JESUS OUR DIVINE MENTOR

Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd, and that He is the best role model, teacher and mentor we could possibly desire. There is no-one else who has proven Himself to love us more, be more concerned about our daily development and progress or our future ministry than the Lord. In aspiring to be better mentors ourselves we need regular input from our Divine Mentor. Engaging with the Lord through prayer and bible reading is imperative to enable us to benefit from His input to our lives. This series is to inspire us to become the mentors that the Lord wants us to be, caring for others and training them, so that many others in the church can be shepherded, mentored and taught to become strong Christians and to function at an appropriate level of ministry.

John 10: 10 – 15 “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. 11“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12“But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. 13“The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. 14“I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. 15“As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.

1. JESUS IS OUR GOOD SHEPHERD

• He lays down His life for us! (John 10:11, 15, 17);
• He loves His people and cares for His people (John 10:13);
• He knows His people and knows what is best for us! (John 10: 3, 14; John 17: 3);
• He leads and guides His people (John 10:3-4, Psalm 32: 8);
• He does not abandon His people – He searches for us! (John 10:12);
• He brings lost people back (John 10:10);
• He pastures (nurtures and nourishes) His people (John 10:9);
• He teaches, corrects and disciplines us, amen! (2 Tim 3: 16, 17);
• He protects His people (John 10:12).
  

Therefore – because Jesus is the best Mentor and Shepherd we could ever possibly ask for – He wants to teach us to trust and obey Him, amen! Whatever He says will always be the best for us in the long run – and His motive is perfect love. We can trust God today, amen.

a) Do you want Jesus to be your Good Shepherd today? What things do we need to ensure that Jesus will continue to be our Divine Mentor?


2. WE NEED TO FOLLOW JESUS’ EXAMPLE

John 13: 13 – 15 “You call me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. 14“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15“For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.

Matt 7: 12 “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

Luke 6: 31 “And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

Mentoring: refers to a personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps a less experienced or less knowledgeable person.
There are several definitions of mentoring in the literature. Foremost, mentoring involves communication and is relationship based.

It entails informal communication, usually face-to-face and during a sustained period of time, between a person who is perceived to have greater relevant knowledge, wisdom, or experience (the mentor) and a person who is perceived to have less (the protégé or mentoree).

Since the focus of mentoring is to develop the whole person, the techniques are broad and require wisdom in order to be used appropriately (Wikipedia).

b) What is the best way for me to receive mentoring from Jesus?


3. WE NEED TO RECEIVE JESUS’ TEACHINGS

Matt 7: 24, 25 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings (teachings) of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25“and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

• Carry our cross (a willingness to suffer hardship, eg. Fasting, rejection, tiredness; but not sickness or disease) Matt 16: 24;

• Preach the gospel, train leaders and plant new churches Matt 28: 18 – 20; Mark 16: 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
  

• Mentor one-another – demonstrate love for each other 2 Cor 8: 24 Therefore show to them, and before the churches the proof of your love and of our boasting on your behalf. Matt 28: 19 make disciples of all nations!
  

• Hate sin and wickedness Hebrews 1:9 You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”

c) A big part of mentoring is “on the job” training. What types of activities will we need to be involved in so that the Lord can mentor us while we are active?


d) Is it possible not be active in our faith and yet still grow and mature as a christian?


4. WE NEED TO SPEND DAILY TIME WITH JESUS!

If Jesus is to be our Divine Mentor – then we need to spend time with Him. It is impossible to be mentored by Someone you do not know!

• Prayer
• Word of God – meditation – SOAP
• SOAP = Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
• As we meditate on a passage of scripture, one verse or section will stand out. This will most likely be the section the Lord desires to teach us from. Begin by writing down the verse. Then begin by writing the most obvious deductions about the verse. As you write, more ideas will come to you. Write down these extra ideas. Soon you will be surprised at how many ideas you have written down. If you do not write them down, the flow of new ideas can be inhibited by our lack of memory – that’s why I find it quite stimulating to begin to write ideas down and then let new ones flow. You will be surprised – I guarantee it! Then the author of the Divine Mentor (which includes the SOAP idea – Wayne Codeiro) encourages us to write down a direct application of these observations to our personal lives. Without applying it to our lives we will deceive ourselves (James 1: 22). Then we finish our SOAP session with Prayer. Please pray over each new observation you receive from the Holy Spirit. Lets be diligent – and we will see ourselves growing spiritually, amen!
• Regular disciplined devotion e.g. Mary and Martha (Luke 10: 42).
• Destiny Determines Duty – faith requires action to follow, amen!
  

To be effective – we need to spend time with the Lord in solitude!
Find somewhere away from others, away from the mobile phone and the internet!
Concentrate on the Lord and focus upon Him!
Get to know God – wait for His Spirit’s gentle promptings in our conscience.

e) The SOAP is applied while we are having our quiet devotion time with the Lord. Can we make time to practice applying SOAP each day?

God wants to transform us more and more into His likeness – but He does not force us – He beckons us and gives us the option – it is up to us today to choose to allow Jesus to be our Divine Mentor, amen!

Please encourage all of our members and visiting Christians to spend time with the Lord every day. We must not neglect our time with Him. He commands us to rely upon Him and His grace, which is impossible without regular prayer and bible meditation. Lets make it a goal to do some SOAP sessions each day and to share your insights with your mentor or other life group members, amen!

Written by Pastor Brendan Kirby, Hope Church - Adelaide