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The Puritan Practice of Meditation
"Meditation applieth, meditation healeth, meditation instructeth." Ezekiel Culverwell
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Spiritual growth is intended to be part of the Christian life of believers. Peter exhorts
believers to "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ"
(2 Pet. 3:18). The Heidelberg Catechism says that true Christians are members of Christ
by faith and partake in His anointing. By Christs power they are raised up to a new life
and have the Holy Spirit given to them as an earnest; by the Spirits power they "seek the
things which are above (Col. 3:1). Spiritual growth is only to be expected, since "it is
impossible that those, who are implanted into Christ by a true faith, should not bring forth
fruits of thankfulness."
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One hindrance to growth among Christians today is our failure to cultivate
spiritual knowledge. We fail to give enough time to prayer and Bible-reading, and we
have abandoned the practice of meditation. How tragic that the very word meditation,
once regarded as a core discipline of Christianity and "a crucial preparation for and
adjunct to the work of prayer," is now associated with unbiblical "New Age" spirituality.
We rightly criticize those who engage in transcendental meditation and other mind-
relaxing exercises because these practices are connected with false religions, such as
Buddhism and Hinduism, and have nothing to do with Scripture. Such forms of
meditation focus on emptying the mind to become detached from the world and to merge
with the so-called Cosmic Mind, not to attach to, listen to, and to be active for a living,
personal God. Yet, we can learn from such people the importance of quiet reflection and
prolonged meditation.
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