The teaching method of Jesus (part 3)

Attention

1. Concentration of the mental powers upon an object; a close or careful observing or listening.
Example: The teacher gained the student attention.
2. The ability or power to concentrate mentally.
3. Observant consideration; notice:
Example: Your book has come to our attention.

How did Jesus secure peoples attention? Before we can answer that question we need to ask, what kind of attention did people give Jesus?

There are two main kinds of attention. Attention can be voluntary or involuntary.

1.) By voluntary I mean with effort. It is voluntary because the object attended to is interesting in itself and the subject recognized it as important but tedious. Voluntary attention may be given through power of will, and needs endurance to be fruitful. Such attention should not be seen as bad because it is tedious. Because a subject is personally boring has no bearing on the importance of the information being conveyed.

Voluntary attention may be motivated by fear of consequences, such as if I don't pay attention I may get a bad grade. It can also be moved by an understanding of the importance of the subject being taught. Learning math is often an example of voluntary attention. I maybe wrong but not many people find great joy in the multiplication tables but they can come to recognize the importance of learning them.

2.) By involuntary I mean without a sense of effort to keep interest.
Involuntary attention is given without a sense of effort but enjoys the activity itself. First, The object is interesting to the observer. For example, a person who is enjoying a good book will read until late in the night. Attention is given because of the kind of enjoyment is produces.

Such enjoyment can come from a teacher's presentation, interesting information, the process of learning, or something a little more mysterious. So we ask, what kind of attention was given to Jesus? What kind did his disciples give? What kind did the Pharisees give him? We can be sure Jesus received both kinds of attention. But I think the important question is how did Jesus secure the attention of so many?

Jesus secured attention two practical ways. First because their were many things about him to interest people. Second he knew what to do to get attention.

First, To the people, Jesus was a miracle worker and healer. He was a prophet and rabbi sent from God. We can be sure he was on their radar. He was passionate and caring. He loved the unlovely and was gracious to the legalist. His character was that of God incognito, the incarnate revelation of God. In this respect he was a beautiful person, from the inside out. Such character holds people's attention.

What are some of the things he did to get attention?

1. Sometimes he called for it. "Truly truly, I say unto you," (John 3:3; John 5:24,25; John 6:47; John 12:24)

2. Sometimes he used controversy like the ethical and theological issues between the Pharisees and Sadducees. The debates of his day stirred the curiosity of many and made them attentive to Jesus words.

3. He spoke in concrete language which usually catches and holds the attention.

4. He spoke in imaginative language. He painted pictures with his words much more than connected the dots with abstract logic.

5. He aimed at the heart with his language. He used story's as a way of indirect communication, to uncover the allusive movements of the human heart. The parables in Matt 24 for example spoke successively one story after another, the lost sheep, the lost coin, the lost son, all to make one point.

6. He gave the familiar images and references to explain unfamiliar. He used agricultural terms to explain God's kingdom.

7. Jesus rarely belabored a point. His longest sermon (sermon on the mount) in scripture can be read aloud in lest than 15 mins. Other times we see him minister for several hours. Time just was not an issue for Jesus. What is clear, is that Jesus never wasted His breath in over explaining truth.

8. Jesus wanted people to think. He did not feel the need to spell out everything, so the disciples never had to think. He wanted them to think. He knew thinking facilitates attention, so he sometime asked questions, sometimes made hard sayings (matt 6) and other times left the conversation open ended to force them to reflect.

9. We could say Jesus also received attention because he paid attention. He observed people and understood them with spiritual insight. He was a good listener. He knew what to say that would hook people in because he paid attention to them.

In the next blog we will look at the Spirits role in attention.

In Him
J. Dawson Jarrell