“But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (Psa. 1:2).
Have you ever considered what it means to meditate on the word of God? Not the practice that New Age gurus do in yoga, or other false religions. But, true meditation on God’s word. Simple, to think about it for an extend period of time in order to understand it?
Meditation is either that which is more set and solemn, or that which is more sudden and short. That which is more set and solemn, is either the more ordinary and daily, or that which is extraordinary, on some more peculiar occasions, both which the Scriptures hold forth in the recorded precepts and precedents therein.
Nathaniel Ranew said, “The necessity of daily meditation. The first way of solemn meditation, is that which should be daily: that as private praying and other duties are a Christian’s daily ways of exercising himself in godliness and walking with God; so holy meditation is one golden path in the great road to heaven, one way of breathing his soul daily up the hill of eternity, and meeting with God in the mount.”
Do you meditate on the Word of God daily? God commands that we do it daily, and, in fact, day and night; or, in a constant frame.
The holy prophet makes it a character of the blessed man, that he meditates in the law of God day and night, (Psa. 1:2): where we have held forth the grace, and the degree of that grace: the grace, he doth meditate; the degree, day and night. Thus much hereby must then be implied, that as it is to be performed often, so it cannot well be performed by the rule in this Scripture passage, if every day in course there be not something done in this way, either more or less: certainly we cannot give God and our soul’s concerns too much measure.
In Psalm 119 David tells us his daily practice, to meditate both in the day and night. Now his example, being a king and under such varieties of important affairs; so many and so great as none can have more: and if he had still such cares, troubles, and dangers attending, might not these have excused some abatement of his constancy? But it did not. This, therefore, leaves all sorts of people without excuse, none being able to allege that which he could, or more urgencies of daily occasions. There is no doubt, that as it is a work which lies upon every one, so sure as the day returns and the fresh businesses of it; so this meditating of right doth challenge for itself some fit season and portion of the day, being one of the great businesses for the soul’s help. Nathaniel Ranew, Solitude Improved by Divine Meditation
Contemplation:
Lord, I desire to to profit from the Scriptures. Help me to meditate on what I read. Ps. 119:15, “I will meditate in your precepts.” Help me to be intense in my mind. Help me to fix my thoughts on the great object of Jesus Christ. Help me to be like Mary. Luke 2:19, “Mary pondered those things.” Help me in my reading so that it brings a truth into my head, and then help me in meditation to brings that truth into my heart. show me that reading and meditation must always go together.
Let me imitate the bee that sucks the flower, and then works it into the hive, and so turns it into honey. Help me suck out the truth out of the flower of the Word, and by meditation to work it into the hive of my mind. Help me to turn it to profit.
