Meditation. What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear that word?
It’s sad, but in our current culture, meditation has become identified more with non-Christian systems of thought than with biblical Christianity. Even among believers in the faith, the practice of meditation is often more closely associated with New Age practices than with Christianity.
A Personal Example
About ten years ago, I wrote a blog post on a Scripture study method called Lectio Divina. After all the work that went into it, that post very nearly was discarded. In case you are wondering why, let me explain.
Just days before publishing the post, I decided to do a little last-minute fact checking. Whoa! Everywhere I seemed to turn, I ran into negative pushback. And much of it was from solid Christian leaders. Each was absolutely opposed to this method because it was New Age.
Running into so much pushback from such highly esteemed theologians, I, of course, began to question. Was something lacking in my research? Had I not been thorough? Was I blinded to truth?
As the days went on, I concluded that it would be safer to simply not share the post. After all, no one would miss it. Not a soul was even aware that this topic was on my mind or in my plan. But I couldn’t just let it go. So, I brought it up with my husband over dinner, and he pointed me to the Pharisees and reminded me that always there are people who twist good things. Always there are those without proper understanding.
Not too long after this traumatic little episode, I came across a quote that helped me immensely.
“One hindrance to growth among Christians today is our failure to cultivate spiritual knowledge. We fail to give enough time to prayer and Bible-reading, and we have abandoned the practice of meditation. How tragic that the very word meditation, once regarded as a core discipline of Christianity and “a crucial preparation for and adjunct to the work of prayer,” is now associated with unbiblical “New Age” spirituality.” Dr. Joel Beeke, The Puritan Practice of Meditation
Biblical Meditation Defined
In his book, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, Donald Whitney defines biblical meditation as deep thinking on the truths and spiritual realities revealed in Scripture, or upon life from a spiritual perspective, for the purposes of understanding, application and prayer.
Cultural meditation is an emptying of the mind.
Biblical meditation is a filling of the mind.
Cultural meditation is complete mental passivity.
Biblical meditation is constructive mental activity.
Meditation, as encouraged in the Bible (Joshua 1:8), differs vastly from cultural meditation. It’s deep thinking (filling your mind) and not just with anything, but with God and His Word and His truth. This requires constructive mental activity.
In Scripture
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
Joshua 1:8
These words spoken to Joshua as the Lord commissioned him to succeed Moses as the leader of His people, serve us well today. They provide us with clear instruction on biblical meditation. Notice that we are called to meditate on God’s Word, and we are instructed to do this day and night.
Dr. Beeke’s work is helpful here. In The Puritan Practice of Meditation, he explains that the Puritans engaged in two types of meditation – Occasional and Deliberate. The Puritans were encouraged to see all the world around them as a stage to see God’s wisdom and glory. Thus, Occasional meditation is those brief moments during the hustle and bustle of daily life, when you pause to think deeply about truths and spiritual realities revealed in Scripture, or upon life from a spiritual perspective. On the other hand, Deliberate meditation were definite times set aside for focused thinking on Scripture, especially in the morning and evening and on the Sabbath.
These words to Joshua also came with a promise, a promise of good success. However, before we start counting up our successes, it’s important that we remember that this is not necessarily success as the world defines it, but success in God’s eyes.
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
Psalm 1:1-3
This passage is an echo of Joshua 1:8. The instruction to “day and night” meditation reverberates. And the promise for our continual meditation is success – prosperity, stability, fruitfulness, and perseverance.
But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
James 1:25
Here, again, instruction and promise. We are to go beyond casual reading looking intently into the law. Then there is the promise of blessing.
The Importance of Biblical Meditation
In all three of the passages we just looked at, we considered the instruction given and the promise made. The question yet to be answered is, “Why is biblical meditation so important?”
Once again looking to Dr. Beeke, twenty-two benefits of meditating on Scripture can be found in his The Puritan Practice of Meditation. We’ll briefly mention three. First, meditation helps us focus on the Triune God enabling us to better love and enjoy each Person of the Trinity (1 John 4:8). Second, meditation helps increase our knowledge of sacred truth (Prov. 4:2). And thirdly, meditation promotes the fear of God which is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 1:8).
These three are motivation enough to meditate day and night.
