William Cunningham on meditation

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Reformed Covenanter

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MEDITATION, as including learning, reading, and reflection, and especially reading and reflecting upon the Word of God, so as to understand the meaning of its statements, and the import of its teaching, is that which in the ordinary relation of cause and effect bears most directly and immediately upon the acquisition of theological knowledge. Prayer and the experimental application of divine truth are exercises which mainly and principally lie between God and your own souls, in which it is with him you have to do, and where little aid or assistance can be derived from your fellow-men.

In meditation or study you may derive much assistance from others, by their interpreting and explaining the word of God to you, illustrating and establishing the truths which are taught there, counselling you as to the books that ought to be read, and the way in which they may be read and studied to most advantage, and in various ways affording you at the commencement of your theological studies the benefit and the experience acquired by those who have already given some attention to the investigation of these subjects.

For the reference, see William Cunningham on meditation.
 
MEDITATION, as including learning, reading, and reflection, and especially reading and reflecting upon the Word of God, so as to understand the meaning of its statements, and the import of its teaching, is that which in the ordinary relation of cause and effect bears most directly and immediately upon the acquisition of theological knowledge

This past Lord's Day, I was both greatly encouraged and crushed at the same time by a sermon I listened to by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, called simply, To Know Him. He spent part of the time talking about the lost art of meditation in modern times.

Next year will mark my 50th year as a Christian. What crushed me was my reflection on at least 40 years is that time. Let me tell you what I mean.

I thought upon most of my earlier years as a believer, totally occupied with "Christian" things. E.g., leading small groups, adult Sunday School, and at 30, I became an elder in the OPC. I worked in construction almost always six days a week, and also I had four small children. Everyone thought I had fantastic gifts, and I was doing just great. The ten years as an elder, on top of everything else, were probably the most damaging in my whole Christian life.

What encouraged me was that my former ways made a one-eighty. Everything changed seven years ago, when my kind and loving Father pushed me into spending quality time, lots of it, getting to know the God I already knew so much about. It was like life from the dead. I won't say any more now as I have said it in other places on the PB.

I learned that it takes humility, knowledge, but most of all time, lots of time, to reflect on the word of God by meditation and introspection. It just plain takes time to be honest with yourself. And even then, we're never completely honest. Of course, there is a wrong way to do meditation and introspection that leads to uselessness and despair. I'll let you figure that out for yourself.

And finally. Don't waste your life doing the "business" of the church and gaining mearly a theological knowledge of God. But make it your earnest goal in life to know Him. You don't want to be a stranger when you finally meet the Lord in person.
 
Ed, without referring to specific people, how were "The ten years as an elder, on top of everything else ... probably the most damaging in my whole Christian life"?

Daniel, I thought this line of Cunningham's was most pertinent: "Prayer and the experimental application of divine truth are exercises which mainly and principally lie between God and your own souls, in which it is with him you have to do, and where little aid or assistance can be derived from your fellow-men." A good caution.
 
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Ed, without referring to specific people, how were "The ten years as an elder, on top of everything else ... probably the most damaging in my whole Christian life"?

Hi Steve,

I considered explaining the ten years, but I also thought I was getting too long as it was.

I worked hard as an elder, but on top of everything else, it was just too much with my job, teaching, and training my children. Something had to suffer. And that something was lost time with the Lord. We had a good church, a great pastor, and two earnest and loving fellow elders. I did my duty of prayer as a father and elder, but the deeper knowing of God was again put on hold. Outwardly the ten years were pretty good. I even seemed helpful to the members of the church that I was assigned to. But now I see what I was doing was mostly in my own strength. Our merciful Lord was blessing some of what I was doing, and I was often told that I was getting better and better as the adult SS teacher. But inside, I was missing the fellowship with the Lord that has been so dear to me these past seven years.

Ed
 
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