The Spiritual Gift of Teaching

Romans 12:7b one who teaches, by teaching.

Let us remember concerning the gifts, we are to employ our gift as a good steward. We are to manage our gift.

1 Peter 4:10 As every man has received the gift, even so minister the same, one to another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

We manage our gifts by discovering, developing, and exercising them correctly for the body of Christ.

Romans 12:3 For I say to every man that is among you, through the grace given unto me, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

The exercising of all the gifts must be done with love, for the sole purpose of building up the body of Christ.

Any misuse of our gifts, especially through a wrong attitude will be harmful to the Church, and to the cause of Christ.

The Gift of Teaching

The verb teach is present 97 times in the Greek New Testament and is used more often than any other verb to describe what Jesus did throughout His ministry— it is used more often even than the word for “heal.”

The disciple Luke will be our example of one who has the gift of teaching. In that Gospel, he moves through the description of the life of Jesus in an orderly manner.

Luke 1:1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us.

Acts 1:1 In the former treatise, O Theophilus, I have given an account of all that Jesus began both to do and teach.

Acts 1:2 Until the day in which He was taken up, after He had given commandments through the Holy Spirit unto the apostles, whom He had chosen.

The Characteristics of the Teaching Gift

The teacher is motivated for the truth.

1. The teacher has a strong desire to present truth systematically. Teachers use an order that is easy to follow.

2. The teacher is very thorough, so they deal with many details and long answers. This prepares them to be good listeners.

3. The teacher needs to validate the information they hear. Luke said what he was teaching was “handed down to us by eyewitness, by servants of the Word.”

4. The teacher delights in studying and research.

5. The teacher is often consumed with the facts.

6. The teacher must clarify an understanding, or a misunderstanding.

When they hear something that might not be true, they will trace it to find out how it is wrong.

The teacher can be misunderstood because:

 They sometimes appear to others to only want accuracy and the facts, and may at times neglect practical illustration.

 They can be perceived as prideful, always telling something they have learned.

 They can be boring, and give more information than you want.

 Their emphasis on research may appear that learning is more important than depending on the Holy Spirit.

 They might appear to reject practical wisdom from Godly people who have not been formally educated.

Teaching in Spirit & the Flesh

In the spirit they have:

Self-control, and want to know the truth. In the flesh, they can be self-indulgent.

Reverence. In the flesh, disrespectful.

Diligence. In the flesh, can be slothful and unmotivated. They may study and know a lot, but not use it in the body.

Good decision-making. In the flesh, they don’t.

Dependability. In the flesh they are not as reliable.

Security in truth. In the flesh they’re anxious.

As of all the gifts, many of these weakness can be found In persons who do not possess this particular gift. These can be true of any believer who is controlled by the flesh.

Remember what Paul said earlier, “Don’t think of yourself more highly you should, but think straight, using God’s Word as the  measuring tool, and not your feelings.”

Remember also what follows in chapter 13: Everything must be done through love, regardless of the gift. Our spiritual gifts are to be exercised through love, with the intention they all would mature in their Christian life.