The Importance of Scripture Memorization

"Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You." --Psalm 119:11

"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things."
--Philippians 4:8

I am convicted that I do too little when it comes to Scripture memorization. I was pretty good at it when I was little. Some people claim that it gets harder as we get older, but I haven't come to that point yet. So, what's my problem? I'm lazy! Also, most importantly, I am choosing not to do what I am called to do in Scripture.

We are bombarded with songs, commercials, and catchy phrases in our society, and they fill our hearts. Soon, the mouth starts to speak out of that which fills the heart. Honestly, society is not putting out anything that is worthy of filling my heart. I figure that it's time to start bombarding my heart with the Bible, the immense fountain of transcendent treasure, the book that is full of what is true, honorable, right, of good repute, excellent, and worthy of praise.

In Psalm 119:11, the psalmist states that he has "treasured" God's word in his heart. As I reflect on those words, I get the Treasure Island idea of pirate searching for buried treasure. When that treasure was initially buried, somebody (1) took time to place the treasure in a special place, and that person (2) also created some sort of means to retrieve that treasure or help others find it like, possibly, a map.

To treasure God's word in my heart, the little five to ten minute devotion is insufficient; my heart goes bankrupt. I have to first view God's word as a treasure, something worthy of taking the time so that I can bury that treasure in the special place of my heart. I have to treasure it enough so that I don't forget that it is there also.

Some people automatically label Scripture memorization as legalism, another thing to add to the to-do list. It is possible to memorize Bible verses because they are Sunday school assignments and never really ponder the words; it becomes a mantra or mindless chant. However, who's to say that at some point in a person's life that person will not have that verse become a blessed treasure in his heart, giving him hope during a trial or words of life to encourage or exhort another believer. Also, memorizing Scripture does not have to be a mindless chanting or "religious" chore; it should be our means to treasuring God's word and our method we use so that we can dwell on all of those positive adjectives that the apostle Paul describes in Philippians 4:8.

The pastor of our Arizona church challenged people to start memorizing the book of Ephesians in anticipation on a new teaching series. I have been working on that this week, and I have been thoroughly blessed by it. In my Christian life, I have been challenged from the pulpit many times to memorize Scripture and have ashamedly ignored such exhortations. I have sucessfully memorized all of Ephesians 1 (in the NASB) and the first ten verses of chapter two. I must say that these words are perfect treasure to hide in my heart in a place where I can summon them to my mind time and time again. Chapter one deals with "the riches of His (God's) grace" and "the praise of His glory." All of these treasures (like election, adoption as sons, redemption, a spirit of wisdom and revelation of the knowledge of God, etc.) are brought about "in Christ." Chapter two basically reminds me that God is rich in mercy and grace; I brought nothing to the table when he saved me, and it is He who prepared all of the "good works" before I ever did a single one as a regenerated believer. These are the things that are pure, good, right, of good repute, excellent, and worthy of praise.

I encourage anyone who isn't working on any kind of memorization to work on memorizing the book of Ephesians. Let's do it, Grace Bible Church.

I am convicted by the power of God's word to help me fight against sin and focus my feeble, ever-distracted mind on Philippians 4:8 criteria. I am blessed by the illumination of the Holy Spirit who allows me to savor and delight in what I am memorizing. I am encouraged to make memorization a lifelong discipline through dependence on the Spirit which I am confident will help me in fighting my war of the mind and battles with my sin nature.