God has given certain people the gift of teaching.

And God has appointed these in the church; first apostles, second prophets, third teachers (1 Corinthians 12:28).

And He Himself gave some to be . . . teachers (Ephesians 4:11).

The gift of teaching is a God-given ability to properly interpret and explain Gods Word to others. It is something given with the gift of being a pastor, but it is not the same gift. A teacher can be a pastor but he does not necessarily have to be.

Essential

Proper teaching is essential to the life and service of the church. Jesus instructed us to love God with all our minds.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind (Matthew 22:37).

We must have sound teaching to be able to do this.

The gift of teaching was an essential part of the early church. The Bible says of the Apostle Paul:

And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them (Acts 18:11).

The Apostle Paul taught young Timothy so that he could teach others.

A husband and wife, Aquila and Priscilla, taught Apollos, a man mighty in the Scriptures, so he also could teach others:

So he [Apollos] began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately (Acts 18:26).

Teaching was crucial to the early church.

The Bible also warns of the great responsibility of being a teacher:

My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive the stricter judgment (James 3:1).

Though the gift of teaching is God-given, it can be developed by the individual. In fact, a person with the gift of teaching should spend time to become more learned in Gods Word. Proper teaching is essential to the growth and development of the church.