Page 3 - Teaching Principles and Methods Student Textbook short

Teaching Principles and Methods

By Dr. Kris Bjorgen

Study Section 1: What it takes to become a good teacher.

1.1 Connect

Did you know that you are a teacher? Yes you are. You are teaching someone,
somewhere by what you say and how you live your life. There are people who are
watching you and learning from you. That is a pretty huge responsibility isn’t it! Even if
you don’t teach a class at church, or give instructions to others at work, you still teach
others. So it would behoove you to become the best teacher you can be. That’s what this
class, and particularly this lesson is all about. We want you to become a GREAT teacher. Now let’s learn
how.

1.2 Objectives

1. The student should be able to explain why God has called all believers to become teachers.

2. The student should be able to describe how a teacher is a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ
and his students.

1.3 What it takes to become a good teacher

Welcome to a class about how to teach the Word of God, the Bible. Just before Jesus
departed from the earth and ascended into heaven, he gathered his disciples for one
farewell address. It was his last words and thus, very important words, for his disciples. He
said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth, Go therefore and TEACH all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, TEACHING
THEM to observe whatever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even
unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28-18-20) Twice in His final address, he commanded His disciples
to teach others to observe what He had taught them. All eleven were commanded to share with others
how to love their Savior and how to obey Him.

This command is extended to you! As a follower of Christ, you also are commanded to
GO and TEACH. So since that is our duty before Christ, we had better learn what all is
entailed in the process of teaching others and how to become effective communicators
of God’s Word. That’s what this class is all about: helping you become the very best
teacher possible to glorify our Lord.

Every believer influences others. We all have people around us who need to understand how to know
Christ through salvation or how to walk with Him. Jesus Christ left us with a command to TEACH and
make disciples of ALL MEN…the nations. We, therefore, are all teachers; either teaching people how to
better walk with God or how not to. We teach others in a multiple of ways. We teach by what we say.

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