Study: Looking into God's Word, Pt. III

IV. Meditating on the Word

In the last post, I discussed the need to hear and read the Word. Now we will go beyond reading the Word to meditating on it. The Bible promises special blessings for meditating on God’s Word. Joshua 1:8 promises prosperity and success to those who meditate on God’s Word at moments throughout the day. Psalm 1:1-3 says that meditating on God’s Word results in stability, fruitfulness, perseverance, and prosperity (Whitney, 1991, pp. 44-45).

Hearing and reading the word have been compared to a brief rainfall on hard ground. Meditation, however, soaks the soul with God’s Word and allows it to penetrate deep beneath the surface (Whitney, 1991, pp. 45-46). Studying God’s Word is an intellectual quest for meaning and understanding. It provides one with knowledge about God and his will for us. Meditation leads us into an encounter with God. It internalizes and personalizes the passage (Foster, 1988, p. 29).

Another way to consider the difference is to contrast informational reading with formational reading (Mulholland, 1993, pp. 110-111). Informational reading seeks to control the text: We select the material, we come with our own agenda, and we read it as quickly as possible to find answers to our questions.

Formational reading, or spiritual reading, is open to God’s control of our lives for God’s purposes. We allow God to set the agenda. We approach Scripture with an open mind. We let God question us through his Word. In spiritual reading, we plumb the depths of the text so that the text may plumb the depths of our being and doing.

Sometimes we need to read less in order to meditate more. We need to read for quality as well as quantity. We need depth as well as breadth. We need to slow down and savor the Word rather than gulping it down too quickly. Instead of hurrying to get to the end of a text, we need to take time to get to the bottom of it (Edwards, 1995, p. 93).

A tried-and-true method of meditation on Scripture is called lectio divina, a Latin phrase that means “divine reading.” This practice goes back to ancient monasticism. It was promoted by Saint Benedict in the sixth century, and it eventually was developed into a four-stage process by a Carthusian monk named Guigo II in AD 1150. Protestant leaders such as John Calvin and Richard Baxter practiced this method of reflective meditation on scripture (Thompson, 1995). Because this spiritual practice has proven so beneficial through the centuries, I am going to explain it here.

A. Preparing for Lectio Divina

Preparing for lectio divina requires attention to four crucial elements: time, place, mind, and body.

1. Time

Set aside a certain amount of time, preferably an hour, each day or week to meditate on a passage of Scripture. Set a time when you are less likely to become drowsy. You should also avoid interruptions or distractions during that time. For most people, an hour in the early morning might be the best time for this.

2. Place

Select a place that is free from distractions. A prayer room or prayer closet would be ideal. Each of us must find or create our own poustinia, a place of simplicity and isolation that limits outer distractions to that we can focus on the presence of God.

3. Mind

As you prepare for the reading, seek to quiet and clear the mind. Keep a notepad handy to jot down any anxieties or tasks to be completed that would weigh on your mind during this time. This procedure will release your mind from anxiety that these concerns will be forgotten later. Begin to focus the mind on the presence of Christ.

4. Body

The next step is to quiet the body. Sit in an upright position with the feet flat on the floor. Keep the head balanced on the spine like a ball on a pole. Begin to take slow, deep breaths and quietly command the body to relax. Some find it helpful to repeat a prayer in time with the breathing such as the classic Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus” (breathe in), “have mercy” (breathe out).

Once the body has been stilled and the mind has been centered on the presence of Christ, you are ready to begin the four stages of lectio divina. These stages have sometimes been compared to the process of eating, as I will illustrate below. Another way of thinking about these four stages is the poetic description of Dom Marmion:

We read                                    (Lectio)

under the eye of God               (Meditatio)

until the heart is touched         (Oratio)

and leaps to flame.                   (Contemplatio)

B. Stage 1: Lectio = Taking a Bite

Now read the passage slowly. Read each sentence as if it is the first time you have read it. Adopt an attitude of listening to what the Spirit says through the Word. Expect God to speak to you. Try not to think too much about the meaning of the words; rather, let the Spirit tell you what he wants you to know about that passage. Read a phrase at a time and repeat it slowly as you let the Word soak into your mind and heart. Imagine that the Spirit is saturating your spirit with God’s Word so that it becomes part of your very being. You may find that a particular part of the passage consumes your attention, and so you remain there as the Spirit impresses its significance upon you.

C. Stage 2: Meditatio = Chewing on the Word

In this stage, allow the Holy Spirit to carry out his role of illuminating the Word. In John 14:26, Jesus promised his disciples that the Holy Spirit would teach them everything and remind them of all that Jesus said to them. Christians have understood this promise as applying to more than just the original twelve disciples but to all future believers. As we expose our mind and heart to God’s Word, his Spirit reveals its significance and relevance to us. The concept of illumination does not mean that the Spirit reveals a new truth to us apart from Scripture but that he works through Scripture to let us know what we need to do and what we need to tell others that they need to do.

During this stage, enter the text and personally experience it. Some may find it helpful to use the method of praying with the imagination. This approach to prayer is especially helpful when focusing on a biblical narrative. T. Hall (1988) describes the method in this way:

In this approach, called “contemplation” in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius… one enters by means of imagination into a Gospel scene, seeing and hearing the persons, imagining the touch and smells of the environment, etc. I might identify with some person in the scene, or be present there as myself, watching, listening, experiencing what is going on. For example… my imagination might be used in recreating the scene…. And so I hear these words of Jesus addressed to me, and I receive his gaze with my own eyes. What do I see in those eyes as he speaks to me? And how shall I respond? (p. 40)

D. Stage 3: Oratio = Savoring the Word

Now that you have heard the Word, respond to it by opening your heart to God for direct communication and opening your will to God for responsive action. Enter into a dialogue with God about the text. The meditatio stage primarily involved the intellect, but in this stage the goal is to bring the mind into the heart. Consequently, this stage is sometimes referred to as “the prayer of the heart.” It involves not only thinking about God but also experiencing intimacy with him. Hall says that “in this prayer, our hearts are opened to him and by him, so that his light may enter” (1988, p. 42). She also describes it as “the unique and spontaneous voice of the heart which is touched by God and reaches out to him in ardent love” (p. 44).

E. Stage 4: Contemplatio = Digesting the Word

In this last stage, sit in the quiet and enjoy the peaceful presence of God. Be fully attentive to and present with God. Wait on God for whatever he wants to do in you, with you, and through you. Experience the love of God in ways that are too deep for words. This aspect of prayer has often been compared to two lovers who sit in total silence, simply enjoying the presence of the other without feeling any need for verbalizing their feelings. This stage has been described as resting in God, casting our gaze upon God, and paying rapt attention to God. Psalm 131:2 provides a helpful image for contemplation: “But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; my soul is like the weaned child that is with me” (NRSV). The weaned child is not straining to receive anything from its mother but simply basking in her love.

A Southern preacher once described these four stages this way: “I read myself full, I think myself clear, I pray myself hot, and I let myself cool” (Edwards, 1995, p. 94).

Reflection Questions:

1. When you study the Bible, do you generally focus more on quantity or quality?

2. What time and place would be best for you to meditate on the Word?

3. Try the practice of lectio divina. What did you find helpful about it? What made you uncomfortable?

Recommended Resources:

Edwards, T. H. (1995). Living in the presence: Spiritual exercises to open our lives to the awareness of God. San Francisco: HarperOne.

Foster, R. J. (1988). Celebration of discipline: The path to spiritual growth (Rev. ed.). San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco.

Hall, T. (1988). Too deep for words: Rediscovering lectio divina. New York: Paulist Press.

Mulholland, R. (2001). Shaped by the Word: The power of Scripture in spiritual formation. Nashville: Upper Room Books.

Smith, M. L. (1989). The Word is very near you: A guide to praying with Scripture. Cambridge, MA: Cowley.

Thompson, M. (1995). Soul feast: An invitation to the Christian spiritual life. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.

Whitney, D. S. (1991). Spiritual disciplines for the Christian life. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.

Next topic: Meditation: Looking Within

Study: Looking into God's Word, Part II

II. Hearing the Word

In the last post, I wrote about the necessity of Bible study for spiritual growth. Now, I want to consider some of the ways in which we open ourselves to God’s Word so that it can transform us. The most basic posture toward the Bible that we need to adopt is that of hearing. The Word will have no effect on us unless we expose ourselves to it. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hear the word of God and obey it” (Luke 11:28). Note that hearing must precede obeying. We won’t know what to obey unless we first hear.

Romans 10:17 says that “faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.” Hearing the word must precede faith as well as obedience. There are many different ways that we can hear the word. We can talk with an informed believer, such as a pastor, who can explain the meaning of Scripture to us. We can read the Bible in private devotions. We can attend weekly worship service where we hear God’s Word taught and proclaimed. We can participate in a group Bible study where believers share their understanding of Scripture with each other. We can listen to a narration of the Bible on our iPod or MP3 player. However we do it, we must open ourselves to its teachings.

III. Reading the Word

In the beginnings of the church, most believers could only hear the Word read to them. Paul’s letters, for example, were read aloud to the gathered congregation. Even in later centuries, most believers could not afford their own copies of either Old Testament or New Testament writings. It was only after the invention of the printing press and the translation of the Bible into other languages that it became widely available to believers. Today, we are fortunate that we have easy and inexpensive access to the Bible in our own language.

• Since the Bible became more available, Christians have practiced regular Bible reading as a spiritual discipline. However, they do not practice it as frequently as one might think, according to the following research (Stark & Johnson, 2011). A 1988 study by the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center found that 25% of men and 39% of women in America read the Bible weekly.
• A 2000 Gallup poll found that 29% of men and 43% of women read the Bible weekly.
• Similarly, a 2007 national religion survey by Baylor University found that 29% of men and 40% of women read the Bible about weekly.

Why do so many Christians neglect something that is so crucial to their spiritual growth? Like so many things in life, I think the most common problem is simply finding the time. We need to remember that how we spend our time indicates our priorities. Is there something you do for 15-30 minutes a day that you could give up for the higher priority of reading your Bible? Consider that you can read the entire Bible in a year by reading it only 15 minutes a day. John Blanchard challenges us to make Bible reading a priority (1984, p. 104):

Surely we only have to be realistic and honest with ourselves to know how regularly we need to turn to the Bible. How often do we face problems, temptation, and pressure? Every day! Then how often do we need instruction, guidance, and greater encouragement? Every day! To catch all these felt needs up into an even greater issue, how often do we need to see God’s face, hear his voice, feel his touch, know his power? The answer to all these questions is the same: every day! As the American evangelist D.L. Moody put it: “A man can no more take in a supply of grace for the future than he can eat enough for the next six months, or take sufficient air into his lungs at one time to sustain life for a week. We must draw upon God’s boundless store of grace from day to day as we need it.”

If you need more evidence to convict you of the need for Bible reading, consider this statistic: A.C. Nielsen Co. estimates that the average American watches TV 28 hours a week. That means a 65-year-old person will have spent nine years of his or her life glued to the tube. Do you realize that the entire Bible can be read in 71 hours, which is less than two weeks of TV viewing (Whitney, 1991, p. 29)?
 

Perhaps some believers think that it is good enough for them to get their weekly dose of Bible teaching in the Sunday sermon. But let’s assume that the average sermon is 30 minutes long. If a person attends church 50 weeks a year (allowing for two weeks of vacation and holidays), that person would receive 25 hours of Bible teaching in a year, which is less time than they spend watching TV in one week. And that assumes that the sermons they hear will actually teach the Bible and not just be filled with video clips and silly stories!

Perhaps we can be inspired by those who had much greater responsibilities than we do and yet have made time to read their Bible. Kent Hughes tells the story of Lt. Gen. William K. Harrison, Jr., who was the most decorated soldier in the 30^th Infantry Division, which was rated by General Eisenhower as the top infantry division in World War II. Harrison was the first American to enter Belgium at the head of the Allied forces. He received every decoration for valor except the Congressional Medal of Honor, including the Distinguished Silver Cross, Silver Star, Bronze Star for Valor, and the Purple Heart. He was one of the few generals wounded in action. When the Korean War began, he served as Chief of Staff in the UN Command and was chosen by President Eisenhower to head the long and tedious negotiations to end the war. Surely this man was too busy to read his Bible!

When he was a twenty-year-old cadet at West Point, he began reading the Old Testament through once a year and the New Testament four times a year, and he did this until the end of his life. Even in the thick of war, he would catch up during the two- and three-day periods of replacement and refitting that followed battles so that, when the war was ended, he was right on schedule. By the age of 90, when his eyesight no longer permitted his discipline, he had read the Old Testament 70 times and the New Testament 280 times (Hughes, 1991, p. 76).

The Israelites knew the importance of regular reading of God’s Word. This is reflected in Deuteronomy 11:18:

You shall put these words of mine in your heart and soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your head, and fix them as an emblem on your forehead. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the Lord swore to your ancestors to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth.

This teaching was literally employed in the practice of the tefillin or phylacteries, which are small leather boxes that contain scrolls inscribed with verses from the Torah. Jews wear them during the morning prayers. One type is worn on the upper arm, and the other is worn above the forehead. This practice symbolizes devotion and attention to God’s Word.

The king of Israel also was commanded to keep his attention on God’s Word. Deuteronomy 17:18-20 instructed the following:

When he has taken the throne of his kingdom, he shall have a copy of this law written for him in the presence of the levitical priests. It shall remain with him and he shall read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, diligently observing all the words of his law and these statutes, neither exalting himself above other members of the community nor turning aside from the commandment, either to the right or to the left, so that he and his descendants may reign long over his kingdom in Israel.

When read the Bible in a disciplined, systematic way, we find there are propitious moments when what we are reading intersects with some issue or concern in our lives. We often find the Bible speaking to our situation, providing us with wisdom, guidance, and hope just when we need it.

To maintain the discipline of Bible reading, we need a plan. When I was a junior in high school, I committed myself to reading through the entire Bible in a year. I subscribed to a monthly booklet called Bible Pathway that laid out a daily Bible reading plan and provided commentary and information. Not only did I read the Bible in a year, but I did it again my senior year.

There are also many Bibles on the market, such as the One Year Bible, as well as websites that have the Bible divided into daily Bible readings. These are available in every translation. Bible software programs, such as Logos Bible Software, will set up a reading plan for you. Another simple plan is to read three chapters of the Bible every day and five chapters on Sunday. For variety, one might start in Genesis, Job, and Matthew (Whitney, 1991, p. 30).

Whatever plan we choose, the important thing is to do it. Don’t make it too difficult. Don’t think of it as time-consuming or overwhelming. Just 15 minutes a day over your cup of coffee in the morning may produce some amazing results.

Reflection Questions:

1. Evaluate how well you have maintained the discipline of Bible reading. What obstacles hinder you from it? How can you remove those obstacles?

2. What can motivate you to make Bible reading a higher priority?

3. What reading plan would work best for you? Make a commitment now to follow your plan.

Sources:

Blanchard, J. (1984). How to enjoy your Bible. Colchester, UK: Evangelical Press.

Hughes, R. K. (1991). Disciplines of a godly man. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.

Stark, R., & Johnson, B. (2011, August 26). Religion and the bad news bearers. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 10, 2012, from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903480904576510692691734916.html

Whitney, D. S. (1991). Spiritual disciplines for the Christian life. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.

Next topic: Study: Looking into God’s Word, Part III