Ambassadors, Gatekeepers & Gardeners
By Mr Ian Keast
Posted on 25 November 2008
I was reading an article recently which mentioned several different images of teaching. It was a helpful list and the article got me thinking about some key images we could use to describe our work as Christian teachers.
Three images - the ambassador, the gatekeeper, the gardener - help to describe the vocation of teaching.
The ‘ambassador’ comes from 2 Corinthians 5: 17-21. This rich and complex passage begins with the Apostle Paul in verse 17 describing those in Christ as a new creation, due to the work of reconciliation that God has done in Christ. Our ministry is that of reconciliation, and then in verse 20, comes this remarkable image, ‘we are Christ’s ambassadors’. An ambassador is the authorised representative to speak on behalf of his country or king; as ambassadors of Christ we are His representatives. He is our King and we speak on His behalf. This is true of course for all Christians, everywhere, but it is a powerful image for the Christian teacher to remember; it is who we are in front of our students.
The Christian teacher as ‘gatekeeper’ is our second image. The dictionary defines a gatekeeper as, ‘one in charge of the gate’. The gatekeeper is the one who provides access to the group, who protects and watches over the group, who decides what is to be passed on to the group. In our society there are many gatekeepers, parents and the media come to mind as significant examples. So also are teachers, since most young people pass through our schools and spend a considerable amount of time during their formative years in our classrooms. We, as gatekeepers, are passing on many things, but above all the gospel of our Lord Jesus to the next generation.
Our first two images of Christians in teaching - the gatekeeper who is also an ambassador of Christ - suggest the great privilege of the vocation of teaching. They also suggest the great responsibility of the vocation of teaching.
To these two images there is a third to be added - the Christian teacher as ‘gardener’, who plants seeds (of the gospel? of ideas? of attitudes? of a subject area? and so on) and who patiently and lovingly, cultivates the seeds. It may be some time before the seeds flower, but the gardener’s (often unseen, always patient) work of cultivating and nurturing them is vital.
Ambassador, gatekeeper, gardener - three images which describe and affirm the significance of our work as Christian teachers.
And there is an additional dimension. In the film Gladiator Russell Crowe’s character, General Maximus, says this, “What we do in life echoes in eternity.” In 1 Corinthians 15, the Apostle Paul, after his long discussion on the fact and importance of Jesus’ resurrection, says this in verse 58, “Therefore my dear brothers stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not in vain.” Here is something for us to remember: as Christian teachers (ambassadors, gatekeepers, gardeners) our work has eternal significance. That word said, that attitude shown, that question answered, that encouragement offered, that time spent helping the student, is never (as CS Lewis reminds us in The Weight of Glory) to a ‘mere mortal’, but to ‘immortals’ to those who ‘walk every day on the razor edge between two incredible possibilities.’
