Isaiah 50:4
this is especially for you teachers out there. i know that not everyone has been blessed with the gift to teach; however, i think this will be applicable for everyone.
it is interesting that this passage in isaiah not only says that this "servant" has been given a tongue to teacher, but, also, and perhaps more importantly, he has been given an ear to listen. there is a cliche - do not speak before you think. i think that God wants even more than that, though. God instructs us, especially teachers, not to speak before we listen.
why? because before we can teach, we must give the subject matter we are teaching an opportunity to "speak" the truth of itself to us. there must be a time for our notions about an object to be corrected by the object itself. this cannot be done through study and observation alone. spending time listening first is the only way to teach honestly, for how can we teach what we do not truthfully know.
this is especially true for God. we can read all about God... in the bible, in theology books, in forwarded emails. we can build up all kinds of knowledge about God, and we can think we have this God-stuff pretty much down based on this learned knowledge. but this knowledge does not mean that we "know" the subject matter - God. it would be inappropriate for me to sit somewhere public, observing someone without them knowing it, and then think that i can make a judgement about who this person is without ever having talked with them. i could probably tell you a little about this person, but i think, for the most part, i would be very wrong about him/her. you see, relationships are dynamic and mutual. we have to constantly hold our ideas about someone up to this person and allow them to be corrected. this is the only way to truly get to know someone.
God gives us the opportunity to do this with Him. He gives us the opportunity to move towards the truth of who He is. One of the psalms in the lectionary today states, "...you have given me an open ear" (psalm 40:6). the more literal translation is, "...ears you have dug for me." this might be a gross imagine, but it is describing the fact that God has dug out holes in our head in order to hear Him correctly. God has to give us the ability to hear Him, as we cannot hear Him otherwise because He is wholly other (this is the meaning of "holy"). you see, we cannot inherently understand God. He is beyond our common experience in His transcendence. there is nothing for us to compare Him to or no previous experience that allows us to assimilate Him into our knowledge. but God has blessed us with this ability to hear and know Him. however, we must be very careful. this relationship we have with Him demands our constant correction and repentance in understanding as we come to know Him more.
can you imagine if i thought that i could teach about God simply because i had taken some seminary classes? this alone is not what prepares me to teach. it is certainly helps in my understanding of God, but in the end, all the seminary classes in the world cannot provide what i need to teach about God. instead, i must be attentive to who God is revealing Himself to be through listening to Him.
as we are all students, i challenge you all to listen for God, allowing Him to reveal Himself and correct your notions of who He is. i pray that you would not think that simply going to church or reading the bible would be enough. a relationship, as i am sure all of you know, takes more than this. i also pray that you will discover what i have discovered - that He is a lot more majestic and amazing than i could have ever imagined on my own. i also challenge all you teachers out there: be careful how you teach. be sure you are not only reading books about your subject matter, but make sure you are spending time in silence, allowing your subject matter to "speak" to you the truth of itself.
cheers,
jw <><
1 comment:
Great piece Jon. your mediations should wisdom.
Post a Comment