Do We Need Teachers or Shepherds?

I recently discovered a way to tell the difference between a teacher and a shepherd in Sunday School: ask the question, “What are you teaching right now in your church?”

 

The one who says they are teaching a five-week class on First John is the teacher; the one who says they are teaching middle school boys is the shepherd! I got this question from David Francis’ work on spiritual gifts. I found this to be a very provocative observation.

 

So often we believe that we are teaching lessons from the Bible when in reality we are teaching people the Bible! Here are other observations regarding shepherding: 

• Shepherds know their sheep – The best teachers are those who take into account those whom they are teaching, we must know about life stages, gender differences, how to communicate, how this group learns, etc.
• Shepherds know their flock – They keep up with details about individuals in the class, maybe using a notebook to keep up with birthdays, anniversaries, hobbies, etc.
• Shepherds don’t wait for Sunday – Plenty of ministry opportunities await the shepherd when they are involved in their lives of their sheep during the week.
• Shepherds use a staff – They organize the class into smaller groups to help distribute the task of keeping up with the flock. 

The key for me is that we teach people and not lessons!