Bible Memory in the Church
Memorizing Scripture with other Christians is one of the best motivations to memorize. It also brings many benefits. When groups memorize Scripture together, the members deepen their dependence on God’s Word, grow in Word-centered friendships, enrich their prayers for one another, and build unity that is essential to the body of Christ. Paul’s exhortation to “let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” continues to this day.
Churchwide
In 1997, John Piper invited his congregation at Bethlehem Baptist to join him for church-wide Scripture memory with the Fighter Verses. He challenged the congregation to memorize a set of verses strategically chosen to equip members to fight temptation the way Jesus did, saying,
“...when he was fasting in the wilderness there were no libraries or books, and with every temptation of the devil he quoted a passage of Scripture to defeat the devil.” (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10)
Now we've created the Fighter Verses Churchwide Kit to make it simple for churches to memorize Scripture together as a body.
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The Churchwide kit brings all of the pieces together in one place to help you roll out a year-long Scripture memory program with:
- pre-launch communications
- bulletin inserts and newsletter articles
- weekly verse slides
- tools to prepare members for memorizing, and more
The Churchwide Kit contains verse slides for all five sets of Fighter Verses. You can follow the current Fighter Verses schedule at FighterVerses.com, or you can start with any one of the five, non-consecutive sets for a robust Bible memory program.
Sunday school classes
Sunday school classrooms are ideal for learning new verses and reviewing old ones together. Children enjoy working together, playing games, and doing activities to help them remember a passage, recording their progress as they go. Adults also benefit from the support of the group. Passages memorized for a class can serve for all of life. Not only does memorizing as a group encourage everyone to participate, but committing a thematic passage to memory will make it easier to recall, and apply, the main point long after the class has ended.
Men's and women's ministries
Teaming up with brothers (men with men) and sisters (women with women) is a powerful way to apply God’s Word to the unique challenges men and women face. There is a camaraderie and God-ordained structure to groups made up of one gender. Fighter Verses Studies are ideal for small groups.
Paul instructed Titus that older men are to teach younger men and older women, younger women. Seeing Scripture memory modeled by more mature believers, and hearing how it has served to help them grow in the Lord, serve others, and fight sin, is a powerful incentive to imitate their way of life.
For help teaching others how to memorize, read “How to Memorize Verses.”
Scripture Memory Resources for the Church
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Inspire
OrderEquip church members with help for memorizing weekly verses in just 15 minutes a week. Whether they're new to Bible memory or have a long practice of it, this booklet will inspire believers to hide God's Word in their hearts.
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Write
OrderWriting memory verses in a Fighter Verses journal can help you remember the words, notice patterns and details, ask questions, and pray the verses you're storing in your heart.
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Study
Explore StudiesFighter Verses Studies make it easier to focus on God’s Word—the Word that has the power to shape how we think about Him, ourselves, others, the world, our decisions, how we spend our time, and more.
Sign up to get each week’s passage, devotional, and help for memorizing delivered to your inbox—and we'll include our Fighter Verses Guide to Scripture Memory Free.
