Able to Teach: Passion, Precision, and Power

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Now, the gift of the ability to teach, I understand it as passion, precision, and power. 

Passion

First is that inward compulsion. If you don't like studying God's Word or it's hard, you're probably not called to the pastorate. If you are afraid to get up and preach God's word, it doesn't mean you won't have nerves. But if public speaking is not your thing, I don't know how you're going to do it. And so it's most important that you have a passion, first and foremost, to say, Hey, I actually love studying God's Word. And I love teaching.

Precision

Now, that can lead to pride. So there's something else: Precision. There are a lot of people in the church who speak really well. But a lot of times they're not accurate, right? And so you have the health and wealth pastors, you have famous televangelists who aren't preaching the gospel. So it's not just passion, but is there precision? Precision is accuracy and clarity. Do you interpret the word and communicate it clearly enough? Where people sitting in the church say, Oh, I feel like God speaking through you. It's clear that when I look at the Word, it doesn't seem like you're saying something that's off. 

Power

But the most important one that determines whether or not a person is able to teach in this context is neither of those. It is the power of the Spirit. Passion, precision power. Because, as we've mentioned, you can get up and preach and even be eloquent. But if there's no spiritual power, and that's what I said, this sermon is brought to you by the power of Wednesday night prayer; if there's no power, that sermon is not landing anywhere.

I'll show you an example. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 2:3-5: “And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” Back in Paul's days, there was a Greco Roman culture, where there was a lot of oratory excellence, where people prided themselves in eloquence, and being able to make these lofty arguments. Paul's being really clear that when he brought the Word of God, it did not come in words of wisdom or an eloquence, but it came with the power of the Spirit. And so whether or not the Spirit of God has anointed the lips of a man determines whether or not that person is able to teach.