|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A few tips for meditating on the Bible
For visitors to the website, Sadais.eu provides here a range of useful tips for meditating on the Word of God.
The first and most fundamental piece of advice from Sadais.eu is to always place your meditations under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that zealous Teacher sent by the Father specifically to instruct believers and remind them of Jesus’ teaching (John 14:26). Pray earnestly for this, then, and learn to discern what the Holy Spirit reveals to you, just as Samuel had to learn to recognise the word that God spoke to him (1 Samuel 3:1–10). You will then see just how tirelessly the Holy Spirit works to help you grasp the teaching He wishes to impart to you.
When the Holy Spirit decides to help you grow in a particular area, you will notice that He often arranges circumstances in such a way as to prompt you to reflect on the matter: a Bible passage you hear or read that helps you approach the subject from a new and inspiring angle; an event that sheds particular light on the issue; a timely word from a brother or sister; and so on. Seize every opportunity the Holy Spirit presents to you, and let yourself be guided in the direction He points you: a blessing awaits you at the end of this path (Romans 8:28, 2 Peter 1:3).
This is how your meditation will begin: with an initial thought inspired by these various circumstances. “What if this is God’s will for me?” you will ask yourself. From there, you will need to assess the validity of this thought in the light of biblical teaching. Do not hesitate to engage in this critical analysis, for it does not reflect a refusal to submit to divine teaching, but quite the opposite: it reflects your desire to build your life on the rock of divine revelation (Matthew 7:24–25; Galatians 1:9). Does not the Apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 14:29, ask the believers in Corinth to judge for themselves the spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit bestows upon them?
You will therefore need to identify the biblical teachings that, in your view, support this idea, but also — and this is important — those that, in your view, contradict it. Sadais.eu suggests you begin this exercise by drawing up a list of the biblical passages that spring to mind, some of which might support this idea and others which, at this stage, might appear to contradict it. If you only have a vague recollection of these passages and aren’t sure exactly where they are in the Bible, there are now plenty of tools available to help you find them:
In this way, become people whose senses are exercised by reason of use, discerning both good and evil (Hebrews 5:14).
It is this compilation of biblical teachings that Sadais.eu has put together for the meditations it offers. It thus enables users to save time and approach their meditation with a solid foundation of biblical passages. However, users of the site should not regard this compilation as exhaustive, but should ensure they supplement it with their own reflections.
For visitors to the website, Sadais.eu provides here a range of useful tips for meditating on the Word of God.
Meditating under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit
The first and most fundamental piece of advice from Sadais.eu is to always place your meditations under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that zealous Teacher sent by the Father specifically to instruct believers and remind them of Jesus’ teaching (John 14:26). Pray earnestly for this, then, and learn to discern what the Holy Spirit reveals to you, just as Samuel had to learn to recognise the word that God spoke to him (1 Samuel 3:1–10). You will then see just how tirelessly the Holy Spirit works to help you grasp the teaching He wishes to impart to you.
When the Holy Spirit decides to help you grow in a particular area, you will notice that He often arranges circumstances in such a way as to prompt you to reflect on the matter: a Bible passage you hear or read that helps you approach the subject from a new and inspiring angle; an event that sheds particular light on the issue; a timely word from a brother or sister; and so on. Seize every opportunity the Holy Spirit presents to you, and let yourself be guided in the direction He points you: a blessing awaits you at the end of this path (Romans 8:28, 2 Peter 1:3).
This is how your meditation will begin: with an initial thought inspired by these various circumstances. “What if this is God’s will for me?” you will ask yourself. From there, you will need to assess the validity of this thought in the light of biblical teaching. Do not hesitate to engage in this critical analysis, for it does not reflect a refusal to submit to divine teaching, but quite the opposite: it reflects your desire to build your life on the rock of divine revelation (Matthew 7:24–25; Galatians 1:9). Does not the Apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 14:29, ask the believers in Corinth to judge for themselves the spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit bestows upon them?
Compiling the teachings of the Bible
You will therefore need to identify the biblical teachings that, in your view, support this idea, but also — and this is important — those that, in your view, contradict it. Sadais.eu suggests you begin this exercise by drawing up a list of the biblical passages that spring to mind, some of which might support this idea and others which, at this stage, might appear to contradict it. If you only have a vague recollection of these passages and aren’t sure exactly where they are in the Bible, there are now plenty of tools available to help you find them:
- Bible search engines by keyword: the reading websites listed by Sadais.eu generally offer this feature. Simply enter the words from the Bible passage that you can remember well enough to search the entire Bible or specific sections of it. Don’t forget to tell the search engine which translation you wish to use for your search,
- Conversational AI (artificial intelligence) systems that have incorporated the Bible into their training data: these tools will allow you to carry out searches, even if your memory of the Bible passage you are looking for is too vague to enable you to provide sufficiently precise keywords. They enable users to carry out thematic searches such as: ‘Do you know the passage in the Old Testament where a Jewish prophet predicted what would be decided at the war councils of a foreign king?’ (Answer: the prophet Elisha concerning the king of Syria; 2 Kings 6:8–12).
- Consider these passages in the context of the biblical text that precedes and follows them. It may also be helpful to consider the historical period in which they were written, as well as the background of their author, their main characters and their original audience... A biblical dictionary can be very useful in this regard, as it provides this information in a concise and accessible way. Some Bible study websites or apps offer this type of dictionary,
- Refer to the texts cited in these passages: for example, a quotation from the Mosaic Law or a reference to an earlier biblical event,
- Read different translations of these passages to ensure you do not misinterpret them. Many Bible study tools, particularly those available online, provide access to various translations, not only in English but also in other languages you may be familiar with.
Nowadays, the original Hebrew and Greek texts are also readily available. Consequently, Strong’s numbering system, developed before the computer age, remains a valuable tool even today for anyone who does not have a command of these languages. It enables users to identify the original word corresponding to each term in the KJV translation by providing a reference number that gives them access to its definition, its various meanings, its roots and its various occurrences in the original biblical text.
To gain an even deeper understanding of the original texts, do feel free to consult conversational AI systems that have incorporated the Bible and these two languages into their training data. They can explain certain subtleties of biblical translation to you (be wary, however, of the errors these AI systems may make; ask them to justify their claims on points that are essential to your thinking).
- Cross-references: many Bible study tools, particularly those available online, offer this feature, which links each Bible verse to other verses that share the same theme or idea. It is, in a sense, a vast mind map that connects all the Bible verses to one another through links of similarity or contrast. There is even a tool of this kind, originally designed for the KJV (King James Version) of the Bible, which allows users to select cross-references specific to certain parts of the verses being studied.
- Biblical commentary on the verses,
- Conversational AI: these systems can respond to Bible search queries on the topics you specify.
It should be noted that these cross-references are also very useful for easily finding the biblical reference for a passage or event mentioned in a verse,
In this way, become people whose senses are exercised by reason of use, discerning both good and evil (Hebrews 5:14).
It is this compilation of biblical teachings that Sadais.eu has put together for the meditations it offers. It thus enables users to save time and approach their meditation with a solid foundation of biblical passages. However, users of the site should not regard this compilation as exhaustive, but should ensure they supplement it with their own reflections.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
