Who is Jesus?
Article 8 - Jesus, The Master Teacher
by Bryan Gibson (parts adapted from material by John Gibson)
“No man ever spoke like this Man” (John 7:46). Many have marveled at the miracles of Jesus, but His teaching is every bit as marvelous. Truly, He is without peer as a teacher. Let’s look at some things that characterized His teaching, with two goals in mind: to help us better appreciate His teaching, and to help us become better teachers ourselves.
Jesus taught because He saw the need. “And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things” (Mark 6:34). What a contrast to many today, who simply teach for a paycheck, or who teach for the praise of men. Jesus saw the deepest needs of men, and He knew that the word of God could satisfy those needs.
Jesus took advantage of surroundings and situations. When He saw guests at a dinner struggling to get to the best seats, He taught a parable about the value of humility (Luke 14:7-11). He offered “living water” to the Samaritan woman that He met at a well. After He miraculously fed the multitudes, he taught them about the “food which endures to everlasting life” (John 6:27). He even used current events to teach spiritual lessons (Luke 13:1-5).
Jesus taught wherever and whenever He had the opportunity. He taught in the temple, in synagogues, in private homes, on mountains, etc. He taught one on one, in small groups, and in large groups. Jesus was not someone to let an opportunity slip by.
Jesus could be understood when He taught. While it is true that the meaning of His parables were often lost on the self-righteous (Matthew 13:10-13), His teaching was simple enough that “the common people heard him gladly” (Mark 12:37). He illustrated humility with a small child (Matthew 18:1-5); different hearts with different soils (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23); the value of the kingdom with a costly pearl and with great treasure (Matthew 13:44-46). You would have to try hard to miss the point with such simple, but powerful illustrations.
Jesus cut to the “heart” of the matter. It’s not that He neglected outward behavior in His teaching, but He knew that right behavior started with the right kind of heart. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things” (Matthew 12:34-35). His method was to change people from the inside out. There are some great examples of this in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).
Jesus taught with authority. Yes, he had authority as the Son of God, but there was another way in which He taught with authority—He taught the word of God (Luke 4:31-32; Mark 1:22; John 7:14-18; 12:49-50). Teachers today can still speak with authority (Titus 2:15) if they will simply teach the word (2 Timothy 4:2).
Jesus considered truth to be exclusive. He did not present His teachings as if there were available alternatives (see Matthew 7:13-14; 7:21-23). True, men had the freedom to choose another route than the one He taught, but He made it clear that there would be eternal consequences if they did.
Jesus did not make class distinctions in His teaching. Jesus looked for humble hearts who would receive His teaching. It did not matter to Him where they came from, what they looked like, what job they had, what their political leanings were, what terrible things they had done in the past, etc. Among His disciples we find a rich and prominent council member (Mark 15:43; John 19:38), several fishermen (Matthew 4:18-22), a Zealot (Luke 6:15), tax collectors (Matthew 9:9; Luke 19:1-10), and a host of others from various walks of life.
Jesus did not hide the “cross” behind a “crown.” “If they persecute Me, they will persecute you...” (John 15:20). “I did not come to bring peace, but a sword...” (Matthew 10:34). “Let him deny himself, and take up his cross...” (Matthew 16:24).
Jesus did not change His teaching to suit the wants of His hearers. He knew that some would never be satisfied (Luke 7:30-35). When some who had been following Him turned away (John 6:66), He let them go. He didn’t change His message in order to woo them back.
Jesus sometimes shocked people to get their attention. “Let the dead bury their own dead” (Luke 9:60). “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19:24). “It would have been good for that man if he had not been born” (Matthew 26:24). “You are of your father, the devil” (John 8:44).
Jesus challenged the religious establishment of His day—the Pharisees and Sadducees, the scribes and lawyers. He challenged their hypocrisy (Matthew 23:2-4), their loyalty to tradition over the word of God (Matthew 15:1-9), and their doctrines, when they were not in agreement with His doctrine (Matthew 16:12).
Jesus challenged people to make a commitment. “Seek FIRST the kingdom” (Matthew 6:33). “He who loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37). “Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor” (Luke 18:22). Lukewarmness and half-heartedness were not what He was after.
Jesus constantly held out the hope of a reward before His hearers. “Great is your reward in heaven” (Matthew 5:12). “Your Father...will reward you openly” (Matthew 6:4, 6, 18). “Though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25). “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3). He constantly spoke of “everlasting” or “eternal” life.
But Jesus also warned people about the danger of being lost in hell (Matthew 5:22, 29-30; 7:13; 10:28; 18:9; 23:33).
The next article uses the question that Pontius Pilate asked the crowd: "what then should I do with Jesus?" -- this is a question that each of us must answer.
What are the conditions of salvation given by Jesus?
Jesus taught because He saw the need. “And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things” (Mark 6:34). What a contrast to many today, who simply teach for a paycheck, or who teach for the praise of men. Jesus saw the deepest needs of men, and He knew that the word of God could satisfy those needs.
Jesus took advantage of surroundings and situations. When He saw guests at a dinner struggling to get to the best seats, He taught a parable about the value of humility (Luke 14:7-11). He offered “living water” to the Samaritan woman that He met at a well. After He miraculously fed the multitudes, he taught them about the “food which endures to everlasting life” (John 6:27). He even used current events to teach spiritual lessons (Luke 13:1-5).
Jesus taught wherever and whenever He had the opportunity. He taught in the temple, in synagogues, in private homes, on mountains, etc. He taught one on one, in small groups, and in large groups. Jesus was not someone to let an opportunity slip by.
Jesus could be understood when He taught. While it is true that the meaning of His parables were often lost on the self-righteous (Matthew 13:10-13), His teaching was simple enough that “the common people heard him gladly” (Mark 12:37). He illustrated humility with a small child (Matthew 18:1-5); different hearts with different soils (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23); the value of the kingdom with a costly pearl and with great treasure (Matthew 13:44-46). You would have to try hard to miss the point with such simple, but powerful illustrations.
Jesus cut to the “heart” of the matter. It’s not that He neglected outward behavior in His teaching, but He knew that right behavior started with the right kind of heart. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things” (Matthew 12:34-35). His method was to change people from the inside out. There are some great examples of this in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).
Jesus taught with authority. Yes, he had authority as the Son of God, but there was another way in which He taught with authority—He taught the word of God (Luke 4:31-32; Mark 1:22; John 7:14-18; 12:49-50). Teachers today can still speak with authority (Titus 2:15) if they will simply teach the word (2 Timothy 4:2).
Jesus considered truth to be exclusive. He did not present His teachings as if there were available alternatives (see Matthew 7:13-14; 7:21-23). True, men had the freedom to choose another route than the one He taught, but He made it clear that there would be eternal consequences if they did.
Jesus did not make class distinctions in His teaching. Jesus looked for humble hearts who would receive His teaching. It did not matter to Him where they came from, what they looked like, what job they had, what their political leanings were, what terrible things they had done in the past, etc. Among His disciples we find a rich and prominent council member (Mark 15:43; John 19:38), several fishermen (Matthew 4:18-22), a Zealot (Luke 6:15), tax collectors (Matthew 9:9; Luke 19:1-10), and a host of others from various walks of life.
Jesus did not hide the “cross” behind a “crown.” “If they persecute Me, they will persecute you...” (John 15:20). “I did not come to bring peace, but a sword...” (Matthew 10:34). “Let him deny himself, and take up his cross...” (Matthew 16:24).
Jesus did not change His teaching to suit the wants of His hearers. He knew that some would never be satisfied (Luke 7:30-35). When some who had been following Him turned away (John 6:66), He let them go. He didn’t change His message in order to woo them back.
Jesus sometimes shocked people to get their attention. “Let the dead bury their own dead” (Luke 9:60). “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19:24). “It would have been good for that man if he had not been born” (Matthew 26:24). “You are of your father, the devil” (John 8:44).
Jesus challenged the religious establishment of His day—the Pharisees and Sadducees, the scribes and lawyers. He challenged their hypocrisy (Matthew 23:2-4), their loyalty to tradition over the word of God (Matthew 15:1-9), and their doctrines, when they were not in agreement with His doctrine (Matthew 16:12).
Jesus challenged people to make a commitment. “Seek FIRST the kingdom” (Matthew 6:33). “He who loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37). “Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor” (Luke 18:22). Lukewarmness and half-heartedness were not what He was after.
Jesus constantly held out the hope of a reward before His hearers. “Great is your reward in heaven” (Matthew 5:12). “Your Father...will reward you openly” (Matthew 6:4, 6, 18). “Though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25). “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3). He constantly spoke of “everlasting” or “eternal” life.
But Jesus also warned people about the danger of being lost in hell (Matthew 5:22, 29-30; 7:13; 10:28; 18:9; 23:33).
The next article uses the question that Pontius Pilate asked the crowd: "what then should I do with Jesus?" -- this is a question that each of us must answer.
What are the conditions of salvation given by Jesus?