Best Teacher Ever
What would we do with the opportunity to be someone's best teacher ever?
Look at that. Monday Morning With Jesus out on…Monday morning. It can be done. I just have to get up early enough on Mondays.
Pastor Joe Palmer opened the service on that cold Sunday yesterday with a piece of scripture from Ecclesiastes. It also referenced the cold, which is why I think he used it. It was twelve degrees on our outside thermometer when I got up Sunday morning. Georgia shouldn't be that cold.
9Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor.
10For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.
11Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone?
12And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.
Ecclesiastes 4:9–12 (NASB95)
As I sit and write this, it is still cold. I like the Ecclesiastes passage for more than just the tie-in to the weather. It tells us we are to be in community, one with another. It tells us marriage is good. It tells us when we help one another, we are doing good work. I like this passage a lot, but as to the service, it only really had to do with being cold or warm. Thankfully, the sanctuary was warm.
I was called to usher and missed the opening of the sermon. Prior to that, we had a baptism in which the following scripture was referenced. Those baptized were young children just out of kindergarten or starting elementary school.
13Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them.
14But Jesus said, "Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."
Matthew 19:13–14 (NASB95)
In blessing the water, Pastor Lee referenced God's spirit moving over the water during creation. I find the imagery of God flying over the substance of all creation gathered beneath Him to be one of solitude, loneliness, and majesty.
1In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
3Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.
Genesis 1:1–3 (NASB95)
The family is a young family who also became members of the church from another denomination. Because I was ushering, I couldn't sit and evaluate the scripture as I do before the beginning of the service. I took this opportunity to do so during the first two choir songs. Let's look at the scripture for the sermon now.
1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples,
2saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses;
3therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them.
4 "They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.
5 "But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.
6 "They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues,
7and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.
8 "But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.
9 "Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.
10 "Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ.
11 "But the greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 "Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
Matthew 23:1–12 (NASB95)
Verse 2, "Sitting in Moses' seat," merely means they sit in judgment over the tribes of Israel. Jesus is identifying these as the men who wield power over the people. These men of power interpret the law of Moses and tell the common man and woman where they have broken the laws and how to set themselves right with God for that infraction. Some of them also benefit greatly, personally, from how they instruct people to atone for their sins. That point is important for what Jesus says next.
In verses 4 through 7, Jesus explains that these men of power give instruction on what to do and not do but do not adhere to these rules. In verse 3, Jesus tells His followers to adhere to all the rules these men set out even though everyone knows they do not follow those rules. Jesus finishes verse 3 with the warning, "But do not ye after their works." The NASB translates it as "But do not do according to their deeds."
Scripture is consistent with this idea of obeying the laws of the land where we find ourselves. We are told to obey the powers in place over us because God put those powers there. The question I have is why would God put corrupt people in charge over His followers? The only answer I can come up with is that His people have something to learn or gain from the hardship and oppression that come from being ruled by hypocritical men and women of power. I have a hard time with that.
1Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.
2Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.
3For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same;
4for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.
5Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience' sake.
6For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.
7Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.
8Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
9For this, "You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
10Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Romans 13:1–10 (NASB95)
Paul is not instructing us to only do these things. Paul is telling us that it is loving to obey God's laws and treat other people the same way we want to be treated. This, then, is a command to lead by example, do the things we want others to do for us, and base it all in God's ways instead of Man's. I think that is Jesus' point in verse 3 when He instructs His followers to obey the commands of those appointed over them but not to live like those men of power live.
Beginning at the end of verse 3 and all of verse 4, we have essentially an explanation of the following scripture.
15 "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
16 "You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?
Matthew 7:15–16 (NASB95)
"You will know them by their fruits." We will know them because we will see them tell people to live one way, but they will live another. We will see them make claims and pledges in public and then get caught breaking those pledges. We will see men and women take oaths to uphold certain things, avoid other things, and be bound by their words, yet when they are caught going against these oaths, they will make excuses for why they shouldn't be punished. We are told this is how we will identify these false prophets, these people who are not with God. If you have been in my class, you know I've been harping on the idea that there are only two camps where God is concerned, those with Him and those against Him. We cannot straddle the fence on this one.
30 "He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
31 "Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.
Matthew 12:30–31 (NASB95)
These "Do As I Say, Not As I Do" people do not believe they will be held to account for what they do. Those who think they won't be found out are wrong. Whether in this life or the next, someone always knows.
1 "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
2 "So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
3 "But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:1–4 (NASB95)
I had to look up the word "phylacteries." I thought I knew what it meant, but I was wrong.
phylactery
fi-lak-tuh-ree
noun
Judaism. either of two small, black, leather cubes containing a piece of parchment inscribed with verses 4–9 of Deuteronomy 6, 13–21 of Deuteronomy 11, and 1–16 of Exodus 13: one is attached with straps to the left arm and the other to the forehead during weekday morning prayers by Orthodox and Conservative Jewish men.
(in the early Christian church) a receptacle containing a holy relic.
an amulet, charm, or safeguard against harm or danger.
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/phylactery
If you look up images of what a phylactery is, you find them worn on the head and wrapped around the arms of Jewish men. I've always thought of them as item 3 in the definition, which they are of sorts in this context. However, the little boxes on the heads and arms are what is meant. Again, the point of the scripture is that these men of power make their phylacteries and robes more ornate and visible so people will realize they are outwardly devout. I'm not saying all Jewish men who participate in these practices are doing that. I'm saying Jesus is calling out the hypocrites that are.
I'm moving beyond verses 6-8 because they essentially only list other outward ways these people act to make others think they are devout when they are merely putting on a show. Verse 9 is the next one I have a note, and it is where Jesus instructs us to call no man father upon the earth because God is our father.
I didn't understand until later in the sermon why this was Christ's instruction. I do at this point because the first instance of the word "father" in verse 9 is written as just father. The second referring to God is written but also has the article ho (Strong's 3588) attached to it and is specifically referring to God, not an earthly man we would call father. What is the point?
I think the point is this. Jesus just told us to do what we are given as rules and laws but not emulate those hypocrites who won't follow their own rules. We are to follow God's rules because God is our Father in Heaven. Earthly "fathers" won't get everything right, but we are to honor them. The only father that will get everything right is God the Father. It is His ways we are to follow. This is also the point about not being called Rabbi or Master. We are to adhere to God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, and no other.
Verses 11 and 12 offer us a great leadership model. Never ask anyone to do anything you haven't done or aren't willing to do yourself. If you haven't done it or won't do it, you shouldn't give anyone the orders or instructions to do that thing. Leaders who are willing to do the menial tasks and have done them understand the impact their decisions have on the workers downstream from those decisions. Those workers knowing their leaders are willing to do those jobs and have done them gives the workers the confidence in their leaders to accept difficult decisions that make their jobs harder knowing the leaders actually understand that impact.
When the sermon began, I was out of the sanctuary escorting another usher on a duty to be performed. I missed Pastor Kristen Lee's opening remarks relating a story about a teacher who impacted her life. I arrived back in the sanctuary when she asked who would you name the best teacher ever?
Before she allowed us to answer, she wanted to point out that people everywhere teach us things. This was not just about school teachers but anyone who taught us things and impacted our lives. My old science teacher and chess coach, Mr. Veal, came to mind. She asked us to shout out the names to honor them, and I did. I just did a cursory internet search, and I believe he passed away in 2005.
Pastor Lee asked, "What is it that makes these teachers the 'best teacher ever?'"
She began relating a story where she connected something she was studying in her brain and realized what the concept was. It reminded me of what I called "Yin and Yang Moments" from my Kung Fu experience studying martial arts. It is that moment when a motion or concept connects with the body of information you already understand. When that new item finally clicks into place, your ability to act and do what you're learning grows because you understand how that concept interacts with everything else you already know. I think teachers solidify themselves in our minds as the "best teacher ever" when they can present these new concepts in ways their students can connect the new with the old, so it is useful.
Pastor Lee took that understanding moment and expanded it to the body of Christ. She explained that we, as believers, share the connection to the same teacher, Jesus, with every other Christian in the world. It is our honor and privilege to follow those same concepts of grace and humility, among other things, from the same source. It is why we should look at all Christians as brothers and sisters rather than letting denominational or doctrinal walls separate us. She read the scripture for the message at this point in the service.
After reading the scripture passage, she focused on the do as I say, not as I do nature of it. She quickly moved into the statement by Jesus, making the point that these are not His instructions for His followers. We are not to do these things we see the leaders doing but rather what God teaches us to do. She stated that Jesus "Has finally had enough of these men." I don't read exasperation in Jesus' words here, but she did. Regardless, I was reminded of the scene from Band of Brothers where then Major Winters meets still Captain Sobel. Captain Sobel sees the major but doesn't want to salute him because he still dislikes him for their interactions before going off to war. Major Winters dresses the captain down for not saluting by saying, "We salute the rank, not the man, Captain." I think that's Jesus' point when He instructs us to follow the men of power's rules but not to do as they do. We are to respect the authority they've been given by God but recognize how they act is improper and not to do what they do.
Pastor Lee pointed out that a great lesson does not make a great teacher. That reminds me of the old saying, "Those who can't do, teach." The connection is that you can say great things, but that doesn't make you a great person. Only by doing the things, by living the example, by walking the walk, not just talking the talk do we become great ourselves. Obtaining that greatness shouldn't be our goal either. Our goal should be simply doing a good job of relaying and teaching the information faithfully.
The message made a jump at this point. Pastor Lee asked if anyone knew who Father Gregory Boyle was? Only she and Pastor Palmer knew who Father Boyle was and what Homeboys Industries was. Father Gregory Boyle is a Catholic Jesuit Priest in Los Angeles, California. He pastored Dolores Mission Church in Los Angeles during the "Decade of Death," a time period from 1988-1998 when over one thousand people died each year to gang violence. Father Boyle created Homeboys Industries as a way to help former gang members break the cycle of incarceration and get their lives back on track. She quoted Father Boyle as saying, "My job is not to fix, rescue, or save but to accompany." She said he "Treats gang members simply as human beings." That made perfect sense as she mentioned that each of those former gang members, tattoos, piercings, and all, are image bearers of God.
26Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
27God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
28God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
Genesis 1:26–28 (NASB95)
Pastor Lee closed with this. She said we are all image-bearers of God and should be treated as such. All Christians share the best teacher ever in Christ Jesus. He taught us how to be, the Holy Spirit continues that effort today, and God watches as we go about our lives. What would it mean to realize Christ is our best teacher internally and go through our day trying to teach those we meet in the same manner Jesus taught those He met? What will we do with our opportunity to be someone else's "best teacher ever?"