can become more of a reality in your life.
