Yesterday I discussed and took a look at the question of who is a teacher in the life of the church? Simply everyone who claims to love Jesus will be a teacher, but this raises another question then. That question is then what is the character that a teacher must exhibit. Before I give some thoughts on the character of teachers I have another definition of a teacher.
"To teach is to create a space in which obedience to the Truth is practiced".
But what about the character of a teacher? I believe that a simple way to say what the character of a teacher must be is in the acronym IMPACT. A teacher in the church and a person that cares about the spiritual formation of others in the faith family must be the IMPACT model. let me explain a little what each trait is.
Intercession must be the first trait. Every teacher must realize that they are standing between their learner and God. They must show and give the words of God to the learner and be the go between by explaining God's word, showing God's life, and be a living fleshly example of what God is calling all of His children to do.
Modeling must also be a trait of every teacher. Teacher not only teach by word but more importantly by deed and action. A teacher must show in action but what they do and do not do what it means to live as a follower and lover of Jesus.
Partnership is a trait that a teacher must posses to have any hope in reaching the learner. God has designed the faith family to be a community and group of people living together in the world. This means that relationships and partnerships must take place for learning to be had. Teachers must work together with their learners at their pace so they can live for Jesus the best.
Alertness is a trait that every Christian should have but especially every teacher. The world is a nasty dark place that fights against the church and Jesus. The teacher must be alert and not get sucked into the sin of the world and also be alert to how the world is deceiving others, especially the learners so they can reach the others with the greatest impact for Jesus.
Cultivation is a trait of the teacher that requires patience. Teacher must realize they are in it for the long haul and learning does not happen over night. Every person will learn at their own pace and living in this world is a struggle where sometimes we find ourselves stumbling forward. The teacher must spend the time through many different ways equipping the learner for service and learning of Jesus.
Time is a must in the life of every teacher. Time must be allowed and every teacher must have the time to invest in and train others. As was stated earlier, growth and Christian maturity doe not happen over night and every Christian, including most importantly myself, is still a growing learning Christian. Time is vital to pour into every learner.
The IMPACT model is a great place to start with the character of every teacher. But the best place for every teacher to start to look at for a good character trait is to look to the only perfect Teacher, Jesus. Jesus gives us the best character trait to resemble in a teacher.
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