{"id":31971,"date":"2022-09-10T15:51:12","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:51:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-things-to-remember-when-you-teach-the-bible\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:51:12","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:51:12","slug":"3-things-to-remember-when-you-teach-the-bible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-things-to-remember-when-you-teach-the-bible\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Things to Remember When You Teach the Bible"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Meredith Cook<\/em><\/p>\n

I was volunteering at a local kid\u2019s club one day in June, as I\u2019ve done almost every week for the last two years. I normally have around 15-20 kids in my group\u2014which makes it a challenge to keep them relatively calm while also teaching the Bible story.<\/p>\n

Most days I wonder if anything I say is landing. Questions abound in my head such as: Do they hear the gospel? Do they understand it? Are they just regurgitating facts so I\u2019ll give them candy? Often, the kids seem more concerned about showing off for each other and getting candy than listening to anything I tell them.<\/p>\n

But on that particular day I only had two kids (summer club tends to be smaller, but this was unusual) so we were able to have a deeper discussion about the Bible story and how it applies to our lives.<\/p>\n

Without the distraction of a large group of peers, these boys talked about what they learned. They asked thoughtful questions. We talked about how powerful God is and that He\u2019s always with us. We talked about how that means we don\u2019t have to be afraid.<\/p>\n

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One of the boys shared about his struggles, which allowed me to speak truth and encouragement to him. I explained that he has a loving, heavenly Father who will never leave him. We went on to talk about God\u2019s character and how He\u2019s provided for us through the gospel. And as we spoke, I realized that these kids had, in fact, been listening to me all along.<\/p>\n

That simple interaction hit home and caused me to remember the following three things about teaching.<\/p>\n

1. The Local Church\u2019s Role in Teaching.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Towards the end of our conversation, one of the boys asked me how I knew \u201call this stuff.\u201d I explained to this boy that just as he has me and other leaders to teach him, I too, have teachers who help me understand God\u2019s Word.<\/p>\n

This reminds me of how God graciously gives us His Word and Spirit so we can know Him. But God is also gracious to give us teachers in the local church to help us understand things we might not be able to easily figure out on our own.<\/p>\n

The Bible is full of exhortations to teach one another. Though some passages speak of teaching as a specific spiritual gift, it seems clear that we all share in the responsibility of building one another up by proclaiming God\u2019s Word to each other.<\/p>\n

Deuteronomy 4 instructs us not to forget what we\u2019ve seen and heard and to teach it to our children and grandchildren. Psalms 78:3, likewise, talks about passing down \u201cthings we have heard and known\u201d to the next generation.<\/p>\n

Paul told Titus to instruct older women to teach younger women (Titus 2). Meanwhile, Colossians 3 exhorts us to let the Word of Christ dwell in us and to teach one another through psalms and hymns.<\/p>\n

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Our need for teachers doesn\u2019t end when we transition into adulthood. While some of us were blessed to have been taught the Bible at a young age, others were adults before we had anyone to teach us about God.<\/p>\n

Either way, we\u2019re not meant to live out this life of faith alone. We don\u2019t have to figure it out all by ourselves.<\/p>\n

2. The Spirit\u2019s Power in Teaching.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Anyone who teaches in some capacity\u2014especially in the role of a pastor\u2014may often feel as I did teaching those kids. You may wonder if what you\u2019re saying is making a difference.<\/p>\n

This doesn\u2019t happen just with children; it happens with people of all ages. It can be frustrating to expend energy on teaching others how to know and obey the will of God, only to have them seemingly ignore or dismiss you.<\/p>\n

These occasions remind us it\u2019s not up to us to change people. We\u2019re dependent on the Holy Spirit. The Spirit speaks through us to deliver a message. But the Spirit also works in those who receive that message to change their hearts and sanctify them.<\/p>\n

We may not be able to see how the Spirit is using us in another person\u2019s life. We can be confident, however, that the Spirit is working, and maybe, we\u2019ll receive encouragement like I did at kid\u2019s club that day.<\/p>\n

3. The Weight of Teaching.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

It\u2019s easy to become discouraged when we don\u2019t know how others are receiving our teaching, but that discouragement can\u2019t lead us to become lazy. Teaching God\u2019s Word carries a weight that reminds us to take it seriously.<\/p>\n

My conversation with those kids was proof that they\u2019re listening, even if I\u2019m not aware of it at all times. And what I\u2019m teaching may be the only gospel truth they hear during their week.<\/p>\n

For this reason, it\u2019s imperative I prepare and keep my mind focused on what\u2019s above, praying for the Spirit to speak words of life through me to those kids.<\/p>\n

This is true for anyone who serves in a teaching role in their church, especially pastors. We simply can\u2019t afford to rely on our strength or wisdom to teach God\u2019s Word.<\/p>\n

James 3 communicates the gravity of teaching, warning us about the stricter judgment that awaits those who teach. Teaching God\u2019s Word is a privilege. It\u2019s a responsibility we should take seriously.<\/p>\n

MEREDITH COOK (@meredithcook716)<\/strong> is the wife of Keelan, an editor for IMB.org, and an M.Div graduate in Missiology from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Dig Deeper at Lifeway.com<\/div>\n
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Heart-Deep Teaching: Engaging Students for Transformed Lives<\/h2>\n

Gary C. Newton<\/p>\n

FIND OUT MORE <\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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By Meredith Cook I was volunteering at a local kid\u2019s club one day in June, as I\u2019ve done almost every week for the last two years. I normally have around 15-20 kids in my group\u2014which makes it a challenge to keep them relatively calm while also teaching the Bible story. Most days I wonder if … Continue reading “3 Things to Remember When You Teach the Bible”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31971","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31971","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31971"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31971\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31971"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31971"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31971"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}