Category Archives: About All Age Groups

Do you struggle with making the time to adequately prepare your lessons? Do you feel like you have to drag yourself to class? Do you wonder why you ever said yes to teaching? If so, you undoubtedly need to tap into the ultimate motivation for teaching the Word — love.

What Will Motivate Us to Want to Teach and Give It Our All?

The Apostle Paul found ultimate motivation in the love us Christ.

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. (2 Cor. 5:14-15)

A lack of motivation in teaching may in reality be a desire to live for ourselves. We have other ways we’d rather spend our time. We don’t want to be inconvenienced. It may be uncomfortable for us to deal with questions and issues that arise. When compelled by Christ’s love, we no longer live for ourselves but for Him. Teaching then moves out of the realm of obligation, or duty, and into a desire to participate with Him in discipling others. His love has such a grip on us that we can’t help but share it. We want to spur other on to love and good deeds (Heb. 10:24).

How Christ’s Love as Our Ultimate Motivation Compels Us

We must first understand that human love alone, what we can manufacture within us, won’t be enough. We need a love that endures, that won’t fail (1 Cor. 13:7-8). Only God’s love does that, so we need to be compelled by His love.

1) Realize what His love drove Him to do on your behalf. Let it change you.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Rom. 5:8)

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Eph. 3:17-19)

2) Rely on His love so you in turn can love others like Jesus. Let it consume you.

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. (1 Jn. 4:16-19)

3) Recognize the role of the Holy Spirit working in and through you to love as He loves. Let it complete you.

… God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Rom. 5:5)

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. … But the fruit of the Spirit is love … (Gal. 5:16-22)

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. (2 Tim. 1:7)

4) Remember that of all the traits that go into the making of a good teacher, love is the greatest. Let it characterize you.

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. (1 Cor. 13:1)

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1 Cor. 13:13)

Physical age and spiritual age do not necessarily correspond. Some students who are adults physically could be infants spiritually. Some students who are children physically could be spiritual adults. Bible teachers must therefore teach in ways that consider both realities — where students are physically as well as spiritually.

Considerations about a Students’ Physical Age

Regardless of how spiritually mature people might seem, they still could have limitations due to physical age level development. Consequently, teachers must take the following into consideration so teaching fits within students’ mental, emotional, physical, and social abilities:

• Vocabulary (The younger the age, the simpler and smaller number of words they can understand and express.)
• Type of Content (The younger the age, the more concrete versus abstract their thinking.)
• Methodology (The younger the age, the less coordinated and socially apt they are.)

Teacher Training Resource: Age Level Characteristics

Realities about a Students’ Spiritual Age

Regardless of the physical age, students could still be crawling around spiritually, needing the milk of God’s Word.

In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.(Heb. 5:12-14).

Consequently, we must understand that:

• Spiritual development involves training with God’s Word as our trainer. We must therefore accurately teach God’s Word and encourage students to study it on their own.
• Spiritual truth can only be spiritually discerned which requires the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 2:14). We must therefore constantly pray for our students and encourage them to yield to the Spirit’s work in their lives.

If students aren’t growing spiritually, they could struggle with what is taught regardless of physical age level abilities and development.

Teacher Training Resource: Teacher’s Role in Discipling Students Toward Spiritual Growth

Age level training should be part of a teacher training plan so teachers communicate in ways their students can understand and that makes truths relevant to the needs and issues faced at that age.

Acrostic for How to Teach in Accordance with Students’ Age Level

The following acrostic provides some tips for reaching and teaching students in ways that fit their age level:

Take some time to prayerfully evaluate your teaching using the above acrostic. — “Search me, God … lead me …” (Ps. 139:23) “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God …” (James 1:5)

• How might you teach even more in accordance with these guidelines?
• In which areas might you need more training?

For help on the kind of environment, types of methods, and ways to motivate those in each age level bracket, check out the Reaching All Age Levels Resource.