2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-4 – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

THEME OF THE DAY. DIGGING DEEP IN GOD’S WORD. Biblical meditation. It is a needed discipline in the life of every Christian. Without it, we cannot grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus to the extent possible and as God would have us. And when it comes to the scripture of today, only meditation will draw from its deep wells its promised comfort. Yet, we are not good “well-diggers” in this discipline. Biblical meditation might be recognized by believers as necessary, but it probably ranks high on the list of spiritual disciplines talked about a lot and practiced little – like prayer.

First, we should attempt a definition. We will do so by a quote and illustration from two giants of the faith; the definition from our generation and the illustration from a godly puritan who lived over four hundred years ago.

Jerry Bridges, (1929–2016), “The word meditate as used in the Old Testament literally means to murmur or to mutter and, by implication, to talk to oneself. When we meditate on the Scriptures, we talk to ourselves about them, turning over in our minds the meanings, the implications, and the applications to our own lives.”

Thomas Brooks ((1608–1680), “Remember that it is not hasty reading, but serious meditation on holy and heavenly truths, that makes them prove sweet and profitable to the soul. It is not the mere touching of the flower by the bee that gathers honey, but her abiding for a time on the flower that draws out the sweet. It is not he that reads most, but he that meditates most, that will prove to be the choicest, sweetest, wisest and strongest Christian.”

Now the application. Let us do some Biblical meditation in today’s scripture. Read through it, over and over, talk to yourself about every word, every concept, every promise . . . everything. Then go back and draw a single truth to “mull over” like a “bee abiding on a flower drawing out its sweetness.” This will not be easy so pray for the Spirit’s help. We are easily distracted, and mental distractions are the death of Biblical meditation, but stay at it. And to encourage you and illustrate for you, I will share my “mulling over place” this morning from today’s scripture. It was on the titles of the God who promises me comfort.

First, He is our “Father of all mercies” which reveals relationship of intimacy, compassion, and gentleness. Meditate on “Father” and let our hearts be warmed with confidence that “Our Father in heaven” is eager to comfort us. This place of meditation will cause us to draw near to Him with confidence.

Next, meditate on this Father being our “God of all comforts.” We need this balance. To be a Father who desires to comfort but lack the power to comfort is of no value to us in our pain. But our Father is also our God – the omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent One who has the power to comfort us and will comfort us because He is our Father.

Biblical meditation. Let us strive for its practice in our lives regularly. It will allow us to really get to know our God and enjoy Him more and more as we go deeper in His Word to know Him more and more.

PRAYER: “Oh, Father, I praise You for not only being my God, but my Father who comforts me in my sorrow.”

QUOTE: “Lean confidently on the everlasting arms of your Heavenly Father for He is also Your all-powerful God.”