Note: The past two books I have published began as blog series and later were edited/expanded and published as books. In the case of this series, I am planning to do so upfront. In other words, what you will read on my blog over the balance of the next year is a serialized book. As I complete sections, I will post them on this blog. Eventually, it will be published as a book.
The Sunday School Teacher 1, Introduction
I
must confess something right here at the outset. I was tempted to title this
book "Making Sunday School Great Again." I have not, primarily
because this is not a book about organizing, promoting, or building a great
Sunday School. I do not know how to write that book, and others in previous
generations have already written it better than I could. Yet, in a sense, I am
still tempted by that title, for in helping you to become a better teacher, the
result will absolutely be a great Sunday School. Class. As Lee Roberson said,
“Everything rises and falls on leadership.” Your Sunday School class will rise
or fall on you.
…which is why you picked up this book,
is it not? Perhaps I should say why this book was handed to you. Perhaps you
have a desire to become a better Sunday School teacher, or perhaps someone else
has that desire for you. I am grateful either way. God is honored when we seek
to improve our usefulness for Him. While nothing will increase your ability to
teach like actively teaching, it is also true that your teaching skills can be
sharpened by studying a book like this. Like your students, you will encounter
information you had not previously known, take ownership of that information,
and then change your life. In the process, you may well help the lost to be
saved and the saved to be edified. And if that happens, I am amply repaid for
my labors.
Having established that my desire is
to perfect you for the work of the ministry (Ephesians 2.19) and that
your desire is to be perfected, let us turn now to how this book intends to do
that.
On these pages, you will find three
sections. First, there is the spiritual aspect of teaching Sunday School. While
some teaching disciplines cross schools, teaching the Bible to people is
definitively a spiritual process. In this section, we will examine the history
and necessity of Sunday School, the primacy of teaching, the superiority of the
traditional Sunday School over the trend of small groups, seek to answer
whether you have the gift of teaching, expound on the qualifications necessary
to teach, emphasize the spiritual purposes of Sunday School, explain how to be
a spiritually powerful teacher, look at Christ as our example in teaching, and
close with a discussion of the Sunday School teacher’s best aide, the Holy
Spirit.
Second, we will examine the philosophy
behind teaching as a craft. Drawing primarily from other men's work here, I
will seek to show you how the teacher, the learner, the language, the lesson,
the teaching process, the learning process, and the review all intersect to
produce excellent teaching. We will close this section with a discussion of the
proper mental approach a teacher needs, how to become a long-term teacher, the
appropriate approach for an assistant teacher, whether team teaching is valid,
and the benefits that fill a Sunday School teacher’s life.
Third, we will turn to the practical. How
do you choose what to teach? How do you write a lesson plan? How do you
emphasize specific applications? How do you build a relationship with your
students? How do you create a class spirit? How do you get your students
involved? How do you grow your class? How do you maintain control? How can you
successfully tailor your teaching to little children, young children, older
children, young teenagers, older teenagers, single adults, young married
couples, mature Christians, a men's class, a women's class, etc.? How do you
get the students to study at home during the week? How do you build a culture
of Bible memorization? How should illustrations be used in your teaching? What
about record keeping? Prayerfully, you will find help to deal with subjects
such as these and more.
My overall intent is to keep each chapter
or section of a chapter relatively short. I want you to be able to read this in
quick snatches of time here and there throughout the week. I want it to provoke
thought, yes, but more so to move you to action. I want you to consciously try
something new each week or month over the next year. I want you to grow as you
internalize what you read and gradually begin to put it into practice. I want
your capacity and ability as a teacher to expand. I want you to be more useful
to the Lord and more edifying to your students.
Finally, a brief word about sources. A
number of good books are available that touch on different aspects of Sunday
School, including teaching. I gathered several of them. As I read, I culled
them for helpful ideas and applications, many of which have found their way
into this work. I will list them for you below. In bold are the ones I found
more helpful than not.
-Spiritual Power in Your Teaching, Roy B. Zuck, Moody Press,
1963, 188 pages
-The Seven Laws
of Teaching, John Milton
Gregory, Baker Books, 2003, 128 pages
-The Sunday School
In Action, Clarence H.
Benson, The Bible Institute Colportage Association, 1941, 327 pages
-The Successful
Sunday School and Teachers Guidebook, Elmer
Towns, Creation House, 1980, 400 pages
-What Every Sunday
School Teacher Should Know, Elmer L. Towns,
Gospel Light, 2001, 180 pages
-Youth and the
Church, Roy G. Irving and
Roy B. Zuck, Moody Press, 1972, 442 pages
-Mentoring and
Modeling, Dr. John Goetsch
and Dr. Mark Rasmussen, Striving Together Publications, 2002, 199 pages
-101 Tips For
Teaching, Mark Rasmussen,
Striving Together Publications, 2007, 205 pages
-Building A
Standard Sunday School, Arthur Flake, The
Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1934, 171 pages
-World's Largest
Junior Church, Dr. Jim Vineyard,
self-published, 1981, 133 pages
-Teachers That
Teach, Amos R. Wells, The
Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1924, 138 pages
-Biblical Youth
Work, Jim Krohn,
self-published, 2005, 355 pages
-May I Suggest; For Parents and Leaders of Teens, Thomas J. Vogel, Bird Publishing Company, 2000, 224 pages
-Teaching
Sunday School Teachers to Teach,
Dr. Jeff Owens, Owens Publications, 2012, 223 pages
You can be an
outstanding Sunday School teacher. Together, let us turn the page and learn
how.
