Education
Sermon Series: 5 Scriptures that remind us who
we are.
#4 of 5: Education
March 14, 2004
Matthew 28:20
3rd Sunday in Lent
Galena-Warwick United Methodist Charge
Warwick & Galena, Maryland
Rev. Dr. Lawrence D. Jameson
larry@larryjameson.com
back to our church home page
learn more about SOFEW
"teaching them to obey everything I have
commanded you.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28:20
I thank God
that I can learn.
I may not learn fast.
Sometimes knowledge and wisdom do not come easily.
But I can learn.
I can receive information that is new to me
and with God’s help
I can figure out
how to apply that information
so my life, and the lives of people I love,
are improved.
Jesus Christ designed and created
you and me to learn, and to keep on learning.
That’s who we are.
That’s our identity as Christians.
We never stop learning. God never stops teaching.
Hallelujah!
Our ability to learn
is a sign of God’s love for us.
Here’s a picture a man who does not learn.
( FUNNY PICTURE on overhead )
This sermon is # 4 in a series
about Scriptures that remind us who we are.
I’ve been talking about the acronym SOFEW:
Stewardship, Outreach, Fellowship, Education, and Worship.
Each of these key words
helps us to understand the basics of
what we do in ministry together.
Today’s sermon is about Education.
God has called you and me to be students and teachers.
Here are the main points of my sermon.
1) What is Christian Education?
2) Who’s job is it?
3) What do we study?
1) What is Christian Education?
In Matthew 28:18
Jesus said,
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
1) go and make disciples
2) baptize them
3) teach them to obey everything Jesus has commanded
Christian Education is our faithful response
to the Great Commission.
Before you can obey Jesus
you have to know what he said.
That’s why we study the Bible.
But it is not enough just to know what Jesus said.
The heart of Christian Education
is learning how
to obey Jesus
by applying his words to every aspect of our lives.
That’s knowledge and wisdom.
Knowledge is information.
Wisdom is how to use and apply information appropriately.
That’s exciting work.
We get to do this EVERY DAY because learning never stops.
We get to do this TOGETHER because God’s plan is
for us to be a family
We get to learn,
BIBLE TRUTH and SKILL TO APPLY IT.
The end result is this:
together we live victorious Christian lives
together we fulfill the Great Commission
together we enjoy God’s love and grace.
Learning is key for all these wonderful things.
In John 14:26
Jesus said,
the Counselor, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you all things
and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
Dear ones,
God is serious about your Christian Education.
The moment you accepted Jesus Christ
as your personal Savior and Lord,
God put his Holy Spirit in your body.
The Holy Spirit knows everything.
His wisdom and knowledge have no limits.
And according to John 14:26
the Holy Spirit
will teach you all things
and will remind you of everything Jesus has said.
The Bible does not say this happens fast.
It just promises that it happens.
I thank God
that I can learn!
One day a little boy and his mom
were sitting in church.
It was time for silent prayer.
Suddenly there was a loud whistle.
The mother was shocked to see
her son was whistling with enthusiasm.
She said, “Gary! Whatever made you do that?”
Gary answered,
“I asked God to teach me to whistle,
and just then he did!”
The boy knew what whistling was.
He had the information.
He had seen other boys whistle.
He knew about puckering and blowing
and how to whet his whistle.
But it wasn’t until he prayed
that he was given the power to actually whistle.
That’s Christian Education.
It’s facts about Jesus
that become active and powerful in your life.
2) Who’s job is it?
Who is supposed to do the work of Christian Education?
That question can be answered with a question.
Who was the Great Commission given to?
The answer is: you and me.
YOU and ME
We are in this together.
This is part of our identity.
We are disciples of Jesus Christ, the great Teacher.
He taught. We follow his example.
It starts in our homes.
Mom and Dad are the primary teachers.
In Proverbs 22:6 the Bible says:
Train a child in the way he should go,
and when he is old
he will not turn from it.
That’s a great Scripture promise.
But remember, it’s not just information.
It is information PLUS example.
If mom and dad bring their child
to Sunday School
and fail to go and participate in Sunday School themselves
that’s not a good example.
That’s not going to be effective.
Here is what is effective.
Mom and Dad study the Bible.
Mom and Dad pray.
Mom and Dad attend Church.
Mom and Dad set the example.
THEN Mom and Dad
Train their child in the way he should go.
I’ve heard comments
about how sad it is that
people from Sunday School don’t attend Church.
Well here is the truth:
9:45 Sunday School is Church.
And 11 o’clock worship is Church.
There are five parts of SOFEW
and Education and Worship are just two parts.
The ideal is to balance ALL FIVE
and let God make each one part of your life:
Stewardship, Outreach, Fellowship, Education, Worship.
I have a challenge
for anyone who wants to
see more people from Sunday School
in worship:
Try this experiment.
Starting next Sunday, March 21
show up at 9:45 for Sunday School.
Come with a desire to learn more about Jesus.
Bring your Bible.
Don’t expect to find an existing class
because we don’t have an adult class.
So you will need to organize a brand new class.
You are going to have to find someplace to meet
because every room in the Sunday School is full.
We desperately need more rooms.
But if you are serious
this will not stop you.
You will find some creative solution to that problem.
You might have to meet at home.
You might have to meet in a van.
You might have to rent space from
one of the antique stores downtown.
You might set up a tent on the lawn.
If you really want to see people from 9:45 Sunday School
attend 11 o’clock worship,
then you need to go and cultivate their friendship,
listen to their struggles,
and care about them. Then they will come.
3) What do we study?
What do we study?
We get to study the Bible,
which contains God’s Word for us.
The Bible is unique.
2 Timothy 3:16 says,
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful
for teaching, rebuking, correcting
and training in righteousness,
so that the man of God may be
thoroughly equipped for every good work.
I love that verse! I love that the Bible is USEFUL.
Christian Education
is not just dry information.
We need to be trained
We need to corrected
We need to be equipped for work.
That’s what happens when we study God’s Word.
One day an army chaplain
was talking to a mortally wounded soldier.
The chaplain asked him if he had a message
for anyone back home.
The soldier said,
“Yes. Write to my Sunday school teacher
and tell her that I died a Christian.
I have never forgotten her teaching.”
A few weeks later the chaplain received a letter
from the Sunday school teacher.
It said,
“God have mercy upon me.
Only last month I resigned from my Sunday school class,
for I felt that my teaching was doing no good.
But I am going back to the Superintendent
and tell her I will try again in Christ’s name
and strive to be faithful once again.”
We get to study the Bible,
and in the process
God makes us USEFUL.
He changes the lives of the students
and
he changes the life of the teacher.
Ray Boltz wrote a wonderful song
for Sunday School teachers.
I dreamed I went to heaven
and You were there with me
We walked upon the streets of gold
Beside the crystal sea.
We heard the angels singing
Then someone called your name.
You turned and saw this young man
And he was smiling as he came.
And he said, "Friend you may not know me now"
And then he said, "But wait"
You used to teach my Sunday School
When I was only eight.
And every week you would say a prayer
Before the class would start.
And one day when you said that prayer
I asked Jesus in my heart."
(Chorus)
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am a life that was changed.
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am so glad you gave.
For Giving to The Lord
Words and Music by Ray Boltz
Conclusion
I thank God
that I can learn.
I may not learn fast.
Sometimes knowledge and wisdom do not come easily.
But I can learn.
I can receive information that is new to me
and with God’s help
I can figure out
how to apply that information
so my life, and the lives of people I love,
are improved.
Jesus Christ designed and created
you and me to learn, and to keep on learning.
That’s who we are.
That’s our identity as Christians.
We never stop learning. God never stops teaching.
Our ability to learn
is a sign of God’s love for us.
Hallelujah!
PRAYER
Thank you, dear God, for the capacity to learn! If we couldn’t learn,
we would be in BIG trouble! Lord, we confess that Bible Study and Christian
Education has not been our priority. Please revive this church,
and start the revival with me. Give me a hunger for your Word. Give me a burden
for lost souls. Give me some practical way to contribute to the Sunday School
program. Please make me a better student and disciple. In the name of Jesus
Christ we pray. Amen.