Read: Luke 24:36-49 for background
Key Verse: Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. Luke 24:45
Like any great writing, the chapters and books of the Bible have no "useless information." Every story, every fact, and every phrase is included for a reason, and often it takes us many readings before we are able to catch all the nuance and texture of an episode, conversation or series of events. The Holy Spirit carefully reveals to each of us only what we are capable of understanding, and the more disciplined we are in reading the Bible regularly, the more depth God reveals to us.
Learning about God from Scripture occurs (primarily) in two ways: (1) He blesses our understanding as we read the Bible for ourselves; and, (2) He places elders, pastors, teachers and mentors in our lives who have more time and experience reading and understanding God's Word and explaining it to others.
This strategy has always been the way God works at revealing[1] His truths; and we can see evidence of it even in the way Jesus trained His disciples. Despite nearly three years of daily living alongside Jesus, none of the twelve original disciples understood what Jesus was about to do at the end of His earthly life. In fact, sometimes Jesus was intentionally cryptic when answering questions His disciples posed because He knew the details would confuse them and get in the way of the training plan He had for them.
Like Mr. Miyagi in the original Karate Kid movie, Jesus taught His disciples things they didn't realize He was teaching them until He put all the pieces together. For example, having them witness the resurrection of Lazarus taught them Jesus had power over the life and death of others, but only after His own Resurrection would they be able to understand Jesus was on Earth to conquer Death itself. We see this particularly in Luke 24:45, where it says Jesus "opened their minds"? so they could (finally) understand everything He had been teaching them up to that point. Only in the hours after His death, when His physical presence proved His supernatural and Godly power over life and death, could they make sense of what He now asked of them.
Each time we read Scripture, the Bible promises that information will be useful. (Isaiah 55:11-12). It will stay with us until it accomplishes the purpose God has in revealing it to us. So no time spent reading the Bible is ever non-productive. When we need it, the information is there and available for the Holy Spirit to "google"? for our use. But the Holy Spirit rarely, if ever, "googles"? something we haven't already placed in our minds. So the more regularly we read His Word, and/or listen to others who are further down the path of faith, the more useful we can be to God in our everyday lives.
Let the Word of God equip you for every step you take, every decision you make and every person who looks to you to learn why Jesus matters. Be ready, as Peter (I Peter 3:15) tells us, to explain why we have hope when life seems hopeless. "Wax on, wax off"? each day by "spending even five minutes in the Word."[2]
--Randy Kilgore
[1][1] As with every aspect of our spiritual journeys, God can choose to set aside the ordinary? ways He reveals Himself in order to accelerate someone's understanding of His Word, as He did with the Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus. Even today, He sometimes uses miracles (and everyday events) to teach Christians about Him. This is particularly true in places where copies of the Bible are not readily available, or where literacy, blindness, deafness and other barriers present themselves.
[2] Life quote used by Cheryl Kilgore in her teaching and mentoring.
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