The Gift Illustrated By Jesus, Part One  The word "Christian" literally means "little Christ". Each of us are to emulate our Lord in our relationship with the Father, to be "Christ like". This applies to all Christians. One thing that is often under emphasized is that Jesus was "The Didaskalos", the most perfect Teacher that this world has ever seen. It is impossible to read the Gospels and not see that Jesus was a Master Teacher, skilled at communicating God's Word to His students. It is also impossible to develop a study on Teaching without looking at the example that Jesus left us, the example that He "lived". We're going to study how the Master taught, and in so doing see if we can apply His methods to the exercise of our Gift. We'll be looking at the first four areas, with the last four subjects to be covered in part two of this lesson. As usual, there will be review questions at the end of the lesson. Say a little prayer that God will lead, and let's get started! " To Teach the Word, Be Prepared! "
Probably the worst excuse you can hear for teaching a poor lesson is "I don't know anything about (name the subject). I've never experienced (name the subject). So how can I be expected to teach anything about (name the subject)." The response to that should usually follows these lines: "What does that have to do with anything? Are you a God Called Teacher, or aren't you?". Don't get me wrong, experience is one source of learning. The knowledge we all possess has been influenced, for good or bad, by our experiences. But you do not have to experience something in order to teach about it. If you had to experience a subject to teach it, then no one would ever teach about Heaven or Hell. The only ones who have experienced these realities are those who are no longer in this life. That which enables the God called didaskalos to teach is:
Here is a "very important point", so pay attention: "If you are only studying God's Word on Saturday night prior to your Sunday morning lesson, you are not fully prepared to teach that lesson". Did you get that? A didaskalos must be consistently and faithfully studying God's Word, applying the doctrines found there to his (and his student's) life. Preparedness is the key to effective teaching. In the above text the Jews asked Jesus "Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days?", not because they were interested in getting the response of a great Teacher, but because they wanted to "accuse him". Not all students are like this, thankfully, but after you teach a few years you will find out that there are some students who will "test you" to see if your teaching has any validity or not. You see, if the teacher doesn't believe what he's saying, or if the teacher doesn't live what he's preaching, the whole lesson is largely a waste of time. If the attacking student can cause you to stumble in front of the class then he has damaged your effectiveness as a teacher. This is what the Jews were doing with Jesus. If Jesus responded "No, it's not a sin to heal on the Sabbath", then they could begin an argument on Levitical code that would have belittled Christ in everyone's eyes. If Jesus had said, "Yes, it's a sin to heal on the Sabbath", then some of the crowd would have disagreed, knowing that the Father wants only the best for man. "So how did Jesus respond?" First, He was prepared. Jesus knew that God created the Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath:
Our Father created the Sabbath day because He knew us, knew of our greed, knew that we would work without cessation in order to make profit, and in doing so kill ourselves. God wanted man to take one day out of seven to "rest and dwell on what God had provided" in the past week. Jesus understood the nature of the Sabbath because He knew God's Word. He not only knew God's Word, He applied it's teachings in everything that He did. He was prepared with an answer from the Word. Second, Jesus was not a shepherd, He was a carpenter. But He learned the ways of the shepherd by observation, by watching those around Him. Knowing the shepherd as He did, Jesus "knew" that the shepherd would naturally, without a thought, pull one of his lost sheep out of a ditch, even on the Sabbath. To do less would be cruel and inhumane. Knowing God's Word and using common sense Jesus easily answered His critics. The situation was defused, God was glorified.
Good teachers are not born, they're made! First of all, they're made when given the Gift of Teaching by God the Holy Spirit. They are made when they're Filled or empowered by that same Spirit so they can do the work of God. But, "and this is very important", they are made when they study God's Word, gaining knowledge of His Will so they have something "to teach". Jesus was prepared for He studied God's Word regularly. The Bible teaches us that, as a Child:
Jesus, the Living Word, studied the Written Word regularly. When the Saducees (which did not believe in resurrection of the dead) came to Jesus to challenge Him, He was ready with a reply. I want you to notice that Jesus "never" responded to a question with a closed statement (yes or no). When a teacher responds with a simple "yes" or "no" three things are true:
Students learn when they are "led to think", not when they are spoon fed information. Jesus' first response to the Saducees was to rebuke them on their faulty knowledge of what God's Word taught. They ignored the teachings of Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2; and Job 19:25-27, which were the Orthodox foundation for belief in the resurrection. Jesus' second response was to "apply" what He knew the Scriptures taught to logic. "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." And if God is the God of the living, then surely He would resurrect His children. Using Scriptural knowledge along with logical application Jesus again defeated His critics. Let's apply this to your life. As a teacher, there will be times when you are confronted by unexpected situations and odd (though often valid) questions from your students. It is impossible to sit down on Saturday night and prepare a lesson for the next day if that is the only time you've studied your Bible this week. Students are not robots, and will not ask only certain questions in response to the lesson. Be aware, too, that your students are all in different stages of spiritual growth, and you may even have some unsaved people in your class. "Be prepared!" "How prepared is good enough?" Frankly, no one can answer that for you. But you must be studying God's Word consistently, "at least 15 minutes a day", in order to build up a knowledge base that the Holy Spirit will use as you teach. Every teacher (and really, every Christian) should have a quiet place where they can go to read and study God's Word "without interruption". Start by committing 15 minutes a day to God's Word. You'll find that, as you grow spiritually, this time will automatically start growing longer each day. It is truly a pleasure to study His Word. It is also "imperative", not optional", for the teacher. " The Teacher is a Servant, not The Master "
If I only had a dime every time I heard a student say, "Please don't put me in (you know who's) class. He's so overbearing!". Don't get this wrong: as the teacher, you " do " have authority over the classroom environment. If you have students that are disruptive you have every right to rein them in. Some young students (as well as some adult ones) show their poor raising when they get to Church, and often teachers have to take a firm stand to correct the problem. That's not what is being discussed here. What we are talking about is that we, as teachers, are "servant leaders" in the classroom. Our job is to humbly present God's Word to the student in such a way that he or she can apply it's doctrine to the betterment of their Christian walk. Let's re-emphasize this: "We are servants". As servants:
How far will a God called teacher go to help his students grow? "As far as it takes to get the lesson across." Imagine our Lord getting down on His hands and knees to wash the disciple's feet. When you read the Scriptural text it's easy to sanitize the whole incident, to make it seem less than it really was. In Jesus' day people wore open toed sandals (if they had money), rags or nothing (if they were poor) on their feet. They walked in streets that were unpaved. Donkeys, oxen, sheep: all manner of animals moved up and down these same streets, relieving themselves wherever they desired. There were no toilets for humans, either, and people often had to relieve themselves in pots, which in turn were dumped in the streets. If you walked in these streets your feet got soiled! Because of this every homeowner required (it was not just a courtesy, but usually a requirement) that his guests wash their feet upon entering the clean atmosphere of his home. Rich homeowners usually had slaves that performed this function, whereas poorer families relied on the guest to "do the honors". Jesus knelt, like a lowly slave, and washed the filthy feet of His disciples to teach them the higher doctrine of Service. How far will you go to teach your disciples?
Many believe the Church of Jesus Christ to be much like a corporation, with the Pastor, Elders, Deacons, and Teachers at the top of the command hierarchy, and the congregation at the bottom being led. Jesus taught otherwise. When you lower yourself to teach, while raising God's Word into the spotlight, students learn. They learn because you stop trying to protect the image of who you want to be, and start being concerned for the spiritual growth of the student "only". "This is hard." This is against human nature. But it is not against God's nature, nor should it be out of reach for you. An unacceptable answer to a student's question is "Because I say so!". An acceptable answer is always, "God's Word teaches...". May God give you the wisdom to understand the difference.
When we get in the classroom the first error that nearly every teacher makes is to "sit down behind a big desk" or "stand behind some imposing podium". Our purpose, as teachers, is to establish a relaxed learning environment where our students will have the ability to absorb the truths of God's Word. How can you establish a relaxed learning environment when you put a barrier between yourself and the students? As soon as you erect a physical barrier a mental barrier will shortly follow. Look at the beautiful, relaxed way that Jesus taught. The people came to Him, "he sat down", and taught them. The only time Jesus established physical barriers between Himself and the people He taught was when it was required by Jewish Orthodox Law:
Or when His disciples grew in multitude, nearly overwhelming Him with their presence:
At all other times Jesus "sat down" to teach "in the midst" of His disciples. No physical barriers were erected that would turn His students away. All of the great teachers in history have learned this key concept: "Avoid barriers - establish rapport" with your students, and they will learn. Look at Charles Stanley. To me, he is perhaps one of the greatest teachers living today. I have never come away from hearing one of his messages where I haven't learned something (and wished I could teach that way). The next time you see him on television or in person, look at the background. He has one little glass (see through) podium that stands on one thin leg. The Bible rests on the podium when it's not in Charles' hand. I have never seen Charles stand behind that podium over 30 seconds! He usually goes over, reads a Scripture, then begins walking around the stage, making eye contact in all directions as he goes. He "establishes rapport" with the audience, and in doing so teaches more in a half hour than some can teach in six.
Jesus established rapport with the student by "being prepared". The scribes were the "legal eagles" of Jesus' day. They knew what was in the Scripture for they "memorized" great sections of it by writing texts over and over again. They knew, by rote, what the Scripture taught, but they did not know, "by application", what it meant. People do not come to your Bible class to just know, by rote, what the Bible teaches. People come to Bible class and to Church to find answers. They want to know how the doctrines of the Bible relate to their day to day lives, and want to know how these teachings can increase the quality of their lives. Students do not need a lexicon to stand at the front of the class and spout off facts and figures. They can go to their local Christian bookstore and buy Bible dictionaries, lexicons, and commentaries. They need "application". Jesus gave application to His students. He established a rapport with His followers that caused them to flock to His teaching in droves. He showed, by teaching them the "application of doctrine", that He truly loved them. Students learn in this type of environment.
Once Jesus had their attention He sat down in their midst. When He taught, He didn't teach with a lilting upturn at the end of each sentence. You know what I mean. When a teacher is uncertain of the materiel he is trying to share, often there's a hesitation, a tonal change, a quick rush of words to blurt the message out. Unfamiliarity with the materiel destroys rapport with the class. Believe me, they do pick up on your hesitation. Something I tried once (and was shocked afterwards) was to take a small tape recorder into the classroom and record what I said during the lesson. Afterward I started counting pauses, "Ohmms", and catch phrases "you know what I mean", so many that it made me ashamed. I started controlling these nervous habits by concentrating on what I was saying, purposely avoiding the "Ohmms" and "you know what I mean" fillers that plagued my teaching. If I was asked a question I couldn't answer, I replied "I don't know, but I will find out and let you know" (and I did). Rapport with the class grew! Establish rapport and "be prepared"!
As a teacher, I have discovered two things:
All teachers have had the same experience, and know full well what I'm talking about. You've been teaching the lesson for about 15 minutes and pause to allow the students to participate in the learning experience. You ask, "How can we apply what we've just learned to our lives", stand back, and wait. And wait. And wait. The natural inclination is to jump in with the answer when you fail to receive a response in about (a terribly long) 10 seconds. Supply the answer and move on with the lesson. "Let me tell you, my friend, this is the worst thing that a teacher can do!" Many view teaching much like construction work. They feel that, as a teacher, it is their job to drive a big truck of facts up to the class, back up, and quickly dump these facts on the students. They feel that it is the student's responsibility to pick up the pile of facts and go their merry way with them. The "construction teacher" asks the students to quickly regurgitate these facts. If they fail to do the job quickly enough, the construction teacher quickly assembles the data into a convenient little house and moves on. But has the student learned anything? Learning is a process that requires active participation from both the teacher as well as the student. The easiest thing in the world is to lecture on Theology, Pneumatology, Christology: to lecture as a College Professor would to his students. To lecture is easy, to spout raw data is a breeze. To teach, on the other hand, is a challenge. The Learning process requires the following things:
If we as teachers fail to give the students time to "apply the lesson", the student will leave the classroom no better off than he was upon entering. Silence is usually golden. Notice how Jesus used this principle when responding to the Jews. There were many times when Jesus, rather than answer directly, quoted specific doctrines from the Scripture without further expanding them. This "forced" the student to think for himself, to expand his horizons, to grow in some degree. You might well say "But these were enemies of Christ, not His disciples", but I tell you, Jesus taught us much through His encounters with His enemies. Notice how He taught: The Jews, seeking to provoke a fight, asked Jesus "Hearest thou what these say?". Jesus could have responded, "Well, I'm the Messiah, and it is my right that I be praised". Had He done this it would have only antagonized the Jews (which is what they wanted) to no good end. Instead, Jesus responded: "Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?" . Notice that Jesus "did not directly claim Messiah ship". Instead He quoted a Messianic prophesy from Psalm 8:2. The Scribes and Pharisees (who full well knew the Scriptures), rather than have an opportunity to fight, were "forced to examine" themselves and Jesus' authority in the light of the Scriptures. Jesus' answer simultaneously did three things:
Yet again Jesus uses the oblique approach, allowing the Pharisees to draw the proper conclusion without actually giving the answer. As teachers we "want" results, we "want" our students to outwardly display spiritual progression. There is always, in the back of our minds, that little voice that says "They really aren't learning, I'm really not effective as a teacher". It is that little voice, that small lack of confidence in God's Gift that often causes the teacher to ask a question and then, after only a few seconds, answer that question without waiting for the student. Though the Pharisees insisted on treating Jesus as an enemy, He was honestly concerned that they (as well as all of Israel) come to know Him as Savior and Messiah. To this end He taught them, whether they liked it or not. More than this, Jesus wasn't "only" addressing the Pharisees at this point. The synoptic parallels (see Mark 12:35-37; Luke 20:41-44) show that He was addressing the crowd in the Temple court. Jesus began by asking the people a question that they could easily answer: "What think ye of Christ?" (the Messiah) "whose son is he?". The Pharisees knew, from passages like II Samuel 7:13-14; Isaiah 11:1, 10; and Jeremiah 23:5 that the Messiah would be a "son of David", that is, out of the line of King David. When they answered "The Son of David" Jesus then asked them logical questions tied to Psalm 110, questions like: "If David called Messiah God, then how could Messiah be the Son of David?". Our Lord took the argument no further. The question was designed to make the people evaluate Jesus' claim as Messiah in the light of the Messianic Psalm 110. The obvious answer was that the Messiah, when He came (and He was present now as Jesus), would be both fully God and fully Man. Jesus didn't explain further, He didn't have to. The Pharisees, having seen the ministry that Jesus had, were free to reach the conclusion that He was indeed Messiah. Stop jumping in and answering questions for your students. "Ask them strong, Biblical based questions, and allow them plenty of time to participate in the learning experience." They will grow when you use this method in your classroom. Clicking Here! Clicking Here! 
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