Many people will (mistakenly) think that anyone who memorizes a huge amount of Scripture must be some sort of “super saint”. I have this to say about that, and that’s this: Super saint? NO I AIN’T! Not even close. (To echo the Apostle Paul in Romans 7:18, “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh”.) In fact, just the opposite of their notion is true, because the more of the Bible I memorize, the more I realize how utterly and entirely sinful I am in and of myself, in my flesh. You see, as Psalm 19:7-8 clearly states, the Bible – and especially memorizing the Bible – “enlightens the eyes”. It breaks through the blindness which besets us from birth and opens one’s eyes. To the truth and existence and nature and will of God. To the nature and detrimental, destructive, and indeed deadly consequences of sin (Romans 6:23). And to the nature of man. Our flesh. Our fallacy. Our tendencies. Why we do what we do. Why we do what we should not and not do what we should! (Romans 7:19) So you can see why I say that the more Scripture one memorizes, the more one will see the righteousness of God and the sinfulness of oneself, of the flesh, to the extent that I can honestly say that I’m the BIGGEST SINNER I know, I’m the biggest sinner I’ve EVER known, and I’m probably the biggest sinner YOU’VE ever known, at least that’s how I see it, that’s my (believe it or not blissful) Bible-borne perspective.
But thankfully Psalm 19:7-8 doesn’t stop there! Because it’s just as clear that the Bible also “restores the soul” and “makes wise the simple” and “rejoices the heart”! It’s not just a win, not just a home run, memorizing and reciting Scripture is a GRAND SLAM! And not just spiritually, but humanly… not just in the spiritual realm, but in the human realm, not just in the life to come but also this present life (1 Timothy 4:8). And I can testify from firsthand experience that all of this is absolutely true: so long as I’m doing so on a regular basis, my spirit remains utterly joyful, rarely ever leaving the proverbial “cloud nine”. I find that I see things that many others don’t (heightened insight produced by the Word within). And I find that my heart remains filled with and focused on the things above, not on the things that are on earth (Colossians 3:2), not on the things which are seen, but unseen, not the things which are temporal but eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18) – what a wonderful way to go through life! And what’s amazing is that I’m just at the START this journey of memorizing the entire Bible, after which the Lord is leading me to turn this into a full-fledged, full-speed-ahead, full-time ministry – here’s the plan…
PHASE 1: Memorize the ENTIRE Bible as a “love/thank You” gift back to Him and also to prove, to demonstrate to the world the utter and tangible power and benefits of the ingested (memorized) Word of God! And for the first few months to highlight the need and leave room for the Lord to lead like-minded Bible-loving believers to support this in whatever ways they’re able and willing and excited to do so when learning about this historic endeavor and opportunity.
PHASE 2: After memorizing all or at least the vast majority of the New Testament, the next step will commence and entail totally changing the emphasis of this website from seeking one-time and especially Monthly Partners so as to get and keep this going to just giving back by meeting the needs of others, to “fulfill the law of Christ” by “bearing the burdens of others” (Galatians 6:2) and “serving one another” (Galatians 5:13; 1 Peter 4:10).
Specifically, I will make myself available all throughout the day virtually every day so anyone will be able to:
- Ask and receive Bible-based answers to their questions about the Bible itself, God, sin, human nature, and whatever else might be on their hearts at any given time. Literally for the rest of my or their lives, they will have a ready and waiting friend and/or listening ear and/or shoulder to cry on according to their need at the time. Without reservation, and without judgment.
- Submit prayer requests to be prayed for by someone who is brimming with the living Word within him, which I firmly believe is the biggest key to effective prayer: the Word sanctifies (John 17:17) and cleanses (Ephesians 5:26) and keeps pure (Psalm 119:9) and away from sin (Psalm 119:11); now combine all of this with the fact that “the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears attend to their prayer” (1 Peter 3:12) and “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much” (James 5:16b) and perhaps speaking most poignantly to the amazing link between memorizing Scripture and an effective prayer life, “If you abide in Me, and MY WORDS ABIDE IN YOU, ask WHATEVER you WISH, and it SHALL BE DONE for you.” (John 15:7). How will people’s lives literally change and be transformed by the supplication and intercession by one in whom such a massive amount of Scripture will be dwelling? GAME-CHANGER. Life-changer. WORLD-changer! (Literally. Just ask the people who were living in the time of Elijah.)
- Find a BIBLICAL – Bible-loving, Bible-believing, Bible-practicing – church near them, right in their local area! I am already in the process of putting together this network of churches; denomination will be irrelevant, the only criterion will be the extent to which they demonstrably adhere to the principles set forth in the Bible about “how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.” (1 Timothy 3:15) With a primary focus on how supportive they are of Bible memory. I expect even just the human-interest/intellectual aspect of this project to attract countless people who aren’t even religious or are very early on in their spiritual growth who’ll need and want to find a church that will foster and maximize said growth.
- Find the businesses in YOUR area that are owned and/or managed by fellow Christians who love the Lord and His Word and realize the importance of and support Bible memory. Galatians 6:10 and 1 Timothy 6:2 make clear that it is our responsibility as Christians that our everyday choices inure to the benefit of fellow believers whenever possible, so I’m going to make that super easy and convenient by posting a nationwide (but searchable by state/county/city) LIST of Christian businesses so we can all choose THEM whenever we need a product or service; once assembled, it will appear on the “Find A Christian Biz” / Yellow Pages section here at BibleMemory.ORG so please check back for that in the coming weeks.
PHASE 3: Turn this burgeoning history-in-the-making effort into a full-speed-ahead, full-fledged, full-time ministry to Educate, Encourage, and Empower others to memorize and recite Scripture on a regular, systematic, verse-by-verse, book-by-book basis! Tall goal, but totally doable, because something very interesting happened as I memorized my very first book of the Bible, the New Testament book of James. That goal seemed not just tall but downright monumental. Undoable. Right? Wrong! Because, amazingly, the more of it I memorize, the EASIER it gets! The more of it I memorize, the more I am able to memorize. By the time I came to Chapter 5, I knew this large task was indeed going to be accomplished. BIG difference than when I was facing Chapter 1 Verse 1.
This is a fantastic real-life demonstration of Matthew 19:26 which says, “With men, this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Including memorizing the ENTIRE Bible! You see, in the physical realm, the more water you pour into a glass, the less capacity it will have for more water to be added. But in the spiritual realm, when it comes to God and His Word, the Bible, the exact OPPOSITE is true! The MORE you pour into your mind, the MORE capacity you’ll have for additional verses and chapters and books to be added! Not less. And this amazing power is exponential in nature: I saw a large increase in capacity from James 1 to James 5, but double or triple the capacity by the time I finished memorizing Hebrews 1-5, and then quadruple or quintuple the capacity by the time I finished memorizing Hebrews 6-10, and so on. This finding is literally historic, and indeed the closest thing to a bona fide miracle in recent history of which I’m aware: it’s verifiable, it’s tangible, and – due to the “living and active” nature of the Bible (Hebrews 4:12) – it’s even repeatable. While the specific extent of this phenomenon might vary from person to person, the essence of the Word does not. Ever. This is how I’ll be able not just to Educate and Encourage the masses to memorize and recite Scripture on a regular, systematic basis but also to EMPOWER them to do so (the Word through me). (Believe me, once a person gets a taste of this, his or her life will never be the same. Human metaphors don’t really do it justice but in terms of the Christian life, it’s like trying filet mignon for the first time after a lifetime of eating hamburger.)
This will primarily be accomplished by producing a course, a syllabus, an entire series of videos, CD’s, and even audio cassettes, which will take all of this and make it SUPER EASY and CONVENIENT for people the world over to learn and apply this at their own pace and as their individual schedules permit. I am utterly convinced that another worldwide spiritual revival will occur, but I’m even more certain that it will only occur as people start ingesting the living Word of God by memorizing and reciting it regularly – “all the day” (Psalm 119:97) and even “day AND night” (Psalm 1:2-3).
By the way, this would be a great time to let you know that as I’ve been memorizing Scripture, a very specific METHOD of doing so is coming into focus, which, as noted above, I can testify firsthand is making it MUCH EASIER for me to memorize and retain – not just the Bible but EVERYTHING: to-do lists, schedule and meetings, various events that occur, etc., a true “sponge” effect! – and I’m 99.9% sure that it will do so for virtually anyone and everyone who applies it. It’s still coming together but seems to be getting close to the point that it can be rolled out. This one aspect alone of this one phase alone could easily and literally change the world and people’s everyday lives.
PHASE 4: Set up new and/or work with established addiction centers to specifically address the huge need for healing, curing, and then preventing from recurring (relapse) the massive crisis of addiction to pain killers, opioids, and other drugs, as well as the dreadful disease of depression. I am absolutely certain that the best and probably only way to truly beat, to truly eradicate, overcome, and conquer an addiction is to turn to something even more addictive – and I am equally certain that the most addictive thing in the universe is the BIBLE, the living and active Word of God, the Word ingested. No doubt about it. The main challenge is that so relatively few ever really give regular and systematic Bible memory a try, but I – with your and the Lord’s help – intend to change that!
It won’t happen overnight but I have no doubt that change is indeed coming. And just in case you don’t think the Bible extends or has relevance to the physical realm of human existence, I humbly give you Proverbs 4:22 which, referring to the Bible, the “my words” of verse 20, clearly states that His words “are LIFE to those who find them, and HEALTH to ALL their WHOLE BODY.” Is that an amazing verse or what?! We have a super-duper health “pill” readily available to us (the Bible is the most-published and available book of all time) yet SO FEW EVER ACTUALLY SWALLOW IT! To their utter “missing out” yet few if any are even aware of this because nobody has trumpeted it from the proverbial mountaintops but with your help I intend to change this, too, and do just that!
I didn’t start memorizing entire books of the Bible as a child but did memorize a lot of single Bible verses and – totally not surprisingly in light of that verse/truth/fact – I haven’t had to see a doctor or go to the hospital my entire adult life. Not even a single time. No emergencies. No health surprises. Not one. I don’t think the two are unrelated or that this remarkable health history is mere coincidence or the result of “good genes”; no, I’m certain it’s that verse at work.
No, it won’t happen overnight but down the road I look forward to organizing some clinical/medical trials to demonstrate that this is universal and not just specific to me. I dare say that other than imparting the Gospel or giving one’s own life to save another’s, there is no greater act of love and kindness and therefore Christlikeness (since He epitomized and epitomizes both) than to free a person from the cruel slavery and bondage of addiction or depression, to provide them with the answer, the antidote, something that actually and permanently WORKS! So even just this phase of the action plan will likely be enough to revolutionize the nation and world.
CONCLUSION: If you like what you’ve heard here and found yourself nodding in agreement several times, please read on…
Introducing MacArthurMemory.com – a Loving, Living Tribute!
/in Uncategorized /by Bible MemoryEvery once in a while someone comes along who demonstrates such stark uniqueness among men and women that they’re known by one name, who has secured such celebrity status and stature so as to be immediately recognized with a single sobriquet or syllable.
In the world of sports, such examples include Gretzky, Lemieux, Ovechkin, Orr; Brady, Bradshaw, Barry, Jerry, Staubach, Starr, Montana, Marino, Manning, Mahomes; DiMaggio, Musial, Mantle, Maris; McEnroe, Ashe, Agassi, Federer; fierce fighters Foreman, Ali, Marciano, Holyfield, Hagler, Hearns; golfing greats Tiger, Nicklaus, Mickelson, Snead, Scheffler, Schauffele; and basketball big boys Bird, Magic, Kareem, Jordan, Shaq, Flagg (too soon? … yes, but let’s call it a lingering hunch: Larry 2.0?).
In the world of music there’s Beethoven, Bach, Brahms, Britney, Cher, Madonna, Taylor OR Swift, Elvis OR Presley, Prince, Pavarotti.
In La La Land there’s Marlon, Marilyn, Meryl, Mirren, Pacino, Pitt, Hanks, Hepburn, Hemsworth, Wahlberg, Baldwin (for those last few, who says talent doesn’t run in the family, isn’t in one’s DNA?!) (just ask Archie, Peyton, Eli and Arch, or the NBA’s Holiday or Plumlee brothers) and my True Lies movie co-star Schwarzenegger. (Well, he was a star, I was just an extra but what an experience… talk about an amazing memory!)
And in the world of religion, Christianity, Calvinism, evangelism, preaching and teaching…
… there’s MacArthur.
John MacArthur stood with pastors and missionaries the world over, with students at the inimitable Master’s Seminary and University, and with our black brothers and sisters in the Civil Rights era when few whites would.
Yet John MacArthur stood alone in terms of not only preaching and teaching but also Bible study and scholasticism and, yes, sense of humor! (I’ll relate several examples of this in the future, when I post my own “MacArthur memory” using the form below.)
For now I’ll tell you two of my top favorites – one firsthand, one secondhand, in reverse order.
A secondhand memory is the fact that John MacArthur regularly appeared on my former condomate Larry King’s eponymous TV show on CNN, pretty much whenever the latter would assemble a panel of pastors and theologians or other religious leaders. It was so surreal seeing my favorite preacher and Bible teacher frequently fellowship with my friend and fellow building-resident live on national television (back in the days when the whole world would watch).
A firsthand memory is the fact that when John learned that the Lord had recently led me to memorize the ENTIRE Bible, he wrote me a very kind and encouraging letter which started with one word: “Wow!”
(My memory mission made Mr. MacArthur say “wow”, how cool is that?!)
The probably busiest person on the planet took time to write a letter urging me on in that historic and precious pursuit and to thank me for sharing with him how much, how deeply, how ongoingly the Lord has used him in my life – spiritually and humanly, regarding not only the life to come but also this one – and to congratulate him on a whopping, world-famous, scandal-free, faithful fifty years at Grace To You and his beloved church.
Was I already 1,000% dedicated and committed and excited to heed that leading of the Lord to not just read, not just study, but actually memorize the entire Bible? Yes. (Very!) But did his letter do so all the more? Ab-so-LUTE-ly! It’s too soon to tell how little or largely the Lord will use BibleMemory.ORG between now and when I join John at our Savior’s side and feet in Heaven someday, but I can honestly say that whatever fruit the Lord reaps thereby, all of the credit will go Him but under that umbrella a big chunk will go to John MacArthur.
In fact, even exponentially more than his loving letter, because of how greatly and frequently the Lord and Holy Spirit have taught me the Bible through the (uniquely gifted) mind and mouth and ministry of John MacArthur, I have chosen to co-name my memory method in his honor: the MacArthur memory method. (He would definitely love the alliteration!)
When I first heard about his heavenly homegoing of July 14, I immediately wanted to not just pay tribute to him as so many men and women far more famous and no doubt greater than I have over these past few weeks, but to set up a website where people the world over could post, could share their favorite memory (or two or ten) of John MacArthur – either firsthand ones like this letter or, more likely, one or more involving lessons learned from the Lord through the ministry or person of John MacArthur… what a wonderful way to multiply his ministry and legacy even long after his Heaven-destined departure!
I think this will be very exciting all the way around and can hardly wait to see the many ways the Lord intends to use this! In your life. In my life. In the lives of countless others across the country and around the world, as we share and thank and praise the Lord for how He has used (and thanks to Grace To You and YouTube and now MacArthurMemory.com, will continue to use) John MacArthur in our lives and walks with Him. If YOU would like to share a “MacArthur memory” in this special way, simply use this quick and easy form! (And definitely feel free to keep sharing, to post new memories in the future as the Lord continues to teach you through the many recordings and writings of John MacArthur!)
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(Here’s what I meant about his having had a huge sense of humor… Exhibit A!)
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Wholly Holy
/in Uncategorized /by Bible MemoryI’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I think that one of the most amazing, stunning, jaw-dropping, brain-blowing, mind-melting, conscience-crinkling commands in the entire Bible is the one found in 1 Peter 1:15 …
(… and its “other side of the same coin” similar-sounding sister verse Titus 1:15 … yep, and they’re BOTH “Chapter 1, Verse 15” with only the book of the Bible itself being different… we’ll call them “the two 1:15’s” on holiness…)
We are called, no, commanded not just to be holy, as massive as that would be all by itself, but to be holy LIKE God Himself is.
Wow! Wow! I am speechless!
But wait, there’s more! We are commanded not only to be holy and not only to be holy like He is but to do so, to be so, in ALL our behavior, in ALL our conduct, in ALL of our words and actions (including reactions), i.e., to be WHOLLY holy … wow wow wow, what a command!
But praise the Lord that the Bible is crystal clear that this is indeed possible but only by His doing, only through the inner working of His Spirit and Word.
Which is why it’s so crucial to spend as much time and meditation as possible in the latter, since it is what fully and maximally unleashes the former in us.
Hence holiness in humans, like wisdom, cannot be bought or brought about by self-effort, only through Spirit-working and Word-saturation.
May we redouble our focus on the crucial importance of personal, God-produced holiness in our daily living.
Pour it out upon and within us, Father, for we are willing and want to be obedient to the Bible and thus possess and practice personal holiness, to “be holy [our]selves also in all [our] behavior” even as You Yourself are holy, holy, holy.
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“You Raise Me Up”
/in Uncategorized /by Bible MemoryI might or might not know a great deal… but I know a great deal when I see one.
I think I inherited that ability from my paternal grandmother; as noted on this website’s Why page, she once was one of the biggest independent antique dealers certainly east of the Mississippi and probably the entire country at the time, and I can remember as though it were yesterday the time that, for my major-milestone 13th birthday, she, my parents, and I visited the Williamsburg (Va.) Pottery Factory (it’s big now but was way more massive then). It’s the first time I fully, fervently comprehended the meaning of the phrases “a fish in water” and “kid (or in this case, grandmother) in a candy store”. She was something to behold, wheeling and dealing to an extent even the best writers in Hollywood couldn’t come close to conveying. I don’t think the rows of steel shelves were literally a mile long but they certainly seemed like it, and when she saw some silver bells selling for cents on the dollar, she politely but promptly prodded the salesperson to pack up the entire row and proceeded to the checkout cash register and celebrated ceaselessly her financial feat for the entire four-hour trip back home.
Like her – no doubt because of her – I know a great deal when I see one. Like when I bought my very first property for a fantastic price, so much so that in less than a single decade it quadrupled in value. Or the time that my mind made a massive “buy signal” when, post-IPO, the stocks of Facebook dropped down into the teens and Tesla to around $30. Bargain bonanza!
But the greatest deal by far that I’ve ever come across is when I read in the Bible that the only person in human history to have ever known no sin willingly offered to become sin so that sinful, sinning sinners like me might manifest and indeed become the very righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21) and that if we only humbly believe Him, He will raise us up out of our present pit of pride and sin and set and keep us on the path of righteousness (James 4:10; 1 Peter 5:6; Psalm 40:2; 1 John 5:18). I could barely believe it… but I’m so glad I did! I took Him at His word and haven’t looked back. Biggest bargain ever. We simply give the Lord our pride and selfishness and He gives us eternal life to be enjoyed in Heaven with Him forever and ever. We simply give Him our sin and He gives us His righteousness. We give up a future in Hell and He gives us a future in Heaven. We “die daily” to self and sin and repugnant pride, and He raises us up to walk in newness of life.
Like I said… Best. Bargain. Best. Offer. Best. Deal. EVER!
Lord, in Psalm 41:10, Your servant David says, “You… raise me up.” I frequently fall far from the superb, supreme, supernatural example and demonstration of true humility You modeled so perfectly when You were walking in our shoes, on this very same sod. Yes, I frequently fail and flail and fall down on the ground… and yet You raise me up, Lord. All the way. Every day. You raise me up.
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