‘The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom…’

‘Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it.’
(Prov. 9:10, 22:6)

God has given those at home the primary responsibility of educating our children. As a parent, I am commanded to bring my children up in ‘the nurture and admonition of the Lord’. Consequently, great care must be taken in delegating this responsibility. Christian schools are provided to work with us in the educating of our children. The Christian school gains its authority from the mandate given to parents and has been created to provide a Bible centred philosophy of education to complement what is being done in the home and the church. God places the responsibility of educating our children squarely on our shoulders. What philosophy of life will we give them? The Christian school stands ready to help us in this task. For my family this has been a demanding and rewarding challenge.

Without God there is no basis for education

God is a God not just of prayer and worship but of everything. He is the God of science. It is He who created the world and upholds it. The created world reveals something of the majesty of the Creator (Ps. 19:1). He is the God of history. Even unbelieving kings are instruments in His hand (Is. 10:5-7). All history takes place under the sovereign will of God. He is the God of music (e.g. Ps. 150). This reflects the fact that God the Creator made man in His own image and therefore creative. The same can be said of art and technology (e.g. Ex. 35). The truth is, without God there is no basis for order and discovery and so no basis for education.  I believe that there is a vast difference between educating for civic responsibility and educating for eternity.

From early times the church took the lead in the nation to support parents in training children in godly ways, educating them for life. The first universities were founded on the same basis. As the church failed to uphold its God-given mandate, the state stepped in with its increasingly secularised, humanistic approach. Being Christ-centred is not ‘alternative’ education but rather true education.

There are many historical examples of this.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote on the subject of the need for Christian schools. He wrote an article in the Sword and the Trowel of August 1866 entitled ‘The Holy War in the Present Hour’.

…we have too much given up our children to the enemy. A great effort should be made to multiply Christian schools, and to render them distinctly Christian by teaching the Gospel in them and by labouring to bring the children as children to the Lord Jesus Christ. This silly cry of nonsectarianism is duping many into sending children into schools which the most important part of wisdom, namely the fear of the Lord, is altogether ignored. We trust this folly will soon be given up and that we shall see schools in which all that we believe and hold dear shall be taught to the children of our poor adherents.

George Whitefield was asked in 1749 by his friend Benjamin Franklin to found a school in Philadelphia. Whitefield replied,

As we are creatures of a day, as our whole life is but one small point between two eternities, it is reasonable to suppose that the grand end of every Christian institution for forming tender minds should be to convince them of their natural depravity, of the means of recovery out of it, and the necessity of preparing for the enjoyment of the Supreme Being in the future state… arts and sciences may be built on this and serve to embellish and set off this superstructure, but without this, I think there cannot be any good foundation.

Lord Shaftsbury put it like this, ‘Education without instruction in religious and moral principles will merely result in a race of clever devils’.

What is a ‘Christian’ school?

Simply, this is a school in which God and His word take central place. It seeks to know God’s world as well as His word. The Bible teaches us that creation is held together in Christ, so no subject, scientific or artistic can be separated from His revelation of Himself. So, in a Christian school the whole curriculum and way of looking at the world is based on biblical principles i.e. the world is God’s and was made by Him. He has a plan and a purpose for each person in it, all of whom are uniquely loved by Him. All teaching is measured against God’s word, showing children how His word applies to everyday life. Our children are a gift from God. We are responsible to train them according to His word in every aspect of their life, not just home and church.  A Christian school works in harmony with the Christian home and church. Christian teachers and staff model God’s love and encourage children to a God honouring life as they work toward their full potential to God’s glory. Peer influences should be positive and Christ-like. We are not naive parents. Obviously children in a Christian school may not behave in a Christ-like manner, but a Christian school has biblical principles and concerned Christian teachers to prime and instruct in the way righteousness.

But what about…?

Some say this sounds like indoctrination. We cannot make our children become Christians. That is the convicting and regenerating work of the Holy Spirit to which each child is free to respond personally. Others say we are sheltering our children from a harsh world. No, we are teaching the children to see the world from God’s point of view, to make their own decisions, knowing how God would have them handle difficult situations. Others say we should be salt and light in our society. Yes, we should be in the forefront – not our vulnerable children. By giving them a sound Christian grounding we best prepare them to take their God-ordained place in society. Others ask if it’s academic. Certainly, as it is important that each child is helped to reach full potential. That is not all, though – character formation is vital, as is spiritual development. All children need to know and experience the love of God in a personal way through Jesus Christ and have their God-given gifts and potential stretched and developed.

At its root, the case for Christian education is a theological one. Before I thought about it biblically my thinking was based on my experience; I said to myself, ‘I was brought up in the state system and it didn’t do me any harm’. My academic needs were met as were my physical needs and to a lesser extent my social and emotional needs but my spiritual needs were starved of truth and hindered. I went to the local junior school and then to a grammar school. My first Religious Education lesson consisted of drawing a mountain. At the bottom of the mountain I was asked to draw a single cell organism, then a jelly-fish, a fish, amphibious creatures, animals, a monkey and on the top of the mountain a man. That was in 1952. Since then the downgrade has been rapid, e.g. teaching alternative lifestyles on an equal basis, using English texts which are immoral or blasphemous, etc. Some of the most virulent opposition to a Christian school comes from fellow Christians. Why? Why doesn’t a large church or a group of like-minded churches start a Christian school?

Will you educate your child for civic responsibility or for eternity? Think on these things!

David Jones is pastor of Calvary Chapel, Rhymney, having
served previously as an elder at Hebron, Dowlais for many years.