Meditating on the Bible: the COCA Method to Feed Your Faith

Introduction

This message is part of a series on Christian personal growth: how faith in God can help you move forward. Today's theme is meditation. More than half of people say meditation is good for well-being, yet only a small fraction practice it every day. And there are all kinds: philosophical, Buddhist, Tibetan, transcendental, mindfulness, yoga, Christian. Every religion has its own take on meditation.

The preacher tells about a friend, a dad from school, who started meditating and felt tingling all over, something very powerful, "a crazy thing." Christians too experience moments of prayer where they sense God's presence. There are beautiful things in meditation. But the question raised that day wasn't "which meditation gives the strongest sensations?" but "which meditation bears the most fruit in the long run?" For you, and for the people around you. The Bible calls us to test everything and hold on to what is good, especially what is good from a long-term view of life. If we stop at immediate pleasure, we risk missing what is truly good.

This message had a special feature: after the teaching, the congregation practiced it themselves. A passage from John's Gospel was handed out and meditated on in small groups using the COCA method. You'll find that method below, so you can use it at home.

Outline of the message

1. What is meditation?

• The word comes from Latin. The idea is contemplation: meditating isn't just thinking, it's leaning in, focusing your mind on something and deepening your reflection by dwelling on it.
• A definition the preacher found: "in a religious sense, meditation is a spiritual exercise preparing for contemplation; meditation then refers to fervent recollection, a synonym for prayer."
• The goals vary from one form of meditation to another: seeking inner peace, boosting brain capacity, changing the way you think, calming mental activity (relaxation), gaining God's favor.
• A small honest aside: yes, it happens to fall asleep while trying to meditate. The preacher admits it himself.

2. Mindfulness: benefits and limits

• Mindfulness meditation, of Buddhist origin, is very trendy because our culture is looking for calm in the face of stress, pressure, and performance.
• Some articles announce impressive scientific results: better attention, synchronized brain waves in advanced meditators. Other articles respond that the neuroscience of contemplation has often led to overly simplistic interpretations and that the effects are probably exaggerated.
• A neuroscience lab director even reports meditators who, from over-regulating their emotions, ended up losing them: very few negative feelings, but also very few positive ones, to the point of losing affection for their own children.
• Real benefits worth keeping: doing introspection when life is moving at full speed, taking care of your health, slowing down and resting in a hyper-productive world, and examining what's around you. The Bible suggests all of this, and it's good for a human being.
• Three limits: a meditation centered on yourself can reinforce your own vices, because you choose whatever interests you without being challenged; some forms of meditation don't help you deal with real life (you withdraw, then come back to real life feeling disconnected); and some can make you lose your emotions. Hence the call to approach it wisely.

3. What the Bible says about meditation: Psalm 1

• "Blessed is the man who finds his delight in the law of the LORD, and meditates on it day and night. He will be like a tree planted by the streams of water, that produces its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither. Whatever he does shall prosper." The psalm opens with "blessed": there is joy to be found in meditation.
• The object of biblical meditation is the law, the Word of God. We sometimes see it as a constraint, but once we know it is good for us, we can find delight in it. Throughout history, people fought to have the Bible in their own language because they knew there was wisdom and riches there.
• The fruit comes "in its season": we would like meditation to be productive right away, but the Word has to germinate in us. When you plant a seed, it doesn't grow instantly. You have to persevere.
• "Whose leaf also does not wither": meditating on the Word creates something for eternity. For God, death is not a period, it's a comma.
• "Whatever he does shall prosper" doesn't mean there's only success. It's success according to God: there can be trials, but God makes something of them. The New Testament says that all things work together for the good of those who love God.
• The big difference: in mindfulness or Buddhism, you draw from within yourself, centered on yourself (without necessarily being prideful). In the Christian view, you focus on what's outside: God's revelation, the Bible, or creation. I don't meditate on myself, I meditate on the Word that helps me understand who I am: by looking into the eyes of the Creator, I see who the creature is.

4. Workshop: the COCA method on John 10

• At Church Like Home, we like to believe everyone is capable of deepening their own spirituality. The goal is to give you the keys so you can do it yourself, without depending on someone else. There is, in each of us, the potential to discover God.
• COCA isn't the soda you're picturing: think of it instead as "a drink that refreshes your spiritual life," four steps for meditating on a text. C for Context, O for Observe, C for Comprehend, A for Apply.
• Context. Who is the author, who is he writing to, in what situation. John 10 was written by one of the twelve disciples. Toward the end of his life, John realizes there aren't many eyewitnesses left, and he writes a final Gospel for those who won't see Jesus with their own eyes, with clues showing that Jesus is trustworthy. In the previous chapters, tension is rising with the religious leaders who want to silence Jesus. And for the Jewish people, the image of the shepherd was a noble one: in the Old Testament, the shepherd represents the king, the leader, and the leaders had often been bad shepherds who thought only of themselves. In Ezekiel 34, God announces that he himself will come to take care of his sheep, seek out the one that is lost, and bind up the one that is injured. And here is Jesus saying: "I am the good shepherd."
• Observe. In groups of three, the congregation listed the characters and what they represent: the sheep (the Jewish people) and the "other sheep, which are not of this fold" (us, everyone who isn't Jewish); the good shepherd, full of love, who isn't there for a paycheck; the mere hired hand who flees at the sight of the wolf (in context, Jesus is warning the religious leaders who are keeping him from doing his ministry). The contrasts: abandon / save, destroy / give life abundantly. The word "life" comes up again and again, as if Jesus were saying: "I have an incredible life to give you." The enemy, in the Bible, is mainly the devil (a fallen angel who wants human beings not to find God) and sin (that flaw at the core of humanity that corrupts our will): the two great wolves of the Christian life.
• Comprehend. What do I learn about God, about human beings, about faith? About God: a shepherd stronger than the wolves, who protects, who gives his life, who walks ahead to lead, who relentlessly pursues human beings. About human beings: they are not the shepherd, they are not infallible, they are in danger. About faith: listen to his voice and follow him, even when there are dangers around, because this shepherd wants to lead us into abundant life. Conclusion of the passage: we can listen to and follow Jesus, because he is the good shepherd who gives his life to save us from great danger and so that we may have life in abundance.
• Apply. Ask yourself: what is this text telling me, and how do I respond? This time was spent in quiet reflection, with music from Estelle. The questions asked are given again in the "Personal application" section below.

Key takeaways

• The right question isn't "which meditation feels the strongest?" but "which meditation bears fruit in the long run, for me and for the people around me?"
• Christian meditation doesn't draw from within yourself: it focuses on God's revelation, the Word first, and creation as well.
• Psalm 1: the fruit comes in its season, so we must persevere; that fruit lasts for eternity; and the success promised is God's kind of success, who makes something even of our trials.
• A self-centered meditation can reinforce our vices, cut us off from reality, or numb our emotions. We need to approach it wisely.
• The COCA method (Context, Observe, Comprehend, Apply) is a simple tool for meditating on a biblical text at home, alone or in a group.

Personal application

1. Are you truly aware that a danger is stalking you, something that wants to divide your family, destroy your identity and your hope? How do you protect yourself: are you a sheep going about its own business, or a sheep seeking the good shepherd?
2. Do you personally know the good shepherd? Do you listen to him regularly, not just to put things in your head, but to talk with him? Do you meditate on his Word at home?
3. Do you trust in God's goodness? If you're going through a trial and wonder whether he's there, look to Jesus, who dies for you: the shepherd would lie down across the doorway all night so that no wolf could get in. If we doubt his goodness, maybe we've forgotten the cross.
4. Are you willing not to be the shepherd, to have a master? We often want God to do what we say; here, it's about doing what the shepherd says. Do you want what God has planned for your life?
5. If your heart has rebelled by wanting to take the shepherd's place, you can ask him for forgiveness and recommit: "Lord, I want to follow you, to trust you, and to meditate on your Word this week because it nourishes my soul."

Verses cited

• Psalm 1:1-3: blessed is the man who meditates on the law of the LORD day and night
• John 10:1-18: Jesus, the door of the sheep and the good shepherd
• Ezekiel 34:11-16: God himself will come to take care of his sheep
• Romans 8:28: all things work together for the good of those who love God
• 1 Thessalonians 5:21: test all things, hold firmly that which is good

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Christian meditation and mindfulness meditation?

In mindfulness (of Buddhist origin), you draw from within yourself: you're centered on yourself and looking for your strength inside. In Christian meditation, you focus on what's outside: God's revelation, first the Bible, but also creation. You don't meditate on yourself, you meditate on the Word that helps you understand who you are.

What is the COCA method for meditating on a biblical text?

COCA is a four-step memory tool for studying a passage: C for Context (who is writing, to whom, in what situation), O for Observe (characters, key words, contrasts), C for Comprehend (what do I learn about God, about human beings, about faith), and A for Apply (what is this text telling me and how do I respond).

What does Psalm 1 promise to those who meditate on God's Word?

Psalm 1 compares the one who meditates on the law of the LORD day and night to a tree planted by streams of water: it produces its fruit in its season, its leaf does not wither, and whatever it does prospers. The fruit comes with time and perseverance, it has an eternal reach, and success is measured by God's standard, even in the midst of trials.