Earthly Pictures of Heavenly Things
I like to teach without teaching.
We pick up messages all the time from our environment, from subtext, and from visual aesthetic that conveys information without explanation. I can generally tell in a movie when something bad or important is about to happen when the music changes, or even when the music drops out altogether.
In Student Ministry, our teenagers pick up on messages without having to have them explained. Am I welcome here? What does this church value? How do I grow as a believer? Why should I care about what Jesus has to say? We are hopefully communicating these things effectively from the front, but the message is more clearly received from the aesthetic of the room, the friendliness of the people, the grace and forgiveness offered by church members, and even by symbols and architecture of the church building! More is CAUGHT than TAUGHT!
One way we teach without teaching at First Students is in the setup of our meeting room. At the moment our room is set up in 4 living rooms, one for each of our small groups. This hopefully communicates to our students that we emphasize small group discipleship and that they can trust their small group leaders to communicate truth to them. I also hope that they see the connection to their own living room, that discipleship can happen in their living room just as effectively (maybe even more effectively) as it can in the church building.
One of Jesus' creative teaching methods was in telling stories. We call them parables, because they use language we understand through metaphor and simile to teach about things that may be beyond our understanding. They are earthly pictures of heavenly things.
Like the parable of the sower. It may have been more obvious to the agrarian society He was speaking to at the time, but we get it, too. Is our heart ready to receive the truths of Scripture, or are we hardened to them? Or have we filled our lives with so many other concerns, cares, or sins that they are easily choked out and have no real lasting impact in our lives?
When we are presented with a truth of Scripture, especially when it takes some decoding to understand, are we ready for it? Like a farmer tilling the ground, fertilizing the soil, and watering it properly, are we cultivating the soil of our hearts to be ready to receive the Word implanted and let it grow to bear fruit in our lives?
Let the Word of Christ dwell richly within you, with wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in our hearts to God.
-Colossians 3:16
We pick up messages all the time from our environment, from subtext, and from visual aesthetic that conveys information without explanation. I can generally tell in a movie when something bad or important is about to happen when the music changes, or even when the music drops out altogether.
In Student Ministry, our teenagers pick up on messages without having to have them explained. Am I welcome here? What does this church value? How do I grow as a believer? Why should I care about what Jesus has to say? We are hopefully communicating these things effectively from the front, but the message is more clearly received from the aesthetic of the room, the friendliness of the people, the grace and forgiveness offered by church members, and even by symbols and architecture of the church building! More is CAUGHT than TAUGHT!
One way we teach without teaching at First Students is in the setup of our meeting room. At the moment our room is set up in 4 living rooms, one for each of our small groups. This hopefully communicates to our students that we emphasize small group discipleship and that they can trust their small group leaders to communicate truth to them. I also hope that they see the connection to their own living room, that discipleship can happen in their living room just as effectively (maybe even more effectively) as it can in the church building.
One of Jesus' creative teaching methods was in telling stories. We call them parables, because they use language we understand through metaphor and simile to teach about things that may be beyond our understanding. They are earthly pictures of heavenly things.
Like the parable of the sower. It may have been more obvious to the agrarian society He was speaking to at the time, but we get it, too. Is our heart ready to receive the truths of Scripture, or are we hardened to them? Or have we filled our lives with so many other concerns, cares, or sins that they are easily choked out and have no real lasting impact in our lives?
When we are presented with a truth of Scripture, especially when it takes some decoding to understand, are we ready for it? Like a farmer tilling the ground, fertilizing the soil, and watering it properly, are we cultivating the soil of our hearts to be ready to receive the Word implanted and let it grow to bear fruit in our lives?
Let the Word of Christ dwell richly within you, with wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in our hearts to God.
-Colossians 3:16
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