My 21 years of ministry in five countries of
Latin America and Europe gave me a new appreciation for
memorizing Bible passages. It had been valuable at home, but in a
foreign culture it was indispensable!
I learned about Bible memorization early
because my Great Uncle John Neufeld, a lay preacher from Russia,
who had memorized the whole New Testament, recited verses for us
in German! In the little rural immigrant church in California
where I grew up, each child had to learn a verse each Sunday, and
my mother made sure we children won prizes. I remember the Sunday
evening memory verse contest when the congregation stayed until
11 PM to watch my cousin Ed and I, both in high school, do a
memory verse contest. We had both discovered the shortest verses
in the Bible, like "Jesus wept." My favorite was Psalm
136 where all 26 verses end with the words "for his
steadfast love endures for ever!"
But I have often stopped to thank God for
getting me into a Navigators’ group, where I learned their
superb system for selecting meaningful verses, and memorizing and
retaining them. People who never could memorize learn to enjoy
it with this simple system.
One secret is not to sit down and memorize a
great many verses but to set a pace for Bible memory and
review–a pace that you can keep up regularly, so it becomes
a habit. Memorize one new one-to-three verse passage a week. Or
two or three such passages. Another secret is to learn the
reference (the address) of each verse.
But before I describe their method for
memorizing, let me explain why I consider Bible memory important
for every serious Christian, but non-negotiable for tentmakers
and missionaries, who work in other cultures. First we must
remind ourselves of the functions of the Bible in our lives and
then how its power is multiplied by memorizing.
I God’s Word in our lives
The Bible uses metaphors to help us understand
its function in our lives.
God’s Word is bread (Mt. 4:4, Lk.
4:4) that is as essential to our spirits as whole wheat or
sourdough is to our bodies–or meat, vegetables and fruit,
because the word means food. Eating well can make the
difference between spiritual health and strength for a godly
lifestyle, service and witness or an anemic Christian life. It is
milk and meat (1 Peter 2:1-3, 1 Cor. 3:1,2). It is
even dessert–read for sheer enjoyment (Psalm
119:103). Jeremiah discovered this when the long-lost Pentateuch
scrolls (Genesis to Deuteronomy) were found in the temple as
repairs were being made. (Jer.15:16).
God's Word purposefully hidden in our memories
progressively sets us free (John 8:32-34). It is a mirror that
helps us spot sin (like a computer's spellchecker program) and to
avoid it (James 1:22-24. It protects us from sin and cleanses us
(Psalm 119:11, Eph. 5:26) and facilitates every aspect of our
spiritual growth (Acts 20:32).
It is the lamp which lights the way to go when
decisions have to be made (Psalm 119:105).
It is our armor and our sword for spiritual
warfare (Eph. 6:10-18) in this cosmic war for control of the
world, in both our personal and collective battles with human and
non-human enemies. (Eph. 6:10-18, Heb. 4:12,13).
II Personal benefits of Bible memory
1. It multiplies the effect of God’s
Word in our lives.
It makes sense that all the above functions of
God’s Word have some effect on us if we go to church on
Sundays and listen to sermons, but more effect if we read a
portion daily in a regular quiet time. Think how its power is
enormously heightened if we then also do regular Bible study
every week. (See our paper Inductive Bible Study.) But for
maximum effect, we should enter some of the most important
passages into our memories the way we enter data into our
computer and save it there for easy retrieval.
2. It conditions our thought life, the
secret of success.
Joshua 1:8 says "This book of the law
shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day
and night, that you may be careful to do according to all
that is written in it, for then you shall make your way
prosperous, and then you shall have good success." Psalm One
says that the godly person "delights in the law of the
Lord" and meditates on it "day and night,"
becoming like a tree planted by waters, always green and
fruitful.
Did Joshua and the psalmist (David?) carry
thick parchment scrolls around with them everywhere? You may be
sure they did not. It is the psalmist who tells us to hide
God’s word in our hearts for easy transport. (Psalm 119: 11)
It weighs less than the scrolls!
It conditions our thought life all day. This
does not mean we should think of nothing else–or we would
not be able to carry out our daily responsibilities. But
appropriate verses jog our minds and helps us think biblically
about all our activities and relationships, facilitating our
obedience to God.
Note that it is God’s Spirit who tells us
through Joshua that the Word in our hearts is a secret of success.
3. It gives the Holy Spirit wide access to
us.
This is true in all the ways already described
above. Also, the Holy Spirit can bring a thought to mind when we
least expect it, and lead us to spontaneous worship. Of course,
he can do that with portions of his Word which we have heard or
read, but not memorized, but think how much easier it is when we
have consciously hidden these passages in our hearts so he can
surprise us with them!
Even at night, if we go to bed with a passage
in mind, we usually wake up thinking about the same one, as
though the conversation had gone on all night. How much better
that is than storing our anxieties, grudges, world news, stock
market figures, a TV sitcom, a murder mystery or an unwholesome
drama–so that these are working on our subconscious all
night! God’s Spirit guards our minds and hearts from anxiety
when we meditate on the things that please him. (Phil. 4:6,7) Let
your last thoughts be of him.
4. It keeps us alert for spiritual battle.
Most battles do not come while we sleep. They
arise in our encounters with people, maybe with family members or
neighbors, but certainly in the workplace. The enemy is never
people, but Satan and his accomplices, who meddle in all our
lives. We may not have time to go get our Bibles when we need
them. Even if we have one with us, it will not help if we don't
know what to look up. But if we have a significant supply of
God's Word in us, the Holy Spirit recalls just the right words to
us in an instant.
5. It facilitates and transforms our
personal Bible study,
We have less need of a concordance because
cross-references come to us automatically, aiding and confirming
our interpretation and application. All that we read is
spontaneously cross-referenced and enriched with other passages
from our minds. If we need to look them up we know where to find
them. My Bible study used to be laborious because I struggled to
find the passages I wanted. Verses also help us remember what is
in a great many chapters in the Bible because we remember the
contexts of our verses. (Can you say roughly what is in every
chapter of John? Acts? Philippians?)
III Ministry value
Bible memory can transform our ministries in
the following ways.
1. It makes group worship more meaningful.
We can only give back to God what he gives to
us. The highest worship is not singing ourselves into a kind of
trance with repetitious music (what pagans and other
non-believers do), but a purposeful response to God’s words
to us. The Holy Spirit brings verses to mind during worship
services.
Group meetings of memorizers have a deeper
quality than other meetings, because God’s Word has a
greater place in their singing, teaching, mutual exhortation,
counseling, comforting and care. We are admonished to let the
Word of Christ dwell in us richly (Col. 3:16 and context),
expressly to enhance our group activities. Where inside us should
his Word dwell? In our hearts, our minds, the center of our
personality–that is, in our memories. The stored words help
us glorify God by our personal lives and relationships, and they
help us teach and admonish and counsel and comfort each other in
our Christian circles.
2. It can give spiritual authority.
God says that if we speak his words instead of
our own we shall be as his mouth! (Jer. 15:19, 23:28,29, Col.
3:16,17). Ample use of God's Word gives us spiritual authority.
That means that people to whom we minister sense that God speaks
to them through us. Any Christian can have spiritual authority
even if he or she has no official position in a group.
For this reason, it also gives us more
conviction in our ministry. Instead of a lot of chaff or straw,
we focus on the wheat of Scripture. The Bible passages
give me great confidence when I speak, even though I usually
paraphrase and explain them rather than quote them directly. But
I can speak them with a conviction that "Thus says the
Lord!" The Word brings conviction to listeners in a way that
my unaided words cannot. (Psalm 119:97-102)
3. It gives freedom in teaching and
preaching.
Memorized passages not only enrich our teaching
and preaching, but they give us spontaneity and freedom. The Holy
Spirit guides our advance preparation, and it is important to
prepare well. But I am amazed how often he brings just the right
additional passages to mind, while I am teaching. Bible memory
frees us to be more sensitive to our audience and to the Holy
Spirit as we speak–to forget what is less important and
include what he wants us to say. It gives me a great sense of
God’s presence as I speak. It also means that if we are
unexpectedly asked to speak, we can probably give a rather
excellent talk without prior preparation. Even without a Bible at
hand, if we are at a picnic or somewhere without one readily
available.
4. It is indispensable for our evangelism.
Did you ever talk with a non-believer and
afterward think of all the things you wish you had said? That
happens less as you store evangelistic truths in your memory for
easy recall. I am often amazed at how the Holy Spirit brings up
passages I forgot that I knew! You need to create interest in
God–create hunger and thirst–by the integrity of your
personal life, your caring relationships, and your appropriate
words. In this casual way you fish out the seekers at your
workplace and in your neighborhood. God's Spirit can bring to
mind exactly the right thing to say–if it is in your memory
to be recalled. As you deal privately with a seeker, faith comes
by hearing–not just something–but hearing the
Word of God. The message not only informs, but convinces the
listener of its credibility. The content itself creates the faith
needed to grasp it. We are born again by God's Word (Rom.
10:14,17, James 1:18).
Apologetics (arguments for our faith) and
personal testimony are important, but no one will find the Lord
without an explanation of the core message of who Jesus is, what
he did for us, and what it means that he is alive and accessible
to us today. The way of salvation is presented in Scripture under
various images, so we can present it to any seeker, in terms
already meaningful to him or her. So new birth, becoming God's
child, being rescued or saved, being made free, or the concepts
of ransom, redemption, submission to his lordship, and other
figures can be used. If we are familiar with the passages, we can
be flexible and use the one most appropriate for our seeker. We
will not be dependent on one passage or kind of terminology or on
evangelism formulas.
In a hotel elevator in Manila, a well-dressed
Filipino man asked me about my faith. I might have chosen any one
of a dozen salvation metaphors, but he asked, "Are you
another one of those people who believe that Jesus is the Good
Shepherd?" So I stuck with his metaphor, and said,
"Yes, and are you one, too?" He said, "No, I value
my freedom too much." So I said, "Which sheep do you
think has the most freedom, the one next to the Shepherd’s
rod and staff, or the one alone in the dark with the lions and
the bears?" He said, "You have just put a new
perspective on the whole subject!" When I learned his
concern was loss of liberty, I told him Jesus says none of us is
free, but that he is the only one who can make us free, and he
does that through his word (John 8:32-34).
In talking with non-believers, even when you
could quote a passage, it is often better to say, "I'm still
learning about my faith, but would you like to see what Jesus
himself said?" Then pull out a New Testament and do a
one-on-one inductive study of a small passage, asking the seeker
to find in the text the answers to the questions you ask. But
what passage will you choose? If you have memorized, you will
know exactly where to find the best passage for this person.
5. It facilitates follow-up of new
believers.
We will know exactly what material to give
them, and ideally, we can start them out on memorizing the most
basic "first-aid" verses–following our example. It
will hasten the new convert’s spiritual growth.
In conclusion, memorizing Scripture is a matter
of obedience, because God not only tells us to do it, but gives
us ample reasons in his Word for keeping his truth not only in
our Bibles, but also in our hearts for easy recall. Persecuted
Christians in countries where Bibles were confiscated, as in
China and the former U.S.S.R., were grateful for every passage
memorized! Some then wrote out all they remembered, by hand, to
share with others.
IV Bible memory for a foreign culture
All the above benefits are magnified when you
serve in a foreign country. Plus a few additional ones. You face
a whole set of new cultural patterns with new tests and
temptations and frustrations, whether you go as a tentmaker or a
missionary. Bible passages you hardly noticed before will become
relevant in a Muslim culture, or in China. All of what we have
already said will be important. Here are a few of the additional
advantages of Bible memory for cross-cultural ministry.
1. It speeds up communication in your new
language.
While you are learning a language, you may not
know how to communicate a truth to a believer or non-believer,
but you know where to find the right verse, and it gives you the
right vocabulary! A North American and a Guatemalan Christian who
met accidentally on a train and recognized that each was reading
from a Bible, had a whole conversation through verses they found
in each other's Bible! The verse gives you the vocabulary and the
sentence frames for conversation. You can make excellent use of a
New Testament with English on one page and your new language on
the opposite page. (Check with the Bible Society to see if your
target language is available in this double format.)
2. It helps you pray in public.
Praying in a foreign tongue is usually more
difficult than conversing because of the special prayer
language–grammatical constructions and different pronouns
and verbs that are not used in normal conversation. But even
before you can converse easily, you can pray in public, if you
have memorized a few worship, praise and thanksgiving verses from
the Psalms. You can also find the right sentence frames for
making requests, and then substitute your requests for those in
the verses.
3. It helps you give talks and lead studies
sooner.
You can give a talk before you are proficient
in the language, by using memorized verses, and their vocabulary
for the explanations.
When I first went to Peru, I began leading
inductive Bible study discussions before my Spanish was adequate.
I spent hours memorizing the vocabulary of the passage, and
making up the questions. But I had trouble when the participants
strayed from my vocabulary lesson! I probably should have
waited–but my new friends needed the gospel, and some kept
coming back!
So as soon as you can, begin to learn your
verses in your new language. It helps that you already know them
in English. Even verses not yet memorized in your new language
are helpful because you know where to find them, so you can quote
or paraphrase them in your new language.
VII Selecting passages
1. Choose significant verses. The Bible,
like all literature, has brick and mortar verses. Choose bricks.
It is usually better to learn verses than whole chapters,
although you may want to memorize Psalm 23, Psalm 1, 1 Cor. 13
and a few other gems.
2. Choose what will be helpful.
List your favorite verses, and as you read,
keep adding to the list of verses you want to memorize.
3. Choose complete thoughts. This may be
just one verse, or it may be two or three together, that
constitute a full thought.
4. Begin with Navigator packet. They
have chosen an initial set of 36 verses and an expanded set of
60. All of these are so basic that every believer should them
know from memory. They are about our life in Christ and his life
in us, about prayer and Bible study, about obedience and
evangelism. It is a good set to start off a new Christian.
VIII Memorizing and reviewing verses
1. Use the Navigators’ packet. The
small vinyl packet just the right size for about 36 cards, and
has a tiny window where the reference can be seen. Recite the
corresponding verse, and then pull out the card to see if you got
it right. You can add interpretive notes on the reverse side of
the cards.
2. Carry your packet with you. Keep the
packet in your pocket–or your purse. Have it with you all
the time. You can do most of the memorizing and reviewing in odd
moments during the day that might otherwise be wasted. You can
even review while making the bed, washing the dishes or driving
the car.
Someone suggested using traffic slowdowns if
you make daily commutes in a busy city. Many people’s
frenetic pace collides twice daily with traffic jams–every
morning and every evening. Most drivers chafe! Their blood
pressure rises. Tempers flare. Cell phones come out, and radios
are turned up. Instead, view these unwelcome pauses as
circuit-breakers that interrupt your busyness long enough for matins
and vespers. A perfect time to pray, and to review
your verses! Keep a memory packet attached to your car’s sun
visor. Turn annoying minutes into meditation.
3. Understand what you are memorizing.
For years I used the back of each card to jot
notes on a 5-point outline. What is the point of the
passage? its purpose? a parallel passage? a problem?
its profit? (Lesson)
Then I changed to the seven newspaper
questions, plus three. Instead of just listing them, I will apply
them to Acts 20:32.
Who were the main characters stated or
implied? (If they are not in the text they are in the context.)
In this case, they are Paul and the Ephesian elders.
What was the main action? Paul tells
them how to continue caring for their churches.
Where did it occur? On the beach at
Miletus, the port city for Ephesus.
When did it occur? After Paul had
finished his three years in that city, and when he is on his way
to Caesarea and Jerusalem for Passover. His ship made a stopover
in Miletus and he called for the elders, probably because it was
too dangerous for him to go to the city.
How did the main action occur? Paul
reminds them of his godly life, ministering among them full-time,
as he also fully supported himself. He had taught them
all that he knew about God–his "whole counsel."
They were to follow his example, including his self-support. He
entrusted them into the care of God and his Word.
Why did it occur? Paul feared arrest in
Jerusalem and would probably never see the elders again–it
was an emotional meeting, and we can be sure Paul told them only
those things that he considered most important.
What were the consequences? Paul was
arrested in Jerusalem and spent two years in prison in Caesarea,
then two years in Rome under house arrest, and then in
Nero’s palace prison. Finally, he was acquitted. But soon he
was rearrested, and held in a Roman dungeon. From there he writes
Timothy, whom he had sent to minister to the Ephesians.
How does this verse fit into its context? This
poignant farewell contains Paul’s most serious last
exhortations for these pastors.
What is its main lesson? That God cares
for individuals and churches primarily through his Word–the
message of his grace and love and exhortation.
What application should it have in my life
today? To constantly study God’s Word for my personal
needs, and to make sure that in my teaching, I use it, and not
just my own ideas. Also, the most important gift I can give
another person, apart from life in Jesus Christ, is a love for
God’s Word, and knowledge of how to study and memorize it.
This is true whether I am with a new convert or with a long-time
Christian. I can entrust old friends and loved ones to God’s
Word.
The questions make you focus on the meaning of
the text in its larger context, so a single verse can help you
locate a whole narrative.
Otherwise, there is danger of misinterpreting
verses–using them as mere proof-texts. For example:
"Whatever you do for one of the least of these my
brethren" (and all its parallel passages) encourage us to
show solidarity with Christians in persecution by taking risks to
identify with them and to help them. But these verses are usually
interpreted as Jesus’ commands for us to do social work.
They have nothing to do with social work. In this particular
case, no great harm is done because other passages in the Bible
do encourage social work. The biggest problem is that we are
robbed of the very important lesson these passages do have–a
loss that tentmakers, missionaries and local Christians in
hostile countries cannot afford.
4. Learn the verses
Learn the verses–prepositions and all. When I began
memorizing we had only the old King James Version–very
beautiful, but quaint. But every time we heard the verses read in
church, on the radio, or in Bible studies, it reinforced what we
had memorized. Today, with many translations, our key verses
sound different each time. You need to choose one translation for
all your memory work.
Many churches today use the excellent NIV, but
many of us prefer the RSV for study, and so for memory.
The Bibles available today are all great for
reading, but no translation is perfect. Translators struggle
between keeping their text as close as possible to the original words
in Greek and Hebrew, or translating larger thoughts more
loosely so it will read more smoothly. But for inductive Bible
study we need to stick close to the original, so we can note the
writer’s literary devices–the repetitions, contrasts,
figures of speech, allusions to the O.T., etc.–features
which looser translations tend to obscure. The RSV is closer to
the original than any other modern translation, so I prefer it
for study and for Bible memory. I noted recently in a magazine
article, where John Stott very positively evaluates all the new
Bible translations, but he also prefers the RSV for study,
because of its closeness to the original.
5. Review regularly.
One plan is to learn three new passages a week.
The second week, you place the first three cards at the end of
your little packet, and learn three new ones and do daily review
of the three first ones. In this way, by the time you have
learned the 36 initial verses, the first ones will have been
reviewed one or more times daily for 12 weeks. Then put the
initial three cards into a small box and start your once-a-week
review section. Keep adding your last three cards from your
packet as you add three new ones to the front of it. Later you
start moving your once-a-week review cards into your once-a-month
review section.
6. Make new cards for your personally chosen
verses.
When you have finished the initial 60 verses
from the Navigator system, write your own choices on little cards
and use them with your vinyl packet. Or cut the verses out of a
cheap New Testament from a used bookstore and paste them onto the
cards. If the passage is too big for the card, fold it at the
bottom. It is exciting to see one’s box of cards of
memorized verses grow to several hundred! And to reap the great
benefit from all the effort!
As the Holy Spirit promised to help the Twelve
recall what he had taught them orally, he helps us to recall what
he has taught us through his written Word. But computers teach us
that you cannot retrieve data which has never been entered.
–Ruth E. Siemens
Note: GO has 20 years experience helping
Christians serve abroad as tentmakers. Ask for a list of other G0
Papers on tentmaking, on workplace evangelism, inductive Bible
study and evangelistic Bible study.
Bibliography:
Hide God’s Word in Your Heart:
Navigators’ Topical Memory System. A 30 week course with
booklet, vinyl verse pack and 60 verse cards. Write NavPress,
P.O. Box 6000, Colorado Springs CO 80934. Or look in Christian
bookstores.
Copyright 1997 Ruth E. Siemens
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