• The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. (Luke 4:18-19).
  • Saturday 2 March 2013

    JESUS IS A GREAT TEACHER...

    Jesus was the greatest Teacher who ever lived. He taught the highest truths that were ever taught. He promoted the purest ideals that were ever presented. He gave the greatest wisdom that men ever heard. He was the wisest of men and the greatest of men.
    Matt. 16:13-17



    Who Is Jesus Series

    He is the Great Teacher John 3:1-2

    We have presented Christ as:

    Savior - We should receive Him.
    God - We should worship Him.
    Priest - We should confess to Him.
    Advocate - We should come to Him for help.
    Today we will present Jesus Christ as the Great Teacher. We should listen to Him!

    There are two different words in scripture that are translated "teacher": 1. "Master" (Greek) is "DIDASKALOS" (also translated as "Teacher") 2. Rabbi (a Hebrew Word meaning "my teacher" It is a title of honor.) These present two important levels and aspects of teaching, positional and actual. The public ministry of Jesus was mostly given to teaching. True, he performed many miracles, and healed many people, but even these were teaching opportunities and object lessons. Jesus was a Rabbi in that he had full understanding of the Law and was therefore an expert. He was also a Teacher in that he actually instructed others in life.

    Jesus was the greatest Teacher who ever lived. He taught the highest truths that were ever taught. He promoted the purest ideals that were ever presented. He gave the greatest wisdom that men ever heard. He was the wisest of men and the greatest of men. His principles can be studied but never refuted. His lessons, if followed, will make people better. His instructions, if followed, will make people live better lives. His spiritual insights, if applied, will make for a healthier and happier person on the inside and a better person to be around on the outside! This is just a partial list of what Jesus taught:

    He taught us to believe the scriptures.
    He taught us to love God.
    He taught us to love one another.
    Her taught us to be humble.
    He taught us to fear God.
    He taught us how to resist temptation.
    He taught us how to pray.
    He taught us how to view ourselves.
    He taught us how to view others.
    He taught us about inward sinfulness.
    He taught us how to give generously.
    He taught us how to treat other people.
    He taught us about heaven.
    He taught us about hell.
    He taught us about how to get to heaven and avoid hell.
    He taught us about who He is.
    He taught us about trusting God.
    He taught us about contentment.
    He taught us about the futility of self-reform.
    He taught us about the dangers of false doctrine.
    He taught us to be kind to strangers.
    He taught us to obey the laws of the land.
    He taught us to work for something bigger than ourselves.
    He taught us to consider eternity in our decisions.
    He taught us to share the gospel with everyone.
    He taught us to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
    He taught us to cherish and protect children.
    He taught us to accept others who are different than us.
    He taught us to forgive others as God forgives you.
    He taught us to trust God for our needs.
    He taught us the value of meditation and reflection.
    He taught us that He is God in the Flesh.
    He taught us that nothing is too hard for God.
    He taught us that many will go the hell that thought they were going to heaven.
    He taught us that there are only two roads leading into eternity and the wider and more popular one leads straight to hell.
    He taught us that Satan is destined for ultimate defeat.
    He taught us that faith in Him leads to eternal life!

    Jesus taught us everything we need to know to live a good life here and prepare for a great afterlife. There is no teacher in the history of the world that has come close to Jesus in power, purity, practicality, and purpose.

    There is no culture in the world where the teachings of Christ have gone that has not been improved and the greater the teaching was applied the greater the improvement! There is not one single instance of someone practicing what Jesus taught and him becoming the worse for it. There is nothing that can be said about the teachings of Jesus but that following them makes for a better society, a safer neighborhood, and a more wholesome environment. Being a Christian not only improves the Christian, it improves the Christian’s neighbor’s life.

    As a humble Jewish carpenter, he attended synagogue and served there as a reader of the scriptures. Yet he had no formal training, held no diploma, was not an academic, yet there was not a question he could not answer. When only twelve years old he astounded the doctors of the Law with his answers AND with his questions. Every debate he participated in left his opponents stammering with a loss for words. Any time someone took upon himself to trip Him up found himself caught in his own trap. His word was the last word on any subject! He was the authority on every point of every topic! Even his enemies found themselves astonished at his words. When the Sanhedrin sent officers to arrest him they found themselves transfixed by his manner of speaking for he “taught as one having authority and not as the scribes.” They came back empty handed! There came a time when his opponents stopped asking him questions. They couldn’t handle the answers! They had to conspire and lie to defeat Him. They had to twist his words and misrepresent his teachings to kill Him.

    His Example was the Greatest Example. His Teachings were the Greatest Teachings. His Impact was the Greatest Impact. Jesus was not just a Teacher; he is, forever, THE TEACHER!!! Jesus was not just passing out knowledge; he was instilling WISDOM. Jesus made devils and devil filled people tremble and quake but He made the hearts of the righteous burn within them when they heard his words. His truth rang true with all friends of truth, while those who love lies accused him of being of Satan.

    While Moses gave rules, Jesus taught us relationships. His two great commandments were really two great heart attitudes: 1. "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength:" 2. "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."

    He did not give a long list of dos and don’ts but rather taught in parables. More than giving precepts, he was giving concepts. His aim was to transform behavior by transforming the inner man. His teachings were not legal as much as philosophical. He was not leading his disciples to comply with a laws as much as he was concerned with fixing flaws! He said "It is what comes out of the heart that defiles a man". Fix the heart and you fix the man!

    Today, Jesus' words are our source of truth. His teachings serve to give us a better way to think and a better way to live. To fail to learn the teachings of Jesus is to fail entirely in one’s education. Even if there were no heaven to gain; even if there were no hell to shun; if this life were the only life we had, the world would be a better place if everyone thought like Jesus taught us to think and lived like Jesus taught us to live.

    But consider this, This holy Teacher, this sum of all wisdom, did not acquire his stature by just being naturally brilliant in the normal human sense. Jesus was the Great Teacher because He came to Earth from another place. He came to Earth from heaven to show us the love and saving grace of God. He came to seek and to save that which was lost. He came to teach us what we need to know to live and suffer and die for us so that we may know how to die with the hope of heaven!
     

     

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