[youtube="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8ThjXX08RY"]
Don't just teach your youth the bible.
Teach them Christ in the bible.
Can you imagine if he'd tried to unify the bible with any other grand theme? We'd have said, "Cor, that kid's got a good memory!" Or "Gosh, that's an interesting common denominator."
Instead he preaches Christ and we say "What a Saviour!"
AMEN AMEN AMEN!!
I think this is what Paul means in 1 Cor 1 when he says
For it is written,"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart." Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Glory!
The best Bible Overview. Jesus makes the whole Bible clear and easy to understand. When we are looking at Jesus then all the details of the Bible come into focus and make sense.
Glory to Jesus!
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i love this clip =)
As much as loved and was thrilled by the words I felt quite uncomfortable watching the clip without knowing any more of the context.
For me I did have more questions about the setting and situation than about the Christ the boy is speaking about:
Were the words written by the boy or in a group with him or where they written by someone else and given to him? If the latter what effect was the writer hoping to achieve by it being learnt and spoken by a boy rather than by the writer or another adult? How much does he understand of what he is reciting and does that matter? What should I make of the gestures he makes with his hands and the kind of copying/imitation this implies? Should it have been made publicly available? I notice that Dan Hames blogged the words but not the clip. What difference does that make?
And so on and so on...
Did anyone else think any of this or just me? Am I being over-sensitive in being concerned about/for the boy?
Hey Matt,
The hand gestures seem very Driscoll to me. But he wouldn't be the first to copy a popular preacher. Paul B (if you're signed into comments), weren't you 14 when you started preaching? Did you have help from others? Did you look like others?
Matt, the hands are sometimes doing actions to aid memory (including counting through the Johns, saluting for Joshua and so on) and it's perfectly natural to hold your hands out like that, especially when talking. However the hands seem a little too fixed in those positions for it to be completely sub-conscience (for instance he wipes his hands on his jumper and then goes straight back to in-front too quickly). The actions he does are very 11 year-old boy, and that there are so few of them suggest that they weren't made up by someone else and that he's working on them.
The end bit, with the walking around, is definitely aping certain mannerisms deliberately.
As for what to make of it, I don't know. Young boy asked to preach Christ up-front at church thinks he has to act like the preacher, with hand position and the walk around at the end, seems the most likely explanation to me.
Hi Matt,
Me too. My thoughts are along the same lines as yours. I'm concerned about the boy and for the audience. Context is everything, and it's not clear from this clip. I wouldn't be comfortable with this in a worship service, and especially not in place of a proper sermon. Preachers should be lawfully called and sent by the church. This is good entertainment, but not orderly worship. Great stuff for Sunday School, though.
I wonder how weird Jesus looked as a 13 year old surrounded by an audience at the temple.
Hi Paul,
You may be right that the account of Jesus as a boy in the temple may provide a basis for young boys today preaching from the pulpits. But Luke doesn't mention that Jesus was preaching there. He was found in discussion with the teachers who were amazed at his learning. Luke 2, with the mention of the circumcision, followed by the presentation, and then the finding of Jesus in the temple 12 years later, all seem to be drawing out that Jesus grew up as a faithful, first century Jewish male.
More than seeing Jesus as a precocious preacher, I've always been deeply impressed that there are no accounts of Jesus preaching at all before his anointing by the Holy Spirit at his baptism, which marked the commencement of his public ministry at about the age of 30.
Thanks John. It's a good point: it's one thing to encourage our young people to make public confessions of the faith, but it is another thing to put them in the pulpit. I assumed that it was more of a special 'Christmas spot' in a family service [with the poinsettas in view], rather than the main teaching.
[However, I'm not convinced that the story of Jesus asking and answering questions in the temple shows that he was a typical first century Jewish male...].
In the same tone, I pray that this great kid gets the discipleship and mentoring that will really take him forward. If he stays this passionate about Jesus through the coming years he will be such a wonderful witness to the glory of God. His biggest danger is getting 'puffed up' but with the discipline of sacrificial service for Jesus and consistent Bible teaching ["trained up in the way that he should go"] then all should be well.
I'm not so much concerned for the boy as thrilled that he has such passion for Jesus. In our culture there is great excitement about getting young kids to do X Factor style public performances and to put their heart on show in the name of "romance" in popular songs. I find that worrying especially when they are singing songs about subjects and emotions they cannot possibly understand. But, I wish there were more kids like this one who will put his heart out there for Jesus. Can you imagine the effort he put into that and what a fantastic resource that Bible Overview will be for him as he grows up?
Hi Paul,
Yes, I agree.
This video is from a large Lutheran church in Texas. From their website it appears that they follow the traditional liturgy for worship. They have an educational program called "Kidz Power Hour". This video is probably from that program rather than worship.
And yes, Jesus was by no means a "typical" Jewish male. His faithfulness was unique—without peer, as seen and prophesied by Simeon and Anna; and as shown by Jesus' understanding in his discussion with the teachers in the temple. Only Jesus is called Faithful and True!
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