BIBLE CLASS TEACHERS “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virture:  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust (2 Peter 1:3-4).  One of the key words in this text is the word knowledge. How does it come?  Through faith, and that faith must continue to grow and grow.  It is our God-given responsibility to have a growing faith.  What bettter way to grow our faith than through regular attendance at all Bible classes.  In verse 5, from the above text the ASV says, "In your faith supply. . .” The original word for “supply” means place upon, to add further.  Just as long as we are living we must have a growing faith.  At St. Andrews Road our elders, have growth, as one of their main goals.  They have challenged us and continue to do so, though opportunities such as Bible Class, to help us in growing a sound, well-rounded faith.  The elders, have appointed Jason Gass, as the deacon in charge of our education programs. Under their authority, Jason has the responsibility to see that we have capable, sound Bible class teachers in each class.  We are blessed, at St. Andrews Road to have many gifted men and women who teach in our classes.  They teach in classes that range from infant to adult.  It’s important that we start early, teaching our young people about Jesus.  For instance, in the infant class, that is taught by sisters Karen Jackson, Glenda Lambert, Lisa Larmon and Nancy Moore, they sing songs and hear stories about the Bible.  Even at this young age we begin to plant the seeds of the gospel of Christ, that we trust will be watered by parents and grandparents in years to come.   Everyone wants to grow and increase that knowledge of the Scriptures.  One of the best ways is through regular Bible study, on Sunday morning and Wednesday night.  Better still, why not try teaching one of these classes, Jason is always in need of teachers who want to teach.  We need more men and women who are willing to make this sacrifice, the rewards are great, as you see these young lives grow. and develop into fine Christian men and women.   It is through Bible Classes, that many of us have grown into the mature Christians that we are now.  But our growth must continue.  Seed must still be planted.  Our Lord, in Mark 4:26-28 talked about planting seeds and growth “So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed upon the earth, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring up and grow, he knoweth not how.  The earth beareth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.”  The seed of the kingdom is the word of God (Lk. 8:11).   Given time and care, enough wheat could come from a single seed to feed the world, or a single acron could produce enough timber to meet the building needs of many.  Given time and care, teachers can plant seeds of the gospel in the hearts and minds of young people.  The seed grows and these young people become, preachers, teachers, elders, deacons, wives of elders and deacons, and mature Christians. This is why the Bible school program is important, and why we need everyone attending class.  The elders at St. Andrews Road would no doubt like to see us grow in number, to the point they have to build larger facilities.   Moreso, they would much rather see each of us grow stronger and stronger in our faith and be able to strengthen others.  Spiritual growth to them is more important, and that is why they have provided Bible classes so that seed can be planted for spiritual growth. In talking about growth, we need to look no further than at the life of Peter.  His life before Pentecost, as the evidence shows, was full of weakness and instability.  He certainty was not of “rock quality” when the Lord first met him.  But our Lord—the Master Teacher—knew what Peter could become.  He planted seed and taught him for three years.  Later, when Peter and John stood before the Sanhedrin, it was Peter who showed there his solid rock quality and amazing growth.  Holy Writ says they marvelled at the boldness of Peter and John (Acts 4: 13).    God expects us to grow.  We must grow as a congregation of His people, and as a member of the body of Christ here at St. Andrews Road we must continue to grow spiritually.  As we grow spiritually and become stronger, the church will become stronger.  God’s method for growth is clearly indicated in Acts 16:5—“So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily.”  God plans for the church to grow in quantity by growing in quality.  Paul prayed for the Ephesian brethren, “. . . that ye may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be strong to apprend with all the saints what is the breath and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye may be filled unto all the fulness of God” (Eph. 3:16-19).  There is tremendous power inherent in growth.  A congregation’s first obligation is to be a growing congregation, rooted and grounded in the truth.  Our responsibility as an individual member of this congregation is to grow spiritually, strengthen my faith and love, and knowledge of the truth and grow stronger.   In doing this, we are able to strengthen others and encourage them to grow.  No better way, than through our Bible class program.  To this end let us at St. Andrews Road strive to study our Bibles, to be more prayerful, to this end let us resolve to attend all the Bible classes that the elders have provided on Sunday and Wednesday night, to this end let us worship, to this end let us labor in the vineyard, to this end let us teach others. Bill Young