WORDS FOR YOUR HEART (2011 Congregational Theme: Daily Disciples: Memorization) A. Today we will add another aspect to our daily discipleship. Taking in God s word daily. 1. Remember our theme verse. Jesus said, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, & take up his cross daily, & follow Me. (Luke 9:23). a. How can we follow Jesus with Him not being here? b. Well, each day we follow Jesus to the extent that we are filled with His word. a. David prayed, Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You. (Psalm 119:11). b. Paul who wrote, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly (Col 3:16). I. GOD S WORD BY MEMORY A. We sometimes view memorization as something for children, but God s people have had to memorize His word for ages. 1. For millennia God s people didn t have a book to carry with them, so if they wanted to have His word with them they had to commit it to memory. 1 B. But how are we going to make God s word apart of our daily discipleship? 1. Bible reading plans; audio Bible; home Bible studies, or yes, even memorization. 2. You may say, But today we have printed Bibles, & constant access to the Bible on our computers & iphones, why would we need to memorize it?
a. First, just because we have it on a screen doesn t mean we have it in our hearts. b. Secondly, memorized Scripture is with you the instant you need it. c. Finally, God s word cannot MOLD us until it is IN us; keeping it in our minds is the only way to do that. 4. The NT authors quoted hundreds of OT verses, yes, by inspiration of God, but their personal study of the Scripture played a part. 5. The early Christians relied on memorization to teach the gospel, since there were so few copies of written Scripture. B. Why Memorize Scripture? 3. Jesus had many Scriptures memorized. 1. To Grow In The Likeness Of Christ. a. When He faced temptations He quoted from Deuteronomy to overcome Satan. b. When He talked with the crowds He quoted from Isaiah, Malachi, Exodus, Psalms & even Numbers! c. He didn t have those scrolls with Him; the passages were just in his mind. 1 Sam 3:21 The LORD revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD. 2 Cor 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. Rom 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Col 3:9-10 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 & have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 2
2. To Overcome Temptation. Psa 119:9-11 How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. 10 With my whole heart I have sought You; oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! 11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You. 1 John 2:14 I have written to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, & the word of God abides in you, & you have overcome the wicked one. Rom 8:13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. How do we do that? Like Jesus did in Matt 4:1-11. Eph 6:17-18 And take the helmet of salvation, & the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer & supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance & supplication for all the saints. 3. To Comfort & Instruct Others. John 14:1-3 Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go & prepare a place for you, I will come again & receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. Psalms 46:1-4 God is our refuge & strength, a very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, & though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; 3 Though its waters roar & be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah 4 There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, just at the break of dawn. Prov 3:5-7 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, & lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, & He shall direct your paths. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord & depart from evil. 4. Communicating The Gospel Of Christ. a. We should have some verses memorized that help us explain God s eternal plan: all the passages in the bulletin & on the PowerPoint chart are good choices. The Gospel of Jesus Christ and God s Plan For Our Salvation: The apostle Paul wrote, I declare to you the gospel which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures (cf. 1 Cor 15:1-4). The preaching of Jesus Christ has been made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen (cf. Romans 16:25-27). 3
God s eternal love and plan: He loves us because He is full of grace and mercy (Romans 5:8; Ephesians 2:4-7) He gave His Son Jesus to die for our sins against Him (John 3:16) He sent the Holy Spirit to guide the apostles into all Truth (John 16:13) 5. Improve Communion With God (Psa 103:1-5). a. Bless the LORD, O my soul is not a natural expression for us, but if we will memorize passages like this it will be. The apostles were sent to preach and write down the gospel (Mark 16:15; Ephesians 3:4) C. An Exercise In Memorization. The gospel is God s power to save our souls (Romans 1:16) The blood of Jesus Christ empowers the gospel to forgive our sins (Romans 5:9; Ephesians 1:7) Our necessary response: Hear the gospel of Christ (Acts 2 and 3; Romans 10:17) Believe its message (John 20:30-31) Repent of offenses against God s law (Acts 17:30; 1 John 3:4) Confess faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 10:9-10) Baptized into Christ (buried in water) for the forgiveness of sins (Galatians 3:27; Romans 6:3-4; Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16 At this point one is added to the church built by Christ, which is a single body of His members whose souls will be saved eternally in heaven Acts 2:47; Eph 5:23) 1. The handout Words For Your Heart includes a proven method of memorization. a. Write It. Use a 3 X 5 card. Make key words stand out. Do this daily or weekly & date each card. Keep your card for review. b. Say It. Read the text out loud several times emphasizing different words. Include the Scripture reference. But there is another condition regarding your ultimate salvation. You must in this life. Obey the teachings of Christ (Jn 12:48; Titus 2:11-12; 2 John 9; Revelation 2:10) 4
c. Visualize It. Create mental pictures of key words. Know the meaning of the words & the context. Visualize how the text applies in daily life. People can do many amazing things with computer graphics. They can even make a picture of one thing appear within another. Perhaps you ve seen the picture of the U.S. constitution. When you look at it one way you see the words in the constitution, but when you look at it another way you see George Washington. d. Recite It. Memorize Scripture together with someone, & quote your verses to each other. 2. This week we will memorize Philippians 4:8. The verse is printed on a piece of paper in your pack. Write the verse yourself on a 4 X 6 card. There is also an advanced memory verse. The Scripture has the same effect. As we look at the powerful words of God, we are to see the face of the One our Heavenly Father wants us to imitate. II. OUR PURPOSE A. To Know God Better (John 17:3) B. To Make Us Wise For Salvation (2 Tim 3:15). 5