Section 72
On the Ministry of Teaching
Revelation on Teachers. Teaching is a sacred calling in the Gospel and is bound by strict rules. In the early Christian Church the office of Teacher was essentially the same as that of Rabbi as is shown in the Epistle of James, the earliest New Testament writing. As the Church matured and needs changed, so the Teacher as a separate office began to disappear and its ministry was divided between the Elders and Deacons, both of whom are described in the New Testament as 'Teachers'. When this revelation was first received, the Jacobean pattern was followed. Since then, the New Covenant Church has matured and the office of Teacher has been divided between the Elders and Deacons. Minor cosmetic changeshave been made to this revelation to reflect that change (960801). Each Priesthood Order (Patriarchs/Matriarchs, Elders/Eldresses, and Deacons/Deaconesses) has its own School in which its officers are trained in their ministry (e.g. the Elders in the School of the Elders). The School of Israel is the equivalent of an adult Sabbath ('Sunday') School and is for all adults, ministering at the level of the unordained member. The Priesthood Schools are collectively known as the School of the Prophets, the first written record of which is found in the days of the prophet Samuel [Hegdehaugen, Oslo, Norway].
1. I have waited for the day wherein I might be gracious unto you, O House of Israel, that My Name might once more be exalted and that I might have mercy on you.
2. I am the Lord, and I am a God of Judgment also; therefore blessed are they that wait for Me and hearken unto My precepts.
3. My people shall surely dwell in Zion and they shall weep no more;
4. I shall be very gracious unto you when your cries ascend up to the Heavens from contrite spirits, for I shall hear you,and answer you, that your prayers may no more be as the echoes in the mountains but the voice of God sounding within unto the quickening of your whole frame.
5. And though I shall verily give unto you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet your teachers shall not be removed into a corner anymore, but your eyes shall see your teachers.
6. And your ears shall hear and be inclined unto truth, for the teachers of truth shall no longer be trodden underfoot by the Gentile churches but shall be heard;
7. And great shall be the quaking on account of their words, for they are the words which I, the Lord, have placed into their mouths.
8. And their words shall be as a sword that divideth Light and darkness asunder, that there be a perfect separation, even as it hath been spoken by the mouths of My prophets, that the righteous might be gathered unto Zion without any pollution.
All are Called to Teach
9. Therefore let the saints be diligent in their Schools of the Prophets, boththose who are taught and those who are teachers.
10. And let those who are taught arise in their endowments that they may also become teachers, for ye have been called to go into the world and instruct the world in My Word.
No Greater Calling
11. Let those who have been called to be Teachers, male and female, Elders and Deacons, and all those who have callings to teach, be sober and alert, for there is no greater calling than to teach1.
12. Therefore they shall study and know My Word, and approve themselves as faithful stewards, teaching as though the Son of Man were teaching in the flesh, being filled always with light and truth that I may be present in the Spirit.
Teach with the Spirit
13. And he or she who hath not the Spirit shall not teach, but repent and pray, until they receive that spiritual anointing (1 Jn.2:20) that shall once more enable them to teach in power and grace.
14. Ye shall not treat this calling lightly, for he that teacheth false precepts shall be condemned, for if he receiveth not the true pattern he shall verily lead the souls of men astray and into sin.
Spiritual Fathers and Mothers
15. Teachers are spiritual fathers and mothers; therefore let them have regard for My little ones-in-the-spirit as though they were their own flesh and blood.
Teach What You Know and Don't Speculate in Official Meetings
16. Thou shalt teach only that which thou knowest, and no more.
17. And if thou knowest not, thou shalt ask of him or her who knowest, that there be no idle speculation or false doc- trine manifest.
18. And thou shalt teach only that which is written and that which cometh of the Holy Spirit. And the two are one, being in perfect agreement.
19. Let the Teacher-Deacons, male and female, greatly beware concerning themselves and not overstep their bounds, for they are young in the Spirit and know not the fullness of the prophets.
The Rules Governing Doctrinal Pronouncements
20. The School of the Zadokites (Order of Deacons) shall act under the direction of the School of the Elders (Order of Elders), and the School of the Elders shall act under the direction of the School of the Patriarchs (Patriarchal Order).
21. And there are none in the School of the Patriarchs who have not crossed the veil of the Firstborn in one degree or another, and these shall be the final authority in all matters pertaining to doctrine, for they have become the doctrine which pertaineth unto salvation, being living vessels of Light.
22. It is expedient that the Presidents of the Schools of the Zadokites {Deacons} receive instruction from the Schools of the Elders, that they may be perfected in the ministry of the Deaconate, teaching the letter of the law in exactness and with clarity.
23. And they shall teach the inner principles contained in the Scriptures;
24. And these shall be the borders of the Zadokian ministry {Deaconate}, and they shall go no further.
Educational Discipline
25. He that steppeth across he borders shall be silenced and learn discipline, rising up according to his intellectual, emotional, and spiritual means by the will of the Father.
26. For when a man or woman is ready to receive the Light of the Order of Elders, he shall be called by revelation into the School of the Elders through those who are appointed.
Calls to Priestood Schools and Orders
27. Let no man or woman suppose because he hath received a Priesthood office outwardly by ordination and licence that he hath the right to enter the several Priesthood Schools2.
28. If a man is not called into these Orders he shall remain in the School of Israel until he is perfected in doctrine in that degree, murmuring not, nor exalting himself in his pride because he supppos- eth he should be in a Priesthood Order School.
Learning Obedience and Discipline
29. Such a one shall not be renewed in his Priesthood but shall learn obedience;
30. For he who is without discipline and patience can in no wise receive the deeper mysteries, for they would be burned by the greater Light and be lost.
30. Let them understand that these statutes are given in love for their sal- vation and not to bar them from the glories into which they have been called, yea, even all men and women in My Church.
Non-Priesthood Schools
31. It is the duty of the Apostolate to establish the Schools the Taphim (child- ren), Goyim3 (investigators and catechu- mens), and Israel (adult members) in the Church of God under the direction of the local colonies, for the Schools of the Elders and Zadokites belong unto the Holy Order, being extensions of the Temple in the local Colonies.
32. Let every man and woman called into the several Schools* learn the doctrines of the Kingdom and his or her duty diligently, and surely ye shall be blessed. Even so. Amen.
*The Schools of the New Covenant Church of God are as follows (b = boys; g = girls):