The Hero of Our Story: Jesus the Teacher

When I went to college, the worst day of the Semester was always the first day. On that first day, I would go to all my classes and the professor would hand out the syllabus. That syllabus would list all the expectations our professor had outlined for us. It would tell us how many papers we were expected to write, how many books we were required to read, and how many projects or exams that we’d have to complete. I always remember that sick feeling I’d get when I’d look at my syllabus. Combine that with four or five other syllabi, I would be completely overwhelmed, thinking that’s there was no way I could get all this done. But after a few semesters I came up with a system to help me. I’d map out all I needed to read, write and study for, and then I would begin eating this elephant one bite at a time. And like all good students I became an expert at figuring out each professor. That was really the key for getting through college, then Seminary: Figuring out what that particular teacher was looking for in order to get a good grade. For some it was completing all my papers and being engaged in classroom discussions. For others it was making sure I read all the books and had some mastery of the content. But for most, it was simply figuring out what was going to be on the final exam. If I could do that, I could get a good grade. It didn’t really matter how much I really learned – it just mattered if I could memorize the right things so that I could parrot back just what my teacher wanted. That’s the American Education system: Teachers pour out the information we need to learn and we learn to give them the information they are looking for. And if we can do that reasonably well then they will hand us a diploma at the end of four years.

Now if that sounds a bit cynical, you’d be right.   Teachers today are only tasked to help you acquire the knowledge you need to become proficient in your field of study. They are not required to train you in a way of life. And they are not charged with giving you values or wisdom to help you navigate life. That’s why when it comes to looking at the greatest teacher of all time, Jesus Christ, we see someone who taught unlike anyone who’s ever lived. You see, Jesus didn’t come to download knowledge about God, he came to make God knowable. And He didn’t come to give us a course in sin management, but came to give us a new life. In fact, everything about Jesus’ teaching was focused on one thing. He came to teach us a new way of life with Him.

That’s how Jesus lived. He lived as a teacher who came to change lives by what He taught. And He is still changing lives today. This is what makes Jesus the Hero of Our Story. So, if you’ve brought your Bible with you today, let me encourage you to open them to Luke 4:14-21 where we going to look at five truths about Jesus as a teacher, and this first one lays the groundwork for the four that follow. And that first truth is this:

Jesus was a Rabbi: In Luke 4:14-21 we read: Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. He was teaching in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them,   “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus spent most of his life as a blue-collar worker, as a carpenter: building tables, chairs, shelves and cabinets. But after his baptism Jesus began his ministry as a Rabbi. And by the time he returned to his hometown, he already had a quite a reputation. He’d already done some teaching in other synagogues and people were speaking well of him. So when Jesus arrived in Nazareth, he went to the synagogue as was his custom. But now, as a visiting rabbi, Jesus was invited to read the Scriptures and then he was expected to teach from that passage. That’s why Luke tells us that Jesus sat down after reading it. Sitting down was the traditional teaching position of a Rabbi. So what was his teaching from this passage? Jesus taught that He was the fulfillment of this prophecy. That He was the anointed one, The Messiah, who has come to change the lives of the poor, of the captive, of the blind, and of the oppressed. And the way He was going to change their lives was through the preaching the good news.

In other words, the common practice of all other rabbis was to interpret the law and prophets. But when Jesus announced himself as the fulfillment of this prophecy, he was telling his listeners that the day of God’s favor had come and the deliverance they longed for was found in His teaching. Real change was now possible for all who had ears to hear, Jesus. This was an unprecedented teaching. And so…

All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. But then they questioned him: “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” they asked. To which Jesus replied, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself!’ And you will tell me, ‘Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.’”

“Truly I tell you,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his hometown.  I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land.  Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.” All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.  They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff. But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way. Luke 4:22-30

Why were they so enamored with Jesus’ words at one moment then so quick to want to kill him the next? It was because Jesus’ first message to them was that God is a Gentile loving God who was eager to help anyone. They thought they had the corner on God. They thought that God was somehow obligated to serve them, to free them, to help them. How dare Jesus teach otherwise!   They wanted Jesus to teach what would be pleasing to their ears, and when he didn’t they turned on him.

This is our introduction to Jesus, the Teacher. And it tells us something about Jesus and about us. What it tells us about Jesus, is that He is the ultimate truth teller. His Words are full of grace and of truth. And He’s going to bring His good news to whoever He wants. His good news is for everyone, even people we don’t normally associate with. His message is meant to be proclaimed to all people, not just us. He’s given us the good news. Salvation is found in Jesus, grace and truth is found in Jesus. This good news is not just for us. It’s for all people. So wherever Jesus went he taught the good news of the kingdom. That’s what we see throughout the gospels. Jesus main purpose now through the rest of the gospels is to teach the good news. Jesus lived as a teacher! And what we see next is that Jesus taught all kinds of people:

Jesus taught the Crowds: In Mark 6:34 we read: When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.  If you read the whole passage, you see that Jesus was trying to pull the disciples away from ministry to give them some rest. But when they got to where they were going, a huge crowd of people had followed them to this place. So, what did Jesus do when he saw them? He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he taught them many things.

Now Mark doesn’t tell us what Jesus taught. But we can get an idea from the context. Jesus had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. They had no one to feed them, guide them or protect them. All they had were religious leaders who continually told them how they failed. Their leaders didn’t care for them personally they only cared about their behavior.   So they lived under a burden of guilt. They had no freedom, no joy and little hope. So when Jesus saw them, he was moved with compassion and became their shepherd. He feed them by teaching them many things. Remember, His was anointed to preach good news to the poor. So that’s what he did. My guess is that he taught them a version of the Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Matthew 5:3-10

Jesus taught the crowds: the common everyday people who were hungry for good news. Jesus taught them the grace and truth and about the good news of the kingdom. And when he taught them, he set them free. That’s what teaching the good news does!

I think that one of the most common misconceptions about Christianity is that it is the no fun religion. That Christianity is all about rules and behavior. “Don’t do this.” “You can’t do that.” But that’s not what Jesus taught. He came to feed our souls, to teach us about love and mercy, and guide us in a new way of living. That’s what the crowds were hungry to hear. And that hunger is still out there today. People are in need of a shepherd to feed them, guide them and love them. And that Shepherd is Jesus. He taught the crowds. But he didn’t stop there:

Jesus taught the Curious: Flip over to Luke 18:18-25 where we see a certain young ruler approach Jesus with a profound question: “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” Here was a man who was successful in the eyes of the world. He had position. He had power. He had wealth. But what He didn’t have was a certainty of eternal life. He recognizes Jesus as a good teacher. Perhaps Jesus has the answers he’s looking for. But this man is misinformed. Somehow he thinks that there was something he could do to inherit eternal life. He’s obviously a good person, a religious person, one who kept all the commands. But he had no assurance of salvation. Surely if he could do the right things, the one thing God wanted, then He could have this too. So he figured Jesus would have the answer. And so Jesus gave him one, but one he didn’t want to here: “Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” But when he heard this, this was not the answer he was looking for.   He became very sad, because He did not want to give away his wealth.. He couldn’t do it. His wealth was his god. His riches were his idol. His wealth had a hold on him. And He was not free.

This is how many who are curious about Jesus approach him today. Many want to come to Jesus for what they can get from him, but they are not willing to trust in him. They may be good, hard working, responsible people; but they’d rather trust in what they can see, what they have, or what they can do.  But they’re not willing to let go of their idols and follow Jesus. And so they are left with sadness. What a tragedy.

As Jesus says: Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” Jesus will not be compromised. He is the truth or He is not. He is the life or He is not. You don’t get to negotiate with Jesus. You either go all in or you walk away. This man walked away because he loved his wealth more than Jesus. What about you? Jesus taught the curious…

Jesus taught the Calculating: Quickly lets look at Mark 12:13-17 Jesus constantly taught those who were trying to trip him up. Listen to these smooth talkers who were trying to bait Jesus – these Pharisees and Herodians: They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not? Should we pay or shouldn’t we?” They didn’t want to know the truth. They were just using flattery to manipulate Jesus. But Jesus saw right through them. But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” And they were amazed at him.

The interesting thing in this encounter is that Jesus engaged these men and taught them something. He taught them that if they owed taxes to those in authority, then they should pay the taxes. But he also taught them, that if they were truly God-fearing Jews, that they also owed something to God. And what did they owe God? They owed them their very lives. They knew that the law called them to love God with all their heart, all their soul and all their strength. In answering their question, Jesus reminded them who is really in charge: Yahweh, the God they claim to worship, and they left stunned.

The point for us here is that there will always be people who come to Jesus with wrong motives. Sometimes those people are you and me. Our motives aren’t always pure, but Jesus’ never fails us. He will always point us to the truth.   Even when we are calculating or manipulative with His Word, He will always remind us that we serve a God who is worthy of our all. Jesus taught the calculating. And finally…

Jesus taught the Committed: This last picture comes from Matthew as he sets the stage for Jesus’ greatest sermon: Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.

The majority of Jesus’ teaching was reserved for those who had apprenticed themselves to Jesus, the Rabbi. They had come to be with him, so they could learn from him how to live out the Word of God. And so there they were, sitting at the feet of Jesus, ready to learn, ready to be challenged and changed, because they believed Jesus had the words of life – of new life: Life in the kingdom of God.

It’s this last picture I want to leave you with this morning, because it’s often the most overlooked picture of what it means to follow Jesus, the Teacher. We see this picture again in another setting. Allow me to just read it to you: As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-42

“few things are needed – or indeed only one.” What did Mary chose that was better? She chose to sit at the feet of Jesus. Here is our challenge today: What if from this moment: you became more like Mary and less like the curious rich man? What if you resolved to truly follow Jesus this year, to sit at His feet and let him change you?

This is what our Journey Groups are about. They are about sitting at the feet of Jesus and learning from him how live the good news of His kingdom. That’s what these groups do. You simply read one chapter a week in the gospels and answer two questions:

1) What is Jesus teaching me? 2) What does He want me to do about it?  Then you meet together to share what Jesus is teaching you and what He is doing to change you.

Few things are needed – or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better. What will you chose to do with Jesus this year? Let’s pray.