Page 118 - Homiletics I Student Textbook

When Jesus was 12 years old, his parents traveled from Nazareth to Jerusalem for the Passover, a trip of
about 80 miles. Upon their departure, Mary and Joseph assumed Jesus was among the group, but
accidentally left Jesus in the temple at Jerusalem. For several days, Jesus sat with the greatest scholars
of his day and asked questions and responded with answers. The Bible says:

47
Luke 2: 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.

They were amazed that a child 12 years old knew so much about the Scriptures and had such an
amazing understanding of the Old Testament books. We must understand that Jesus acquired his
astounding knowledge and understanding of Scripture from plain hard study.

Jesus began his teaching ministry when he was 30 years old. I’m sure from age 12 to age 30, those 18
years were also filled with deep study in the Torah and all the Old Testament books. He had probably
memorized vast amounts of passages, as he quoted them throughout his ministry.

Jesus did what every great teacher must do. He prepared to launch his earthly ministry by immersing
himself in study of God’s Word. He knew the Scriptures. He diligently burned the midnight oil learning
and memorizing and contemplating on His Father’s written words so that he knew them not only in his
mind, but in his heart and spirit. That’s why, when he began to teach it, people were amazed at what
was coming out of his mouth (Luke 4:36). They could not believe that an untrained person could have
such depth of understanding. It came, however at a price: years of hard study.

As Jesus began to teach, thousands of people flocked to hear him. He astounded
the common people. He astonished the lawyers, scribes and religious scholars of
the day. Only portions of some of his great addresses are recorded in the Gospels.
He taught in the temple courtyard daily and drew large crowds to hear him.
People went away amazed as his teachings.

Jesus Christ was the greatest teacher of all times. Since that is true, if we want to
be great teachers, should we not learn from Him what He did to enhance His teaching? Let’s do just
that.

Dale Roach of Like a Team Ministries has suggested these 8 characteristics of Jesus that made him such a
94
unique teacher:

1. Jesus Was a Teacher Who Taught with Power
Jesus began his ministry by engaging people in the synagogue as a public teacher. This teaching was an
activity open to any layman who was willing to be taught.

Matthew 4:23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news
of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.

But what made him so different from other teachers? The answer to that question is that Jesus taught
in the power of the Spirit of God (Luke 4:14). He did not rely on his own abilities, but solely rested in the
supremacy of the Holy Spirit in guiding Him about what to say and how to say it.

We can do the same thing as teachers. The Scriptures tell us how:

94 https://likeateam.com/9-characteristics-of-jesus-as-a-teacher/
117