Some Presuppositions
It might be best to set forth some of the questions that are in my mind as I examine the scriptures regarding this matter of the need for teaching in the church. Here are they are:

1. Did Paul purposefully and systematically teach the whole counsel of God, or did it come out spontaneously? Another way of asking the question would be this – is purposeful and systematic teaching devoid of the Holy Spirit, is the Holy Spirit only and always spontaneous?
2. Did the teaching that we do see take place in the meeting of the church, or did it take place at some other time in some other venue?

It is interesting to me that as I have considered these questions, I immediately have to deal with elements of the first one, even before I get into studying what the scripture has to say about them. Why is this? It is because I cannot escape the way I am made and the way I think. I have to decide if I am going to read and study the scriptures or not. Or do I simply wait for the Holy Spirit to tell me the answer? Is the mental activity of studying, in and of itself, devoid of or antithetical to the leading and illumination of the Holy Spirit? But…how would I even know that the Holy Spirit has anything to do with this matter if I did’t read, study, and understand the scriptural writings?

Or…is there some combination of these two ideas that more accurately describes the reality that we are and live with by nature?

I suppose that I have a presupposition, and that is that God created mankind in such a way that we process information through our senses, and that includes the reading of written words which convey specific ideas and concepts through grammar, syntax, and word meanings. I’m sure this isn’t an exhaustive statement about how humans think or process information, but it does present part of the reality that we are. And thus I find that since I believe that the Bible is God’s inerrant and sufficient revelation, I hold it in high esteem and believe that it is vital for me to read and understand it.

At the same time, I understand that the carnal mind is at enmity with God and thus the presence and illumination of the Holy Spirit are necessary.

So, I pray that the combination of the human intellect which God has given and the illumination of the Holy Spirit will open my eyes to see and understand God’s will in this matter.

To close, I suspect that the teaching that Paul did in Ephesus, was very much like the teaching of Jesus. It included both systematic teaching and spontaneous teaching. Jesus preached and taught the gospel everywhere he went (Matthew 4:23, 9:35). I expect that he taught the same thing in every village he passed through and every home he entered. In other words, I don’t think that Jesus’ teaching recorded in Matthew 5-7 was a one-time-never-to-be-repeated message – it must have been spoken many times. I know that sounds kind of dull.

But look at what Paul wrote:

1 Corinthians 4:17 For this reason I have sent Timothy to you, who is my beloved and faithful son in the Lord, who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church.

Filed under: Presuppositions, Teaching in the Church