Here is Daniel's helpful hint #1 on reading the Bible:
1. MEMORIZE THE BIBLE
"Have you ever known someone who really can quote Scripture from memory? The ancient rabbis were required to memorize huge sections of the Old Testament. The writers of the New Testament give every indication of knowing much Scripture from memory. And doubtlessly the Lord Jesus knew a lot of the Bible by heart. Jack Van Impe, a Baptist evangelist, has memorized about half of the Bible by topics. Ask for a topic and he can recite hundreds of verses. They call him the "Walking Bible" (maybe "Walking Concordance" would be better!). Then there is Jerry Lucas, former basketball great, who had a photographic memory. He once memorized the first 200 pages of the New York City telephone directory. He applied his principles to Bible memory, wrote a couple of books on the subject, and is well into memorizing the Bible. Perhaps the day will come one day when someone will actually memorize the entire Bible word for word. One report says Hyman Appelman did just that. A few years ago, an English actor memorized the Gospel of Mark and recited it verbatim for about 2 hours to soldout theater crowds for over a year. He used no props other than a table, no costumes or other actors, and he wasn't even a Christian. The Guiness book of Records says that a Moslem memorized 6,666 verses of the Koran. Why is it that we have so much trouble remembering Scripture? Too often we can remember worldly songs, dirty jokes or useless trivia better than God's Word. One reason is that it is a matter of priorities. We need to give our minds to God and pray that He help us know more Scripture. How much Scripture do you know by heart? Have you ever tested yourself? If you learned a verse a day, you would know 365 verses at the end of a year, and over 1,000 in 3 years. Now, this is not to measure one's spirituality by how many verses he knows. One may know much and grow little. Even non-Christians may know much of the Bible. On the other hand, you will not find a truly mature Christian who does not know much Scripture. It can be one of the most beneficial of all enterprises. Memorizing Scripture has many uses. For example, it is useful to be able to quote the right verse when speaking with an unbeliever about Christ. It is very useful when defending the faith against cults and critics. Knowing Scripture is important to prayer as you remember God's promises. Scripture memory is also useful in solving problems or giving advice, especially in emergencies. And it is especially beneficial in resisting temptation. Jesus quoted Scripture to the Devil when He was tempted (Matt. 4). He had no bag of scrolls with Him, so He must have quoted from memory. "Thy Word I have treasured in my heart that I may not sin against Thee" (Psa. 119:11). If you were imprisoned for your faith and had no Bible, how much of it could you remember? That happens in the world today. Persecution increases both the love and the memorization of Scripture. A visiting American preacher asked some believers in Czechoslovakia to recite their favourite verses, to which they replied, "Do you mean our favourite verses or chapters?" Do you know bits and pieces or whole chunks? In the book Farenheit 451, all books were being destroyed, so a group of people decided to memorize the great books ("Hi, I'm Great Expectations."). Would you be prepared to memorize the Bible? ("Hi, I'm The Bible.") Groups such as the Navigators give special emphasis to Scripture memory, and have produced some excellent materials that help learn God's Word. Here are a few brief principles and tips that will help. First, it is best to stick with one translation, preferably the one you use the most in personal Bible study. It is also most useful to use the more well-known and dependable ones. Since hearing Scripture will help, it is best to use ones in the King James Version tradition since the wording is so familiar. This includes the New King James Version, the American Standard Version, the Revised Standard Version, and the New American Standard Bible. Their wording and cadences are very similar, unlike the NIV, etc. Next, decide whether you want to memorize whole books or sections of the Bible at a time, or whether you prefer selected verses or topics. For example, you may want to memorize Ephesians. If choosing a book, start small, like one of the epistles. Learning a whole book can help because you catch the flow and context. Or, you can memorize selected verses. This is especially useful for evangelism. You might prepare by first reading the whole Bible, marking those verses which you plan to commit to memory. Then go back and write them out on cards. The Navigators emphasize the use of cards. Carry some with you and use them when you get spare moments. Also, write these verses over and over again. Repetition is a key to memorization (remember when you had to write something 100 times on a school blackboard?). Further, it helps to have that book on a cassette tape to listen to over and over. You may even want to record your own, especially if you choose selections. By the way, it is usually a good idea to also memorize the book, chapter and verse reference. Test yourself to see how much you have learned. You can do this aloud, in writing, with a friend, or whatever. Reading Scripture aloud is one of the best ways to memorize it. Lastly, pray for God to burn Scripture into your heart and memory. In the end, whether you use a certain system or not, the best way to learn Scripture is to love it and spend time in it. We always remember that which is most important to us."=
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