His Work as a Teacher.—But the question here is not concerning Christ as the founder of a religion, nor of his divine character or life, but of Christ as a teacher. He is justly entitled to be called "The Great Teacher." Karl Schmidt says, "By his doctrines and through his deeds,—in and with his entire life,—is Christ the teacher and educator of humanity." His method is the foundation of all true teaching. Let us note some of the important characteristics of this method.
1. It was suited to his hearers.—When Christ taught the people he used material that they could comprehend. Thus, when he spoke his parable of the sower, while he sat by the seaside, the multitude before him had gathered from the villages and farms of the country round about. They therefore could thoroughly appreciate the lesson. His parable of the vineyard was doubtless suggested by the vine-clad hills of Judea, and the lessons taught were made more forcible by their suitableness. In his conversation with the learned Nicodemus he plunged at once into the most profound doctrines, but when he talked with the ignorant Samaritan woman, his approach to the truth he would teach was most simple and gradual. No one ever failed to understand him, and he is a most remarkable example of the teacher suiting himself to the capacity of his pupils.
2. It was full of illustrations.—When he wished to teach the evil of covetousness he told of the rich man and his barns; he encouraged faithfulness by the parable of the talents; he stimulated to fruit bearing by the story of the fig tree; he taught mercy by the account of the Good Samaritan; joy over repentance was illustrated by the story of the ninety and nine. And so we find that by ample and suitable illustration the Savior enforced the sublime truths that he taught.
3. It was simple and yet logical.—There was no effort to be philosophical, yet the teachings of Christ are full of philosophy. The language used and the manner of putting the truth were so simple that the ignorant man and the child were never left in doubt as to his meaning. Nevertheless his teaching was not haphazard; it was connected and logical. It contained so much of truth, so systematically put and so much to the point in view, that, while it appealed at once to the understanding of his hearers, it also furnished material for thought for the most learned of all ages. Whether it was a parable or a story, an admonition or a rebuke, a sermon or a prayer, a word of comfort to the sisters of Bethany or an argument with the chief priests, a familiar conversation with his disciples or a stern rebuke of the scribes and Pharisees,—Christ always expressed himself with simplicity and clearness.
4. It drew from Nature.—Christ loved to walk in the fields with his disciples and draw lessons from the plants, the birds, the sowing of the farmer, the gathering of fruit from the vineyard, the ripening harvests, and the whispering breezes. "Consider the lilies of the field how they grow;" "behold the fowls of the air;" "a sower went forth to sow;" "a certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon and found none;" "lift up your eyes and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest;" "the wind bloweth where it listeth,"—these and many other texts show that Christ was familiar with Nature, and loved to call upon her for illustration and example.
5. It elevated the truth and sought to enforce it.—Christ gave himself a sacrifice for the truth. He allowed no thought of personal safety or success to overshadow the truth. All his words, his acts, his teachings, aimed at establishing the truth. He overthrew old systems and introduced a new spirit into the world, even the spirit of truth. He was the very essence of truth, declaring to Thomas, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." He thus gave to teachers for all time a noble example and an immortal principle, vital to their success in true teaching. It is the truth that must be taught and practiced by every one worthy of the name of teacher.
6. It was earnest and full of sympathy.—The earnestness of Christ aroused the populace to shout "Hosanna!" and provoked the bitter hostility of his enemies. It drew multitudes into the wilderness and attracted crowds wherever he went. His sympathy went out to the people as "sheep having no shepherd." It led him to feed the multitude, heal the sick, raise the dead, take little children in his arms and bless them, and weep over Jerusalem. He came close to the lives and hearts of those whom he instructed. This is one of the grandest lessons that the Great Teacher left for teachers of all time.
These are some of the chief characteristics of Christ's spirit and method. He loved little children, and taught his disciples, when he had set a little child in the midst of them, "Whosoever, therefore, shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Every one of the principles above stated is essential to the teacher, and these principles contain the sum and substance of all true pedagogy. Well has Karl Schmidt expressed the truth, when he says, "Christ, the perfect teacher, gave by his example and by his own teaching the eternal principles of pedagogy."