As Was His Custom: Teaching

On hundreds of Sundays, I padded down the blue-carpeted basement steps to our newly constructed Sunday School rooms. I followed as other children walked into their respective classrooms. I looked forward to Sundays, as I enjoyed learning about Jesus, but I especially loved being taught by Doug Livgren. Now, looking back, it's because his love and passion for Jesus superseded just "getting through the Sunday School curriculum." My class would enter, girls giggling and boys shoving to get to seats, and Doug would walk in and command attention from us. What I remember most was having light bulb moments through his teaching, and honestly when I taught third-grade boys Sunday School in college, I thought back often and used Doug's methods.

Teaching is one of the many customs/habits of Jesus. Immediately following his 40 days in the wilderness (Luke 4), he begins traveling, preaching, and teaching in synagogues throughout the countryside. He even taught (albeit briefly) in His hometown of Nazareth. (Click here for a blog post on this topic!) However, Jesus' teaching slightly differed from what we're used to in our Western context. Jesus, more than likely, was educated in rabbinic tradition (see here for more info).