What is Christian meditation? Often the word "meditation" causes us to think of concepts like emptying the mind and relaxation by not thinking about our burdens. But Christian meditation is not the emptying of the mind but the filling of it! Scriptural meditation is focused on the word of God and on the nature of God himself. This is a spiritual discipline, commanded in scripture and accompanied by divine promises, that the church badly needs to recover today.
If you would, open up the Scriptures to Joshua chapter 1. Joshua chapter 1. Very familiar passage to most all here under the tent. Joshua chapter 1 in verse 8. This is the commandment of God to Joshua, who is now taking over.
And Moses has gone from the scene. And the Lord says, "'This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe 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. Oh Lord, bless this time in your word as we continue to look to you that we might be made complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. In Christ's name, amen.
The Christian art of meditation, Christian art of meditation, Meditation. What comes to your mind when you hear that word meditation? To one living in the 21st century, Meditation usually entails the emptying of the mind of all things, a releasing of everything and giving yourself over to relaxation. Well That is not what God was calling Joshua to, and that is not what he would have us to do. So what is meditation?
Isaac Ambrose defines meditation like this, meditation like this. Meditation is a deep and earnest musing upon some point of Christian instruction to strengthen us against the flesh, the world, and the devil, and to lead us forward toward the kingdom of heaven. Or meditation is a steadfast bending of the mind to some spiritual matter, discoursing of it with ourselves until we bring the same to some profitable use. So with your eyes here on this text, Joshua 1.8, before us this morning. Note first the focus of our meditation, the focus of our meditation.
The focus of meditation should be upon the law of God, what our brother just brought to us just a few minutes ago on the purpose of the Word of God. In order to understand what that entails, it is important to understand the purpose of the Word of God. It's to declare the God of the Word. The Baptist Shorter Catechism asks and answers the following question. Number four, what do the Scriptures principally teach?
The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of man. So we might say that the focus of our meditation is to be upon who God is and what He would have us to do in order that we may glorify him and enjoy him, which is our chief end. In Psalm 145 verse 5, David says, I will meditate on the glorious splendor of your majesty and on your wondrous works. Where are the splendor of the majesty of God in all His wondrous works to be found? One place, Scripture.
What do you think of the Scriptures? What do you think? We were challenged with that in the last session. What do you think about the Word of God? How do you relate to the Scriptures?
Are they a source of delight for your soul? This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it. Secondly, Look with me at the frequency of our meditation not just the focus but now the frequency of our meditation The frequency of meditation is stated clearly you shall meditate in it day and night Day and Night in other words. We should not be going long periods without engaging in meditation. Someone may raise an objection here.
This is a command specifically for Joshua as he is commissioned to lead the people of Israel I don't see how it applies to me Well consider the first Psalm Psalm chapter 1 we read about the blessed man The opening verse of Psalm 1 tells us what the blessed man refrains from. And the second verse tells us what the blessed man gives himself to. So what he refrains from and then what he gives himself to. And what does he give himself to? His heart is given to a delight in the law of God, and He meditates upon that law day and night.
What are your free moments given to? What do you do when you are unable to sleep? If you were like me last night, maybe you don't... Younger guys didn't have this problem. I had some trouble sleeping last night.
What did you give your mind and your heart to in those moments? May I state it this way? If you are not giving yourself to the Word of God, if you are not regularly meditating upon it, then you are left to the only other thing. That's the counsel that comes from the ungodly. It's the pathway trodden by sinners, and it is a seat among the scorners.
David prays that the words of his mouth and the meditations of his heart would be acceptable to God? Are the words of your mouth acceptable to God? And maybe you're very careful because of your parents, because of your friends in the church, and so let's go deeper. Are the meditations of your heart acceptable to God? Those two things are tied together.
The words of our mouth reveal the meditations of our heart. If God and the things of God are not preeminently, preeminently upon your lips, they are not on your mind and on your heart. Well, having seen in the passage the focus and the frequency of meditation, look thirdly with me at the function of our meditation, the function of our meditation. The function of our meditation, what it brings about in us is wholehearted obedience to everything God has said. God says here, observing in order to do according to all that is written in the Word.
In order to do according to all that is written in the Word. Let's look again at the shorter catechism. Number two, what rule has God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him? The Word of God, namely the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him. That's the function of the Word of God, that we may glorify Him through our obedience and that we might enjoy Him.
Here is what A.W. Pink had to say about the importance of meditation. Meditation upon the Word of God is one of the most important of all the means of grace and growth in spirituality. Yea, there...listen to this...there can be no true progress in vital and practical godliness without meditation. Meditation on divine things is not optional, but obligatory.
For it is something that God has commanded us to do. The usual plea offered by those who neglect meditation, I am too busy. My life is so crowded with the multiplicity of duties and concerns that alas, I have not the necessary leisure for quiet ruminating. Then you are acting in the energy of the flesh and suffering yourself to be a little better than a slave. God is no Egyptian taskmaster.
Christ's yoke is easy and his burden is light. And if your burden, and here he's talking about meditation, if your burden be heavy, it is a self-imposed one. God calls you to know manner of life that crowds out the needs of your soul and entails the neglect of your eternal interests. The focus of meditation, the frequency of meditation, and the function of meditation. Now, fourthly and finally in our text, the fruit of our meditation.
The fruit of our meditation. What benefit is there in our meditation? And how good is God to give us benefits with what He commands us? Well, it obviously will cost us something. So what is the fruit?
What is the gain? Well, the Word of God does not leave us wondering. It tells us plainly, for then, then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success. Are any of you men, are any of you young men interested at all in a prosperous and successful life? Are you?
I think you are. I think you are. God's wired us for such a thing. And the world searches for what that looks like. Prosperity and success.
Well Christ gives us the answer right here. This is it. Meditation upon the law of God. Meditation upon the law of God. That is what will make us fruitful.
The same idea is set forth in Psalm 1. The one who meditates in the word of God day and night shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither, and whatever he does shall prosper." This is not holding before us some prosperity gospel. No, this kind of prosperity and success cannot be judged or measured by the tape measure of this world. It is a prosperity and a success in the light of eternity and in light of the God of eternity. Christ calls it being rich toward God.
My friend, judge rightly the path that you are on. Will that path bring you prosperity and success? I am here to tell you the path won't bring those things if God is not your true delight, if He has not captured your heart, And if you have no thoughts of Him throughout your day, the psalmist says in Psalm 10, 4, the wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God. God is in none of his thoughts. Is that commentary true of you, my friend?
That God is in none of your thoughts. Well John Owen provides us some directives for how we can profitably meditate upon God. Number one, choose a time that is free from all worldly concerns. The best time is that which will cost you something. We must not in any time seek to serve God with what costs us nothing, nor must we dedicate any time that does not demand self-denial.
So choose a time that is free from all worldly concerns. Number two, take time to prepare your mind for spiritual thoughts. Take time to prepare for spiritual thoughts. Do not rush into heavenly thoughts without first preparing your heart and your mind. Number three, make every effort to understand the awesome holiness of God and the heavenly nature of the things you intend to meditate on.
That you may approach God with due reverence and fear and heavenly matters with a holy and healthy respect. In other words, think about the one whom you are meditating on. This is not just an exercise to check a box. You are meditating upon the things of a holy God. Number four, do not come to meditate on heavenly things only out of a sense of duty.
That kind of hinges on what we just said about consider the holiness of God. This is not just some duty that you're doing. We must not meditate on God and heavenly things merely because we feel the need for it or because we think we ought to do so that it would not do to utterly neglect it. So make every effort to enjoy spiritual things and your meditations of them will be sweet. Number five, cry to God for help.
Cry to God for help. Confess your need for more light on spiritual things to remove the darkness from your mind. Confess your weakness and inability to stop your thoughts from wandering when you should be thinking of holy things and pray that God will strengthen your mind. Sixth, it is good and helpful to Choose a specific subject to meditate upon. Choose a specific subject to meditate upon.
This is why what we heard in the last hour of reading the Word of God is so important. Many times that is what fuels us from meditation during the day. And I would suggest to you that in those personal times with the Lord of devotion, narrow what you read down. It's good to read long portions of Scripture together. But when it comes time for your devotional time, narrow down so that you can grab on to something to meditate throughout the day.
Seventhly and lastly, do not be discouraged when, after all your efforts, you find you accomplish little. Do not be discouraged. Do not be put off by the difficulties you meet with. Remember that it is God who you are dealing with. Don't become discouraged.
I close with the words of Spurgeon. A Christian will ever be in a lean state if he has no time for sacred musings before his God. Those men who know most of God are such as meditate upon Him. Those who realize most experimentally the doctrines of grace are those who meditate and soar beyond the reach of all earthly things. I think we shall never have much advancement in our churches until the members thereof begin to accept habitually the counsel, Come, My people, enter thou into thy chambers and shut thy doors about thee." Or that other, commune with your own heart upon your bed and be still until the distracting noise of business somewhat become less intense and we give ourselves to calmer thought and in the solemn silence of the mind find at once our heaven and our God, we must expect to have a regiment of dwarfs and only here and there a giant.
Giant minds cannot be nourished by mere casual hearing. Gigantic souls must have meditation to support them. Would ye be strong? Would ye be mighty? Would ye be valiant for the Lord and useful in his cause.
Take care that ye follow the occupation of the psalmist David and meditate. This is a very happy and profitable exercise. It is not something that the church of today knows much about. We Look to the Puritans and we're amazed at the giants that God made them to be. This is one of the keys.
Meditation. They gave themselves much to it. We are a people in our culture that are too easily satisfied with the things of this world we have so much. May God grant us grace to dig deep into the Word of God and to meditate upon it. Amen.