It Is Written: Why Hiding God's Word in Our Heart Matters - Lori Altebaumer

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It Is Written: Why Hiding God’s Word in Our Heart Matters

Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11

Give my puppy a new bone and he’ll spend all morning looking for the perfect place to hide it. He’ll test out every nook and cranny he can squeeze into. I haven’t yet determined what the criteria is for selecting the final hiding place, but apparently, he knows. And even though I can assure him that he doesn’t need to hide the bone because nobody else in the house wants it, he insists. He’s a dog. It’s in his nature.

It makes me wonder… do I treat God’s Word like my puppy treats his new bone? I read His Word and memorize some scriptures. But have I hidden His Word in my heart?

I have several Bibles handy at home. I even have a Bible on my phone.

But these Bibles can be misplaced or taken from me. They can be destroyed by fire or other disasters. Relying on tangible or material objects to secure God’s Word for me is a risky thing to do.

I can memorize Scripture, but let’s be honest … I can’t memorize it all. And what I do memorize only lasts only until my memory fails me with age, accident, or disease.

There are things I value that I keep in a locked box—maybe the safety deposit box at the bank or a safe. As an extra precaution, maybe I even hide or conceal the locked box to make sure no one finds it. Being from the South, a buried coffee can in the backyard is always a time-honored option as well.

But am I as committed to guarding God’s Word?

The word hidden used by David in the verse means to protect, to secret away so no one can take it.

The enemy longs to steal, kill, and destroy any way he can. An entertaining preacher with a slightly different version of the gospel. The brilliant coworker who makes the atheist argument. A close relationship with someone who encourages us to bend God’s commandments just a little with a little gossip, a white lie, or by justifying why our sinning makes sense (i.e. we’re living together to save money). The enemy will send them to snatch the words of God’s truth away from us. Sadly, this world has no shortage of those who are opposed to God’s Word.

What does it look like to have hidden God’s Word in our hearts? It looks like walking out our faith with unwavering devotion. It looks like “I know what I know” even when I can’t put it in words. It looks like being made in the image of Christ, who, when tempted by Satan, rebuked him with the Word of God.

David understood this when he wrote this psalm.

Am I content to let it settle in my head without letting it change who I am by hiding it in my heart? Do I allow God’s Word to become so deeply embedded in my heart that no enemy, whether man, disease, or accident, can take it from me?

Have I hidden it so completely that it is now who I have become, rather than words that I recite?

In his book, Temptation, Pastor Jack Hibbs reminds us, the “Spiritual battles require spiritual weaponry.” In the list of armor detailed in Ephesians 6, only one piece is named for offensive use and that is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (see Ephesians 6:17).

Jesus modeled this for us when He spoke the words “It is written…” in His defense against the devil’s temptations after His forty days in the desert (see Matthew 4).

We don’t win our battles unless we use the sword of the Spirit to fight.

“When temptation comes, don’t pray about it. Use the Word of God. When Satan dangles bait, don’t sing a worship song. Use the Word of God. There will be time to pray later. There will be time to worship later. Use the Word of God now!”  ~Jack Hibbs, Temptation

We’re humans created in the image of God. We are Christians born again into the image of Christ. Like a puppy with a new bone, we should be eager to protect our treasure—to tuck it away where nothing or no one can take it from us.

A casual hold on the truth will not do when temptation stands at our door, or as David learned the hard way, appears on the rooftop of the neighbor’s house.

We can’t wait to sharpen our sword when we’re already standing on the battle field.