Education

Baptist Faith and Message, 2000 XII. Education

Christianity is the faith of enlightenment and intelligence. In Jesus Christ abide all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. All sound learning is, therefore, a part of our Christian heritage. The new birth opens all human faculties and creates a thirst for knowledge. Moreover, the cause of education in the Kingdom of Christ is co-ordinate with the causes of missions and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal support of the churches. An adequate system of Christian education is necessary to a complete spiritual program for Christ’s people.

In Christian education there should be a proper balance between academic freedom and academic responsibility. Freedom in any orderly relationship of human life is always limited and never absolute. The freedom of a teacher in a Christian school, college, or seminary is limited by the pre-eminence of Jesus Christ, by the authoritative nature of the Scriptures, and by the distinct purpose for which the school exists.

Education is Compatible with Our Faith

Baptist Faith and Message, 2000 XII. Education

Christianity is the faith of enlightenment and intelligence. In Jesus Christ abide all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. All sound learning is, therefore, a part of our Christian heritage.

There is a tendency to dismiss education as being unnecessary to Christianity. We sometimes fall into a trap of thinking that education only takes us away from God. We watch as kids grow up indoctrinated by the world, and assume falsely that education in general is to blame.

But it’s not true. Education itself is a good thing, and falls right in line with our faith. Listen to the testimony of Scripture:

Proverbs 3:13–23 ESV

13 Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, 14 for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold. 15 She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. 16 Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. 17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. 18 She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; those who hold her fast are called blessed. 19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens; 20 by his knowledge the deeps broke open, and the clouds drop down the dew. 21 My son, do not lose sight of these— keep sound wisdom and discretion, 22 and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck. 23 Then you will walk on your way securely, and your foot will not stumble.

Proverbs 15:14 ESV

14 The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouths of fools feed on folly.

Ecclesiastes 7:19 ESV

19 Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.

Colossians 2:8 ESV

8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

All of these passages speak of wisdom in general - not only of spiritual wisdom. Education, as a means of developing wisdom, is a vital component of maturation. If our kids and grandkids are to be obedient to God, we must give them an educational foundation so that they will be able to follow God completely.

But the BF&M goes further. Not only is education just compatible with our faith, but

Education Is Completed by Our Faith

Baptist Faith and Message, 2000 XII. Education

The new birth opens all human faculties and creates a thirst for knowledge. Moreover, the cause of education in the Kingdom of Christ is co-ordinate with the causes of missions and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal support of the churches.

Because God is the source of all wisdom, the new birth grants us access to that wisdom in a new way. Christians ought therefore to be more desirous of knowing the truth, and be more diligent at acquiring it. Like Solomon, we should be able to say

1 Kings 3:9 ESV

9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?”

And James encourages us to seek wisdom, too:

James 1:5 ESV

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

I’ll even go further, though. Not only should Christians be wise - mature disciples will be wise. We read 2 Timothy 3:16-17 this morning:

2 Timothy 3:16–17 ESV

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

1 Corinthians 2:1–16 ESV

1 And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. 6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. 7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— 10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 13 And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. 14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 15 The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. 16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

Education Should Be Championed in Our Faith

Because education is a good thing, and because it is part of our maturity in Christ, we as the Church should support education.

Baptist Faith and Message, 2000 XII. Education

Moreover, the cause of education in the Kingdom of Christ is co-ordinate with the causes of missions and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal support of the churches. An adequate system of Christian education is necessary to a complete spiritual program for Christ’s people.

The concept of Christian education is merely discipleship. I’m actually concerned here, because much of Christian education is just regular secular education with a Bible class added on. I’ve seen schools that, without the word “Christian” in the name and without having Bible or chapel once-a-week, looked just like secular schools. This out not be the case! In fact, Christian education should be remarkably better than secular education. And Christian education should be done with excellence.

Colossians 3:23–24 ESV

23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

But how do we do it? The BF&M seeks a balance between freedom and responsibility:

Baptist Faith and Message, 2000 XII. Education

In Christian education there should be a proper balance between academic freedom and academic responsibility. Freedom in any orderly relationship of human life is always limited and never absolute. The freedom of a teacher in a Christian school, college, or seminary is limited by the pre-eminence of Jesus Christ, by the authoritative nature of the Scriptures, and by the distinct purpose for which the school exists.

The committee recognized that Christian schools can easily drift away from Scriptures. We’ve seen it happen before. For this reason, we must be careful to make sure that our pursuit of education is a means to the end of discipleship, not an end in-and-of itself. Wisdom leads to godliness, and should always be subservient to the ultimate goal of Christlikeness in the life of believers.