One of the most powerful articles I have ever read on teaching.
The ideal teaching situation is given us by the Savior: “When ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye may know how to act.” (D&C 43:8.) To instruct is one thing, but to instruct and edify is something more. To edify would be to instruct by the power of the Spirit. When a person edifies or teaches by the Spirit, it inspires those who hear to want to do better—to in some way act on what they have been taught.
1. Graciousness. The
Savior opened his ministry with these words from Esaias: “The Spirit of
the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel
to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, … to set at
liberty them that are bruised.” (Luke 4:18.)
To those in the synagogue, the Savior then said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
“And all … wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.” (Luke 4:21, 22.)
There
is a graciousness about those who teach the gospel by the Spirit. It
seems to be influenced by individual humility, personal faith, and a
deep and abiding love for people.
2. Testimony. “For I will forgive you of
your sins with this commandment—that you remain steadfast in your minds
in solemnity … bearing testimony to all the world of those things which
are communicated unto you.” (D&C 84:61.)
3. Scriptures. “And
they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men
of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures
diligently, that they might know the word of God.” (Alma 17:2.)
The
Lord has given the scriptures to the Church as a guide. By scriptures,
we not only refer to the four standard works but also to the inspired
writings of modern Apostles and prophets and other Church leaders as
they are “moved upon by the Holy Ghost.” (D&C 68:4.)
4. Prayer. “And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith.” (D&C 42:14.)
The
most important step in spiritual preparation is prayer. Prayer is a
means of seeking help and understanding. It is recognition that “man
doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.” (Mosiah 4:9.)
As Paul tells us, “The things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:11),
and that Spirit comes to the teacher who prays seriously and intently
as he or she prepares the lesson and seeks the inspiration to know how
to proceed. With this prayerful preparation, the teacher builds a
foundation of faith, and this faith is not “in the wisdom of men, but in
the power of God.” (1 Cor. 2:5.)
President
Spencer W. Kimball tells us: “He stands and knocks. If we do not
listen, he will not sup with us nor give answer to our prayers. We must
learn how to listen, grasp, interpret, understand. The Lord stands
knocking. He never retreats. But he will never force himself upon us. If
our distance from him increases, it is we who have moved and not the
Lord. And should we ever fail to get an answer to our prayers, we must
look into our lives for a reason. We have failed to do what we should
do, or we have done something we should not have done. We have dulled
our hearing or impaired our eyesight.” (Faith Precedes the Miracle, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1972, p. 208.)
And
so we see the great governing principle for all teachers in the Church
is to teach the gospel by the power of the Spirit. In fact, Joseph Smith
said that “all are to preach the Gospel, by the power and influence of
the Holy Ghost; and no man can preach the Gospel without the Holy
Ghost.” (History of the Church, 2:477.)
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