yourtown4jesus.com

Teach ‘em about Jesus!

Jesus said (Matthew 28:19-20), “Go and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy

Spirit, and TEACHING them to obey everything I have commanded

you…”

“Teaching,” He said.

 

Though some might say the Lord was only speaking to His disciples

when He said this while others might object, contending that they do not

possess a teacher’s anointing or a teaching gift, my contention is that

Jesus was telling ALL of His disciples from that day on to go and TEACH.

 

Personally, I don’t believe that anyone in the Body of Christ who has

been gifted with a teaching gift, a preaching gift, an evangelism gift,

was so gifted for any other reason but to GIVE IT AWAY and

DUPLICATE themselves. Again, Jesus is our example. Too often, these

gifts come to a screeching halt with an individual, opening all kinds of

doors for spiritual pride and “gift worship” to enter into the ranks of the 

ever-following saints.

The Scriptures reveal that Jesus came as an example. In John 13:15, Jesus

said, “I have set you an EXAMPLE that you should do as I have done for

you.”

If that isn’t plain enough, Paul told the Corinthian Church (1 Cor 11:1),

“Follow my EXAMPLE, as I follow the EXAMPLE of Christ.” Was he

talking to the rank and file believer or a room full of teachers at a

conference? He said virtually the same thing to the Church in Philippi

(Phil 3:17) and wrote the same thing to Timothy (1 Tim 1:16). First

Peter 2:21 declares, “To this you were called, because Christ suffered

for you, leaving you an EXAMPLE, that you should follow in his steps.”

You see, each one of us is in a position to influence the lives of

somebody else through our teaching examples. We know this is true

because, fact is, “Somebody” is always watching. You can be a “Good”

influencer or a “Bad” one; Good like Billy Graham or Bad like Hitler.

Malachi 2:8 has this to say about bad teaching: “But you have turned

from the way and by your TEACHING have caused many to stumble…”

In any case, we ALL have many opportunities to have an impact on

the lives of others. Each of us should have a Paul, a Barnabas and a

Timothy in our lives: A “Paul” from whom we attain wisdom and council;

a “Barnabas” with whom we sharpen our spiritual swords; and a “Timothy,”

one whose lives we are privileged to impact by teaching with words

and examples. Like waters ebbing and flowing, one will never grow into a

stagnant pool by following this example.

WANTED: SPIRIT-LED TEACHERS

So, what was the example that Jesus left for us? Along with His

example of being a Servant King, healing the sick, listening to the

Father, He was also the greatest of all Teachers. The Bible says:

Matthew 7:28, “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the

crowds were amazed at His TEACHING…”

Matthew 9:35, “Jesus went through all the towns and villages,

TEACHING in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the

kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.”

Matthew 13:54, “Coming to His hometown, He began TEACHING the

people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man

get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked.”

Matthew 22:33, “When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at

His TEACHING.”

Mark 1:22, “The people were amazed at His TEACHING, because He

taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.

Mark 1:27, “”The people were all so amazed that they asked each other,

“What is this? A new TEACHING—and with authority! He even gives

orders to evil spirits and they obey Him.”

Mark 6:7, “Then Jesus went around TEACHING from village to village.

Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them

authority over evil spirits.”

Luke 4:32, “They were amazed at his TEACHING, because His

message had authority.”

John 7;16, “Jesus answered, “My TEACHING is not my own. It comes

from Him who sent Me.”

John 14:23, “Jesus replied, “If anyone loves Me, he will obey My

TEACHING. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and

make Our home with him.

John 15:20, “Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is

greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you

also. If they obeyed my TEACHING, they will obey yours also.

I could go on.

LET’S RE-CAP

First, Jesus was the greatest Teacher ever and He came as an example.

Second, the great apostle Paul instructed the original Church to follow

his example as he followed the example of Christ.

Third, Jesus said (Luke 4:18-19), reading from what we now refer to

as Isaiah 61, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has

anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to

proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind,

to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Fourth, Romans 8:11 reminds us that the same Spirit that raised Jesus

from the dead DWELLS WITHIN US.

CONCLUSION: If the Anointed One - the Christ - was raised from the

grave, and that same Spirit that raised and anointed Him lives

WITHIN and operates THROUGH you and me, it stands to reason that

all ANY of us must be is Obedient and Available and that signs and

wonders should follow all those who dare to step out in faith and do

what Jesus did, yes?

Well, how’s all that coming along?

The Lord’s reading of Isaiah 61:1,2 was nothing less than His very own

mission statement. It should be ours as well.

When a Chinese teenage girl is referred to a “pastor” by over 20,000

people…when missionaries leave the Bible with a group and are called

away, only to return to find the tribe manifesting all sorts of spiritual

gifts WITHOUT the benefit of training…wouldn’t you agree that the

Power and Presence of God, our Father, is well able to advance the

cause of Christ through whosoever will?

Whosever?

YOU-so-ever!

MY STORY AND I’M STICKIN’ TO IT!

Do you lack the oratorical skills you may feel are necessary to be a

teacher?

Perfect!

Are you lacking in seminary training in homiletics?

Great!

Moses was a shepherd and a murderer who, some say, st..stuttered.

Peter was a tough, unlearned fisherman.

Much of Paul’s theological, Pharisaical training was useless when he

came into the Kingdom.

You see, unlike the distinguished Greek Sophists - skilled orators who

would draw crowds to hear them quote Homer - men who, once

Greece fell to the Romans, converted to Christianity, the Christian who

teaches about God should teach from experiential relationship with

Jesus. In fact, the very definition of the word “faith” (Greek: “pistis”)

is a forensic term that refers to one’s personal experience with a matter.

I’ll never forget the first time I was ever asked to speak publicly about

my faith. I was asked by a neighbor named Leonard, a man who was

active in something called the Full Gospel Businessmen’s Association.

I was initially terrified at the prospect of speaking in front of a group

and rejected his request. One night, while cleaning offices, the Holy

Spirit revealed to me that Leonard would be calling me that night. I

experienced a peace that passed all understanding ad fully expected

Leonard’s call that evening. I returned home very late at night and, about

11:00 - just about the time I began to think that what I thought was a

message from God and was, instead, the result of too much Dr Pepper -

my phone rang. It was Leonard, apologizing for calling so late but

certain God had instructed him to do so. I told him how disappointed I

would have been had he NOT called. The date was set.

The day of my speaking engagement, I was as nervous as I’ve ever been

about anything. It was raining hard and I was driving a Camaro with a

broken driver-side window. I sat in my car across from the cafeteria where the

meetings always took place, praying, rain drops occasionally splattering

against the inside of the car’s door and splashing in my face as I watched

men in suits running into the building with umbrellas, greeting each other

and shaking hands. Suddenly, I felt this incredible peace and boldness as

I heard the Lord in my spirit saying, “Just tell them about us!”

That’s exactly what I did. It was powerful. At the end, men lined up for

prayer asking to receive that same kind of relational experience with

God.

Friends, since that time, I have myself convinced that I can speak to

anybody at any time about the only thing in this life that I’m 100%

certain of: my personal relationship with Jesus. No one can take away

those experiences and no one can debunk them any more than they could

debunk my experiences in any other realm of my personal life.

You are the same way. Whether you’re speaking to a group in a restaurant

or an individual at Starbuck’s, it’s the Anointed One’s presence within you

that will make the difference in their lives every time. All we need to do

is allow Jesus to be the Lord - from the Greek word kyrios; literally, the “owner” -

of that situation in which He has placed you. WARNING: Where we will

ALWAYS run into trouble is when we try and insert our denominational

teachings and drift away from the teachings of Christ. No matter how they

may have blessed you personally, nobody NEEDS a relationship with your

group or your pastor…people need Jesus, the answer to every problem known

to man.

So, stick to the subject. It works every time!

Every blessing,
Michael Tummillo
A servant of God
www.YourTown4Jesus.org