In Deuteronomy 6 Moses instructs the people of Israel to occupy themselves and their children with the “statutes and commandments” of the Lord “all the days” of their life (vs. 2). In verse 7 he requests that parents leach their children “diligently,” whether they are at home or travel, from early morning till late at night. A beautiful promise of longevity is given to those who comply.
The school and the home – Obviously, in Old Testament times children did not attend schools as we know these today, but they did receive schooling. The parents were constantly involved in the educational process of their offspring. We send our children to school, and give them to teachers who are equipped to train them in a multitude of disciplines of learning. Ours is too complicated a world for us to be able to teach our children adequately; neither would we find time. However, with the delegation of our parental obligation to educate our children, we have not abandoned our responsibility to see to it that they are trained in keeping with the “statutes and commandments” of the Lord.
As Christian parents we should want our children to receive an education consistent with the home. In effect the school should be an extension of the Christian home. This concept makes the parental school mandatory. No parochial or public school can represent the parents and the Christian home as the parental Christian school is able to do.
The school and the church – Moreover, in the Kingdom-conscious Christian community of Reformed persuasion the Church is the power house for true direction. We could illustrate this Church and Kingdom concept by drawing the lines of an old cartwheel: a rim, spokes and hub. When we place that wheel flat on the ground we find the hub not only in the center, but also elevated. From it extend the spokes. In this illustration the hub depicts the exalted position of the Church of Jesus Christ.
The Church then feeds all facets of life with spiritual direction from the Word of God. But the Church herself is not taking over by directly controlling any of the Kingdom agencies. She remains a spiritual body—the Body of Jesus Christ. All of life is arena for Kingdom activity, and ought to place itself within the “rim” of Christ’s kingly rule. The Christian school is only truly Christian if it fully submits to that rule.
The school and the Bible – The non-Christian and the non-Reformed Christian schools lack this biblically-oriented view of life. Christian education must not be secular in nature with a devotional sauce poured over it just as we cover cake with frosting for the sake of taste. Christian education is education permeated with the teachings of the Bible.
All instruction—from elementary education on up through college and beyond—must be filled with biblical truth. It should be noted that “filled” means that there is no room left for any teaching in whatever area of education which contradicts Scripture.
For example, in the fields of geology and biology we must speak of the magnificence of a creation made by God, and should not build our disciplines upon the fallacious premise of evolution. To mention another example, the interpretation of history rests upon the biblical exclamation that “the Lord God omnipotent reigneth” (Rev. 19:6). The theory of economic determinism fails to explain the course of events of past and present. Even the simple three R’s become precious when we see how God allows communication through reading, writing and arithmetic.
The school and the teachers – When our children begin to struggle with the philosophies of life they need the guiding help of dedicated teachers in a sympathetic environment. It is not sufficient just to have Christian teachers. We must have dedicated teachers who are excited about Christ and the Kingdom, about their work and the children, teachers who have a vision! Their vision must be, as one Christian teacher said to this writer recently, “A real desire to tell the children about God.”
Therefore it is also not sufficient to have Christian teachers teaching our children in a so-called neutral environment. In matters of the Christian faith neutrality is non-existent. In the non-Christian school the Christian teacher may perhaps exercise a wholesome influence, yet he is extremely curtailed in expressing his beliefs. The writer wishes to establish that, in his opinion, many children from Christian homes studying in non·Christian schools suffer from spiritual malnutrition as a result of such abridgment. Let us face the fact that a Christian teacher in education does not make for Christian education, just as a Christian politician in politics does not make for Christian politics.
Some non-Christian schools schedule religious instruction classes. In many instances this is only a watered-down presentation of some Christian truths, and at times no more than an instruction in humanistic principles. Religious instruction is attached to the schedules of subjects as an appendix, often optional. Religious instruction is not at all equal to Christian education. For our children, we need a Reformed-Calvinistic, biblically-oriented system of education with Christian teachers, dedicated to the cause of Christ, presenting with love and personal devotion what the Bible teaches. Such instruction must be given in a classroom where teacher and student make a concerted effort to listen to the Scriptures, and where the class in turn is part and parcel of a school system loyal to the Word of God.
The Christian training which our children receive will, by the grace of God, establish deep appreciation for this God-given life. Such Christian education is needed as as preparation for adult life and responsibilities. In some Christian circles it is being maintained that our children should be missionaries in the non-Christian schools. However, just as our missionaries in foreign church fields prepare themselves through extensive schooling before going abroad to proclaim the Gospel, so our children should not go into the world unprepared.
The school and the Kingdom – It is sad to add that the present day attacks on the Christian school system do not necessarily all originate from sources outside the Christian home. The greatest danger to the Christian school is that many take the Church of Jesus Christ for granted. They have lost the vision of the mystery of the Body of Christ. They have forgotten that the Church on earth must be militant. That is why they have no Kingdom-consciousness. This lack of vision has undermined both the Christian home and the Christian school.
The Church, however, stands in the heart of Kingdom activities. Once more, it is a power house from which issue spiritual direction and nourishment for all of life. A deep love for the Church of Jesus Christ brings with it a deep love for the Christian home and the extension thereof: the Christian school. Let us as parents rally to the cause of God’s children and their education, and train up our children in the way they should go, so that when they will be old, they will not depart from it (see Provo 22:6).
Henry J. Boekhoven is pastor of the Oakdale Park Reformed Church of Grand Rapids, Michigan.
The school and the home – Obviously, in Old Testament times children did not attend schools as we know these today, but they did receive schooling. The parents were constantly involved in the educational process of their offspring. We send our children to school, and give them to teachers who are equipped to train them in a multitude of disciplines of learning. Ours is too complicated a world for us to be able to teach our children adequately; neither would we find time. However, with the delegation of our parental obligation to educate our children, we have not abandoned our responsibility to see to it that they are trained in keeping with the “statutes and commandments” of the Lord.
As Christian parents we should want our children to receive an education consistent with the home. In effect the school should be an extension of the Christian home. This concept makes the parental school mandatory. No parochial or public school can represent the parents and the Christian home as the parental Christian school is able to do.
The school and the church – Moreover, in the Kingdom-conscious Christian community of Reformed persuasion the Church is the power house for true direction. We could illustrate this Church and Kingdom concept by drawing the lines of an old cartwheel: a rim, spokes and hub. When we place that wheel flat on the ground we find the hub not only in the center, but also elevated. From it extend the spokes. In this illustration the hub depicts the exalted position of the Church of Jesus Christ.
The Church then feeds all facets of life with spiritual direction from the Word of God. But the Church herself is not taking over by directly controlling any of the Kingdom agencies. She remains a spiritual body—the Body of Jesus Christ. All of life is arena for Kingdom activity, and ought to place itself within the “rim” of Christ’s kingly rule. The Christian school is only truly Christian if it fully submits to that rule.
The school and the Bible – The non-Christian and the non-Reformed Christian schools lack this biblically-oriented view of life. Christian education must not be secular in nature with a devotional sauce poured over it just as we cover cake with frosting for the sake of taste. Christian education is education permeated with the teachings of the Bible.
All instruction—from elementary education on up through college and beyond—must be filled with biblical truth. It should be noted that “filled” means that there is no room left for any teaching in whatever area of education which contradicts Scripture.
For example, in the fields of geology and biology we must speak of the magnificence of a creation made by God, and should not build our disciplines upon the fallacious premise of evolution. To mention another example, the interpretation of history rests upon the biblical exclamation that “the Lord God omnipotent reigneth” (Rev. 19:6). The theory of economic determinism fails to explain the course of events of past and present. Even the simple three R’s become precious when we see how God allows communication through reading, writing and arithmetic.
The school and the teachers – When our children begin to struggle with the philosophies of life they need the guiding help of dedicated teachers in a sympathetic environment. It is not sufficient just to have Christian teachers. We must have dedicated teachers who are excited about Christ and the Kingdom, about their work and the children, teachers who have a vision! Their vision must be, as one Christian teacher said to this writer recently, “A real desire to tell the children about God.”
Therefore it is also not sufficient to have Christian teachers teaching our children in a so-called neutral environment. In matters of the Christian faith neutrality is non-existent. In the non-Christian school the Christian teacher may perhaps exercise a wholesome influence, yet he is extremely curtailed in expressing his beliefs. The writer wishes to establish that, in his opinion, many children from Christian homes studying in non·Christian schools suffer from spiritual malnutrition as a result of such abridgment. Let us face the fact that a Christian teacher in education does not make for Christian education, just as a Christian politician in politics does not make for Christian politics.
Some non-Christian schools schedule religious instruction classes. In many instances this is only a watered-down presentation of some Christian truths, and at times no more than an instruction in humanistic principles. Religious instruction is attached to the schedules of subjects as an appendix, often optional. Religious instruction is not at all equal to Christian education. For our children, we need a Reformed-Calvinistic, biblically-oriented system of education with Christian teachers, dedicated to the cause of Christ, presenting with love and personal devotion what the Bible teaches. Such instruction must be given in a classroom where teacher and student make a concerted effort to listen to the Scriptures, and where the class in turn is part and parcel of a school system loyal to the Word of God.
The Christian training which our children receive will, by the grace of God, establish deep appreciation for this God-given life. Such Christian education is needed as as preparation for adult life and responsibilities. In some Christian circles it is being maintained that our children should be missionaries in the non-Christian schools. However, just as our missionaries in foreign church fields prepare themselves through extensive schooling before going abroad to proclaim the Gospel, so our children should not go into the world unprepared.
The school and the Kingdom – It is sad to add that the present day attacks on the Christian school system do not necessarily all originate from sources outside the Christian home. The greatest danger to the Christian school is that many take the Church of Jesus Christ for granted. They have lost the vision of the mystery of the Body of Christ. They have forgotten that the Church on earth must be militant. That is why they have no Kingdom-consciousness. This lack of vision has undermined both the Christian home and the Christian school.
The Church, however, stands in the heart of Kingdom activities. Once more, it is a power house from which issue spiritual direction and nourishment for all of life. A deep love for the Church of Jesus Christ brings with it a deep love for the Christian home and the extension thereof: the Christian school. Let us as parents rally to the cause of God’s children and their education, and train up our children in the way they should go, so that when they will be old, they will not depart from it (see Provo 22:6).
Henry J. Boekhoven is pastor of the Oakdale Park Reformed Church of Grand Rapids, Michigan.