I was just looking for a tie to wear. Haven't worn one for years, but I wanted to impress someone, so I was digging through my closet for something that looked like it belonged in the current millennium.

Amazing what you find when you start digging deep.

Baseball cards. The trumpet I played in junior high. A gag hat with antlers attached. Forgot I owned all this great stuff. And, oh yes, a tie.

Jesus once spoke of "a homeowner who takes new and old things out of his storage room" (Matthew 13:52, GNT). Now I can relate. This quote comes from a chapter full of parables, in which God's kingdom is compared to farming and baking and investing. Here, Jesus says "every teacher of the Law who becomes a disciple in the Kingdom of heaven" is like this homeowner foraging through the closet. So the Bible student who follows Jesus will keep finding new and old treasures. Maybe you have found this true yourself.

Gems and Insights

You might have come across the term "Bible engagement" lately. This is the sort of thing it means. Digging through the Scriptures to find old gems and new insights, letting the Spirit remind us of long-held truths and spur us on with new challenges.

Take Romans 8. I've read this grand chapter a hundred times, and I could read it a thousand more. I can't imagine a more powerful collection of raw truth. No condemnation…the Spirit who raised Jesus…creation groans…all things work together…more than conquerors. In these verses we hear the whisper of the Spirit reminding us that we are God's children and the victory cry that nothing can separate us from God's love. This is an ancient treasure I will never tire of.

But recently I happened upon 2 Samuel 14:14, in which a wise woman counsels King David about his rebellious son, Absalom. "God does not just sweep life away; instead, he devises ways to bring us back when we have been separated from him" (NLT). This is a new gem plucked from the back corner of the closet.

Surely I had read the story before, but now this verse called out to me—especially as I thought of friends who felt separated from God, and of parents fretting over their rebellious kids. God devises ways to bring them back!   

Maybe you are new to the Bible. There will be plenty of great discoveries ahead for you. But even if you've been studying the Scriptures for decades, it's still a treasure trove. New insights sparkle among the old assurances, if we just keep digging.