Building up the Bible school

1) Not long ago in the Gospel Advocate a very bright man made a very good observation.

2) He noted how Jesus was the son of a carpenter; this fact is not new news to any of us.

3) He then suggested that Joseph’s trade may have had some affect on Jesus’ teachings.

4) This is an interesting idea.

a) Jesus spoke about the “wise” and “foolish” builders in Mt. 7.

b) He also spoke of “building” His church in Mt. 16.

5) Jesus did not say He was going to “establish, found, or start.” He said “build.”

6) Jesus was a builder, and he was not the only one.

7) We were asked to have our Bibles open to 1 Cor. 3 and tonight this where we start.

a) The Corinthian congregation really came into existence because of Paul.

b) For 18 months Paul worked in Corinth and people in this city were converted.

c) Paul said there is only one foundation for Christianity.

d) This foundation is explicitly said to be Jesus Christ, 1 Cor. 3:11.

8) Paul had Christ as the chief corner stone of his work and he helped establish a congregation.

9) Let’s start with 1 Cor. 3:6 – READ

a) Corinth was a pagan city; when Paul went there, it was really brand new territory.

b) He began to preach and teach the gospel. Pretty soon a congregation was started.

c) One of the key verses for tonight’s material is verse 10 – READ

10) Paul was able to start things and he knew that others would come along and also do some building.

a) What we see in verse 10 has been taking place for more than 2,000 years.

b) An individual or a group of people start a congregation.

c) Eventually these “founding members” get old and die.

d) In other cases they move to another area and start another congregation.

e) Verse 10 recognizes that others must continue the work.

f) If this is not done, a congregation will usually die.

11) In the part of the world where the Corinthian congregation was, the church was once well established.

12) If my understanding is correct, that is no longer the case.

13) Faithful and dedicated people did not continue the work of Paul.

14) Faithful congregations either died off or drifted into religious error.

a) What happened to the Corinthian church and sister congregations can still occur.

b) A congregation is started in the United States and time begins to pass.

c) Members of a congregation continue to build on the work, or they let things slide.

15) We know what happens to a house that is not maintained – it begins to fall apart.

16) Little defects appear and as the years go by it may fall into such a state of disrepair it is condemned.

a) There are different ways to apply the principle in 1 Cor. 3, but tonight we apply it to Bible classes.

b) At some point in the past members of this congregation established Bible classes.

c) As with any a congregation we have two basic choices.

d) We can build on the foundation that has been laid or we can just let things alone.

e) If we build, 1 Cor. 3:10 says “take heed” in our building.

f) We need to do the right things and do them in the right way.

g) If we fail to build, we will not be faithful stewards of what has been left to us.

17) We want to be builders and build the best we can for as long as we can.

18) Jesus was a builder and there are some senses in which we can be just like Him.

a) Tonight we consider how we can be a Bible class builder.

b) I have put together 9 points that relate to building local Bible classes.

19) A wise builder does not build without a plan.

a) If we are going to teach a Bible class, we should know where we are heading.

b) There are some preachers how are “Saturday night preachers.”

c) Late Saturday night they think, “Sunday is almost upon me and I need a sermon.”

d) They sit down and quickly try to come up with a Bible class and a sermon for the next day.

e) This type of approach is almost always doomed to fail for many reasons.

20) Congregations can fall into this same type of trap – there is not much planning.

21) Teachers need a plan. Elders need a plan. Parents also need to do some planning.

22) In some cases, this is not done and this is wrong.

a) We would fire a builder who said he would build a house for us without a set of plans.

b) Imagine someone who said, “I will get a load of lumber and just start nailing it together.”

c) “In the end everything will be fine.” Elkhart county is not going to sign off on that idea.

d) Souls are the most precious thing in the world. This is why Paul said “take heed” how we build.

e) If we do not have a plan for classes, we will not be a good builder.

23) If a builder is going to build, he needs tools.

24) He may not have the most update to date tools. He may not have power tools.

25) He does need tools that will allow him to be able to do the job.

26) Bible class teachers need tools.

a) 2 Tim. 3:16-17 says the Bible furnishes unto “every good work” (this includes Bible classes).

b) The Bible should be first and foremost tool in our classes.

c) Class members should be encouraged to bring a Bible.

d) Some type of recognition or reward program for children who bring Bibles can be used.

e) Students need to be pointed to the Bible for answers to questions – book chapter and verse teaching.

f) Rather than “I think,” teaching should be “God says through His word or “Bible says.”

27) It is certainly true that we have tools that can help illustrate the Bible.

28) There are visual aids for many of the classes; if you need help investigating these, see the elders.

29) Maps are available, class literature is available, various graphics are readily available.

30) Many different sources allow us to make full use of God’s essential tool we call the Bible.

31) To make full and proper use of these tools takes time and skill.

32) Most construction works are not experts the first day out on the job; they need to develop skills.

33) Some may think they need to be the best and greatest Bible class teacher the first day.

34) This is not true – teaching skills are learned and improved upon with time.

35) Look for and use the best resources that are available. If help is desired, please ask.

36) Builders need to be dedicated to their task of building.

37) No one wants a builder who would start a house and finish it 45 years later.

38) We want construction workers who will commit to a job and see the project through.

39) We want them to be “hands on” people.

40) This is what we need to build a good Bible school problem.

41) 1 Cor. 15:58 says “always abounding in the work of the Lord.”

42) We know our “labor is not in vain” (same verse) so we are dedicated to the task.

43) We come, we teach, and we stick with the program during the good and bad times.

44) We do not want to “grow weary” in well-doing (Gal. 6:9).

45) Item 4 involves helpers.

a) A few years ago I knew a man who said he was going to build a house by himself.

b) He was a neighbor in Millersburg. This man was not able to build the house entirely by himself.

c) He did much of the work himself, but there were others who helped.

d) When it comes to being a Bible class teacher, we do not need to do everything on our own.

e) There are elders who can help resolve some problems. We have deacons.

f) There is a preacher who can (and does) help with various things affecting teachers.

g) Being a teacher does not mean we are a one man show.

h) Men like Paul had helpers (Titus, Timothy, Barnabas, Apollos, and others who are not named).

i) A good Bible class program, in some respects, is a team effort.

j) We can coordinate with other teachers to see what they are teaching and share ideas.

k) We want to have the best class we can possibly have.

46) Part of this process involves using materials.

47) What if we asked a company to build something of value for us and they used scrap wood?

48) We would not be pleased if a builder used junk material.

a) There is a lot of “spiritual junk” in our world.

b) There are some Bible versions that are paraphrases and openly teach error.

c) Other versions are not very reliable. This is one of the reasons we have made the ESV available.

d) It is a good translation and it is as easy to read as the NIV.

e) We want to educate people by using good solid Bible versions.

f) Some teachers ask every student to use the same Bible version in class.

g) This technique is often helpful.

h) We also want to be sure that any class literature is sound.

i) Passages such as 1 Tim. 1:10 refer to “sound” (healthy) teaching.

j) Apostles knew that some religious information is not sound (healthy).

k) We would hope that literature sold by our brotherhood stores would be doctrinally correct.

l) In many instances it is; there have been problems in the past.

m) Always be careful about the literature that is used.

n) We do not want it to be “okay” or “pretty good.” We want it to teach the truth.

49) We need to be sure that what we are teaching lines up perfectly with God’s word.

50) We need to be assured of that before we ever take it into a class.

51) We also need to be sure that people are being grounded in God’s word and not getting a bunch of fluff.

52) There is a time for spiritual milk, but the Bible also speaks of the “meat of the word.”

53) We call classes “Bible classes” because people are to be studying and learning from the Bible.

54) When we think about builders, we know that their work is not fast.

55) A house is not built in a day, week, or even a month. It s a process.

56) This is also true with our Bible classes. We need to teach as much as we can in a class.

57) 45 minutes a class is not very much time. We want to teach what we can and then build on it.

58) We may be giving out information in “small doses,” but all those doses eventually add up to something.

59) Teachers should be giving students a good dose of the Bible and parents should be doing the same at home.

60) We want to impart as much Bible knowledge to people as possible.

61) A builder is usually required to get permits for the work he is doing.

a) Christians also operate by “permits.”

b) We must do what God has authorized (Col. 3:17). This is a various serious part of teaching.

c) If we do not teach the truth, we do not have God (2 Jn. 9, 11).

d) John places a great burden on teachers. We need to teach the truth and only the truth.

62) After a structure is built, there must be some maintenance.

63) The builder may not have much to do what maintenance – others often have to do that.

64) In some respects a Bible school program requires maintenance.

65) The founders may be gone – long gone. They may be dead. Maybe they are in a nursing home.

66) Wherever they are, our job is to pick up and move forward.

67) We want to build on their work and be good builders.

68) We know that those who originally put a Bible school program in place were not perfect.

69) No structure is without a flaw.

70) This is also true for any Bible school program – there are always weak points.

71) We want to identify the places where our program is strong and keep those things strong.

72) We also want to look for our weak points and patch those holes.

73) In many respects a Bible school program is a congregational work.

74) It cannot be done by the preacher, the elders, or even a few committed teachers.

75) This is literally the work of the church and we need a lot of hands to make the program run well.