Jesus Teaching Methods vs the World Teaching Methods

Webster’s defines teaching as the occupation, profession, or work of a teacher.

2. It is the ideas or principles taught by an authority.

So than what’s being taught is word or thought. Genesis tells us that God the Father either said or call everything into existence by His Word. the book of John 1:1-3 said: “ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. In John 3:2 Nicodemus states that Jesus is a teacher that comes from God.

Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary

TEACHING— the act of instructing students or imparting knowledge and information. As used in the New Testament, the concept of teaching usually means instruction in the faith. Thus, teaching is to be distinguished from preaching, or the proclamation of the gospel to the non-Christian world. Teaching in the Christian faith was validated by Jesus, who was called “Teacher” more than anything else.

Since sound instruction in the faith is essential to the spiritual growth of Christians and to the development of the church, the Bible contains numerous passages that deal with teaching (Matt. 4: 23; Luke 4: 14; Acts 13: 1– 3; Rom. 12: 6– 8; Gal. 6:6.)

Special attention is directed to the danger of false teachings. Christians are warned to test those who pervert the true gospel (2 Tim. 3: 1– 7; 1 Pet. 2: 1– 3). Sound teaching was a concept deeply ingrained in the Jewish mind since Old Testament times. Moses and Aaron were considered teachers of God’s commandments (Ex. 18: 20). Parents were also directed to teach their children about God and His statutes (Deut. 4: 9– 10).

In my research I found 9 Teaching Methods of Jesus:

Jesus was and still is the master teacher. thousands would gather to hang on his every word. People traveled far and wide just to hear Him. The lessons he taught spread like fir and literally changed the world.

As pastors, if there is anyone we should emulate in our preaching and teaching it is Jesus. So, how did He teach?

Jesus spoke by His Authority (Mark 1:22. Matthew 7:28-29. John 1.)

The crowds were amazed because He taught as one who had authority. unlike other teachers Mark 1:22. Matthew 7:28-29. jesus alone could do this because he is the word John 1. All authority in heaven and Earth has been given to Him Matthew 28:18. Our power and authority comes from Christ alone.

Jesus Told Stories (Parable, Allegory’s and Metaphor’s

PARABLE- is a short, simple story designed to communicate a spiritual truth, religious principle, or moral lesson; a figure of speech in which truth is illustrated by a comparison or example drawn from everyday experience.

A parable is often no more than an extended metaphor or simile, using figurative language in the form of a story to illustrate a particular truth. The Greek word for “parable” literally means “a laying by the side of” or “a casting alongside,” thus “a comparison or likeness.” In a parable something is placed alongside something else, in order that one may throw light on the other. A familiar custom or incident is used to illustrate some truth less familiar.

Although Jesus was the master of the parabolic form, He was not the first to use parables. Example of the effective use of parables are found in the Old Testament. Perhaps the best known of these is Nathan’s parable of the rich man who took the one little ewe lamb that belonged to a poor man (2 Sam. 12:1-4). By means to this parable, Nathan reproved King David and convicted him of his sin of committing adultery with Bathsheba (2 Sam. 12:5-15). A wise women of Tekoa also used a parable ( 2 Sam. 14:5-7) to convince King David to let his son return to Jerusalem.

Jesus’ characteristic method of teaching was through parables. His two most famous parables are the parable of the lost son (Luke 15:11-32) and the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). Both parables illustrate God’s love for sinners and God’s command that we show compassion to all people. actually, the parable of the lost son (sometimes call the parable of the prodigal son the parable of the loving father) is the story of two lost sons: the younger son (typical of tax collectors and prostitutes) who wasted possessions with indulgent living, and the older son (typical of the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees) who remained at home but was a stranger to his father’s heart.

Some entire chapters in the Gospels are devoted to Jesus’ parables; for instance, Matthew 13 which contains the parable of the sower (vv. 1- 23), the wheat and the tares (vv. 24-30), the mustard seed (vv. 31-32), the leaven (vv. 33), the hidden treasure (v.44), the pearl of great price (vv. 45-46), and the dragnet (vv. 47-52).

Although parables are often memorable stories, impressing the listener with a clear picture of the truth, even the disciples were sometimes confused as to the meaning of parable of the wheat and the tares ( Matt. 13:24-30), the disciples needed interpretation in order to understand its meaning ( Matt. 13:36-43). Jesus sometimes used the parabolic form of teaching to reveal the truth to those who followed Him and to conceal the truth from those who did not (Matt. 13: 10-17; Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:9-10). His parables thus fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 6:9-10. Like a double-edged sword, they cut two ways- enlightening those who sought the truth blinding those who were disobedient.

Most of Jesus’ parables have one central point. Thus, Bible students should not resort to fanciful interpretations that find “spiritual truth” in every minute detail of the parable. The central point of the parable of the Good SAMARITAN is that a “hated” Samaritan proved to be a neighbor to the wounded man. He showed the traveler the mercy and compassion denied to him by the priest and the Levite, representatives of the established religion. The one central point of this parable is that we should also extend compassion to others- even those who are not of our own nationality, race, or religion (Luke 10:25-37).

In finding the central meaning of a parable, the Bible student needs to discover the meaning the parable had in the of Jesus. We need to relate the parable to Jesus’ proclamation of the Kingdom of God and to His miracles. This means that parables are more than simple folk stories; they are expressions of Jesus’ view of God, people, salvation, and the new age that dawned in His ministry. A good example of this approach are the parables dealing with the four “lost” things in Luke 15:3-32: the lost sheep, the lost coin, an the two lost sons. The historical context is found in Luke 15:1-2: Jesus had table fellowship with tax collectors and sinners. The Pharisees and scribes, the “religious experts” of Jesus’ day, saw such action as disgusting because, in their view, it transgressed God’s holiness. If Jesus truly were a righteous man, they reasoned, then He would not associate with such people; He would keep Himself pure and separate from sinners.

In response to their murmuring, Jesus told them these parables. God rejoices more, He said, over the repentance of one sinner )those sitting with Him at table) than over “ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance” (Luke 15:7) that is, than over the religious professionals who congratulate themselves over their own self-achieved “goodness” (see the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector; Luke 15:11-24). Likewise, the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-24) represents the tax collectors and sinners; the older son (Luke 15:25-32) represents the scribes and Pharisees.

A major theme in Jesus’ parables is the demand of following Him in authentic discipleship. In the parable of the great supper (Luke 14:15-24), Jesus showed clearly that the time for decision in now. In the pareble of the unfinished tower and the king going to war (Luke 14:28-32), Jesus demanded that His followers be prepared to give up all. In the parable of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price (Matt. 13:44-46), Jesus stated that the kingdom of heaven is of such value that all other treasures in life are of secondary worth. Jesus’ parables are a call to radical decision to follow Him.

ALLEGORY- is a symbolic representation of a truth about human conduct or experience. The word “allegory” is found only once in the King James Version. In Galatians 4:24 it translates the Greek verb allegoreo, which means to say something different from what the words normally imply.

The NKJV translates it by the word “symbolic.”

As a literary device, and allegory may consist of only a few lines or it may be sustained through an entire book. According to traditional Jewish and Christian interpretation, the entire book of the Song of Solomon is an allegory: of God and his wife, Israel (Jewish), or of Christ and his bride, the church (Christian. Other examples of allegory in the Old Testament are Psalm 80:8-19 and Ecclesiastes 12:3-7. In Psalm 80 the pronouns “we” and “us” identify the vine as Israel (vv. 18-19).

In the New Testament, Jesus’ parable of the wheat and the tares (Matt. 13:24-30,36-43) is a good example of allegory . The apostle Paul also used allegories when writing. In Ephesians 6:11-17 he urges his readers to “put on the whole armor of God” and then gives the symbolic spiritual designation for each article worn by the Christian soldier. And in 1 Corinthians 10:1-4, Paul gives an allegory that compares the experience of Moses and the Israelites to Christian baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

Perhaps the most memorable of Paul’s allegories, however, in found in Galatians 4:21-31: Hagar and Sarah, Ishmael and Isaac. One of them (Ishmael) was born to the bondwomen Hagar; the other (Isaac) was born to a freewoman, Sarah. Hagar and Ishmael are symbolic of the Old Covenant: the law from Mount Sinai that brings all people into bondage. Sarah and Isaac are symbolic of the New Covenant: the gospel of grace from Mount Calvary that gives spiritual freedom. When Paul concluded by saying, “so then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwomen but of the freewoman,” he was urging his reader to reject the bondage of legalism - salvation by keeping the law and to live by faith in Christ.