A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. Luke 6:40
A student was showing me some of his drawings this past week that were absolutely wonderful. He told me his uncle had taught him how to draw. His face truly glowed when he said, “My uncle told me that in another couple of months I’ll probably be as good as him.”
My response was, “You know, there is a proverb that says when a student is fully trained he will be like his teacher.” As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I was convicted by my own statement. If my job is to teach, shouldn’t I have the knowledge and experience necessary in order to teach? Of course I should. That’s why I spend countless hours each year going to in-services and workshops that the school district sends me to and reading, studying, and researching on my own. I want to be an effective teacher. In a sense, I am trying to teach my students everything I know about reading and writing. I’m giving them the skills to be like me.
Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations….teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20. How can I possibly teach other people to obey everything Jesus has commanded if I don’t prepare myself first? As the body of Christ, we should be actively studying, learning, and preparing ourselves in such a way that we can instruct others in the ways of the Lord. There is no way you can make disciples unless you, yourself, are a student of the Lord.
Now, in order to be a student of the Lord, you can’t limit your learning to what you get at church. After all, I “studied” math by sitting and listening in a classroom for about twelve years. I even passed all of those math classes. But, I guarantee you , I am not a “student” of math. I know the basics of math…just enough to help me figure out discounts at the store and how much carpet I need to cover the floor in a room, but I don’t know math. Likewise, if all of our spiritual knowledge comes from sermons, we will not have the wisdom and understanding that the scriptures command us repeatedly to gain. We may acquire a basic knowledge, but we won’t truly know the Lord or his teachings. A good teacher never stops being a student. As long as we draw breath, there will always be more to learn about the Lord. A priority for us as teachers of faith should be to instill a passion for studying and learning; growing and maturing. If the fully trained student will be like his teacher, that means he must see the passion in us, or he will never have it himself.
I believe the “great commission” is given to all believers. We are all responsible for teaching others how to be disciples of Christ and to obey everything he has commanded. Therefore, we owe it to God, to ourselves, and to everyone we will ever have the opportunity to teach to make sure that we, ourselves, are constantly growing and maturing in our knowledge and understanding of the Lord’s commands. It won’t just happen. We must immerse ourselves in the Word daily.
You may not see yourself as a teacher, but I assure you that you will come in contact with people this week who have never set foot in a church building. The vast majority of the Lord’s teachers look remarkably like ordinary people. The way we live and act in public demonstrates our true beliefs. In fact, unless the Lord’s disciples live daily as disciples, the world will never see a difference between themselves and us. What will people learn about the Lord when they watch you this week? Train them well.
…Train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 1 Tim 4:8.
A student was showing me some of his drawings this past week that were absolutely wonderful. He told me his uncle had taught him how to draw. His face truly glowed when he said, “My uncle told me that in another couple of months I’ll probably be as good as him.”
My response was, “You know, there is a proverb that says when a student is fully trained he will be like his teacher.” As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I was convicted by my own statement. If my job is to teach, shouldn’t I have the knowledge and experience necessary in order to teach? Of course I should. That’s why I spend countless hours each year going to in-services and workshops that the school district sends me to and reading, studying, and researching on my own. I want to be an effective teacher. In a sense, I am trying to teach my students everything I know about reading and writing. I’m giving them the skills to be like me.
Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations….teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20. How can I possibly teach other people to obey everything Jesus has commanded if I don’t prepare myself first? As the body of Christ, we should be actively studying, learning, and preparing ourselves in such a way that we can instruct others in the ways of the Lord. There is no way you can make disciples unless you, yourself, are a student of the Lord.
Now, in order to be a student of the Lord, you can’t limit your learning to what you get at church. After all, I “studied” math by sitting and listening in a classroom for about twelve years. I even passed all of those math classes. But, I guarantee you , I am not a “student” of math. I know the basics of math…just enough to help me figure out discounts at the store and how much carpet I need to cover the floor in a room, but I don’t know math. Likewise, if all of our spiritual knowledge comes from sermons, we will not have the wisdom and understanding that the scriptures command us repeatedly to gain. We may acquire a basic knowledge, but we won’t truly know the Lord or his teachings. A good teacher never stops being a student. As long as we draw breath, there will always be more to learn about the Lord. A priority for us as teachers of faith should be to instill a passion for studying and learning; growing and maturing. If the fully trained student will be like his teacher, that means he must see the passion in us, or he will never have it himself.
I believe the “great commission” is given to all believers. We are all responsible for teaching others how to be disciples of Christ and to obey everything he has commanded. Therefore, we owe it to God, to ourselves, and to everyone we will ever have the opportunity to teach to make sure that we, ourselves, are constantly growing and maturing in our knowledge and understanding of the Lord’s commands. It won’t just happen. We must immerse ourselves in the Word daily.
You may not see yourself as a teacher, but I assure you that you will come in contact with people this week who have never set foot in a church building. The vast majority of the Lord’s teachers look remarkably like ordinary people. The way we live and act in public demonstrates our true beliefs. In fact, unless the Lord’s disciples live daily as disciples, the world will never see a difference between themselves and us. What will people learn about the Lord when they watch you this week? Train them well.
…Train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 1 Tim 4:8.
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