I was watching the movie Casablanca for the umpteenth time one day when someone asked me why. "I get something new out of it each time," I replied. I know that I'm not the only one who feels that way about their favorite books, films, and TV shows. Later, I wondered, why is that?
First of all, let me say that only books, movies and films with some kind of "quality" to it really merit that kind of attention. Even particular funny comedies often have some kind of "depth" to them, some insight into the workings of the human mind. I remember George Carlin riffing on his "stuff" and how we treat "stuff" and his riffing on words and on cats and dogs and I would think to myself, "Gee, there's some interesting knowledge and philosophy here." Same with Bill Cosby.
Of course all of this pales in comparison to reading the Bible! I will read and re-read something in the Holy Scriptures and come up with something new every time. As Pastor Paul and I have often said, sometimes it's better than that. It's "I can't believe I missed that before!" Sometimes I think we need to treat the people around us the same way. After all, each of us is a book with many pages. Perhaps there's something about someone you haven't been paying attention to -- something deserving of respect -- a part of their "book" you haven't read yet. Don't we say that you can't read a book by its cover? Or even the first 100 pages!
The writers of the Bible assumed that God's Word was inexhaustible. Out of the mouth of the prophet Isaiah, God says to us, "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth...so shall My Word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:10-11)
Many times we look at that passage and think, "Well, God had just one purpose for that message, at the time He first gave it; the message was delivered, it worked, and that's the end of it." But it's not the end of it. For God's Word is special. It continues to have relevance to the end of time. Every time we read a passage, we are further enlightened; potentially, our discipleship is further deepened. We should not only read not read a book by its cover; we should not read a verse by its "cover" either. Read it again. And again.
David Hewitt
