Session 3

Synopsis

Getting Started with Scripture Memory

1. Start small.

Begin with one verse. Once you’ve memorized that verse, set a reasonable goal for yourself to memorize more- maybe one verse per month or one verse per week. 

2. Choose verses that will serve your soul.

Choose verses that resonate with you, that will help you fight sin, direct your heart to God, counsel others and share the gospel.

3. Work on Scripture memory every day.

This doesn’t need to take a lot of time just 5-10 minutes.   Use a bible memory app or write your verses on index cards.  Put them on your mirror or carry them in your purse and work on them while you wait in line, etc.

4. Review often.

It is good to have a system of review for verses we’ve already learned.  Bible memory apps allow you to set up periodic reviews.   You could also review one verse each day or have a day of the week set aside for review. 

5. Memorize with a partner.

Work on Scripture memory with a friend, your spouse, your kids.  Choose verses or passages together and set a deadline for memorizing. This adds a level of accountability that will spur you on in your Scripture memory.

6. Find a method that works for you.

Use an app like The Bible Memory App or write your verses on index cards or in a notebook.  Engage your senses by reading the verse, writing it, and saying it out loud.  Another method is to read the verse aloud 10 times, then say it from memory 10 times, then review it throughout the day. The next day, read it 5 times and say it from memory 5 times, then move onto the next verse if you are studying a longer passage.   Be sure to include the chapter and verse numbers when memorizing the Word.  With a longer passage, you can cite the whole section, for example Colossians 1:9-20, rather than each verse individually, so that you don’t disrupt the flow of thought.  

Biblical meditation is a deliberate and disciplined fixing of the mind on the Word of God for the purposes of understanding, application, and prayer.

Methods for Meditating on the Word

1. Think about how the text answers these four questions:
   1. What does this teach me about God and His character?
   2. What does this teach me about who I am and how I should live?
   3. What does this teach me about Christ and salvation?
   4. What does this teach me about the church or life as the people of God?
2. Ask application questions.  Look for
   1. Examples to emulate or avoid
   2. Commands to obey
   3. Promises to claim
   4. Warnings to heed
   5. Truths to believe
3. Think through a verse by thinking about each word individually and how that word contributes to the meaning of the verse.   As an example, let’s look at Mark 1:17:  Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men. First think about the word follow. What does it mean to follow Jesus? It is more than believing, it is becoming his disciple.  Then look at the word me We are to follow him, a person, not a set of rules. Continue through the verse looking at each word.
4. Paraphrase or rewrite a passage in your own words. Think about how you can convey the meaning of the text without using the words of the text.  
5. Martin Luther’s approach:  Ask how the passage shows
   1. Something about the character of God for which you can praise Him
   2. Something wrong about yourself for which you need to confess and repent
   3. Something that you need for which you can petition Him
6. Consider the truths of the passage in light of your current circumstances.  What is going on in your life to which this might be relevant?

Homework

1. This week continue to use the reading strategies and Bible study tools as you study chapter two of Colossians.   Make it a point to read through the whole book at least once this week and read through chapter two daily if possible.  Examine the chapter, paragraph by paragraph, using the observation and interpretation tools that we discussed in session two.
2. Choose one verse from the chapter (or the book) to memorize this week.  Then spend a few minutes each day working on it.
3. Choose at least one meditation method to meditate on your memory verse.  You can also use these methods to meditate through any or all of chapter two. Remember, that its helpful to write out your thoughts as you meditate on the Word.

Other sessions in this series

• Session 1
• Session 2
• Session 4
• Session 5

Resources

Books

• Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald S. Whitney
• 100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know By Heart by Robert J Morgan
  

Commentaries

• Captivated by Christ – Seeing Jesus Clearly in the Book of Colossians by Richard Chin
• The MacArthur New Testament Commentary – Colossians and Philemon by John MacArthur
• The Letters to the Colossians and to Philemon by Douglas J. Moo

Online Resources and Apps

• An Approach to Extended Memorization of Scripture by Andrew Davis