WHY DOES THIS MATTER? Each week there are many Sunday School Teachers who study hard to find new information their class members do not know about a Bible passage and they are eager to share that information on Sunday. While this is commendable, it is not what the role of the teacher should be. The role of the teacher is to get his or her members to live the Gospel. Jesus said:
Matthew 28:19-20 (NASB)
19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
WHAT DO I DO? A teacher wants a member to live the gospel or to observe all that Christ commanded. It takes work. Dr. Leroy Ford, an expert on the teaching/learning environment, stated that “no one will work to accomplish someone else’s goal.” If that is true, we cannot afford to just tell members of the truths; we have to help them to discover the truths themselves and apply it to their own lives. This requires getting the members to engage through questions and activities which require them to think about the passage and how it affects their own lives.
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Dr. Mark Yoakum, Director of Church Ministries, Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.