But evil people and charlatans will go from bad to worse, deceiving others and being deceived themselves. You, however, must continue in the things you have learned and are confident about. You know who taught you and how from infancy you have known the holy writings, which are able to give you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the person dedicated to God may be capable and equipped for every good work.
The cynical part of this verse is easy to believe. Nobody would argue that evil people are becoming more evil.
Nobody would argue the next statement that we should continue to grow in faith and boldness in Christ.
Keep going. Keep reading. Keep letting those words sink in…
Then POW!
Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
What if that is true too? The Bible is good for teaching, which is learning more about God. It is useful for reproof, which is telling me to stop doing things that aren’t good for me or God’s kingdom. Correction will correct the wrong things I do so that I can human better. Training in righteousness shows me the right way to go once I’ve stopped going the wrong way. It lays out a new path for me to follow and grow in maturity and faith in Christ.
If I read the Bible with the expectation that every part of it is going to help me with the Kingdom somehow, I pay attention. If it’s true that every part is good for something, I don’t blow off Leviticus and Numbers as irrelevant. There’s got to be something in there. (And there is!)
When we read the Bible, there will be plenty of days that it’s just words on paper. No lightning bolts, no fanfares, no tears, no clue. But if every 20 day brings a revelation or comfort or joy, it’s worth the 19 days of nothing that it took to get there.
All scripture came from God’s very lungs and is very good for our lives. Go after it with that expectation. See what happens. God loves to show Himself true.
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