Contemplation of the Great Teacher, the Lord Jesus Christ, must impress us with an important truth; namely, that a teacher must be bound up with his teaching… Let their lives reinforce their message, teaching with their persons as well as with lessons. It is an indispensable condition of success.
All the foregoing, it is hoped, will persuade us of the importance of the teacher in the great campaign of the Truth. Our Sunday Schools and Youth Circles require the best efforts of the best of our meetings. It is a pity this is not always realized. There is a disposition to treat these branches of our work too lightly, and to delegate them to any who are prepared to try. With our available numbers so limited the scope for careful selection is small, and this fact lays stress on the need for deliberate effort on the part of those who are serving, whether they be veterans or recruits. Some may be lacking at first in natural aptitude. Let them take heart. Interest in the task and devotion to its cause will in the end prove far more effective, under God’s blessing, than the halfhearted exercises of the born teacher. The preparation of lessons will be an unfailing expression of this interest. It is an axiom of education that the really good teacher is always a student, and this will ensure a brightness and freshness in his lessons. The famous educationist, Thring, described teaching without study as serving water from a stagnant pool, while the student-teacher refreshes his class from running streams. But all the time, the teacher should be looking unto Jesus. “What would Jesus do?” is a question which has been suggested as a touchstone for right living. It is well to bring it particularly into these activities with our young. What would Jesus do? How would he now teach and guide our children in the way they should go?
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One