OceanSide church of Christ




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WE WILL GO…I WILL GO!

 

They Must Be Taught

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.    Our theme for 2020 is “We Will Go…I Will Go!”

 

B.      This theme is taken from Mark 16:15. 

 

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

 

1.      Our theme is a positive response to the Lord’s command.

2.      As a church, we will go. 

3.      And if the church does not go, I will still go as an individual disciple of Christ.

 

C.     We are having a sermon once a month that is centered on our theme.  The title of our lesson this morning is:  “They Must Be Taught.”

 

I.                   THE DUTY DEMANDED

 

A.    Matthew 28:18-20

 

And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you:  and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.  Amen.

 

1.      Teach all nations

2.      Teach all things whatsoever I have commanded you

 

B.      John 6:44-45

 

No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him:  and I will raise him up at the last day.  It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God.  Every man therefore that hath heard, and learned of the Father, cometh unto me.

 

II.                THE DUTY DEFINED

 

A.    Dictionary Definitions of “teach”

1.      Dictionary.com:  imparting knowledge, information, or a skill

2.      Oxford Dictionary

a.      Show or explain to (someone) how to do something

b.      Give information or instruction about

c.       Encourage someone to accept (something” as a fact or principle

d.      Cause (someone) to learn or understand something

3.      Miriam Webster:  to cause to know something

 

B.      When we teach, we are giving a gift that we possess to another person.

When we teach, we are trying to increase the spiritual IQ of the person we teach.

When we teach, we are imparting truth into a person’s heart to bring about change.

When we teach, we break down barriers and pour new foundations of divine wisdom.

III.             THE DUTY DISCHARGED

 

A.    Peter taught the multitude of the Jews on the day of Pentecost.

1.      The outpouring of the Holy Spirit caused confusion and Peter taught to correct their misunderstanding (Acts 2:14-16).

 

But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:  for these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.  But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel.

 

2.      He also convicted them of their sin in murdering Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 2:22-23).

 

Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:  him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.

 

3.      He also declared unto to them resurrection of the Christ (Acts 2:24)

 

Whom God hath raised up having loosed the pains of death:  because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.

 

4.      Lastly, he answered their questions about what to do to be saved (Acts 2:37-38).

 

Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

 

B.      Philip, on the other hand, taught in a very private setting.  He taught the Ethiopian eunuch one-on-one (Acts 8:30-35).

 

And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?  And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me?  And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.  The place of the Scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth.  In his humiliation his judgment was taken away:  and who shall declare his generation?  For his life is taken from the earth.  And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this:  of himself, or of some other man?  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same Scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

 

1.      Understandest thou what thou readest?

2.      Some man should guide me

3.      Philip opened his mouth

4.      Began at the same scripture and preached unto him Jesus

 

IV.             THE DUTY’S DEMANDS

 

A.    First, teaching demands knowledge.

1.      To give something to another, you must first have something to give.

2.      To give knowledge, you must have knowledge.

3.      Every Christian should have a knowledge of these things.

a.      Sin

b.      The love of God

c.       The cross of Calvary

d.      The gospel plan of salvation

4.      To do an effective job, we will also have to have some knowledge of other religions and their teachings.

 

B.      Second, teaching involves skill.

1.      There is an interesting phrase that is connected to teaching that is found in the Bible.  It is the phrase, “apt to teach.”

2.      II Timothy 2:24

 

The servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient.

 

3.      Definition:

a.      Strong (1317):  instructive

b.      Thayer:  skillful in teaching

c.       Others:

1)      A power to teach

2)      A clear manner of expressing his thoughts

4.      The teacher must be able to

a.      Make the meaning clear

b.      Illustrate

c.       Combat objections

d.      Answer questions

 

C.     Third, teaching demands courage.

1.      Satan has done several things to our audience.

a.      He has convinced them that God, Christ, and the Bible are irrelevant to man.

b.      He has convinced them that sin is not so bad.  In fact, some sins are no longer believed to be sin:  cursing, drinking, homosexuality, and abortion are a few.

c.       He has convinced them that all religious teaching is right.

d.      He has convinced them that their beliefs are personal and no one should question their legitimacy.

2.      To confront these deceptions of Satan will take courage.

a.      People will be opposed.

b.      People will be told they are not right.

c.       People will get angry with the messenger.

3.      Paul understood the need for courage and asked the Ephesians to pray for him that he would have courage in speaking the gospel (Eph. 6:19-20).

 

And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds; that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

 

D.    Fourth, teaching demands love.

1.      We have seen that teaching is a matter of duty.

2.      But, it is not just duty that propels us.  It is love for those who are lost.

3.      Those who hear us must know that we are speaking the truth because we love their souls

a.      Eph. 4:15

 

But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.

 

b.      Paul left Timothy in Ephesus to charge some that they teach no other doctrine.  He ends his charge with these words (I Tim. 3:5).

 

Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.

 

E.      Fifth, teaching involves gentleness and patience (II Tim. 2:24).

 

The servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient.

 

1.      The teacher must be a person of bridled emotions.

2.      Must not strive, gentle, and patient all describe such a man.

3.      Anger, meanness, and impatience does not a good teacher make.

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.    The teacher’s job is of extreme importance (James 3:1).

 

My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.

 

B.      Even when we become the best teacher we can be and teach to the best of our ability, we will not save all men.

1.      Jesus said:  “For many are called, but few are chosen” (Matt. 22:14).

2.      The reason is because in order for men to accept the divine message, there must be a good and honest heart within the hearer that will respond positively to the truth of God’s Word (Luke 8:15).

 

But that on good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.