Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
Psalm 86:11 (NKJV)
Series: His Name is Jesus
Let’s take a trip back to our school days. Do you remember the name of your favorite teacher or teachers? Why are they special to you? What makes one teacher stand out from all the rest? As a young girl, I was very shy, so I remember the teachers who were patient and encouraging, while challenging me just enough to step out of my comfort zone. In high school, my favorite teacher was my chemistry professor, Mr. Gibson. He was brilliant. I was not. Chemistry was not my favorite class, but I learned so much because he was passionate about what he taught, and that fire was contagious in our class.
I now have the privilege of being friends with several women who are currently teaching and many who have retired from this profession. I love their enthusiasm for their specialties, the way they tailor their lessons to be most effective for those in their classrooms, but most of all for the love they have for sharing their knowledge and excitement with their students. Maybe this is one reason I am so drawn to Jesus as our Teacher. Do you know Him by that name?
We learn through the scriptures that Jesus’ “official” adult ministry began when He was about 30 years old. But we find Jesus, at about age 12, lingering in the temple after the Feast of the Passover. His parents traveled to Jerusalem to take part in the feast, as was the custom. As they headed home with the caravan, after a full day of travel, they realized Jesus was missing from the group. We read the account of what happened next in Luke 2:45-48 (NKJV):
So when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him. Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers. So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.” And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?”
Jesus, even as a young man, desired to learn and express all He knew about His Father. This passage speaks to His understanding and knowledge of the scriptures. All who heard Him were amazed! But as Jesus grew and went out to preach and teach, fervently, what God had purposed for Him, He was met with anger, persecution, and finally, even death on a cross.
The religious leaders of the time were teaching God’s law but unfortunately added man-made laws as well. When Jesus challenged these extra restrictions by emphasizing His Father’s will and heart for the people, some responded with defiance and others with gratitude. Resistance did not stop Jesus from sharing and teaching God’s Word.
One such teaching Jesus offered is found in Matthew’s gospel. In Matthew 5:1-2 (NKJV) we read:
And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: …
This teaching encompasses chapters 5-7 of Matthew’s gospel and has become known as Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. The truth He shared to His disciples was heard by the crowds and the religious leaders who were in the midst. He spoke with authority, not concerned with the opinions of those in opposition of Him. Through His teachings, He honored His Father by showing us exactly how to live a devoted life to God. His purpose was to demonstrate a life full of love, grace, wisdom, and discernment. He was and is the Master Teacher.
Those living in Jesus’ time, just like you and me, experienced life differently depending on their location, family occupation, financial situation, background, and more. Jesus taught fishermen, farmers, tax collectors, shepherds, laborers, outcasts, and even desperately tried to reach those religious leaders with God’s perfect truth. He met each person in their situation, their heartache, their sin, and unbelief, offering mercy, forgiveness, compassion, and an abundance of love.
His teachings often came in the form of parables, which can be described as earthly stories with heavenly meanings. But the use of parables had much greater significance. Jesus gives this testimony in Matthew 13:11-15 (NKJV) for the reason He taught in parables:
Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:
‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
And seeing you will see and not perceive;For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
Their ears are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them.’
And a bit further in Matthew 13:34-35 we read:
All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.”
Jesus fulfilled the prophetic word Isaiah had taught many years before Jesus began His ministry. The religious leaders should have heard this and realized Jesus was in fact the true Messiah.
Friends, we hope you eagerly seek Jesus and find Him to be your favorite, wonderful, perfect Teacher. May His truth be the desire of your heart and may His teachings be upon your lips.
Holding Fast to Hope,
Jen
Scripture References: Psalm 86:11; Matthew 5, 6, 7, 13; Isaiah 6:9