Thursday: Education in the Early Church
One of the remarkable principles of education in Scripture emerges as Jesus, the Master Teacher, prepares to leave His students or disciples. They had been with Him for three and a half years, approximately the amount of time we allocate to a high school or college education. At the completion of either period, depending upon the person, students are often considered ready to manage on their own.
Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com
But Jesus knew better, and so He provided His followers with ongoing or continuing education under the tutelage of the Holy Spirit. Elsewhere that teacher or guide is identified as Comforter or Advocate (in Greek, paracletos), who will be given to the followers of Jesus permanently ( John 14.16-17). He is identified as the Spirit of Truth. While the Holy Spirit is not identified as an educator, the work of the Spirit certainly is educational, particularly as it pertains to seeking and finding the truth.
Read 1 Corinthians 2:1-16. What is Paul saying that is so important in the context of education?
Paul begins by reminding the church in Corinth that when he first came to them he spoke of nothing but Jesus Christ and His crucifixion (1 Cor: 2:2) – no clever wisdom, only the gospel proclamation. But that was not the end of it ( 1 Corinthians 2.6-7), even the deep things of God (1 Cor: 2:10). All will be studied under the guidance of the Spirit of God as He joins with the spirit of the learner.
How deep will that study be, and how much learning will be open to those who are led by the Spirit? The chapter concludes with a quotation from the prophet Isaiah: “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or as His counselor has taught him?” (Isa: 40:13). The prophet speaking to ordinary people of his day would say that no one can do that. But Paul corrected that perception by concluding, “We have the mind of Christ,” meaning that Spirit-filled Christians have access even to the mind of God, and thus to any amount of learning and understanding (1 Cor: 2:10-13) that would be needed to know the path of righteousness.
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We often confuse the descriptors "deep" and "complex" when it comes to studying the Word of God. The Jews in Jesus time had done just that. They had taken the law of God and studied in detail so that each word had been dissected and analysed until the Law of God had been surrounded by interpretations and interpretations of interpretations. A whole industry had sprung up interpreting and, I might add, making commercial gain out of the situation.
It is no wonder that when Jesus came on the scene, he recognised that in the complexity they lacked depth. he cut through the verbage and pointed them back to the deep meaning of the law.
Jesus wasn't teaching anything new here. He was reaching back and quoting from the Torah. Why? Because the depth of the law had been lost in the complexity of interpretation.
Around our local town of Cooranbong, the roads are pretty notorious. The roads have been patched up so many times that the patches have patches. I drove to the hardware the other day and remarked to myself that I was glad I had taken my 4WD Troopy instead of Carmel's little Mazda because the potholes between the patches were so big, they would have done the Mazda serious mischief. What our roads need is not more patches but a new foundation. That is where the trouble lies. It is not the surface detail that is the problem, it's the deep foundation than needs repairing.
In a spiritual sense, with depth comes understanding, communication, and application.
Hello Maurice - I read your comment and the Scripture quote with great joy. In response, my mind said: “ but that’s what I have been writing about for sooo long!“; but right away the Spirit interjected: “it is more important that *I* am heard! I am humbled and happy every time I hear truth spoken: yes - “In a spiritual sense, with depth comes understanding, communication, and application.” 🙂
The prophet asks: "...may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil?"(Jer 13:23). Could we say that all the explanations and their strict enforcement were only fig leaves? While the carnal mind lives and exercises its will, there can be no true understanding and application. The practicing sinner can only manipulate the law and will never magnify it.
Just this past year I had my driveway repaired in one spot that needed what you describe, and now it looks even, and no longer sunk down. They had to remove the old, fix the base, then repave it. A patch would not have fixed the problem of a faulty base.
In keeping with your thought on a “ new foundation” , this is one of the key reasons Christ came, to reveal the Character of God. John 17:25-26,
25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you[a] known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”
It is not about the minutiae and the letter of doctrine/dogma that engulfs most religions. It is about learning the Character of God and revealing that Character to those around us.
The prophet Isaiah asks the question: “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or as His counselor has taught him?” (Isa: 40:13). My answer is no one can direct or teach the Holy Spirit or God. However the Holy Spirit teaches us and helps us to understand the character of the LORD, because He is a partner in the Godhead. 1Cor 2:9-16
Jesus said He had many things He still wanted to tell His disciples but they would not be able to bear it then, that is why He was going to send the Holy Spirit to guide them into all truth. John 16:12-15
Isn't that fascinating! We sometimes think that the only teachings of Jesus are those written in red in the Bible, but Jesus continues to talk to us through the Holy Spirit who inspired those whose writings have been preserved for our benefit.
Even more exciting, if we accept the Holy Spirit as our soul mate, our helper and counsellor, He will also give us spiritual words, knowledge and wisdom to share with others.
Shirley, you stated-
'but Jesus continues to talk to us through the Holy Spirit who inspired those whose writings have been preserved for our benefit. Even more exciting, if we accept the Holy Spirit as our soul mate, our helper and counsellor, He will also give us spiritual words, knowledge and wisdom to share with others.'
I am so glad you mentioned this because when the HOLY SPIRIT speaks to me and when I share it with Christians many doubt and look at me as to say, 'but you aren't a prophetess'. But when I share it with the unchurch folks they accept it. We do not have to be prophets or prophetess for the Holy Spirit to speak to us and through us, all we need is to be connected to the Holy Spirit and not be guided by our own wisdom or the wisdom of men.
Depth!
I like the little bit different flavor that the Amplified Bible Classic Edition in this instance brings to the understanding of 1Corinthians 2:10. Let me share it with you.
"Yet to us God has unveiled and revealed them by and through His Spirit, for the [Holy] Spirit searches diligently, exploring and examining everything, even sounding the profound and bottomless things of God [the divine counsels and things hidden and beyond man's scrutiny]". [Let me add, without the Holy Spirit these things are unaccessable].
1 Corinthians 2:10 AMPC
We cringe when one says where did you get that information and the reply is, from the Holy Spirit. In reality that may not be far fetched.
We must realize that the Holy Spirit does not work outside of scripture. The Spirit is not a source of truth by itself, but always speaks through the Word of God, and always in agreement with it. See Isa 8:20, 2 Pe 1:21.
No one would disagree that the highest education is found in Truth, of which Jesus prayed: “Thy Word is Truth”. The Holy Spirit is the inspiration of this truth and will bring this truth to all who are open to the Spirit of God by repentance and departing from evil. It is the High Priest that trimmed and filled the lamps with oil in the sanctuary, and it is Christ who sends His Spirit to His people who follow wherever He leads them by His counsels.
Good point, yes the Holy Spirit does not educate us outside of the Bible. My finely tuned response to where did you get that idea would be, the Bible under guidance of the Holy Spirit. I am reminded what the Holy Spirit does when He reveals the deep things of God.
“But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.” 2 Corinthians 3:14-15.
A while back, Thembelani, a fellow student of our virtual classroom said: “I would rather call to the Author first before turning to fallen men”. Since we have access to the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s Truth to us, why would we ignore this Holy Source of Wisdom and Insight and stifle it by reaching too quickly to someone else’s ‘interpretation’? Why not learn to talk with Him as we would talk with our most intimate, trusted, best friend?
I want to share my experience, what I have found when learning to interact with the Holy Spirit. Our relationship began with my strong desire to look to Him regarding heart-felt spiritual and practical issues before consulting anyone or anything else; I wanted to know what HE thought because I trust Him explicitely!
As a child, it was mostly for comfort when reaching out to God. As an adult, ‘walking with the Holy Spirit’ intentionally when seeking advise was unfamiliar, leaving me unsure to know if I had heard from Him as thoughts/answers entered my mind during our conversations. But with time, it became more and more ‘normal’ to talk with Him about everything, any time, and everywhere and we became ‘good friends’; He opened my eyes to see, my ears to hear, and my heart to respond. Now, when I read the Scripture or anything related to spiritual Truth, I 'hear' Him interpret the text for me. For study, I use the KJV because I trust its text being the most unaltered by other’s ‘interpretations and revisions’ of the Word of God.
I believe that Ellen White received revelations to, first and foremost, expound what the Spirit revealed to her to be the spiritual Truth as well as practical application of the Truth contained in the Word of God and to highlight errors of long established doctrine.
Up to a certain point, I remain willfully ignorant of other’s writings, believing that the less my thoughts are ‘encumbered/immobilized/pre-conditioned’ by man’s perceived and formulated interpretations, the more clearly I can ‘hear’ the Spirit’s own interpretation.
A good example is the devastating effect the Jewish People’s relationship with their God experienced when Christ Jesus’ teaching of being set free by/through faith was denied to them because of the strong bias of the Pharisee's interpretation of the by them regulated religion.
The humble but fervent desire to hear from the Holy Spirit directly, stands in direct contrast to the attitude of those who claim that we cannot or do not need to seek more or new revelation.
The more we desire to by faith ‘train ourselves’ to speak with, listen and hear the Holy Spirit, the more assuredly we know that we really do have a living, vibrant relationship with Him.
Our disposition, intent and purpose for seeking God’s revealed Truths should always be altruistic – other oriented application of the Love we experienced when we were set free from the burden of being in sin. Now we are in Christ, and with this, we are free to receive all the blessings coming from hearing and understanding the Word of God – 1Cor.2:10-13KJV.
Brigitte, I can understand your notion that we have access to the Holy Spirit, but I am not sure of the way that you express that relationship. The issue that I have is that often the claim made by folk that the Holy Spirit has spoken to them and then they have put forth their idea or interpretation. I well remember a discussion on Sabbath School Net where two opposing views were being presented and both sides claimed that they were being guided by the Holy Spirit. I raised the issue that I was confused. Which Holy Spirit was I supposed to be listening to? In fact, both sides were overtly using the Holy Spirit to put the frighteners on me that they were right and the other side was wrong. That is not how the Holy Spirit works
Listen to what Ellen White says about the Holy Spirit:
I read that as saying that we do not need to overtly state things like “we have direct access to the Holy Spirit…”. What we say, and more importantly, how we live should bear testimony by the fruits of the Spirit as to our relationship.
Secondly, God communicates with us in a variety of ways. I think that in this context there are three significant ways:
a) The Bible - this is our primary source
b) The Holy Spirit - through inner conviction
c) Human agents, in particular our community of believers
I am also acutely aware that the Holy Spirit uses some unusual sources to teach us and guide us. For example God used a Donkey to change the course of Balaam’s actions. I am open to the notion that God is not limited in the way he can communicate with us.
I am reminded that all too often if we do not moderate our Bible reading and our internal thoughts by listening to our community of believers, we are in danger of being led astray by a sense of own importance in the chain of understanding, and be inference a different spirit.
Finally, I don’t believe the Holy Spirit reveals all truth to us in a blinding flash. Sometimes the Holy Spirit treats us as slow learners and takes us through a growing purpose. I am reminded that the Church has a number of unresolved issues (in spite of majority votes at GC sessions. The fact that in our minds these issues are unresolved may be an indicator that the learning process is still ongoing.
Amen. “They can be silent concerning their own finite selves, but can extol the the greatness of Christ, waking up an interest in others by revealing of His marvelous love(character of God).”
“Not I but Christ in every thought and word...Christ only Christ, no trace of I be found.”
Brigitte,
Thank you for your wonderful testimony of how the Holy Spirit impacts your life. I have also found that the Holy Spirit helps me understand the Word of the LORD that He inspired.
I am also thankful that He has inspired other current believers with the Spiritual Gifts of words of knowledge and wisdom 1Cor 12:8
Thank you Shirley, Maurice, Beth and Robert – not to worry, just wanting to share my experience with the Holy Spirit with my fellow classmates! 😊 My comments attempt to show the unparalleled, unduplicatable, rich relationship one gains when establishing this essential familiarity with the Holy Spirit and walk with Him as one in Christ Jesus.
You might have read Lyn’s comments relating her experience with the Holy Spirit and the response from some Christians and unchurched folks. Anyone who greatly desires to always love God with all their heart can hear Him speak when they reach out to talk with Him; my great concern is that we have yet to learn to recognize Him when He interacts with us, how He works in our hearts and minds.
When talking about the "Education in the early Church" and the inspirational power behind its rapid growth, there is no other explanation than that it was the work of the Holy Spirit who filled the hearts and minds of the converts to overflowing, spreading the Good News throughout the world from heart to heart and mind to mind.
The Holy Spirit has been given at Pentecost to all the world, not just the room-full of disciples and seekers of the Truth at Jerusalem; since then He is with us until the end of our time on earth and throughout all eternity - Heb.13:5,6KJV.
Christ Jesus encouraged them to go out into all the world to preach the Father’s Gospel. Christ Jesus would not have given His followers this commission if the Holy Spirit would not be available everywhere in the world the Good News is being proclaimed and could be understood by those who believe; He gave this directive because the Holy Spirit is available to all the world, not any longer only to the Jew.
The Holy Spirit prepared the disciple’s heart and mind, and it was He that gave Himself to guide them on their way and to meet Him in the hearts of the hearers of the Gospel message; He still does this same work today!
In our day and time, Ellen White is the best example how the ‘everyday person’ is effected when in close fellowship with the Holy Spirit. She was given a special commission to teach, instruct and reveal the work of the Holy Spirit to the hearts and minds of men; but she points out that to all is given the opening of our spiritual eyes and ears, hearts and minds at any time we meet the Holy Spirit in Christ Jesus.
Every time I read her writings, I find the Spirit inside me confirm and rejoice with her in the wonderful Wisdom of His Truth she shares with us.
Especially now as we draw closer and closer to the end of times, I believe it to be urgent for all to start to become comfortable with intentionally reaching out to the Holy Spirit for Wisdom and discernment; without Him, our heart and mind cannot fully appreciate the spiritual message contained in the Word of God nor can we be assured to not faint when He guides us through this world in embroiled in ever increasing turmoil.
My two cents. The Bible also states:
Isaiah 8:20 (KJV) "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."
This is what keeps us discerning of truth or error when people say they have a word from the Holy Spirit.
Good for us to discuss the Spirit of God and His relation to us through the Word of God.
There is a chapter in GC called "The Scriptures A Safeguard". The Psalmist says "thy word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path". The prophet tells us to test all things by the law and the testimony(Isa 8:20) in order to know what is "light" and what is not.
The Holy Spirit will never operate outside of God's word, and will lead us to find truth while enabling the repentant and surrendered heart to demonstrate in their life the righteousness described by the law. We will thus be safe to know the truth and to prove/test any source, which through the Word will be tested with the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. It is the word that acts like a sharp two-edged sword, but only when the one wielding it is enlightened by the Spirit of God, and if this is the case, it will be in a Christ-like manner with a meek and lowly heart that lives to serve. Yet even Christ was often misunderstood and accused.
In scripture we are shown that "the wise shall understand" while the wicked cannot understand(Dan 12:10). Notice the division in society between the wise and the wicked/foolish. So isn't wisdom the principle thing, which is acquired by obedience to the teachings of God's word as Jesus taught(Matt 7:24) and demonstrated by God's faithful servants such as Joseph, Daniel, the 3 worthies, and many more.
We've seen how the word can be distorted and perverted when any "hold the truth in unrighteousness"(Rom 1:18) and not obeyed by faith through the power of the indwelling Spirit. The obedience of faith seems to be the key point, which requires a knowledge of Truth(John 17:17) which the Spirit of God enables in all who "repent and believe the gospel" as Jesus taught(Mark 1:15). The Spirit of God cannot dwell in any other than the repentant, believing soul who lives "by every word" that God has given. Don't we see this illustrated in the parable of the 10 virgins of Matt 25? Without the oil(Spirit), the lamp(Word) will give no light. Can we say the same about the oil(Spirit) without any lamp(word)?
There is an interesting take in Luke’s gospel that helped me to understand why one needs the regenerative power of the HOLY SPIRIT in order to understand the deep things of GOD. And why it’s so difficult to accept ‘new’ truth having been accustomed to teachings and doctrines of men. Luke 5:37-39 And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish.
But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved.
No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is better.