Wednesday, March 7

The art of teaching...

I love to think about, discuss, and ponder the art of teaching and communicating…

Below are some notes I took the other day from a talk by Erwin McManus from 2004. I’d love to know your thoughts…

"In the past if you were the person who knew the Bible the best, you had legitimate authority to lead.

All of our seminaries are geared and focused around that paradigm. If they can teach you how to study, organize and preach the Bible…you have the right and authority to pastor a church.

But I can tell you…that no one really cares how much information you have gathered from the Bible that can be accessed by anyone else over the Internet.

What they want to know is, actually, can you hear from God? Have you walked in such intimate communion with the Creator of the Universe that you are in an ongoing conversation with Him."

He talked about a series on movies they did that really bombed…attendance crashed…they tried to find out why.

He said, “We discovered one of the primary reasons people without God came was to overhear a conversation between me and God. I know it may sound crazy…There are actually people out there who are incredibly interested in eavesdropping on your spiritual intimacy with the Creator of the Universe.

Somewhere years ago I had to decide to stop preaching sermons and start sharing my life through the scriptures. I am absolutely convinced that a part of getting real in leadership is no longer preaching sermons but sharing your life through the scriptures.”

What are your thoughts? Agree, disagree?

Mark Nelson at 12:32 PM 7comments

7 Comments

at 3:26 PM  -Jenni said...

Yes!!!!!!!!! The most I have ever grown spiritually was when I was in a church and in relationships where I was "eavesdropping" on people's walks with God. Isn't that what a good "sermon" is, a message from your life? What you have learned? How has it changed you?

It's not about the "hippest" thing. It's about the most honest thing.

 

at 3:53 PM  Anonymous said...

I totally agree with Jenni. When I catch myself zoning out during a sermon, it is always when the speaker begins talking from his/her own or someone else's experience that i am drawn back in.
I don't know, i think it might be that whole thing where we were just were not at all created to be alone, but in community together doing life together, so we learn best from what comes out of that community.

God stories are what get me through most days.

 

at 5:20 PM  Anonymous said...

This post brings several comments to the forefront of my mind:

1. As always, the text should always guide the teaching regardless of how we present the message.

2. That said, verse by verse exposition lulls the majority of the people into a catatonic state. The genius of communication is taking that verse by verse exposition and bridging it to the people without it sounding like Sunday School 101.

3. One of my favorite authors and preachers is John Ortberg. This is not so much a result of his depth of Bible knowledge, but his ability to communicate it by talking about how it impacts his life. He is not shy in sharing his shortcomings and his human frailties and anyone who reads him or hears him can relate. John is a guy that is just like I am and who suffers from "hurry sickness" and who seeks the grace of God in life.

He is real. He is human. He wrestles with God at times. I can certainly relate.

4. Connect the dots - my goal is to time warp folks back into the times of the passage and then move them forward to understand that the same message applies today, why it applies (sinful man and God have never changed in all those years) and what to do with it in their lives.

5. Be real. There are some rather "famous" old school preachers I have heard who seem to be 'above" their teaching and it comes through in their mannerisms, style and voice. Drives me nuts! And it tops my "Top 5" list of "Things Not to Do".

6. Be prepared - stories are a terrific method for communicating God's Word. But not if you sound like you are "wandering in the weeds" with no place to take people.

Mark - I don't know if this was what you were looking for, but teaching and communication is a BIG passion of mine as well. It is something I set very high standards for and want to get better at.

Thanks!

Jeff

 

at 8:04 AM  Liz Pinckert said...

Tim S. does this very well, incredibly well.

 

at 9:06 AM  Anonymous said...

I don't know if youth ministry is different than adults in this way (I don't think it is anyway), but as a youth guy for middle and high school peeps it's definitely about relationships and the most connected they feel to me at any moment is when I open my life to them and show them how God and I interact and do life together. They are certainly curious.

However, there are many parents that are more concerned with my "credentials" that really keep me studying for the sake of knowledge. Sharing life isn't their main focus with me. They seem more concerned that I "know more" about God than they do so I can teach it better than they do at home.

The Levites were supported by the people so they could be in the Word, but they revealed God to everyone through interpersonal ministry. I suppose it's a balancing act to some degree.

But I sure love to play ultimate and disc golf and apples to apples in my living room with a dozen teens while talking about their week.

There's a time a place to bestow knowledge. BUT, it's ALWAYS the time and place to share life.

 

at 10:20 AM  Anonymous said...

Leave it to a lawyer to say the answer is, "it depends," but that's mine, anyway. True, it is nearly always compelling when the speaker is part of the story, sharing how he/she interacts with God and vice versa. And also true that it's mind-numbingly boring to just go verse by verse and restate what's in scripture without any discussion of context, relevance, tangents, etc.

But for me, both styles can work if they reflect (a) humility, (b) honesty, (c) grace, (d) excitement, and (e) the idea that what they are discussing/expounding is universal, open to all. Whenever someone makes the Way sound hard, selective, twisted or complex, that's a red flag to me that they didn't hear from the God I know on that one.

I can read, you don't need to read for me. I can pray, you don't need to tell me what that's like. I'm in community to revel in and be challenged by what God's doing with you, let you know what God's doing with me, and learn together what God has for us to do.

 

at 5:23 PM  truevyne said...

Since I am not a pastor, I asked myself how much the pastor has to do with the church I attend. Is is what he does, what he says, or something else? The answer for me is that the pastor holds only a small part of why I attend church. The important thing about the pastor for me is that he live a life of reconciliation. Notice I am careful NOT to use the words life of perfection! The greater portion of why I go to a particular church has much more to do with God's leading in my own life and church doctrine.
However, I suppose if I'm convinced the pastor does not listen to God, then I'm not sure God would draw me to that particular church.

 

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