"And take...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

                            -Eph. 6:17

In the first century, before the days of armored tanks and automatic weapons, the sword was the primary offensive tool used in battle. No, it wasn't some relic that could be found hanging over one's fireplace, or a plastic children's toy; it was a deadly weapon. For this reason, Paul chose the sword as a fitting symbol of God's Word.

But as good an illustration as this may be, we read in Hebrews 4:12 that the Bible is in fact "sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." When faced with spiritual battles, we are no less than doomed to failure if we enter the battleground without our sword.

"And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada...went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow:"

                            -II Samuel 23:20

In our walk with God, we will face our fair share of battles. And just like what happened to Benaiah, those battles often take place in the most inconvenient of circumstances. In this case, Benaiah's battle took place in the middle of a pit right in the dead of winter! When we encounter such situations spiritually, we don't have time to run and get a Bible, or to flip through our concordance until we find the desired Scripture; we've got to know the Word, and make our decisions according to Its teaching - often without a minute to spare. The fact is, by the time we get off the phone with our pastor asking for verses on predestination, the window of opportunity to witness to our friend or neighbor may well be past.

"And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.
And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates."

                            Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Finally, we memorize Scripture because it is an express commandment from the Lord. Memorizing God's precious Word is no more optional than church attendance or prayer, and we should make whatever sacrifices necessary to ensure that it is part of our daily lives.