Rules Governing The Gift Of Teaching

[ToBeLoved]

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● John 15:1-7 . . I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

. . . I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

I think you might be surprised at the number of Laodicea-type Christian churches whose entire congregations, including the church's managers, that are so disassociated from Christ that they're of no more value to God than yard debris. (Rev 3:14-22)

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You just proved my point though.

 

[WebersHome]

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● 1Cor 12:27-31 . . Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.

Are all apostles? NO.
Are all prophets? NO.
Are all teachers? NO.
Do all work miracles? NO.
Do all have gifts of healing? NO.
Do all speak in tongues? NO.
Do all interpret? NO.

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[ToBeLoved]

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● 1Cor 12:27-31 . . Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.

Are all apostles? NO.
Are all prophets? NO.
Are all teachers? NO.
Do all work miracles? NO.
Do all have gifts of healing? NO.
Do all speak in tongues? NO.
Do all interpret? NO.

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I didn't say all had the gift of teaching. My point was that one does not need the gift of teaching to teach Sunday school.

 

[WebersHome]

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● 1Cor 14:18-19 . . I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.

The primary purpose of any tongue-- whether a crow's caw, a cow's moo, or a gerbil's squeak --is to communicate. Well; if a teacher's Sunday school class and/or his congregation consists of folk who speak his own language, then for their sake, if not for Christ's, the teacher should teach them in his own language. If not, then he is supposed to have a translator on hand so the people get something out of what he's trying to explain.

● 1Cor 14:5 . . He who prophesies is greater than one who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets, so that the church may be edified.

● 1Cor 14:6-12 . . Now, brothers, if I come to you and speak in tongues, what good will I be to you, unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of instruction?

. . . Even in the case of lifeless things that make sounds, such as the flute or harp, how will anyone know what tune is being played unless there is a distinction in the notes? Again, if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle? So it is with you. Unless you speak intelligible words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying? You will just be speaking into the air.

. . . Undoubtedly there are all sorts of languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning. If then I do not grasp the meaning of what someone is saying, I am a foreigner to the speaker, and he is a foreigner to me. So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church.

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[WebersHome]

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Q: How would an interested party go about locating teachers endowed with the Spirit's gift?

A: Male meerkats are attracted to female meerkats. Male eagles are attracted to female eagles. Male elk are attracted to female elk.

Those male/female attractions aren't regulated by written how-to instructions. In other words; every creature on earth is wired to be attracted to its own species rather than some other species because it's in their nature to do so, i.e. they can't help but be attracted to their own species.

According to 2Pet 1:2-4, Christ's sheep are partakers of the divine nature. Well; that is quite an advantage over John Q and Jane Doe pew warmer. Christ's sheep are attracted to his gifted teachers because it is in the divine nature's nature to be attracted to its own kind.

● John 10:4-6 . .When he has brought out all his own sheep, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice. Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.

NOTE: The voice spoken of in that passage as "his voice" isn't literal. According to the Lord; it's a figure of speech.

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[Paidiske]

Seeing as how teaching is a prerequisite here, then I'd guess that the department heads in view are the ones responsible for Christian education, i.e. the various Sunday school classes; e.g. children, teen-agers, young adults, married couples, singles, and senior citizens, etc.

I think you're making a number of assumptions here which need to be examined.

First of all, on what (Biblical?) basis do we create " department heads" for educating a body divided demographically? First of all, why do we create Sunday school classes, and why do we divide them up in this way? Is this how God would have us learn?

Secondly, this seems to me to relate only to very large churches, which have enough people to fill classes in all those demographics. Most churches are actually much smaller (<100 members), and need to think about structuring their teaching and learning in different ways.

It seems to me that in order to figure out how the gift of teaching should function, one should first work out how learning may best occur in one's own community.

It also seems to me that oversight - the ministry you classify as a "department head" - may well function at a more general level than simply being oversight of teaching, and is more likely to mean oversight of the community as a whole, in all its functions of mission and ministry. That needs the ability to teach, in conjunction with other abilities as well.

 

[WebersHome]

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● 1Cor 2:1-5 . .When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

One of the hindrances to Christianity's propagation is the fact that it won't hold up in a court of law; and that's simply because Christianity is illogical and unscientific, i.e. it cannot be empirically proven true beyond a shadow of sensible doubt.

Apologetics can be defined as a branch of theology devoted to the defense of the divine origin and authority of Christianity. That definition does not depict the Spirit's method. He offers no apologies; for example:

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." (Gen 1:1)

The Spirit didn't begin the Bible with an argument as to the existence of a supreme being; nor make a case for its posit that the cosmos, with all of its forms of life, matter, and energy is the product of intelligent design. In other words: the Spirit comes across as a closed-minded kook; thoroughly unwilling to come to its senses and listen to reason.

● 1Cor 2:14 . . A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him

Thus I must conclude that people endowed with the Spirit's gift to teach for Christ, don't do so by means of apologetics; which in my opinion amount to nothing more than perpetual bull sessions that never get to the bottom of anything.

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[WebersHome]

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● 1Tim 2:11-13 . . Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve.

It's important to note that this is neither a gender issue nor an issue related to competence; it's an issue related to primogeniture-- for that reason, and that reason alone, it is a disgrace for Christian women to lead Christian men in a Christian congregation.

That rule applies to home Bible studies too. If Christian men are present, then Christian women are supposed to bite their tongue no matter if they know the Bible better than the man leading the study.

BTW: A mixed-gender home Bible study without a Spirit-endowed male expositor is not a Bible study at all; no, it's a bull session. In those situations, it doesn't matter if women speak since the discussions are really no more Spirit-directed than a common chat.

A natural question arises in cases of women like Anne Graham Lotz. Is she out of order? No; because Anne's preaching and teaching are typically public rather than before a Christian congregation.

So then, though women aren't permitted to speak to a mixed-gender Christian congregation, that doesn't mean they can't speak to a mixed-gender public forum, or in the street; or in a coliseum, or in a stadium, or in a convention center, or on radio and television; or with a megaphone out on Pluto.

The best place in church for women blessed with the Spirit's gift to teach for Christ is in a women's group; and if a man should invade a women's group led by women; I think he should be asked to leave.

Q: What about Deborah in the Old Testament book of judges? Exactly how is she an exception to this rule, if indeed she was?

A: Deborah was a Jewish woman whose association with Jewish people and with the Jews' God was by means of a very different covenant than the one by which Christian women associate with Christian congregations and with Christianity's Christ. I do not recommend using use Deborah, or any other woman in the Bible, as an excuse to defy Christ.

● John 15:14 . .You are my friends if you do as I wish.

FYI: A very important point too often overlooked in Deborah's case is that there is no textual evidence indicating that she intruded either the priesthood or the Sanhedrin.

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[WebersHome]

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● 1Cor 2:12-13 . . We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.

The interesting aspect of spiritual words is their simplicity. For example; Christ utilized ordinary words while teaching about eating his flesh and blood (John 6:63).

So then; when somebody parrots that rather lengthy section in the gospel of John, they are parroting spiritual words, yes; however, parroting spiritual words and applying spiritual words, involves the use of two very different skill sets.

Any 6th grade school kid can read, write, and recite spiritual words; but educated abilities like those do not indicate that the kid is a Christ-gifted teacher. No, the guy who can articulate the sense of those words in a way that even Forrest Gump can understand is the guy with the goods.

But that's only half the story. The Spirit doesn't "flow thru" a Christ-gifted teacher as if they were a channel. No, the Spirit works alongside the Christ-gifted teacher; silently and invisibly, corroborating the things he's saying.

● 1Cor 2:4-5 . . My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

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[WebersHome]

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● 2Tim 2:3-7 . . No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs-- he wants to please his commanding officer.

Pastors and teachers are called of God to teach and preach things that edify Christ's body (Eph 4:11-14). God forbid they use their pulpits and/or their classrooms for other purposes, e.g. political activism, business interests, endorsements, etc.

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[Gabriel Anton]

#6

Grátiás tibí agó. Grátiás maximás (tibí agó).