Spiritual School, Part 3: Classes

Introduction

(Here are links to the first and second posts of this series.)

If we’re going to compare the Christian life to school, we need to deal with classes. After all, they’re what most comes to mind when we talk about education. 

Depending on our background, this analogy will bring up memories of great times or lousy experiences. Some of us will welcome likening discipleship to classes, while others will recoil at the notion. What we grew up with will affect how open we are to this picture.

Regardless of our history, Jesus invites us to the education of a lifetime! As we know from the Gospels, the Lord called people to follow Him. Those who answered His call are disciples, a term which means “a learner, pupil, student.” Disciples receive a spiritual education from the Master Teacher.

And like our schooling, it has two aspects.

Intellectual

God wants us to understand the wisdom of His plan for our salvation. It takes time to learn what He has for us. In the world, we finish school and head out to work. But in the kingdom, we’re always learning. It’s not that we’re bad students, or that Jesus is a lousy teacher. Rather, the material we absorb challenges us at deep levels and makes demands that compel our growth. 

Think about the subjects we cover: God, humanity, sin, salvation, ministry, and so on. Through His Word and His Spirit, Christ instructs us about all these matters and more.

How do we learn? The way most students do–by listening. Remember what our teachers demanded from us? Sit down, be quiet, listen, and take notes! These may look passive, but they’re not. Paying attention is hard work! We know this from our school days; it’s also true in God’s kingdom.

But it’s what we must do. Here’s how Jesus concluded His parable of the sower:

“Then Jesus said, ‘Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.’” – Mark 4:9

This principle, found at the beginning of the New Testament, occurs several times in the end, too.

“Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” – Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22

As we give ourselves to the Scriptures, we will find the Holy Spirit training us in the ways of the Lord.

Practical

But God doesn’t want to pack our brains with information. This is why many young people find school boring; all they do is memorize facts and spit them out on tests. They don’t see why the information matters or how it fits into their lives. So, these kids drift through school, itching to get out.

Jesus gives His disciples hands-on opportunities. In school, we call these “labs” and the term fits one of the ways we learn in the kingdom.

Schools don’t offer many experiential classes. Those that can afford the equipment have science labs, where students perform dissections and mix chemicals. Shop classes and vocational training, like woodworking and auto mechanics, are even more hands-on. In these courses, it’s not enough to ace a written exam; students have to turn in physical projects.

Like good students, the disciples had observed the ministry of Jesus.

“As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ¹⁹‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will send you out to fish for people.’ ²⁰At once they left their nets and followed him. ²¹Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, ²²and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. ²³Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. ²⁴News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them.” – Matthew 4:18-24

But Christ did more than show and tell; at the right time, He sent His disciples to the lab.

“Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. ⁸These were his instructions: ‘Take nothing for the journey except a staff–no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. ⁹Wear sandals but not an extra shirt. ¹⁰Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. ¹¹And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.’ ¹²They went out and preached that people should repent. ¹³They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.” – Mark 6:7-13

The Lord knows that people learn best by practicing. Christ’s words were illuminating and His miracles were amazing, but the disciples needed their own experiences. We can expect, then, that as Jesus reveals truth to us, He will help us to apply it.

Beneficial

Discipleship has a third aspect not always found in typical education programs. Through our spiritual training, Jesus prepares us to serve others. The prophet Isaiah expresses it this way:

“The Sovereign LORD has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.” – Isaiah 50:4

The Lord teaches us to bless us and to make us a blessing to those who need our help. By ourselves, we lack the ability to solve the problems they face. But with Christ’s power and wisdom within us, honed by practice, we can make a big difference in this world.