How Jesus Teaches
by Michael Paul Johnson
Royal Rangers and Missionettes are about reaching, teaching, and keeping
boys and girls for Jesus Christ. In the process, we naturally need to know
how to teach, so that we can teach not only the children, but other adult
leaders. All of us know something about teaching from our parents,
teachers, and various church leaders. To be excellent teachers, let's take
a look at the perfect teacher: Jesus Christ. I'm convinced that when we do
God's work, it is important to do it His way. That way, we'll get the
results He intended, which are far more than what we could ever do on our own.
Let's take another look at the greatest teacher ever to set foot on this
planet, asking not only what He teaches (which is very important), but also
how He teaches. The following are some observations of mine about how Jesus
teaches from the Scriptures. You are invited to study the Bible yourself to
see what else you can find, because this list is by no means exhaustive,
and the Scriptures I reference below are only a few examples of Jesus'
teaching techniques. I pray that this will give you a head start in your
studies.
Example
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God. The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such
glory as of the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth. - John
1:1,14 (WEB)
Jesus' whole life is an example to us. Even the supernatural demonstrations
of power He made were things that He told his disciples to go and do as
well. Jesus never had a problem with saying one thing and doing another.
Indeed the one thing that seemed to irritate him regularly with the
religious but sinful people of His time was their hypocrisy.
Jesus made a point of being baptized, for example, even though the prophet
John the Baptizer objected. He also was tempted severely right after that,
so that we could watch and see how Jesus defeated the enemy with the Word
of God. (Matthew 3:13-4:11).
Jesus always walked in love. Even in the times when He seemed harsh, his
love came through. Jesus remained sinless, showing us what His plan for His
people was before sin entered the world. This is still His plan, of course,
and that is why He came to defeat sin and lies with righteousness, love,
truth, and His own life blood. When Jesus rebuked anyone, it was always
with the objective of bringing them back into the Kingdom of God and saving
their lives, and always balanced with whatever good He could say. (See the
letters to the churches in Revelation.) Jesus' objective was never to
condemn people, but to save us. (John 3:16-17)
Therefore, let our teaching be by example, never with hypocrisy. Lead by
example, because your example always speaks louder than your words. In
Royal Rangers and Missionettes, there are many opportunities for boys and
girls to see you as you are. They know how you react when things don't go
as planned on a campout. They hear what comes out of your mouth when you
stub your toe. They smell what is on your breath. They find out what is
really important to you. They "catch" more of your love for God than you
actually consciously teach.
Preaching
Preaching is simply proclaiming. Jesus proclaimed the message His Father
sent Him to proclaim. In preaching, many people can listen at once. Jesus
was a master at finding natural theaters. A hillside may form an effective
amphitheater. A small boat next to the sea shore would keep Him from
getting crushed by the crowd, and let more people see Him clearly.
Jesus also went from town to town teaching in the synagogues. What more
natural place to go than to the places people had already built to teach
and learn about God and His Word?
Jesus also would talk as He walked from place to place, and many would
follow Him to hear his word. He made good use of travel time. You may
wonder how that applies today with cars, vans, and busses - until you ask
what you listen to as you travel. (I like to listen to Bible tapes.)
(Matthew 4:17; 5-7; Mark 4:1, 13)
Demonstrations
Jesus' preaching was good, but He didn't just say that He came to show the
love of the Father and to destroy the works of the devil. He proved it with
demonstrations of God's power and miracles of provision, healing,
resurrection, and protection. (See Matthew 4:23-24, 8:2-17, 23-32; 9:18-29;
14:13-36; 15:30-37, for just a few examples - there are many of them.)
We can do demonstrations in the natural. I really enjoyed some of my
physics classes, because the professor put on some impressive
demonstrations of the principles involved. He did fun stuff like capturing
a laser beam in a stream of water to demonstrate total internal reflection.
These things really helped bring home the message. I still remember those
principles. I also remember having classes with other professors where all
I remember of their lectures was that they were excruciatingly boring.
Although demonstrations are of great value in teaching scouting skills and
other such things, they are even more value when God demonstrates the
supernatural among us in response to our obedience and faith. When you see
people get up out of wheel chairs and be instantly healed, that gets your
attention. When you see someone's too-short leg grow to match the other one
under the power of God, it gets your attention. When these miracles are
associated with teaching, the miracles help people remember the message.
Many people teach and preach. They often preach traditions of men,
religious thinking, some truth, some half-truths, and even some outright
falsehoods that sound good but are not. Others teach outright lies and
false gods. Some of these even have some kind of demonstrations, perhaps of
demonic power or natural trickery. Nevertheless, we are to do what Jesus
did: proclaim the pure Word of God, and then we will see demonstrations. If
you believe what Jesus Christ said and you really preach the gospel (not
some other message or a watered-down religious message), then you will see
signs and wonders following you.
Most assuredly I tell you, he who believes in me, the works that I do, he
will do also; and greater works than these will he do; because I am going
to my Father. - John 14:12
He [Jesus] said to them, "Go into all the world, and preach the gospel to
the whole creation. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he
who disbelieves will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who
believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new
languages; they will take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing,
it will in no way hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will
recover." - Mark 16:15-18
To really see signs following you, just preach the gospel. It is that
simple. Jesus said so.
Object Lessons
Jesus sometimes refers to an object - something familiar, perhaps, or
something nearby, in making his point. He speaks of how well-fed the birds
are and how well clothed the lilies are. (Luke 12:22-28) He used mustard
seeds to illustrate the Kingdom of God, and as an illustration of how much
faith it takes to move a mountain. (Matthew 13:31; 17:20)
Interaction
Jesus preached to multitudes, but He also interacted one on one and in
small groups. He skillfully asked questions and gave wise answers. His
questions often drew the truth out of people, causing them to discover the
truth themselves and say it with their own lips. This is extremely
effective both with friendly and hostile company. (Luke 10:25-28, 36;
14:3-5; 15:4) When people reason through coming up with answers, they tend
to remember them better. Questions are also effective at exposing hypocrisy
and error when skillfully framed.
Story Telling
Jesus used stories of real events, both historical and current. Luke 13:1-5
refers to then-current events concerning Galileans killed by Pilate and the
Tower of Siloam. The story of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31 is
not presented as a parable, but as a real situation. Stories often hold
interest and present abstract concepts more effectively than a simple
statement of the point of the story.
Parables
Parables are probably Jesus' most famous teaching techniques. A parable is
a story that uses a parallel between a very familiar situation (like
farming) and a less familiar topic (like the Kingdom of Heaven) to shed
light and understanding on the latter. Parables have the paradoxical effect
of both revealing truth for whom the message is intended and hiding it from
those who don't want to hear it. Jesus would often tell a parable in public
to multitudes, then explain its meaning in private to his friends and
disciples. (Mark 4)
Experience
Jesus didn't stop at showing and telling us how to spread the gospel and to
do the works of healing and deliverance that He did. He had His disciples
(students) do them as well. He sent out teams to do the same things He was
doing. They were learning by doing. This kind of learning is much stronger
for most people. (Luke 9:1-6; 10:1-20)
Mentoring
Jesus taught many people and preached to multitudes. He touched many lives.
He also called out 12 people who walked with Him, talked with Him, lived
with Him, and watched Him up close. Jesus invested heavily into their
lives, so that they could impart that same investment to others. (Luke
6:12-16) This chain indeed continued. (2 Timothy 2) There is much more
opportunity to interactively share with a small "patrol" of friends than
there is with a large multitude.
Rebukes
Jesus wasn't afraid to rebuke whatever and whoever comes against the Father
and His Word. His rebukes could be gentle ("go and sin no more" John 8:11),
moderate (Luke 11:39-54), and severe (whip & money changers in the temple
John 2:14-17). Being loving doesn't mean you never challenge evil. Indeed,
there are times when love will compel someone to confront evil to protect
people from the effects of evil. Note that there is a vast difference
between such a confrontation driven by love and the kinds of confrontations
people get into based on selfish desires. This difference escapes some
people, but you know in your heart - and so does God - when you engage in
one or the other. Motivation and love make the difference between fatherly
discipline and abuse. Abuse harms, but discipline corrects, instructs, and
draws back to the truth. Godly rebukes are measured, and generally mixed
with encouragement and hope. (Revelation 2-3)
Word Pictures
Word pictures - words and phrases that create a picture in your mind - are
a very effective communication tool. Instead of just saying that it is bad
to make children who believe stumble, Jesus painted an effective word
picture by saying that it would be better to have a millstone hung around
your neck and be cast into the sea than to make one of these little ones
who believe to stumble. (Mark 9:42) The latter statement has much more
impact. (Luke 17:2,6,24,37)
Prayer and Bible Study
Prayer is very strongly linked to teaching God's message. How can we share
what pleases the Father, unless we know and communicate with the Father. We
must also study the Bible ourselves if we are to expect to teach others.
Jesus began study of the Scriptures early, and at age 12 amazed everyone at
the temple with his wisdom and knowledge of the Scriptures. (Luke 2:46-47)
It is in prayer and Bible study that God reveals to us what the people we
teach need to hear. God also reveals some details to us that we need to
know when we spend time in prayer. It is no coincidence that Luke 6:12
(speaking of Jesus spending time in prayer) comes right before Luke 6:13-16
(selecting the apostles).
There is so much on prayer, and so many references to Jesus praying in the
Bible that we can hardly scratch the surface, here. Note, however, that
Jesus was constantly withdrawing himself to a mountain or wilderness area
to spend time with His Father, even though His fame spread widely and the
people placed mighty demands on His time.
___
Michael Paul Johnson aka Soaring Golden Eagle <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
http://eBible.org/mpj Rocky Mountain Outpost 207 New Creation Church
Jesus Christ is Lord! If Jesus came back today, would you be READY?
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