I think all of us can remember a time back in the day when in school we were presented with “teaching that will save your life”. Some of you may remember “stop, drop, and roll” as life saving fire safety instruction. Or perhaps it was that anti-smoking instructional video with really gross pictures of scarred lungs and someone talking through their tracheotomy. For me the worst was that filmstrip (yes, I am that old) from middle school on the “birds and the bees”. Yuck – girls have cooties!
I’ve been thinking about these “life saving” lessons in the context of our theme for this school year “New in Christ” based on 2 Corinthians 5:17. Our special subtheme for February is “New in Christ: Receive a new teaching!” based on Mark 1:27: “And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” This new teaching we’ve received from Jesus is like nothing else we’ve heard before – or ever will! God’s Word is a wealth of instruction that can make our life better and make us better at life. Most importantly though it’s the only teaching that can save our life – for eternity. Like our students, I love spending time learning and absorbing Jesus’ powerful teachings. They’ve changed my life forever – I pray you have or will share that same experience.