The Christian EducatorA publication of North Valley Baptist Schools

A Giant Eye

By Mike Zachary

If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? (I Corinthians 12:17)

Can you imagine the ridiculous sight of your neighbor being a giant eye? I have never been quite able to get a mental picture of what a person would look like if his whole body were an eye. Granted, the eye is an extremely important part of the human body; but if all we had was one giant eye…this would be a frightening world indeed!

In His wisdom, the Lord has created many situations where many different kinds of people can work together to accomplish a common purpose. And anyone with spiritual discernment understands that a team working together can create something that the separate individuals cannot create—and the Lord is able to work miraculously in the unseen workings of a team, thereby rightfully earning for Himself all the glory and all the praise.

In my experience, here are some common pitfalls among team members:

1. Not following a single purpose. If we continue the metaphor of the human body, what kind of chaos results when the eye wants to eat ice cream sundaes, but the mind wants to lose weight rapidly? When team members pull different directions simultaneously, it creates chaos.

When team members allow their individual experience to let them pull against the leadership, they often wrongly feel that they are crusading for a just cause when they are, in fact, creating institutional chaos.

2. Not recognizing differences. While it is true that there needs to be a single purpose, it is also true that different people have different roles in accomplishing that purpose. I would hope, for example, that high school graduates could read the Bible with understanding—but that doesn’t mean it’s the kindergarten teacher’s job to explain the intricacies of the Levitical sacrificial system. However, she must ensure that the students get a solid foundation in reading so they can later read and understand all the Bible.

Some teachers tend to act as though they are the official “school parent”; some act as highly motivational coaches. Some are viewed as respected instructors; others are viewed as fountains of compassion. While it is true that every teacher needs to be to some degree well-rounded and while it is true that every teacher has the duty to follow the direction set by the school leadership, teachers must be careful not to attempt to create everyone else in his own image—such vanity doesn’t duplicate perfection, it causes chaos.

When one teacher expects everyone else to duplicate himself, this is similar to the ear chastising the nose for not being able to see well, or the nose chastising the ears for not being able to smell well.

Good educational results depend on many different kinds of people following a single direction. If we have many different kinds of people without a single direction, we have chaos. If we have one direction with the expectation that all the participants will be clones of one person, we will have a nightmare.

Teachers should feel free to use their personality as a tool—as a tool for accomplishing the direction of the leadership. Leaders have a right to expect their direction to be followed—but with different expressions of personality. Both must be honest and ethical. A teacher should never say, “When you say I am not following your direction, you are just complaining about my personality.”

In concluding this discussion, the Lord said, “That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another” (I Corinthians 12:25). The Lord, in other words, would never favor a Christian school that looked like a giant eye.