My friend James went to seminary and loves people with a pastor’s heart. His passion for the homeless is amazing and merits discussion. But he has one idea with which I cannot agree. He does not believe in the practice of memorizing scripture. His senior thesis in seminary was “Jesus Never Asked Anyone to Memorize Scripture.” Such an argument is based on the logical fallacy called “the Argument from Silence.” It is fallacious because a non-mention by one side cannot be used as evidence for the other side.
Nevertheless, a ‘wooden’ reading of the gospels may seem to support James’s position. But no. If Jesus never mentioned scripture memory, it is because Jesus assumed that it “goes without saying.”
Here is the truth of scripture memory: if Jesus did not mention it, it’s because the importance of memorizing God’s word was obvious. Don’t believe me? Consider how much scripture Jesus (not to mention Paul and others) had memorized.
Keep that in mind as I change the subject briefly.…
With 176 verses, Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible. It is an acrostic, each section based on one letter of the Hebrew alphabet. But what is more interesting may be the content—this beautiful, long poem is a love letter about God’s law.
Whereas many writers today seem to condemn the law or to dismiss both the law and the entire Old Testament as ‘old news for the old days,’ the writer of Psalm 119 adores God’s law. He is CONVINCED God’s law is the path to life, joy, peace, and abundance. I agree: The Law and ALL the rest of the Old Testament are filled with wisdom. Many of the verses of Ps. 119 also apply to the New Testament:
“How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your Word… THY WORD HAVE I HID IN MY HEART, THAT I MIGHT NOT SIN AGAINST YOU” Psalm 119:9,11.
God, teach us to HIDE YOUR WORD IN OUR HEARTS—to memorize it—so we might not sin against you.
ΑΩ
Household Words: 