What does it mean to meditate? For the Christian, to meditate means something quite different than it does for, let’s say, a Buddhist. Buddhist meditation is a part of the pathway toward being freed from defilement, cravings, or from clinging to worldly things. When a Buddhist meditates, he “empties” his mind of desires, and rests his thoughts away from the challenges of the day. In Buddhism, meditation might be done by sitting still, quietly, undistracted, and staying put until you’ve emptied your mind of desires, bothers, and concerns.
Christian meditation has the opposite goal. Buddhists aim to “empty” the mind, while Christians meditate to fill the mind; to wrestle deeply with profound thoughts; to grow by working through challenging truths. In the Bible, we read in Joshua 1:8, “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” When we continuously meditate on the Word, being careful to do what it says, then our lives will improve. The Word of God is a source for us to change our lives; providing knowledge and hope.
On a side note, I don’t compare Buddhism and Christianity as though these two beliefs are equivalent. Buddhism teaches Deism, a belief claiming there is no god, or, if a god exists, then god is unknown and unknowable. In contrast, Christianity teaches Theism, a belief that God exists, and that He actively makes Himself known and engages His creation.
I hope that you are spending time every day reading and meditating on God’s Word. This essay is meant to be a supplemental reading. If you do nothing else today, reading and meditating on God’s Word is the best use of your time. After you have done that, consider these additional challenging thoughts, and wrestle through them. Consider their truth and how they might impact your life. Perhaps one of these meditations becomes a topic of conversation today. Each of the meditations provided below is an independent thought, and not necessarily connected to any other statement provided in the list. Just wrestle through each one, one at a time.
Various Random Meditations for Your Consideration
A.
In John 6:69, Peter tells Jesus, “We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” Notice the order of his discerning, “we have believed and have come to know.” Belief is first and knowing is second. A man believes Jesus to be God, and when he obeys in faith, it leads to right understanding. In short, if a man waits until he “knows,” he’ll never believe; but if he “believes”, he comes to know with assurance. This shows us that our initial belief is a moral choice, and those making the moral decision inevitably see it supported by reason, thus distinguishing faith from mistaken opinion.
B.
Evidence is lost on minds prejudice against truth.
C.
Truth without love is brutality.
Love without truth is hypocrisy.
D.
Quenching the Holy Spirit – not doing what He wants me to do.
Grieving the Holy Spirit – doing what He doesn’t want me to do.
E.
We ought to be slow to provide for men, what they can provide for themselves.
F.
“The deepest lessons of faith and holiness and peace come mostly through hard days, not easy days. Every pinch of pain has purpose.” John Piper
G.
Those who think much of themselves, don’t think much.
H.
“The most important thing about you is what comes into your mind when you think about God.” A.W. Tozer
I.
Jesus paid a price we could never pay, to give us a gift we could never earn.
J.
Your identity is not what you think about, or what you desire. Your identity is what you are! People think that if their behavior is attacked (take homosexuality, for example), then they believe their identity is under attack, as though they are that behavior or that desire. Your identity is what God says it is.
K.
You can’t trust your heart to give you your identity. The heart is corrupt (Jeremiah 17:9 and Mark 7:21-23). The heart is selfish, and we must apply moral restraint to it. The heart is also conflicted; one can often want two things at once (health and donuts, or monogamy and porn). The heart is also changing, especially when a person is young.
L.
Christianity is the only world view where you receive an identity, not achieve an identity.
M.
To know that nothing can happen in this world apart from the sovereignty of God, frightens the godless, and stabilizes the believer.
N.
Peace isn’t found in the absence of problems, but in the presence of Jesus.
O.
When God’s people choose rebellion, they also choose to be disciplined.
P.
Trust is built slowly, and lost quickly.
Q.
Real faith trusts God, no matter what the temporary outcome.
R.
There are three types of homes; parent-centered, child-centered, and Christ-centered.
S.
Discipleship requires our identity, our desires, and our knowledge.
T.
Humility comes before repentance. Repentance comes before blessings.
U.
When you don’t deal with the problem, you become the problem.
V.
Repentance can’t exist with excuses.
W.
People are impressed with our strengths, but connect to us through our weaknesses.
X.
2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”
Teaching – how to walk the right path
Reproof – warns when we’re off the right path
Correction – how to get back on the right path
Training – how to stay on the right path
Y.
To know the mind of God, you need the Spirit of God and the Word of God. Jesus assures His disciples that they will be taught and reminded (Holy Spirit) what He said (Bible). Satan knows the Word (Bible), but doesn’t have the Spirit; hence a different outcome.
Z.
The role of the Holy Spirit to unbelievers – Come alongside, pointing them in a direction, convict them of sin.
The role of the Holy Spirit to believers – He’s inside, not alongside, empowering, giving victory over sin.