The Student Will Be Able To

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.  Matthew 5: 17-20

There was a time when Andrea lugged around a big fat commentary on Leviticus.  She said that it revealed God- in His holiness and His mercy. 

Rob Bell started his new church spending a year going through Leviticus, verse by verse.  He said, “Leviticus cannot be tamed.  Its imagery is too wild. We ventured into its lair and let it devour us, trusting that God would deliver us with a truer picture of his Son… We discovered that the Bible is an organic whole: these concepts do connect, these images do make sense. For the first time, many in our congregation began to realize, This story is my story. These people are my people. This God is my God.”

So Jesus is the fulfillment of the Torah, the Law of God.  He is what it looks like, not what the stiff regulations of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law looked like.  And it seems that this Sermon on the Mount is what it looks like too. 

I was asked to present the Dominican teachers Project-based Learning.  And as I walked through the material on Effective Instruction it has been a joy and delight to see Jesus’ teaching of the disciples illustrate each and every one of the points I want to make.  I think it is lovely because of course one aspect of Effective Instruction is linking new learning to old learning, and since I am pretty sure these guys are familiar with the teachings of Jesus, this linking will help them understand and remember what I want them to learn for their own classrooms, for their own disciples.

So the point of the story is that Effective Instruction involves teacher modeling.  What does this look like?  Then it involves teacher articulation: defining the terms, spelling out the rigorous objectives.   Then comes the guided practice, when the students try to put it into action- for example being part of the feeding of the five thousand, the walking on the water bit, the Lord’s Supper.  

So it has been a real joy on many levels to go through my five hours of talks, over and over, meditating on how Jesus was the Master Teacher.  Of course, throughout the centuries of following Him, folks have figured this out before.  But it is new and fresh for me, especially because it is in a different language and I have to struggle over each word.  Weigh each word. 

So Jesus is what the Laws and Prophets look like.  And this is His articulation of measurable objects.  The Student Will Be Able To. 

And the heart of God is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow. How we then should live in community with Him and with each other.  Love the LORD with all your heart, soul, mind and body.  And love others as yourself.  This is His Essential Understanding.  The big overarching objective of the Lesson Plans.

The LORD’s will stands fast forever, and the designs of His heart from age to age. Psalm 33:11