On the Road to Bethlehem #18: The Teacher

“I will open My mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
things that we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the LORD, and His might,
and the wonders that He has done.”

—Psalm 78:2-4

Looking for God’s Messiah means looking for the one who is the teacher par excellence. Different times in the Old Testament, God’s Messiah is described as a teacher unlike any other (Isaiah 30:19-26; Joel 2:23). He would speak in parables (stories with a point), and reveal mysteries hidden long ago.

In Isaiah 30:19-26, the prophet Isaiah prophesied in the midst of a judgment threatened by Assyria—that God’s grace would come to them in the form of the “Teacher” (Isaiah 30:20). He would be visible to everyone, and His teaching will instruct them how to live, and will dwell with them internally,  

“And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left” (Isaiah 30:21).

Isaiah foresaw the day when God’s law would be written on the human heart (cf. Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:25-27) and God would guide them by His Spirit dwelling within them (cf. Romans 8:14; Galatians 5:16, 18, 25). For believers in Christ, we know that all of this was made possible in and through Christ. He is God’s Messiah and He is the Teacher of teachers.

The Psalmist wrote that God’s Messiah would open His mouth in parables revealing mysteries from the ancient past, which is exactly what Jesus did. His teachings were filled with parables. As Matthew wrote,

“All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, He said nothing to them without a parable. This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:

‘I will open My mouth in parables;
I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world"—Matthew 13:34-35.

Jesus’ insight and wisdom were so phenomenal that Matthew records that  

“the crowds were astonished at His teaching, for He was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes” (Matthew 7:28-29). 

Jesus was a teacher unlike any other, and could utter mysteries that had been “hidden since the foundation of the world” because He was there when the foundations of the world were laid (cf. Luke 10:18; John 1:1-3; 17:24; Hebrews 4:3; 1 Peter 1:20). He was the divine author of Scripture (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:16) and contained within Him were the mysteries of God (Romans 16:25; Ephesians 1:9-10; 3:9).

C.S. Lewis captures the essence of this thought in his “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” when Aslan, the Christ-figure, in arguing with the White Witch over the Deep Magic which was present at the beginning of time says, “Do not cite the Deep Magic to me Witch. I was there when it was written.”

Jesus is God’s Messiah and the greatest Teacher the world has ever seen or will ever see. Even as a child, Jesus displayed remarkable understanding far beyond anyone His age—sitting in the Temple with the great teachers of Israel, “listening to them and asking them questions” He “amazed” all who heard Him (Luke 2:46-47). In one of the great mysteries of the incarnation, Jesus-the divine Son of God, “increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52).

When He grew up and began His ministry, He spoke and taught like no one before Him (Matthew 7:28-29; 8:27; Mark 1:22, 27; 4:41; Luke 4:32, 36; 8:25). And His words provided through scripture help us know the way of God and “walk in it.” Indeed, if everything Jesus ever said and did were described to us, then the “world itself could not contain the books that would be written” (John 21:25).

The Gospels give us a clear picture of Jesus—the Son of the one true God, who is Himself God, and the one given for us so that we might know God and delight in Him. He is the great teacher and as we obey His Words, we discover joy and peace.

As we seek to study God’s Word, understand it, and then do what it says, we learn that God’s words are meant for us to act as participants in God’s divine drama of redemption. His words are just as alive now as they were then (2 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 4:12; cf. Deuteronomy 32:47) and impart life to us by the Spirit of God (Romans 10:17; cf. John 14:26).

May this Advent season be a time of wonder as we marvel at the Savior, the great Teacher, who reveals the truths hidden throughout the ages and enables us to be participants in His saving plan for humanity. This allows us to experience the joy of knowing and living for Him. Amen.