The reading of the Scriptures is so vital to our spiritual growth in the Lord. To see this, consider the instruction Moses gave to every king who ruled over Israel. The Jews had left Egypt and were just about to enter the Promised Land. It would be more than four hundred years before they ever had their first king, but God gave these instructions for the kings.
“When he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes…” (Deut. 17:18-19).
Imagine how long it would take that king to get the only copy of the Bible they had and to literally write every word from it and take it to his palace. From that day he was to spend time reading it every day for the rest of his life. Why was he to read it every day? The text emphatically affirms the reason. He was to read it to: (1) learn what it says; (2) learn to fear; (3) learn to be careful to observe all the words of the law; (4) learn to not turn to the left or to the right of what he read (vs. 19-20).
King David had a heart like the heart of God. He mediated on the law of the Lord day and night (Psa. 1:2; 119:97). No one can have his heart like the heart of God until he does this, and this will enable his children to have this same heart.
I hope that part of your daily life is reading the Bible but doing more than just reading so many verses/chapters each day. That tree that “brings forth its fruits in its season” is that person who does more than read. I hope ever more that having read the words, you mediate on how the words you just read apply to your life. Read the Bible, then write what your read into your heart. God described His plan for the church in these words. “I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts” (Heb. 8:10). If this is not happening realize that He is ready to do this, and the reason it is not happening is because we are not reading His words.
There is a difference in memorizing scriptures and engraving heavenly truths on our souls. It is so vital that we memorize the scripture to have a light to our feet and a guide for us through trials. Memorizing verses puts the word in our mind, but God desires far more. His plan is to write them on our souls, and this is the most important part of His plan. It will never happen until you decide to make it happen!
Worldly people feed their souls and devote their lives to temporary material matters. Godly people engrave His eternal truths on their hearts. Think about this carefully!