That is the question, and you will have to see the movie to find out, but we have a Teacher, Luke Skywalker; we have a powerful subject to learn, the way of the force; and we have a hungry student, Rey; but will the Teacher teach one more? It only takes one, you know.
In our last article we talked about Luke secluded on the island and compared it to Elijah and his cave. In some ways, the comparison still seems to fit. God asked Elijah, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Rey seems to be asking the same question of Luke.
After Elijah gave his little prepared speech, which he actually gave twice, after God asked him the same question twice, then God ordered him out of the cave and sent him on another mission, which also included finding his replacement. God even told him the name of the person to find.
But we note Elijah was not given a quick ticket out. That chariot did not show up for a while. So what was going on during that time period? Did his replacement need training? Was this depressed man hiding in a cave going to be able to rise to the need of a student?
We find Elijah locating his replacement, Elisha, in I Kings 19:19. He found Elisha plowing a field with a team of oxen. He happened to be the twelfth team of twelve in the field. So this is his student? This is the life he is use to, a farmer, and hard physical labor?
Verse 19 says Elijah walked over, threw his cloak across Elisha’s shoulders, and then simply walked away! Oh my. Elisha had to know whose mantle was now resting upon his shoulders. And there he goes, walking away! You better think fast, Elisha. Are you ready for such a mantle as this? Can you afford to let the Teacher walk away? Or do you need him?
It says Elisha left the oxen and ran after the Prophet/ Teacher. He asked the Prophet for time to say goodbye to his family. And the Prophet said, “Go on back, but think about what I have done to you.”
What I have done to you…
Think about what I have done to you.
Elisha immediately returned to his oxen, his livlihood, slaughtered them, and used the plow for wood to build a fire and sacrifice the oxen. Something in Elisha was ready for what the Teacher would do to him. In our movie, has Skywalker decided he will never do to another, what he tried in the past, to be the teacher?
It’s a powerful thing to be a teacher, and a great honor to serve in such a way. Depending on the subject, there may be many teachers, or only a few. There may be great teachers, and not so great. But the hungry student needs training for that which he desires to pursue, and the greater the desire, the more the student realizes the value and need of the teacher.
We invite the teacher to do something to us. Turn us into more than we are now, and this is the mastery of which I seek! How bad do you want it? How high do you consider the value of what this teacher teaches? His subject may not offer much in worldly gain, or an easy path, but it still has value? What is the value of what you seek? You must be convinced of its value for yourself. What are you judging the value based upon? Double check your motives, and choose wisely.
Bruce Lee loved being a teacher, and he was highly sought after. He broke down barriers in his quest to teach. He fought many battles, inspired many people, and even caused a movement. The power of a powerful teacher. Bruce taught a certain kind of fighting style, even the way of having no way. Jesus teaches a fighting style too.
For those of us desiring mastery in our Lord’s way, we have God’s Word, the Holy Spirit in us, and also many people God has called and gifted down through the ages to be teachers, mentors, and pastors of God’s Way. I think I need a second article on this, but in the meantime, choose your teachers well, and consider what they will do to you.
Rey knows she needs a teacher, but this one she has found may be badly damaged. Still, no one else knows what he knows. Who else can she go to? The dark side? Will he rise to teach one more?
How about you? Are you a teacher? Does your subject have true value? Will you rise to teach one more? Do you know what your subject will do to a person? Will it change their life in a powerful and worthwhile way? Us teachers will answer for what we do to our students. Let us teach well. Let us teach that which has true value, and let us pursue excellence!
Merry Christmas to one and all.
“SPIRIT”
Are we Skypeople or Earthdweller? They are two very different ways of living. One lives by their wings, the other by human reasoning. One has a focus on Infinite, the other finite. One goes on forever, the other trapped in the numbers. One walks by what he hears within, the other by what he sees without. What we hear from above, or what we see from below. Two very different ways of living. It cannot be hidden or faked for long.
Path Without End 