Thank God for Teachers!

The average student will spend nearly 15,000 hours in their kindergarten-to-twelfth-grade education. Thousands of hours are spent under various teachers. Those influences matter. We should thank God and pray for the wonderful teachers that God has placed into the lives of our children, especially as we consider the powerful influence teachers have in the lives of their students.

Elementary School Teachers

It was a kindergarten teacher who led me to Jesus Christ. Elementary school is a formative time for students. A very kind high school teacher made it his business to encourage me when I believed God wanted me to be a preacher. Teachers are powerful people. For me, they were divine appointments.

Mr. Hess

Between my elementary and high school years, God brought a godly man across my path. Perhaps because 6th grade is such a critical time, or perhaps just because of his heart, Mr. Hess stands out in my mind. He was a very humble man who loved teaching and loved his students. I was thirty years old before I realized what a tremendous impact he had made on my life.

One of Mr. Hess’ sons was my best friend. This allowed me to see him outside of the classroom. Even at home, Mr. Hess was a sincere and genuine man. Having grown up now, I can appreciate the fact that this man was strong and gentle at the same time.

While I am confident that many of the young men in Mr. Hess’ 6th grade class most enjoyed the fact that he loved sports, it was something more long-lasting that affected me. Each afternoon after lunch, Mr. Hess would spend a few minutes reading a good book to the class. One day he asked me to take his place. This was the first of many afternoon “reading assignments” that I was given. Only now am I beginning to fully appreciate all that this instilled in me.

A Love of Reading

One of the things that I learned was to love good books. Young people learn to love reading by reading. Books are exciting things. They take you on a great adventure and stretch your mind. To this day, I love books. (Ask my wife!) My library is filled with good books, and my mind is being filled with the truths learned from them. Much of this was set in motion by my 6th grade teacher.

While reading aloud, I learned to place emphasis and use expression. There is nothing quite as boring as monotone reading. My Pastor speaks often about God’s unconscious preparation of our lives. This childhood experience, while unconscious to me, was preparing me for what God wanted me to do with my life. In reality, as a 12-year-old boy, I was being trained to speak with feeling and expression, to articulate and communicate clearly. It was the summer after 6th grade that God called me to preach.

Encouragement and Experience

Perhaps one of the most profound encouragements was the confidence Mr. Hess placed in me. Standing in front of my classmates and reading strengthened me. Young men need experience; they need to be asked to lead. We all learn through trial and error. Of all the things I learned in 6th grade, nothing stands out like these lessons. No curriculum impacts students like a teacher with a personal interest. Mr. Hess made an investment in my life; I will never forget it.

I want to be a better teacher because of this. I want to encourage every teacher I know to stay with it. Thank God for teachers!

Teaching the Bible

One of the great joys of my life is the privilege to speak to young people. I recall many years ago listening to one of the youth workers at the Temple Baptist Church as he taught the Word of God to teenagers. He was doing a great job, and the Lord used him. He is not a preacher, but he is a fine Christian and a faithful teacher. As he spoke, I jotted down several things that the Lord has taught me through the years about teaching young people.

The most important thing is: teach the Bible! Not stories, not your ideas, not hot topics. Teach the Bible.

Do not try to be a youth teacher. Be a Bible teacher, and God will use you to reach youth.

The second is: never stop being a student. The best teachers want to be taught themselves. We can all do a better job, and we should.

Tips for Teaching the Bible

Here are a few tips that have helped me:

•   Mark your passages – do not lose the young people while you are looking for your text.
•   Give people time to find the Scripture passage.
•   Ask them to mark their Bibles and write down key ideas.
•   Be yourself – use a conversational tone.
•   Use illustrations they understand – the key is variety: stories, object lessons, etc.
•   Encourage participation when appropriate – have others read, answer questions, etc.
•   Never embarrass a student.
•   Maintain eye contact – do not read your notes.
•   Major on beliefs and behaviors – teach doctrine but make application.
•   Do not ramble – make your point and move on.
•   Use appropriate humor but never try to be funny. (If you have to try, it is not funny!)
•   Do not talk down to young people – how you address them, tone, etc.
•   Leave students with ONE great truth – challenge them to do something with it.
•   Never try to act or talk like one of the teenagers.
•   Be brief and be a good steward of the time you are given.
•   Always speak with enthusiasm.
•   Move around a little as you speak.
•   Avoid religious jargon – define Bible terms.
•   Do not call attention to time constraints, distractions, etc.
•   Speak from your heart but be careful not to talk too much about yourself.

*Click HERE to download this list as a free PDF.

Be a Bible Teacher

Most Sunday mornings I am asked to address a combined Sunday School class or spend time with a particular Bible study group. This is always something I enjoy doing and is a little more informal than the preaching services. However, I once began a special meeting on a Sunday morning, and the pastor asked if I would be willing to sit in a class with him. “You do not have to speak. I just want you to hear our teacher,” he said.

It was one of the most refreshing and encouraging hours I have had in a long time. The Bible teacher had taken an online class with me long ago, but we had never met in person. As I sat and just listened to the way he handled the Word of God, my soul was so blessed!

Here was a young, professional man — a man who knew business and also knew God. He had obviously given himself to time with the Lord and the Word. The pastor later told me that he regularly gave himself to visit and minister to individuals as well. This was a man who was an encouragement to his pastor, to other families in the church, and now to me.

This was a Bible Teacher.

Characteristics of Effective Bible Teachers

As I reflected on my impressions from that Sunday School class, I wrote down several things that should characterize all of us who want to teach the Bible effectively…

• A concern for people. This concern became obvious as I listened to my friend pray for needs presented by his students. He was deeply concerned about lost souls. No amount of knowledge can substitute for heart.
• A love for the Scriptures. He did not teach a lesson. He taught the Bible.
• A depth of spiritual understanding. This does not come from teaching — it comes from living. Work on being a true follower of Christ, and God will allow you to lead others to Him.
• An application of truth. Sunday Schools are often filled with the recitation of Bible facts and the rehearsal of religious platitudes. Our teacher on that Sunday morning was passionate about connecting the world of the Bible with our world. He focused on what we were to do with what we were learning. This is true teaching.
• An interest in the church. Good teachers realize that their work is connected to something bigger than their group. This man promoted the emphasis of the pastor and the church ministry. His class was not an island to itself.
• A respect for the pastor. I sat next to the pastor and observed his joy in hearing the Word of God taught by one whom he had taught. The relationship between the preacher and the teachers in a church is vital.
• A radiant joy. The heartfelt enthusiasm and love for what he was doing had a tremendous impact on me. Here was a student who had become a teacher! Isn’t that what we all are to do?

Never discount the influence of a faithful Bible teacher. (D.L. Moody was led to the Lord by his Sunday school teacher, Edward Kimball.)

Teach Others Also

“And the things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2).

It is no wonder that a group of ten has now become a group of forty studying God’s Word. May God give us many more such men and women — people who are simply and sincerely “a Bible Teacher.”

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About Scott Pauley

FREE DOWNLOAD: Tips for Bible Teaching