God realigns our memory towards Him with declarative memory. Declarative memory has two categories: semantic memory and episodic memory. Semantic memory recalls facts and episodic memory recalls and events.
Semantic Memory
It includes long-term memory like words, concepts, meaning and numbers.
Episodic Memory
It includes memories like birthday parties or concerts.
Retrieval Cues
Cues trigger memories. Cues could be like a physical object or smell. The more cues the more like of a retrieval we have. No memory exists by itself. God uses cues to help us remember that we exist to glorify God by enjoying Him.
SENSORY CUES
God uses our five senses to help our dysfunctional memories. Sometimes these five senses overlap to help our memories. 1 John 1:1 reminds us that John heard, saw and touch that which concerned the Word of Life. His eyewitness account was based on his senses.
THE CUE OF TOUCH (HAPTIC)
Touch is sometimes called haptic perception.
1. Belief - Jesus appealed to Thomas' sense of, not just sight but, touch to strengthen his belief in the resurrection (John 20:24-29).
2. Pain - Nociceptors (pain receptors) help us recall what is safe and not safe to touch. Noci comes from Latin which means hurt. These receptors can malfunction and turn on chronically. Pain can enhance the memory of an event. Hebrews 12:10-11 reminds us that Gods uses pain for our good in order to discipline us and keep us on a path to holiness. Past pain and memories alert us to danger so we can avoid it. Physical and emotional pain direct us to seek the Great Physician. Don't be like Asa who did not seek the Lord (2 Chronicles 16:12).
THE CUE OF SMELL (OLFACTORY)
Smells activate a pathway directly to the hippocampus (the part of the brain responsible for long-term memory). The nose can detect up to 1 trillion odors. We often smell things that trigger memories from long ago. God uses these powerful cues to bring you back to Him. God gave Moses an incense recipe that was to be burned continually before the Lord (Exodus 30). It was to remind the people of God's holiness and His covenant with them. Let the sense of smell remind you to love God.
THE CUE OF TASTE (GUSTATORY)
About 10,000 taste buds cover our tongues. Taste buds only last 10 days and then regenerate. Taste can elicit all sorts of responses like joy and disgust. God says that His Word is sweeter than honey (Psalm 119:103). God also required the Israelites to eat roasted lamb with bitter herbs (Exodus 12:8). It would remind Israel of their bitter and hard past (Exodus 1:14). God has designed taste and memory to point us to Him.
THE CUE OF SIGHT (VISUAL)
Our eyes can detect up to 10 million different colors. God created our eyes to aide our memories for His glory. Beyond colors they can detect distance, shapes, brightness and patterns.
(1). For Obedience - Seeing information in picture format can help us to remember up to 65% of it three days later as opposed to hearing only which we might recall up to 10% of it three days later. God told Moses to keep a jar of manna for future generations so that they could SEE the bread with which He fed them (Exodus 16:32). Visually, they were reminded of God's provision. Our eyes should remind us of God's provision.
(2). For Restraint - Numbers 16:40 we there is a visual remind put before the High Priest to remind him of God's holiness and justice. Korah led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron and he and his followers were judged by God. Aaron's son, Eleazar, took the bronze censers of the rebel priests and hammered out a covering for the altar to remind them of this incident.
(3). For Perpetuity - Monuments are built, not just for a current generation, but for future generations to be reminded of something important. After Joshua crossed the Jordan River on dry ground, God commanded that stones be set up to remind future generations of the miracle God did (Joshua 4). This perpetual visual reminder was to lead the people to fear the Lord Almighty.
(4). For Redirection - As Israel's eyes behold monuments to God, it was to redirect their mind and hearts back to God. God has given us the rainbow for this purpose. God has given us communion for this purpose. They are visual reminders to always be faithful to the God who is faithful to us. Visually, God has given us countless cues to remind us of important truths to keep us near Him.
THE CUE OF HEARING (AUDITORY)
Hearing relies on the 3 smallest bones in our body that do not grow. These bones amplify sound waves that hit our eardrums (tympanic membrane). These bones hit the cochlea which is filled with fluid which moves 2700 tiny hairs which send signals to our brain via the auditory nerve. Hearing aides both short-term and long-term memory.
(1). Speaking - God uses the language of others to direct us to Him. We heard the gospel and believed.
(2). Generational Sharing - Psalm 145:4 shows us that younger generations need older generations to testify about God.
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(3). Parental Teaching - Parents must pass down truth to their children (Deuteronomy 6:7; 1 Timothy 1:5). Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of Christ (Romans 10:17).
(4). Preaching - God gave the church pastors and preachers for our memories. God uses them to remind us of God's mighty works. Hearing with attention (listening) helps us to mature
THE CUE OF MUSIC
This is connected to hearing, but also speaking. God sings and we are to properly display that glory as image bearers (Zephaniah 3:17). Singing involves long-term memory outside of the hippocampus. This is why musical memory often remains in those with Alzheimers. What a gift to us for God's glory.
(1). Theological - We can echo the truths of Scripture back to God. We can do this to help us recall God's promises and great deeds. Psalm 118 quotes the first song in Scripture (Exodus 15:2). Psalm 118 was sung by the Israelites during Passover. Jesus would have sung this in the upper room (Matthew 26:30).
(2). Congregational - Music transfers truth from generation to generation. It's important to sing old songs so that we can receive God's truth from our spiritual ancestors. Congregational singing isn't just to God but to each other (Colossians 3:16).
THE CUE OF SPATIAL MEMORY
Spatial memory involves the top part of our brain (parietal lobs). Spatial memory has to do with memory by location and the distance between objects. The place of worship plays a role in remembrance. We may enter a building made for worship and it brings us into focus. Psalm 73:17 speaks of Asaph coming into the sanctuary of God and then remembering the end of the wicked. He was reoriented back to God because of the space he was in. Our church buildings, while quite different from the sanctuary or temple of God, are places of remembrance. Often we have baptisms, weddings, funerals, celebrations, bible studies and much more in these spaces.
EPISODIC MEMORY CUES
God provides various and powerful experiences that are stored in our memories to draw us back to Him. These specific events are often special. Episodic memory frequently involves emotional memory. This is stored in the amygdala. We often attach emotions to exciting events which assists in memory. The joy of a wedding or the grief of a funeral assist us in recalling vivid images of those events.
(1). The Sabbath - God commanded Israel to remember the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8). This would point to Christ ultimately, but this weekly event would remind them that God has brought them to a land of rest because He redeemed them from the slavery of the Egyptians. Weekly, they were to remember and worship God for this great deliverance.
(2). Feasts And Celebrations - The feast of unleavened bread reminds the Israelites of the night they left Egypt (Exodus 12:14; Deuteronomy 16:3). The Feast of Weeks reminds the Israelites of God's provision and that they were once slaves in Egypt (Deuteronomy 16:12). The Feast of Booth was another reminder of Israel's redemption by the mighty deeds of God (Leviticus 23:43).
(3). Passover - This marked the deliverance of Israel and the birth of the nation. The first month of the Jewish year is Nisan and Passover is celebrated in this month. This feast was a memorial feast based on God's redemption of Israel from Egypt (Exodus 12:26-27). It was to be explained to children so that they would also recall the saving works of God. The was to be practiced yearly and would point to Christ who is our ultimate Passover Lamb.
THE LORD'S TABLE
(1). The Lamb of God - The Last Supper link the Old Covenant to the New Covenant and communion. The Passover Lamb was prepared without broken bones and this was fulfilled in Christ (Psalm 34:20; John 19:36). The Passover Lamb's blood was painted on doorposts. Christ blood was spilt on a wooden cross for us.
(2). The Bread and Cup - Christ commanded bread and wine, not a lamb for our remembrance of Him. Jesus, the Lamb of God, paid for our sins once and for all. The Lord's Table calls us to look back at God's faithfulness and to look forward to future fulfillment with confidence.
(3). The Necessity - The Lord's Table involves episodic memory (Luke 17:19). Our distorted memories need help. We need to be reminded of the gospel frequently.
(4). The Types of Memory - God uses semantic memory (knowledge of facts) in the Lord's Table. He also uses procedural memory (knowledge of how to do things) in the Lord's Supper. In the Lord's Supper we take, eat and drink.
(5). The Multisensory Experience - We use touch, sight, smell, taste and hearing in the Lord's Supper and Scriptures are read and instructions are given. In communion the parietal lobe, occipital lobe, temporal lobe, frontal lobe and limbic system all help the believer to rightly remember God. God provided the best way to remember what He's done for us in Christ.
(6). The Emotions - Communion draws out an affection remembrance. The Lord's Table is meant to draw our emotions and affections Godward. We are to hate sin as we remember the price that was paid to redeem us. Chris is the object we are to think upon in communion. The goal of communion is not just to examine ourselves but to know and love the Savior.
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