Lessons In Truth - Lesson 7 - Annotation 1
What is evidence of the most advanced teaching?
1. Evidence of the most advanced teaching is its simplicity. Such teaching presents a principle to the student, which, when understood, can be applied to his everyday life. Simplicity in presentation is always evidence of a teacher's good grasp of a subject. This is especially true when dealing with spiritual truths.
"So also ye, unless ye utter by the tongue speech easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken?" (I Cor. 14:9).
Simplicity of instruction deals not only with the principle but also with the practice of a given subject. The teaching is expressed by a mind that understands the subject clearly; a mind that sees the subject stripped of all confusion, uncertainty, and doubt. Such a mind will always express itself in the simplest words and phrases, that is, in a clear, direct, and to-the-point manner.
The purpose of teaching is to prepare students to understand principles that they will be able to put into practice. The objective of a teacher is to assist students to comprehend fundamental principles, or ideas. This goes beyond merely memorizing codes, formulas, or precepts, valuable as they are in their place. The teaching must be so simple that persons at all levels of understanding will receive something from it that will benefit their particular need for enrichment. While schooling is a system of informing man, advanced teaching of spiritual truths is a process of transforming man.
The teacher or writer who really understands the basic ideas of God, which are our divine inheritance, and their right application, finds no difficulty in expressing them simply. Efforts to express Truth simply result in a clearer understanding for the speaker, or writer, as well as for the student.
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Preceding Entry: In reality, can we desire that which belongs to another?
Following Entry: What constitutes the greatness of the Sermon on the Mount?
