Jesus' Teaching Techniques

In the Beginning
Audio MP3  

Jesus employed six main teaching techniques during his ministry. The articles in this issue examine each of them and draw lessons we can apply in our own lives. Certainly we all want to be more relevant and effective as we attempt to follow the great example he provided.

Questions looks at a few of the many questions Jesus used as he spoke to his enemies and friends alike. He showed how a well-placed question has as much power as a two-edged sword.

Statements contrasts the rhetoric used by the religious leaders of Jesus’ day with the wisdom and truth Jesus spoke. “Never man spake like this man” (John 7:46). We should also speak words those around us can understand.

The article Parables looks at one of Jesus’ favorite teaching techniques. These provided the “big picture” to help people understand God’s plan, and to teach difficult truths effectively and comprehensively. But to those with only a passing interest, they taught nothing at all.

Miracles attracted the people to Jesus and were also performed by the apostles after Jesus’ death and resurrection to aid the growth of the early church. Although we cannot perform such miracles today, Jesus told his disciples and us that someday we would do greater things than these (John 1:50; 14:12).

Metaphor shows us some of the pictures Jesus forged from words, especially the seven great “I am” comparisons found in the gospel of John. Metaphors are the language of the human senses and help us grasp difficult concepts.

Our final article, Teaching by Example, suggests how inspiring it must have been to be in Jesus’ presence, to see how he used all his faculties as he went about doing the will of God. ­Perhaps the most unforgettable example to the twelve was when he washed their feet.

Isaiah speaks prophetically of Jesus as a “wonderful counselor” (Isaiah 9:6). By this title God has shown that Jesus has been given to us as a miraculous advisor, one who is willing to come into our lives and teach us (Revelation 3:20).

We are told to look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, as we walk in his footsteps (Hebrews 12:2; 1 John 2:6). Let us not only be taught of God’s son, but let us also emulate his teaching techniques. Doing so will bring growth of the “inner man” for it is in God that we live, and move, and have our being (Acts 17:28).