The Gift of Quality Instruction
Romans 12:7
We’ve been looking at the spiritual gifts which God gives to members of the Body of Christ, His Church, in order to bring glory to Him alone, and to edify us together in unity and strength, to function as His Body while we live on this earth. We looked at the gift of prophecy, which is PROCLAIMING, speaking forth the Word of God. WE looked at “Service” last week, and saw that SERVING is exactly what the Lord Jesus did, even to the point of death for sins, so we really do not have a good reason why we would not serve Him by serving each other. Serving each other and our neighbors is actually demonstrating our love for God: Serving is faith in action. (By the way, sitting in church or sitting on the couch doesn’t qualify as “serving”.)
Today we look at the spiritual gift of teaching. We’ll read Romans 12:1-8: “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. 3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think ; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. 4 For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; 7 if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.”
Jimmy was having a tough day in school and the teacher said to him: “You aren’t paying attention to me. Are you having trouble hearing?” He replied: “No, teacher I’m not having trouble hearing; I’m having trouble listening!” Everyone but the teacher laughed, so she sent a note home with Jimmy about his behavior. As a result, his mom asked Jimmy what he thought of his teacher. He replied, “She’s mean but fair.” “What do you mean by that?” his mother asked. He replied: “She’s mean… but she’s mean to EVERYBODY!”
1. The Greatest Teacher
I’m sure that you had teachers that weren’t your “favorites”… and YOU probably weren’t THEIR favorites either; did you ever realize that? When you are young, you think that “a Teacher is a person who helps you solve problems you’d never have without them.” But actually good teachers are not always valued teachers.
The greatest Teacher who ever lived, still lives today, and he certainly was undervalued: His name is Jesus. Jesus consistently instructed others during his three year ministry. The Greek word for “teach” is “didasko”. We get the word “didactic”, meaning “intended to instruct or teach”. So-called “good” and Godly preaching used to be called didactic preaching; it was teaching and preaching which was to teach us God’s authoritative Word. It was meant to teach us God’s standards for morality, relationships and behavior. Now so much preaching is subjective, narrative, and experiential instead of intensive study and exposition of God’s Word.
a. Think about this: Jesus, Himself, WAS THE Word, the fulfillment of the Word, and yet He tirelessly taught God’s Word. The Living Word was writing the Word as He was revealing Himself as the Word, and as He quoted the Old Testament Promises from the Word. As some of Jesus’ teachings are recorded in the Gospels, He quoted from 27 Old Testament books, 78 times. In His words and instruction, He taught that ALL of life, the WHOLE PERSON, should be ordered in relation to a Holy God and to your neighbor.
b. Jesus systematically taught God’s Word, but He taught those who were teachable. He taught those who would listen. Jesus was recognized as a GREAT teacher until He made the absolute claim that, not only was He a prophet and teacher, but in his own name, Jesus associated Himself directly with God, as THE responsible bearer of God’s Own Will, and that He, Himself, would offer himself as the only one who could perfectly fulfill that perfect Will of God. After His claim, those who would NOT FOLLOW Him would abandon Him and some would even crucify Him: they were no longer “teachable.”
In Luke 6:40, Jesus said: "A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be LIKE his teacher.” The word, “Teacher”, “didaskalos”, is used 58 times in the NT: 41 of those times it refers to Jesus as THE TEACHER. Those who followed (those who listened AND heard Jesus, not like Jimmy!) would follow the TEACHER and His example, both in serving AND in suffering. (And in the meanwhile, His disciples became TEACHERS as well, didn’t they?)
2. Godly Qualified Teachers
a. Jesus still chooses SOME disciples to be Qualified teachers, but they do not become qualified because of their abilities, but because they are specifically called and Gifted by God to serve as instructors and encouragers to the Body of Christ, His local Church. God does the calling and the gifting. A so-called “religious education” does not qualify a person to have the gift of teaching. Pastors and Preachers should also be good teachers, but I have known quite a few pastors who did not exhibit the spiritual gift of teaching. They did not have the ability and calling to systematically study and present God’s Word. They were good “story tellers” and they were gifted speakers, but they definitely did not instruct and encourage according to God’s Word.
Paul’s instruction to Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:12 pertains to teaching: “Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe. 13 Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and TEACHING. 14 Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. 15 Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. 16 Pay close attention to yourself and to your TEACHING; persevere in these things.”
b. Godly qualified Teachers MUST BE avid students of Jesus and God’s Word. Someone might be able to teach others life skills, subject matter, or occupational skills, but that doesn’t make them spiritually gifted to teach the body of Christ. Atheists, agnostics or even false teachers may be teachers but they do not have the spiritual gift of teaching and leading the Body of Christ in God’s Word.
THE TEXTBOOK for one gifted with teaching is God’s Word. The disciples taught “the word of God.” Paul was an apostle, teacher, and preacher. In Titus 1:9 it says: “He (a teacher) must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.” A person who is “gifted” in teaching still has to practice good study habits, spend hours in humble prayer and study before God. A person who does NOT do these things may have the ability of PERFORMANCE (which is NOT a spiritual gift), but definitely not the gift of teaching and preaching. Teaching God’s Word will always be prefaced with studying God’s Word, and being a willful and teachable student of the Lord Jesus.
c. Godly Qualified Teachers are MANY TIMES ALSO called as elders, pastors and preachers. Now listen carefully. All Preachers should be Teachers, just like all preachers are Elder, but not all teachers are preachers. All Elders should have the gift of teaching according to biblical qualifications, but not all elders will be preachers or pastors. There are overlaps on all of these gifts but having a spiritual gift does not mean that you will hold a church office. I believe that for Pastors, they probably function more often in “teaching” mode than probably anyone else in the Local Body. Teaching Elders should have the gifting and ability to be diligent in the study of God’s Word. That diligence does not come because they want to give a good sermon or a good performance but because they have been equipped by God’s Spirit to work diligently in studying, preaching and teaching.
Here’s what Paul says about those men in 1Timothy 5:17: “The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.”
3. Characteristics of Quality Teaching and Preaching
I want to take a few minutes to look at some of the Characteristics, goals and results of quality Teaching and Preaching. Now let me say something first: Quality teaching and preaching does not necessarily mean that you are a good, natural, powerful and public speaker. That may help in presentation, but teaching is not about how YOU perform before an audience, but if you are teaching SOUND DOCTRINE. I know some very powerful excellent public speakers who pass themselves off as pastors, teachers, and prophets, but who are promoting false doctrines and false gospels. Don’t be fooled!
a. Pure teaching will always centralize Christ and HIS ATONING WORK of Redemption. Christ’s Work on the Cross will be central. HIS Resurrection, Ascension, His Kingdom and God’s Word alone will be central. Salvation by God-given Grace and Faith will be central. God’s Glory alone will be central. The GIVER will ALWAYS be given GLORY, not the gifts or the recipient of the Gifts. Psalm 8: 1&4 comes to my mind so often: “O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth, Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens! 4 What is man that You would take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?” In the early Church, in Acts 5:42 it says: “And every day, in the temple and from house to house, (everywhere they went) they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”
b. If God is receiving the Glory alone that He deserves then the gift of teaching will equip the Christian (every believer in the local body) for ministry and service. Ephesians 4:11 tells us: “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, (HERE IS THE REASON FOR THEIR TASK) 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, (or MINISTRY-same word we looked at last week) to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. 14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ.”
We are being equipped through the teaching and preaching of the Word on Sunday, Wednesday night and Thursday noon. We gather together to be trained in worship to God and by the Word of God…and then what… and then we scatter in order to be His witnesses.
c. Another goal and result is that the teaching of sound doctrine multiplies other teachers and disciples. As you go out from here, in essence, you become a teacher to others. You may not have the gift of standing before an audience and sharing what you know about God and His love which has been shown to you, but what you learn on Sunday, Wed. and Thurs. or on Sat. monthly mornings in those teachings in women’s group…what you DO LEARN should be utilized by you in your individual ministry and witness throughout the week.
Our times together aren’t just about whether you enjoyed what we did or if you agreed with what you heard, but rather, how are you UTILIZING what you are learning. How is God convicting and teaching you through the teaching of His Word? Are you teaching others about the grace and faith that you have received from God? Teaching is to EQUIP the SAINTS for the WORK of SERVICE and MINISTRY.
This week’s study really had me search myself and ask God if I was doing ALL that He wants me to do as a teaching elder: I study, I teach, preach, pray, persuade, persevere and PERFORM to the best of my God-given ability, and I wish I had more power over the outcome, but that is totally out of my hands. I have no control over the outcome.
d. Not only preaching and teaching but ALL of the Spiritual God-given gifts are transforming the Local Body, this part of the Church, to be fit for the Universal Body. Listen to this from 1 Corinthians 1:5-8: “That in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge, 6 even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you, 7 SO THAT you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting EAGERLY the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will also confirm you to the end, BLAMELESS in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” We enjoy and practice our HOLY SPIRIT gifts together as partial down payments of the fullest work of the Spirit that will be ours in the age to come. Are you also teaching and sharing what you have received and are being taught so that all of us will be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ?
OUTLINE:
1. The Greatest Teacher, Jesus,
a. was THE Word, and taught God’s Word. Teaching in the NT is systematic
b. systematically taught those who were teachable.
2. Godly Qualified Teachers are
a. called and Gifted by God to serve as instructors.
b. avid students of God’s Word.
c. called as elders, pastors and preachers.
3. Quality Teaching and Preaching of sound doctrine:
a. centralizes Christ, the Word, the Cross.
b. equips the Christian’s duty (believers) for ministry and service.
c. multiplies other teachers and disciples.
d. transforms the Local Body for the Universal Body.
