Think of something someone said to you, maybe years ago, that you still remember. Something that helped you or shaped you. A parent. A grandparent. A coach, a teacher, a friend.
Now think about where you were when you heard it. Chances are it wasn't from a stage. It was in a kitchen, in a car, on a sideline. Words stick when they come from someone who is with you.
That's exactly how Jesus passed on His words to His disciples.
"I Gave Them the Words"
In our Saturday night series, Live Like Jesus, we've been walking through John 17, the prayer Jesus prayed the night before the cross. In verse 8, Jesus tells the Father that He gave His disciples the words the Father had given Him, that they accepted those words, and that they came to know with certainty He had come from the Father, and believed.
Look at how that moves. Jesus gave them the words. They accepted them. And they believed. Words given, words received, faith that grows. That is how a disciple is made, and it hasn't changed in two thousand years.
Notice something else. Jesus calls them the words you gave me. He wasn't inventing His own material. In John 12:49 He says He didn't speak on His own; He said what the Father who sent Him commanded Him to say.
That's good news for you. You don't have to come up with something clever or original. You don't have to be a preacher. Your job is the same as His: pass on what you've been given.
How Jesus Passed On His Words
So how did He actually do it? The Gospels show us three ways.
1. Along the way.
Most of what Jesus taught His disciples didn't happen in a classroom. It happened on the road, in a boat, around a meal. After the resurrection, two disciples walked to Emmaus with Jesus without recognizing Him. Later they said their hearts were burning "while he talked with us on the road" (Luke 24:32).
This isn't new with Jesus. In Deuteronomy 6:7, God told parents to talk about His words when they sit at home and when they walk along the road, when they lie down and when they get up. Parents, the car ride counts. Bedtime counts. The dinner table counts.
2. As much as they could understand.
Mark 4:33 says Jesus spoke the word "as much as they could understand." He didn't unload three years of teaching in one night. On the night before the cross, He even told His disciples He had more to say than they could bear yet (John 16:12).
He paced it. That means you don't have to say everything at once either. One true thing at the right time is enough.
3. He explained when they asked.
The crowds heard Jesus' parables. But Mark 4:34 tells us that when He was alone with His own disciples, "he explained everything." They asked questions, and He answered.
Questions weren't a problem for Jesus. They were the doorway. When someone asks you a question about faith, that isn't pressure. That's a door opening.
Two Conversations
When Jesus' words got passed on, they went in two directions: to other believers, and out to people who didn't know Him yet. Most of us get stuck in one or both.
With other Christians: say what God is teaching you. It's strange, but it's true. We'll talk with Christian friends about sports, kids, work, and the weather, but rarely about what God is actually showing us. Colossians 3:16 calls us to let the message of Christ dwell among us richly as we teach and encourage one another. After the road to Emmaus, those two disciples hurried back and told the others what had happened on the way (Luke 24:35). If you can't tell another believer what God is teaching you, it will be very hard to tell someone who doesn't know Him.
With people who don't know Him yet: speak their language. When we do talk about God with people outside the church, we often talk as if they're already Christians. We use words like saved, fellowship, quiet time, washed in the blood. Those make sense inside the church and almost no sense outside it. Jesus talked about seeds, fish, bread, a lost sheep, and a lost coin: things people already knew. Colossians 4:6 says to let our conversation be full of grace, "seasoned with salt." Your words should taste good to the person hearing them.
Here's a good test, for adults and teens alike: try explaining what "saved" means to a friend without using a single church word. It's harder than it sounds, and it's exactly the skill.
Try It This Week
- Pick one verse that has meant something to you. Not the perfect verse, just one that's real to you.
- Tell one Christian friend what God is teaching you right now.
- Pass one thing on to someone who doesn't know Jesus yet, in their language, along the way. Not a sermon. Not a debate. Just a normal conversation.
And remember 1 Peter 3:15: be ready to give the reason for the hope you have, and do it "with gentleness and respect." You're not trying to win an argument. You're passing on something that was given to you.
Adapted from Week 4 of Live Like Jesus, our Saturday night teaching series. Join us Saturdays at 6:30 PM. Scripture quotations are from the NIV.