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NASB | Philippians 4:8 ¶ Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Philippians 4:8 ¶ Finally, believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God's word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart]. |
Bible Question:
"Hello vnct, Welcome to the Forum. Here's brief answer with a few pertinent scriptures. You ask, "what's the difference between good and bad meditation". Basically, the object of our meditation. In other words, it's what we meditate upon that determines if it's good or bad! Paul instructs us in Phil. 4:8, "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on (meditate on) these things." (NASB) Notice Josh 1:8, "This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success." The object (book of the law) is the Word of God! Then in Romans 12:1-2 we have: "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Meditation seeks to influence the mind. So, what we meditate upon is important- particularly if we are to be 'transformed by the renewing of our mind'. This can only be done (properly) by meditating upon God's Word. I hope this helps:-) BradK" okay, thank you. is it necessary to empty the mind first before it can be filled with the word of god? |
Bible Answer: Hello vnct, It would partially depend upon how you define "empty the mind". However, nowhere does scripture instruct us to do this! Again, read Rom. 12:1-2 "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect" (NASB) We are to be "transformed by the renewing of (y)our mind", not transformed by the emptying of our mind! This is an important distinction! We "renew" our minds by the reading, studying, and prayerful meditation upon God's Word. Heb 4:12 states, "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." God's Word has power and can effectively transform us as we dwell upon it. As Paul writes in Col. 3:16, "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you...". We replace the negative thoughts and influence of the world as God's Word indwells us. The Psalmist tells us, "The unfolding of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.", "My eyes anticipate the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word." (Ps. 119:130,148) I trust this will further clarify things for you. BradK |