A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. – Luke 6:40 (NIV).

The first thing you better make sure of is that you pick a good teacher.  The King James Version uses slightly different words but the meanings are the same, it has disciple instead of student and master instead of teacher. The word student/disciple is mathetes the Strong’s says it is a person who has “thought accompanied by endeavor.”  Teacher/master is didaskalos and according to Strong’s Concordance it is “one who teaches concerning the things of God and the duties of man.”  But it is the phrase, perfect (KJV) or fully trained (NIV) which is katartizo which means “to complete thoroughly, repair or adjust but does not necessarily mean that the thing was broken”, that is the major word in this verse.

Luke is the only gospel that records this verse and it is placed with or in the parable of the blind leading the blind.  After much reflection, I believe that it should be placed with that verse and it actually completes the parable.  If you have a “blind teacher” of the things of God even with thought and action you will still be blind to what God has and wants for you.  But the phrase “fully trained” has the missing part.  If you have picked your teacher well they will impart themselves to you and the qualities that are important will be carried on.  I think most good teachers wish for their students to excel past them in some form, I know that I have had students who will know more than myself simply because in science there is always more to know.  But if I were teaching/disciplining someone in the ways of “God and man” I would hope to see more fruit in their life after I have given them all I can because part of my teaching must be to show them the Father and Jesus.

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