\n\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Audio\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\tby Jeffrey W. Hamilton<\/p>\n\t
Text: Psalms 119:145-152<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nI. It is one of those minor points brought out by the Bible; a seemingly incidental detail that\nyou almost overlook – Genesis 24:63\n
A. Isaac took a stroll in the evening in a field to meditate. <\/p>\n 1. We are given a hint as to why in Genesis 24:67. The death of his mother\nstill weighed heavy on his soul.\n
2. He was out for some quiet time<\/p>\n
B. We don’t often talk about meditating. <\/p>\n
1. Eastern religions have made it an essential part of their religion.<\/p>\n 2. We think about the guru on the mountain top, looking within himself, to\ngain better understanding of himself.\n
a. But it is only a “truth” as you or I would perceive life.<\/p>\n b. It might lead you to a better understanding of your wants or desires,\nbut such ideas would hardly be the Truth\n
3. Of course, western religions have their meditators. <\/p>\n a. But joining an order of monks in seclusion from the world cannot\nequip a person for life.\n b. Real life has its sorrows and trials, but I doubt managed discomfort\ncan give us greater understanding of life’s problems.\n
C. Meditation is mentioned frequently in the Bible.<\/p>\n 1. It was not reserved for the religious class but was practiced by everyday\npeople.\n
II. Meditation is to dwell upon a subject in thought<\/p>\n
A. There are several Hebrew words which are translated as meditate<\/p>\n
1. Suwach<\/i>, as Isaac did, means to muse on a matter<\/p>\n 2. Siyach <\/i>means to ponder, to talk to one’s self, to rehearse a matter in your\nmind. (No, it is not a sign of senility!) Psalms 145:5 (“speak”)\n 3. Hagah <\/i>means to murmur as you ponder. Talking under your breath, so\nothers don’t understand what you are saying.\n
a. The thoughts of your heart – Psalms 49:3<\/p>\n
4. Higgayown <\/i>means to make a whispered sound<\/p>\n
a. In other words, meditation through music<\/p>\n
(1) Psalms 92:3 – “resounding sound”<\/p>\n
(2) Psalms 19:14 – “mediation” of the heart<\/p>\n 5. Chazah <\/i>means to contemplate a mental image, to see something in your\nmind. Sometimes used in conjunction with meditation\n a. Psalms 27:4 – to behold the beauty of the Lord and meditate in his\ntemple\n
b. Proverbs 24:32 – To see and consider<\/p>\n
B. In the Greek, words that are translated mediate <\/p>\n
1. Meletao <\/i>– to resolve a matter in your mind<\/p>\n
a. I Timothy 4:15<\/p>\n
2. Logizomai<\/i>– To take inventory. To reason a matter to a conclusion<\/p>\n
a. Philippians 4:8 – “think” on these things<\/p>\n C. As you can see meditating doesn’t mean chanting a word over and over or\nhumming a monotone sound. It is giving a matter deep thought. – Psalms 77:1-15\n
1. Meditation in eastern religions aims to think of nothing<\/p>\n
2. Meditation in the Bible is to think of something deeply<\/p>\n
III. It is done in quiet places because you don’t want any interruptions<\/p>\n
A. Isaac going out into a field in the evening<\/p>\n
B. Meditating on your bed – Psalms 4:4<\/p>\n C. Looking forward to the night watch to do some serious thinking – Psalms\n119:147-148\n D. It is not restricted to these times. It can be done at anytime there is a need – Psalms\n55:17 (NASB is not well translated – should be meditate and cry aloud)\n
IV. What requires our deeper thoughts<\/p>\n
A. God’s work<\/p>\n
1. Considering the aid God has given in the past – Psalms 143:5-6<\/p>\n
2. Speak of (meditate on) God’s wondrous works – Psalms 105:1-5<\/p>\n
B. More often, though, the Bible speaks of meditating on God’s law<\/p>\n
1. Psalms 1:1-2 – The righteous meditates on God’s law<\/p>\n
2. Psalms 119:14-16 – A delight to meditate on God’s law<\/p>\n
3. Psalms 119:47-48 – Because he loves God’s law<\/p>\n 4. Man so often despises any restriction that the very idea of laws are what\nmany detest.\n a. Can you imagine anyone waxing so eloquently about the IRS\ncodes?\n b. There is a beauty in God’s law which makes it like no other –\nPsalms 19:7-11\n
c. David loved the laws of God – Psalms 119:97<\/p>\n
C. Righteous and pure things – Philippians 4:8<\/p>\n
V. What meditation does for us<\/p>\n
A. Meditation is a part of our learning process<\/p>\n
B. It gives us deeper insight – Psalms 119:97-104<\/p>\n
1. It makes us wiser. It gives us experience without the age.<\/p>\n
C. It gives us understanding – Psalms 49:3<\/p>\n
D. It helps us not to forget – Joshua 1:8<\/p>\n 1. If something is going to be firmly planted in your brain, you need to go\nover it again and again.\n 2. This is why Timothy was to be “absorbed” by these things – I Timothy\n4:13-16\nVI. Do not let God’s words slip out of your thoughts. Ponder them. Learn from them. And\napply them to your life.\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Download Audio by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalms 119:145-152 I. It is one of those minor points brought out by the Bible; a seemingly incidental detail that you almost overlook – Genesis 24:63 A. Isaac took a stroll in the evening in a field to meditate. 1. We are given a hint as to why in Genesis…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[482,865],"class_list":["post-26341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-learning","tag-meditation"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7719,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/reflecting-on-the-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":26341,"position":0},"title":"Reflecting on the Day","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 18, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel","rel":"","context":"In 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