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May we bow together in a period of silence. Amen. I walked in a desert and I cried, Oh God, take me from this place. A voice said, It is no desert.

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I said, But the heat, the sand, the horizon. The voice said, It is no desert. As Christian teachers, I invite you to consider during this congress session, teaching techniques of the master teacher.

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Teaching techniques of the master teacher. Let us focus attention today on the lecture method. The lecture method. This is a method that has some advantages.

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First place, it provides the opportunity to make an orderly presentation of the material by the teacher. The second, it can be used in teaching a large class. The third, it is helpful in dealing with backward pupils. The fourth is that it gives the opportunity for the teacher to make full utilization of his or her resources.

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And the fifth, it provides for a well-rounded presentation. And the last, it is an opportunity also for the element of an inspirational climax. Now there are some weaknesses also for this method. On the whole, sometimes people may not say, they may just depend on the lecturer.

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Again, the teacher does not have a chance to find out what the pupil knows if we rely on this method all the time. And in the third place, it does not involve very much self-activity. And the fourth, it is not adapted for the elementary grades for the smaller members of our Sunday school, the primary departments of primary school, the elementary grades. The fifth, people will not be inclined to remain for church services if they have already had a little sermonette in Sunday school.

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For today, we would like to see how Jesus uses this lecture method as a technique. I invite now careful attention to a passage of Scripture which is tucked away in the Gospel according to St. Matthew, the fifth chapter, the first and second verses. And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain, and when he was set, his disciples came unto him, and he opened his mouth, and called them, saying, The seventh chapter of Matthew, the forty-eighth and forty-ninth verses, the conclusion of this lecture, and it came to pass,

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When Jesus had ended these things, the people were astonished at his doctrine, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Jesus is known and remembered in the Christian family as the Master Teacher. He excelled in the art of communicating eternal truth. Jesus knew what was in man. He had perfect understanding of human nature. He knew how to deal with people. In every way, Jesus is our example.

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We are called to be students of the Master Teacher, to study and practice the teaching methods of the Lord of Life. When we talk about methods, we are concerned about how Jesus did it. Jesus gave his disciples a how-to-do-it course. Those who were in the Master's class saw him as a great teacher. Solomon was a great teacher. King Solomon was chief among the celebrated wisdom teachers of Israel.

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But they saw in Jesus a teacher greater than Solomon. Moses and Elijah were great teachers. They were great teachers in the prophetic tradition. But in Jesus, the Heavenly Father declares with ringing certainty, This is my beloved son. Here he is. According to the testimony of the Gospel record, the crowds were astonished at the teaching of Jesus,

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for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Jesus is the master of the affairs of human existence. He knows what life is all about. He is life. He touches the deepest springs with the authority of a prophet from on high. He is the Master Teacher. We know what Jesus taught, but we need to know how to think as he taught, and to act as he did.

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For in him the divine Word becomes flesh. The living Word walks and talks. The Word has hands that bless and feet that are quick on errands of mercy. The Word is alive, comes alive in Jesus Christ and dwells with us. Truth looks out from his eyes. Wisdom is impronged upon his brow, and righteousness is stamped upon his face.

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This is why it is said that Jesus lived the British life. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never owned a home. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never traveled 200 miles from the place where he was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself.

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He had nothing to do with this world except the power of his divine manhood. And yet all the navies that ever were built and all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned put together have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life. Now as Christian teachers we should be able to identify with Jesus.

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You see Jesus grew up in a ghetto. He experienced and endured the agony of being circumscribed and ostracized. The prophet speaks of him saying that he was despised and rejected a bit. And that we hid as it were our faces from him.

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The Jews had a self-imposed ghetto existence and then they were also victims of a kind of forced ghetto situation on the part of the Romans. The Jews drew a circle that was around themselves that shut others out. And they divided the world into two groups. Jews and Gentiles. The circumcised and the uncircumcised.

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By tradition and teaching we have been victims of ghetto existence. As black people we have been victims of black codes. Laws of segregation and practices of discrimination have created in this country a kind of ghetto for us. But you see we need to understand also that Jesus speaks to our situation because Jesus was a victim of the ghetto.

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He lived the life of a Jew. He was circumcised on the eighth day. In Galilee where Jesus grew up there were Jews and Gentiles but Jesus lived in a Jewish ghetto. Not only did Jesus live in a ghetto, he lived in the most undesirable section of the ghetto. For those who knew his background asked in contempt, can anything good come out of Nazareth?

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So humble was his existence that he was looked upon as a Mr. Nobody from Nowhere. He was a victim of the ghetto. Now he knew something about the poverty of the ghetto. I thought I knew something about poverty from my lowly upbringing.

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Having to sleep on a mattress on the floor which was rolled up at the end of the night. But when I went to Nazareth I went down into the holy grotto where Jesus grew up. And I saw that my poverty was not near as abject as Jesus' poverty. It was just a cave in the ground.

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And you go down and you see that Jesus slapped on the ground. He's acquainted with poverty. And you see when a male child was born the law says that the parents are to bring and dedicate a lamb to the Lord. But if you are too poor to dedicate a lamb then you can bring two turtle doves or two pigeons. And the parents of Jesus were too poor to bring a lamb.

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If you read it in the gospel record they had to bring some turtle doves. He's acquainted with poverty. He grew up in the ghetto. As a child he ate kosher food.

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He observed the Mosaic law. He attended the ghetto school in the synagogue. He's acquainted with ghetto existence. He worshiped in the ghetto church.

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He spoke the familiar dialect of the ghetto. He spoke Aramaic which was the familiar dialect of the ghetto. He's acquainted with the ghetto. He wore the clothing attire of the ghetto.

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He had castles on the corners of his garments to show that he was a Jew. And though he lived in a small secluded ghetto Jesus was not conquered by the ghetto. He was a victim of the ghetto. But he was the victim over the ghetto.

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He was both the victim and the victor. He rose beyond the ghetto. And you know that's rather hard to do. You know it's a great temptation for people when you live in a small town like Nazareth.

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It's a great temptation when you live in a small town to have small ideas if you're a kid. It's a great temptation. But you see even though Jesus lived in a ghetto he refused to adhere to the slave thinking of the ghetto. He was not in bondage to the ghetto.

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His life was beyond the ghetto. He was a victim. But he was also a victim. He lived in a ghetto.

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But he refused to adhere to the popular nationalistic hopes entertained by many ghetto dwellers. He did not follow the violent militaristic tactics of the zealots in rebelling against Rome. Neither did he engage in the austere ascetic practices of the Athenians by withdrawing from the world in order to live the abundant life. Jesus lived a good life in the ghetto.

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He lived a good life in the midst of temptations. Hardships. Deprivations. And all of the things that people who are disinherited are victims of in the midst of all of it.

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Jesus lived a good life. The problem that Jesus encountered as a teacher was that he refused to be entrenched in by ghetto existence. He refused to permit himself to be subdued by the kind of exclusive thinking and the kind of particularistic pietism that would shut people out. He was a good citizen of the ghetto, but he lived beyond the ghetto.

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He was a loyal Jew, but he did not conform to the ways of the ghetto. But you see, instead of being a conformer, he was a transformer. He transcended ghetto existence and transformed the lives of those who were victims of the ghetto. And that's what you must do if you would follow Jesus, the master teacher.

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But you see, we live in a world that is separated into ghettos. Make no mistake about it. That's the kind of world we live in. Black, brown, yellow, white, ghetto.

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W.E.B. Du Bois said well many years ago when he said, that the problem of the 20th century is the problem of the color line. The Kerner Report a few years ago in this country said that America is polarized into two ghettos, one black and the other white. Most black people live in a ghetto of bondage and oppression.

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Most whites live in a ghetto of indifference, hostility and exploitation. The dilemma of our day is that we are trying to have liberation without reconciliation. We're trying to be free. Whites are trying to get free and blacks are trying to get free, but they're trying to get free without each other.

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Blacks want to create their own little world and whites want to live in their own little ghettos in suburbia and leave blacks down in the slums. And we want to say that we have freedom. And we can't have freedom, we can't have liberation without reconciliation. And if we would have reconciliation we must all sit at the feet of the master teacher.

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And he speaks the reconciling words. Ghettos, ghettos, all kinds of ghettos. Social, political, economic and educational colonies, ghettos. The Greeks had their ghettos.

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It is fitting that the Greeks should rule the barbarians because the Greeks are a free people and the barbarians are slaves to their kings. And those who have their degrees, the Greeks of our time, they create little ghettos. The place where there are subject people who are victims of greed and cruelty and insensitivity, guilt and fear of masters, all of that is in the ghetto. It's a place of paradox, conflict.

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It's a place of hope. It's a place of despair. A place of courage and a place of defeat. It's a place of cooperation, it's a place of concern.

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It's a place of suspicion, competition and rejection. It's a place of alienation, withdrawal within protected and devastating walls of the ghetto. But if we would be prepared to teach effectively in the ghettos of this world where we are stationed to be witnesses for Jesus Christ, we must follow him by precept and example. He saw God's presence in the world and no matter how he was hindered by his opposition, he may have been excluded here and there, but there was a spirit of inclusiveness about Jesus.

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They drew a circle that left me a heretic rebel thing to flout. Love and I had the wit to win. We drew a circle that took me in. But Jesus taught not as the scribes.

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You see, teaching is meaningful when it contributes toward a better understanding of the pupil's situation and stimulates the individual to participate in its articulation. Now, the scribes were the custodians of the law of God. They were teachers whose task it was to interpret God's requirements for his people. Pharisees accepted the written scriptures, the law, the prophets, the writings, the oral tradition as well as the written scriptures.

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But these were teachers who had a measure of openness. The Pharisees were not only open, but they had a little more freshness than the Sadducees in their teaching. They had what we would call today academic freedom. They were somewhat more considerate.

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The Sadducees just accepted the first five books of the Bible and they were rather tough teachers. They were harsh in their enforcement of the law. In the case of a personal injury, the Sadducees insisted on an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. On the other hand, the Pharisees would accept a fine in compensation for some personal injury, but not so with the Sadducees.

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You see, the Pharisees had the multitude on their side, but the Sadducees were rich and concerned primarily with feathering their own nest. But Jesus differed with the scribes. And because he differed with them, they considered him a threat to their prestige because he was affecting their pocketbooks. Jesus threatened to cut off their salaries by cleansing the temple and chasing out the lineage changers.

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They had used the church to feed their own ego. They made the house of God a den of thieves rather than a house of prayer. But Jesus taught not as the scribes. You see, the scribes were copycats.

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When I was in school, when someone else was looking on another person's examination, when the test was being given, and he was looking on, we'd say that person is a copycat. And the story goes that one person was copying what was on another's paper and he just kept looking and getting the answer, copying, and he saw the other person's name and he put that on there. The scribes were copycats. They were disciples of tradition.

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They interpreted what others had done and said. Their teaching was dull and drab and they were slaves to tradition. They believed that it should be done like it had been done before. Their lecture notes were yellow with age.

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Their teaching methods were stale and static. But Jesus taught not as the scribes. The scribes were scrupulous observers of custom. They viewed their teaching tasks with external hostility.

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They observed the most minute detail. They were concerned about dotting every I and crossing every T. But Jesus taught not as the scribes. Jesus taught that the tree must be good in order to produce good fruit.

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A bramble bush does not become an orange tree by hanging oranges on it. It must be an orange tree from the inside. And in his teaching, Jesus emphasized purity of heart, singleness of purpose. The master teacher taught not as the scribes.

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You see, he warned them against washing the outside of the cup and leaving the inside dirty. He condemned the scribes as being whitewashed tombs glittering in the brilliant sunlight. But inside they were rotten, stinking, dead men's bones. Jesus, the master teacher, taught not as the scribes.

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You see, the teaching method of the scribes was abstract. They used nothing from nature. The scribes encouraged their students to hear and memorize what they said, but not to do as they did. Jesus taught not as the scribes.

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He used examples from nature in telling his stories. The major difference Jesus had with the scribes had to do with the question of identity. You hear a great deal today about black identity, about being who you are. And we who would teach in the black church today, and don't get disturbed about that.

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Now, there are many who need help in this matter of identity. You know, I haven't forgotten how I felt as a little black boy. I was ashamed of my blackness. Someone called me black, I wanted to fight.

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And one day as a little boy, I remember sitting down in my room alone, and I asked God the question, why did you make me black? I used to take what they called black and white art mix, and I'd put it on my face so I could get a little lighter, bleach myself a little.

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I was disturbed about my identity. And I tried to straighten my hair. I'd get tuxedo, and I'd sometimes even use a straightening comb to make myself look like the white world out there. I was ashamed of my own blackness.

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And so you see, you see, we who would teach today have to deal with this question of identity for their little black boys and girls in our classes who are disturbed about who they are. They need to know that they are made in the image of God. And that they are God's children.

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The scribes will say something else. The scribes don't want to put black and white together, but Jesus taught not as the scribes. The scribes contended that they must rigidly observe the Jewish custom. They said, now look, we've got to keep being Jews, and Jesus is a threat to our Jewishness.

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If we let Jesus have his way, well, we'll end up being absorbed by the non-Jewish world. This man is a dangerous man. The scribes considered this a threat to the nation's identity. There were some Hellenist Jews who adopted the non-Jewish language and the dress and the customs.

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But you see, there were also the separatists, the Pharisees. And the problem of identity here was to prevent the nation from being absorbed by Persian and Greek countries. Persian and Greek countries is a problem of identity. And after 2,000 years, we who teach today have to deal with the problem of identity.

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How, how, how, how, how can we be faithful to the black experience in a predominantly white society? Jesus shows us the way, but he does not teach as the scribes. He taught with authority. The scribes depend on tradition and scripture quoting.

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They try to tell others about God without knowing God themselves. But Jesus was what he taught. He needed no references. He was his own testimony.

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He had the right to do what he had the power to do. But sometimes we may have the right and we don't have the power. But Jesus not only has the right, he has the power. Other times, you see, we find ourselves hemmed in with certain boundaries.

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You see, Jesus met the boundaries of his world with a kind of love that was inclusive. No high class, no middle class, no low class. All people were considered as children of God. We would follow Jesus as the master teacher.

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Herod the king represented the high class aristocracy according to the social scale. Nicodemus was the learned middle class rabbi. And that was the low class questionable woman of Samaria according to the social scale. But in Jesus' eyesight, they were all just children of God.

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And each of these lived in a secluded ghetto. But Jesus met them with a spirit of inclusiveness, acceptance, and love. And divine children. And that's why if you want to live above the ghetto, you have to go with Jesus the master teacher.

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And we have to go up on the mountain of spiritual living. And he sat down there on the mountain of Beatitudes. He sat down there and he taught them. And if you look at that mountain, it's high.

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It overlooks the beautiful blue waters of the Sea of Galilee. And when you get high enough, there are no walls. No fences when you get high enough. When you get high enough, all segregation and discrimination passes away when you get high enough.

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You have to sit down with Jesus the master teacher. He talked about a new order. And this new order can't be mixed with the old order. This new order has a new kind of joy in your teaching.

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It's new wine. And it can't be put in old bottles. It's a new order. The rules of the old order say that if you kill someone, you must die.

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That's the old order. But the master teacher, it's just not as it's described. He has authority and he says I say it to you. If you're angry with your brother, you're in danger of judgment.

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This is a new order. The rules of the old order in the ghetto, they have it like an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But he has a new order. You don't have to look up the references for what I have to say because I have my own authority.

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And I say it to you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn the other. If they require of you to go one by, go two. This is a new order.

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The rules of the old ghetto say love your friends and hate your enemies. But I say unto you, love your enemies and pray for those who despise you. This is a new order. Jesus is the master teacher.

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Jesus is the master teacher. His way, his way is the best way. His way is the best way. Well, on a dark, stormy night, a little child lost in the streets of the city was crying in distress.

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And a policeman, noticing the child's trouble, approached and, finding the child was lost, gave these directions by way of guidelines and help. He said, just go down this street. Turn across the big iron bridge. And then turn right and follow the river down.

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The child, only half understanding, chilled by the wind, bewildered by the storm, turned about blindly. Only, however, to hear another voice say, just come with me. And at this the child clashed the stranger's hand and the rest was quite easy and home was soon found again. You see, one told the way while the other was the way.

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That's the difference. That's the difference is he would follow Jesus the master teacher. His way is the best way. His way is the best way.

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His way is the best way for victims of the ghetto to be victims over the ghetto. His way is the best way. His way. He said, I am the way.

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Follow me. If your heart is heavy and your eyes are stained with tears, I am the way. Follow me. I've been there.

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Surely he has carried our griefs and borne our sorrows. He knows what it's all about. He said, follow me. I'm the way.

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He would follow Jesus the master teacher. Somehow, somehow, that as I look at my life and as we sing together stony, the road we trod, bit of a chastening rod. There's somebody who knows this way because he's been along that. He was wounded for our transgressions.

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Chastisement of our people upon him. He was oppressed and he was afflicted. He is the way. Follow Jesus the master teacher.

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Follow him. Follow him. He knows the way. He knows.

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He knows the way that I take. Follow Jesus. Follow Jesus. He's the way.

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So I challenge you today. Baptists, I challenge you today to follow Jesus. I'm telling you to follow the master teacher. Jesus leads.

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I'll follow wherever he goes. Through floods and flames. I'll follow where he goes. Kindle me not to be not pleased.

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Follow Jesus. The master teacher. Follow Jesus. Follow Jesus.

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Follow him. You'll get home. Thank you very much. He's the way.

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He's the way. May every heart say amen. This has certainly been a great message by Dr. Griffin. The master teacher.

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He is the way. We are appreciative for this great lecture given to us by this great sermon on the multi-god. My Christian friends, we're going to close in just a few minutes. We would like for you to remain, as was said to us on yesterday, for the benediction.

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After a great message like this, let us please keep our seats. And we're going to get out just in a matter of a few minutes. This afternoon, 1 o'clock p.m. will be the General Assembly. Some services directed by Mrs. Ruth Davis.

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And we're looking forward to your being with us this afternoon. And then the parliamentary meetings. Again, may God bless you and may God ever keep you. Dr. Boyd, do you have anything to say?

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If not, let us all stand. And Dr. Griffin will dismiss us. Dr. Griffin. Those of you who want to get directions for teachers may get them back at the feet there nearby our heads.

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Now and to him who is able to keep you from falling, present you faultless before his presence with exceeding joy. In the only way of God our Father, glory and majesty, dominion and power, now and forevermore. Amen. Amen. Amen.

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Amen. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

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