The Revelation of the Christ

As we continue our Christology, this week we are focusing on the teaching ministry of Jesus.  This is the Revelation of the Christ.  Through his preaching, he displayed the attribute of wisdom as he proclaimed words of life.

Nobody taught like Jesus.  No one will ever teach like Jesus.  He was able to communicate long messages to all types of people and his words survived in a mainly oral culture for us to read today.

Some things to remember about Jesus’ teaching ministry:

  • Jesus’ teaching was characterized as having authority.  When he spoke, people listened (Matt. 7:28-29).
  • He often spoke in parable so that those with Kingdom eyes could understand.  Unfortunately, even the disciples had to have private explanations from time to time (Matt. 13:10-17).
  • Jesus’ ability to teach in parables made his lessons memorable and explained those things hidden (Matt. 13:34-35).
  • At Jesus’ Transfiguration, God the Father told the disciples within ear shot, “This is my beloved Son – listen to Him!”  He’s got so much good stuff to say – don’t miss a word!
  • He differed from the religious teachers of the day because they were not known for their authoritative teaching.  He stood out from the rest (Mark 1:21-28).
  • He was least accepted for his teaching in his hometown (Mark 6:1-3).
  • Jesus started his teaching ministry when he came to his hometown and was asked to read from the Scriptures.  In many ways, he launched his ministry when he read about the Messiah and said, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:14-22).
  • While his teachings are hard and many disciples walked away, Peter said it best when he said, “To whom else can we go?  You have words of eternal life” (John 6:60-69).