Growing up in the 60’s as a fan of the Beatles, I was introduced to the idea of meditation when the Beatles first started following Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Prior to that, I had never really considered the concept of meditation. Even though I was in church whenever the doors were open, I was far more interested in the Beatles than the Bible at the time. My understanding of meditation, then, was first shaped by the concept of meditation as practiced by those who embraced Hinduism.
Little did I know that the Bible also speaks about meditation. In fact, the discipline of meditation is mentioned throughout the Bible and has a significance in the life of each disciple of Christ.
Differences in Meditation
It should come as know surprise that the meditation of Eastern religions and that of the Bible are very different. Without going into too much detail, let’s look at the bare essentials of the differences.
For many of the eastern religions, meditation is centered on the concept of a person being one with the universe. The idea of meditation is to clear the mind and focus on a single thought (the “ohm” or some similar letter or sound to repeat over and over, thus creating the focus). If one can empty one’s self, then the possibility of creating the oneness with the universe is more likely to happen. The focus is on the individual transforming himself or herself in ways that are more consistent with the universe.
Christian meditation, on the other hand, focuses not on emptying one’s self, but to focus on the Word of God (“Oh, how I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long”—Psalm 119:97) and on the works of God (“I will meditate on all Your works and consider all Your mighty deeds”—Psalms 72:12). The purpose of the meditation is to come to a deeper understanding of what Scripture teaches, and in coming to that deeper understanding, we seek to let God transform us through His Holy Spirit.
Oddly enough, almost every mention of meditation is found in the Psalms, and almost all of the verses relating to meditation are found in Psalm 119. It really shouldn’t seem so odd, though. Psalms is a book of worship and praise; they are the hymns of the Bible. And Psalm 119 focuses on the Scripture as presented by God to His people. The writer of this psalm uses a number of words to describe Scripture—word, command, decree, statutes, precepts and law are the most common words used, and almost always the words are prefaced with “Your.”
The focus, then, on Christian meditation is on God as revealed through His Word and His works.
How Does a Christian Meditate?
“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night” (Psalms 1:1-2).
As with all disciplines, the meditation on Scripture is something a believer commits to doing, not as a means of currying God’s favor, but as a means of drawing closer to Him in order to know Him and His will better. As such, the best way to meditate is to set aside a time and a place where distractions are minimal so that the focus can be on Scripture and listening to the voice of God through His Spirit.
The best way to meditate on God’s word is to enter into prayerful contemplation. Always remember that the Spirit inspires the Word and that the Spirit reminds us of everything Jesus, who is the Word (John 1:1-2), taught (John 14:26), as well as lead us into the truth (John 16:13-14). And remember that Jesus is the Truth (John14:6) and that all who follow Jesus’ teachings will know the truth, and the truth will set us free (John 8:31-32). With that foundation of prayerful contemplation, then turn to the Word.
The best way to meditate on the Word is to find a verse and focus on it, thinking about it and mulling it over in a prayerful, thoughtful way. And I have found the best way to do that is to take each word of the verse and dwell on it first, then go to the next word, then the next, until the verse has penetrated the soul and spirit (cf. Hebrews 4:12).
For instance, taking a familiar verse, let’s look at Psalm 23:1. The verse says, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.”
The first word of the verse is “the.” As we consider the word, we realize first that “the” indicates a specific thing. “Go get a car in the parking lot” has an entirely different meaning than “Go get the car in the parking lot.” The first indicates that any old car in the lot will do; the second tells us there is a specific car in the lot that is needed. “The” indicates a specific thing or being, and we are contemplating that not just any Lord, but The Lord is my shepherd. The implications of the specific tells us that not just any Lord is our shepherd, but The Lord is.
Second, consider the word “Lord.” In most modern translations, the word Lord is spelled with all capital letters, indicating that the word is a translation of the name for God. When Moses asked God to tell him His name, God gave him the name, “I Am that I Am” or “I Will Be what I Will Be.” It is a name so sacred that we’re not really sure how it should be pronounced. For the English transliteration, we spell it YHWH, and usually pronounce it Yahweh.
The point being that this Lord—YHWH—the personal God and intimate God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Moses and David, the Father to whom Jesus referred—He is the Lord who is our shepherd. As we meditate on the word, we allow the full meaning and implication of the Lord to embed itself in us.
“Is” is the next word, and is suggests an on-going, present-tense relationship. It tells us that God wasn’t at one time our shepherd, but now He’s not, or that He sometimes is, but we never really can be sure when He is or isn’t. No, the implication of the word is that God is constantly and continually our shepherd.
And so it goes through the rest of the verse, focusing on each word and the fullness of its meaning. Meditating on each word, we let the words of the verse sink into the depths of our being, letting the verse become a part of us, transforming us as only the Word of God can.
The psalmist also mentioned meditating on God’s works. There are times we will want to consider the things He has done in our lives and in our world, either to us or to someone we know. A couple of years ago, I awoke in a hospital ICU, and the first words I heard were that I had had brain surgery but that I was going to be okay. My recollection of the events were that my family was doing something Thursday, and I woke up in a hospital on a Sunday afternoon. My wife told me when they showed her the MRI, it looked like a third of my brain was blocked by a massive blood clot. She was told I had had a stroke. It turns out I didn’t, it was a head injury, but the clot was pressing on my brain gradually making me immobile.
By God’s grace, my recovery was swift and complete. I have had no real side effects of the injury (except I have this really neat dent in the side of my head and I can feel two screw heads that are keeping a titanium plate in place). I can only attribute this complete recovery to the skills of my surgeon and the grace of my God. He took what could have been a disaster for my family and me and instead turned it into a story of grace and mercy and love and healing. There are times I consider what God did for me and my family, and I am reduced to an inability to express my gratitude and awe and praise. Consider God’s actions in our lives and in our world and meditate on them.
The Benefits of Meditation
Perhaps the best way to show this is to let the Bible speak to the benefits.
The act of meditation is a form of worship: “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14); “May my meditation be pleasing to Him, as I rejoice in the Lord” (Psalm 104:34); “Within Your temple, O God, we meditate on Your unfailing love” (Psalm 48:9); “I lift up my hands to Your commands, which I love, and meditate on Your decrees” (Psalm 119:48).
The act of meditation brings us to an awareness of our place in the world: “I said, ‘I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin; I will put a muzzle on my mouth as long as the wicked are in my presence.’ But when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good, my anguish increased. My heart grew hot within me, and as I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke my tongue: ‘Show me, O Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life’” (Psalm 39:1-4).
The act of meditation shows us God’s will as revealed in Scripture: “I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways” (Psalm 119:15); “Let me understand the teachings of Your precepts; then I will meditate on Your wonders” (Psalm 119:27).
The act of meditation sustains us in times of difficulty: “Though rulers sit together and slander me, Your servant will meditate on Your decrees” (Psalm 119:23). “May the arrogant be put to shame for wronging me without cause; but I will meditate on Your precepts” (Psalm 119:78).
The act of meditation is an act of love for God and draws us closer to Him: “Oh, how I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long, Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are ever with me. I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on Your statutes” (Psalm 119:97-99).
So, Christian meditation is a discipline designed to bring us closer to God through worship, submission, confession and obedience. By meditating on God’s words, we are able to be transformed by His presence and His Spirit.
Conclusion
The idea of meditation has been around for centuries, but it seems to have taken on a new awareness within the last 50 years or so. And that’s a good thing. For the Christian, in the discipline of meditation as in all other areas of life, we need to be sure what we are doing is consistent with God’s will and His instruction. By meditating on His word, we cannot help but be drawn in the right direction and growth.
© 2018 Glynn Beaty