Article by Teresa Chang
One of our church leaders carries an incredible passion for the Word of God. Conversations with him would often lead to him pulling out his Bible, looking up a passage and sharing the deep and powerful revelation God gave him about that passage during his devotionals. He loves hearing what each and every person’s life verses were, and one time he told us that he writes down his life verses and tapes them on his bathroom mirror so that they are the first thing he sees every morning. I think to this day, I still have my life verses taped to my bathroom mirror, as do many others who were impacted by this leader and his love for the Word.
Teachers are knowledgeable people who seek to understand facts. They care deeply about the truth and comprehend the power of truth to set people free and help them thrive. Love for the Word of God courses through their veins. In church settings, you often find gifted teachers teaching Scripture and lifestyle classes and providing detailed training. Along the way, they impart their gift and love for the Word to others.
Let’s look at a few ways you can start to build in your church a lifestyle that honors and loves the Word of God.
1. Know your vision for the Word.
What is your vision for the Word of God? Psalm 1:2 says,
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
Teachers love Scripture—what Psalm 1:2 calls the law of the Lord—and were created to minister God’s truth in a loving way to others. Lives are changed as a lifestyle of loving the Word is embraced and established in a church. As leaders, we get to reveal God’s heart as we encourage those around us to go deep into God’s Word and to teach others to do the same.
2. Identify and remove challenges.
God’s purpose in the teacher gifting is to bring forth His reality (His truth) in a way that produces transformation. God’s word is truth (John 17:17), and Jesus personifies truth because He is the ultimate reality. In Jesus, there is an incredible connection to what is absolutely real.
Does anything hinder your church from living a lifestyle that is passionate for God’s Word and His truth? You may need to examine your values and priorities. What do you value? How do you prioritize those values? Look at how you manage your money, spend your time and allocate your talents—are you giving your best for the purposes God created? Are you doing so in a balanced way that is sustainable over the long haul? If anything needs to be adjusted in your life or church, begin to make those adjustments.
3. Share your vision for the Word with the body.
To grow in your church a lifestyle that loves God’s Word, encourage every believer to be in the Word as much as possible. People need to make Scripture a part of them and explore its pages to truly comprehend and experience it. As they begin to understand its worth, the Word comes alive in their hearts and they learn how to “feast” on Scripture in a way that excites and inspires them to share it with others.
The Bible tells us to “reprove, rebuke, exhort with great patience and instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2, NASB), and we also need to be able to give an answer for the hope that lies within us (1 Peter 3:15). Every believer is called to share what she is learning, which is an aspect of the teacher gift.
