Rightly Dividing the Word (6)

Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You. Psalm 119.11

Nail it down
Solomon wrote that the words illuminated to us by our wise Shepherd are like nails, securely set (Eccl. 12.11). What God is teaching us in His Word, we want to secure in our souls, so that what we’re learning will always be there when we need it. Securing what God is teaching us is the next facet of our approach to rightly dividing the Word of truth.

The Scriptures themselves teach us to pursue this, hiding the Word in our hearts, as our text for today advises. Paul says we should seek to have the Word of God dwelling in us richly (Col. 3.16). Jeremiah took the Word to heart with great joy and rejoicing (Jer. 15.16). The writer of the book of Hebrews instructs us to pursue constant use of what we’re learning, until we are shaped for discernment and obedience from the inside out (Heb. 5.14).

We need to allow God to drive the nails of His Word securely into our souls and lives, and I want to suggest a few practices that can help to make that a reality.

Sort it out
First, whatever God is teaching you in your time with Him, whatever lights He turns on in your soul, these are merely part of the larger picture of your life in Christ. How does what you’re learning today go together with what you learned last week? Or a year ago? The more we put together the things God is teaching us, the more securely those things will lodge in our souls and lives.

So it helps to have some categories for your learning, some place in your imagination where the truth of God resides and does its work.

You might think of your soul as a library, with books on different shelves in different departments. Or like a grocery store, where you head down different aisles for the shelves that hold what God is showing you. I find using simple diagrams depicting the life of faith and my own life and calling to be a most effective way of aggregating the things I’m learning, so that the synergy God intends from His Word actually grows even when I’m not thinking about it.

Write it down
Journaling during your time in the Word of God is another way of helping to secure what you’re learning. Write down what God has shown you from His Word, as well as whatever next steps you intend to take. You can also use your journal to categorize the things you’re learning, organizing your learning topically, and then to review them from time to time.

Occasionally I will review my own journals as part of my time in God’s Word, looking at notes I’ve taken in the past, updating my understanding of this or that text or truth, and seeking to pull together previous experiences in the Word for new insights and applications in the present.

Bury it in
As part of your journaling, find a verse or even part of a verse to memorize, then work to bury that seed of the Word in your soul, so that it can grow and bear fruit by its own inherent power.

I think it’s very important that we work at Scripture memory. I find that having passages of Scripture germinating in the soil of my subconscious makes it possible for the Word of God to bear fruit without my having to look up something to help me at some moment. The more of God’s Word we can commit to memory, if only in loose paraphrase, and even without the Scriptural address, the more we’ll be able to surrender to that Word when opportunities arise.

Talk it through
It can also help to secure God’s Word in your soul if you have a soul friend with whom you can talk about what God is teaching you. Begin with your spouse. Set a time each week when you will share together from your time in God’s Word. Be specific about what God is teaching you and how you are trying to grow, then pray for one another and encourage one another in obeying the Lord.

Having an additional soul friend of your own sex to meet with on a regular basis can also help to fasten the Word securely in your soul. Soul friends can be excellent as study or accountability partners, and for stimulating us in specific ways for love and good works (Heb. 10.24). Talking and praying with soul friends can be an excellent way of sinking the Word of God securely into your soul and life.

Everyday obedience
Unless we work to obey God’s Word daily, we will never find the Word dwelling in us richly and nailing our souls for the Lord. When those opportunities arise for surrendering to the Lord, we need to go boldly ahead and do what we’ve planned, carry out what God has shown us, open our mouths or get moving toward a specific act, and let the Spirit of God fill our sails with His power and know-how. Just do it, and God will secure His Word in us as we follow Him in obedience.

Secure God’s Word in your soul and life. This is an important part of the process of rightly dividing the Word and getting the most out of Scripture.

For reflection
1.  How is the Word of God like well-set nails? 


2.  In which of the aspects of securing the Word are you currently involved? Which would you like to learn to use better? 


3.  How does daily obedience help to secure the Word in your soul? 


Next steps – Transformation, Conversation: What will you begin to do to secure the Word in your soul? Share your plans for securing God’s Word with a soul friend, and ask your soul friend to encourage you and hold you accountable.

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.