6 Reasons Scripture Memorization Is Essential
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Have you ever met one of those people so gifted at knowing the Bible that verses just seem to roll off their tongue automatically? They can tell you exactly which book, chapter, and number the verse comes from and they know it verbatim. It’s impressive!
It’s also something I am decidedly not gifted at being able to do. I have a master’s in English literature, and perhaps you might assume someone who loves literature that much would be able to easily recall certain quotes from books. I’m really awful at it. I love to read and analyze literature, but memorizing it is a whole different story. As much as I love the Bible, it’s the same thing.
Yet lately, I’ve hungered for the ability to know key verses of Scripture that I can draw from in times of need. I genuinely love the Bible, and it has helped me so much in my growth as a Christian. I read it every day, and I know the great value it has for all of us as believers as we walk in this world, awaiting what will be our heavenly home forever.
And I’ve realized there are critical reasons why I and other Christian believers should try to memorize Scripture, even if it’s not something we’re naturally gifted at.
Here are six reasons why memorizing Scripture is a huge help to us all.
1. Memorizing Scripture Helps Us Know God Better
Scripture is God’s living and inspired word, given to us as a gift. As we’re told in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Once, we humans enjoyed a perfect relationship with God. But we all have inherent sin within us, and the human action is what got us kicked out of the Garden of Eden. Thankfully, God sent his son, Jesus, to show us the way and to bear the price for our sin so we can all have eternal life. And when Jesus returned to heaven, he left behind the gift of the Holy Spirit that lives within our hearts.
Still, there’s a great distance between here on earth and our heavenly home with God. Life here can get very difficult.
That’s why the Bible is a true gift — a tool and a resource that can help us on earth as we live out our days awaiting heaven.
God’s word is a love letter from start to finish. God’s mercy and love for us all is evident in the pages. Through his people who wrote the Bible, God gives us instructions on how to live, how to resist temptation, and how to press on even when things are incredibly hard. When we read God’s word and memorize some of his verses, it helps us focus on this love in an active and thoughtful way. We start to take ownership of the knowledge God gives, and it helps us know our Lord better and draw closer to him.
2. Memorizing Scripture Helps Us in Times of Weakness and Anguish
I don’t know about you, but I have had dark nights of the soul when I felt broken and terrified, filled with sorrow and even anger. I remember one time I was on my knees, bawling my eyes out on my bathroom floor. Sometimes in those moments, I have felt God with me. I have felt Jesus right there beside me and the Holy Spirit in my heart, bringing comfort. At those times, God’s words echo through my heart: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
When we are weak, it is such a comfort to have God’s word bolstering us. Maybe in the moment it doesn’t occur to us to pick up our Bible, but when we have Scriptures memorized, it is in those times that they began to bubble up inside of us and come to the forefront of our minds.
As we’re told in Colossians 3:16, “Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.”
3. Memorizing Scripture Becomes an Act of Meditation, Enabling the Holy Spirit inside Us to Grow and Strengthen
I used to think of meditation as sitting cross-legged, with my thumb and middle finger touching, chanting, “Ommmm.” I’m sure for some people that is exactly what it is.
But Christian meditation is a thoughtful soul exercise that can bring much spiritual benefit. Essentially, meditation is a practice that involves training the mind to achieve a state of focus and inner peace. For Christians, it typically involves focusing on God's word and reflecting on its meaning. Monks, nuns, priests, and other spiritual men and women for centuries have used meditation to get closer to God and ignite the Holy Spirit within them.
When we are in a time of active Scriptural memorization, that diligent, thoughtful, and repetitious behavior can be quite a lot like what we do during meditation. We clear our minds of other distractions and focus on those words and the meaning behind them.
In doing so, our senses are sharpened in our souls, enabling us to narrow in on God in a clear and perfect way.
As Psalm 19:14 says, “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”
4. Memorizing Scripture Helps Us When We Are Talking to Other People in Need of a Word from God
Have you ever been talking with someone and they’ve poured their heart out to you? Then God’s voice seems to spill from your lips with what seem to be the perfect expressions of comfort, words you yourself couldn’t possibly have come up with? In times like this, so intimate and heartfelt, it feels awkward and strange to pause the conversation and say, “Hang on, let me look up this exact Bible verse so I can share it with you — that way you can know exactly what I’m trying to tell you because this is what God promises to us.”
At times like these, it carries so much more weight if we can just simply share from our heart some memorized verses about what God promises us.
A few years ago, my teenage daughter struggled intensely with a period of devastating depression and anxiety. Night after night, she would cry and I would hold her, and we would have long deep talks. During those times, it was such a comfort to be able to share memorized Scriptures with her. In the moment, it felt so natural, and in her eyes I could see how they helped.
As John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”
5. Memorizing Scripture Helps Us When We Don’t Have Access to Our Bibles
Imagine you are hiking or driving in a remote location without you Bible, and your phone has either run out of battery or has no connection. Yet for whatever reason you desperately need a Bible verse. If you’ve memorized your Bible, then you’re in luck.
Maybe it sounds silly, but I think of the end times when I consider the importance of memorizing Scripture. Maybe we won’t have phones or access to phones, and maybe we won’t get to carry our Bibles around with us, yet we desperately want God’s word with us. Having a supply of comforting verses stored up within us can help with that.
6. Memorizing Scripture Strengthens Our Foundation as Believers
When we tuck God’s word deep inside of us, we always have access to that truth. The Bible assures us of this. In Psalm 119:11 the psalmist says, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” What a beautiful gift to have!
It also keeps us walking on God’s path in a steadier, clearer manner. As Psalm 119:105 reminds us, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
These are just six of many reasons to memorize Scripture. If you’re reading this, perhaps God is encouraging you to memorize his word, or encourage others to do so.
Together, we can share the Good News of God’s perfect and precious love and his redeeming grace.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Jacob Wackerhausen
