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Teaching by living
by Jon Walker
«Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other.» (Colossians 3:16a NLT)
Mission — Every day you teach people about God. You may teach Truth or you may teach mythology; either way you teach. You teach others that God is faithful or that he can’t be trusted, and you do that by reflecting faith in God, or by behaving as if he can’t be trusted.
As if.
Some of us carry a myth in our minds that the only people who can teach are the gifted or the professional, yet the Apostle Paul says, «I know that you have all the knowledge you need and that you are able to teach each other.» (Romans 15:14b NCV)
Certainly teaching includes unpacking Bible stories and giving theological insight, but we also teach as we model biblical behavior when it comes to the stuff of life, such as how to love/respect your spouse, how to make godly decisions, how to keep our thought-life pure, or how to get out of debt.
That means we become teachers when we tell, show, reflect how God is working in our lives, and we become teachers when we respond, act, walk as if Jesus himself were living through us (and he is – Romans 8:9-11) . By watching you, others will see what «Christ in you» looks like in another human being. (Colossians 1:27 NIV)
So what?
· Being a living teacher makes you wise – Paul says, «Let the words of Christ live in your heart.» You need to know God’s Word before you can teach it through study or by living it. By hearing, reading, studying, memorizing, and meditating on the words of Christ, they’ll take root in your heart, and this will make you wise. (Romans 15:14b NCV)
· God’s wisdom over conventional wisdom – Too often we look to the world’s conventional wisdom when we’re seeking answers, yet the Truth is found only in God’s wisdom.
© 2007 Jon Walker. All rights reserved.
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