Center for Biblical Theology and Eschatology
Reasons for Christian Education
by Scott A. Leone
December 7, 2001 Pastor of The Baptist Tabernacle 1618 Waycross Highway, Jesup, GA 31545 Pastor@TheBaptistTabernacle.com Some people may wonder, why would
Christians be interested in starting their own schools when public education is
free and available to all? Christians may ask themselves, should we be
considering Christian education for our children? Or, what might be the
benefits of a Christian education for my children? Well, this article is a
brief introduction to reasons for a Christian education. Let me begin by
stating some typical reasons for Christian education and then state what I
believe to be the most compelling reason for Christian education. These reasons
apply to Christian home schooling and private schools, but I will mainly
address this article with reference to Christian schools. First of all some would say that
Christian education protects their children from many of the excesses that abound
in our society. Although Christian schools are generally freer from things like
drug abuse, profane language, sexual abuses, and uncontrollable classrooms,
they are not immune to them. However, Christian schools are generally freer
from abuses because orderliness and discipline are considered virtues to be
cultivated and not shied away from. Therefore in a Christian school, there is a
good possibility of providing a better learning environment for children, with
less distractions and a more serious academic focus, and with an environment
that is safer and that represents the kind of atmosphere Christians strive for
in their own homes. Secondly, some would say that
Christian parents highly value good education and admire the high academic
standards set by many Christian schools. This is true, although we must add
that most parents value good education for their children, whether Christian or
not. For the Christian, knowledge is not something that is merely imparted to
our children so that they can “make it” in the world; knowledge is God-given
and we receive it because we are made in the image of God. Knowing God, self,
and God’s world all flow from being made in the image of God. Thirdly, some would say that
Christian education generally produces better results. This too is a fact.
Christian education generally produces children with higher achievement scores
than public education. Why? Well, to some degree we can say that private
education in general prospers because of smaller classes, orderly environments,
diligent parental involvement and so on, but I would add that God blesses the
sincere, caring, and prayerful efforts of His people. These achievements are in
no small part the result of Christian educators having an environment where God
can be openly honored. God said, “Those who honor me I will honor.” With such an environment, is it any wonder
that Christian education generally yields students better able to read, write,
calculate, and analyze? Fourthly, some would note that
with Christian education the Bible can be freely taught. Teachers are free to
read God’s Word and talk about the gospel, to lead their classes in daily
devotions, to teach Bible classes and chapel services, to have Scripture memory
programs, and just to be there to help when children have those inevitable
little questions about God that impress their young hearts. All of these are legitimate
reasons for Christian education. But the most compelling reason for Christian
education is that with Christian education children are exposed to a Christian
worldview. A worldview is simply what you
believe, a person’s way of explaining how the world works and what part he
plays in it. All of us have a worldview, whether we can articulate it or not. The
main worldview today is not Christianity, but naturalism. Naturalism is the
belief that all things evolved without the design or controlling hand of God.
To the naturalist the universe came prepackaged with the label of the box,
"No God Required!" It is beyond the scope of this
article to explain all the details of naturalism and its implications for the
way people live. But, the naturalistic worldview dominates public education,
politics, the news media, and is even making inroads into the family. Therefore
it behooves us to at least introduce ourselves to some of the aspects of
naturalism. First of all, naturalism is a faith-based
presupposition (something one assumes beforehand). Naturalism is a belief
system that supports a person’s worldview by framing the way he thinks about
the world and himself. Naturalism is presented as "science",
unbiased, objective, and observable, but is actually none of these things. It
is not a neutral unbiased view of the world, and it has some very real consequences. Naturalism results in some very
significant ethical and moral implications. The presupposition of naturalism
results in the ethics of evolution, "survival of the fittest", to
situational ethics, where what I do depends on my circumstances without reference
to an overarching moral code. And it results in forsaking moral absolutes, in
moral relativism, in "values" that change with personal preferences,
and in the pragmatic value system of "if it works, do it."
Naturalistic ethics are essentially self-oriented. Self-interest becomes the
basis for morality. There is no absolute authority for morality but what
"opinion" dictates. Authority comes from a person’s will and not some
objective absolute standard. Furthermore naturalists claim
Constitutional authority when they attempt to remove all references to
"God" from public institutions. But I remind you that nowhere in our
Constitution are the words "separation of church and state" ever
used, and our Constitution nowhere dictates a de facto presupposition of
naturalism. Our Constitution guarantees and protects the right of religious
freedom, and hence the freedom to choose one’s own set of underlying beliefs
about life. By favoring naturalism our public
schools are simply imposing one worldview upon children without debate, and
indeed, are even intolerant of debate. Children get an underlying current of
secular humanism and moral relativism. My friends, this is not neutral and
unbiased! Finally, with respect to the
importance of ethics in the real world, consider that all knowledge carries
with it moral implications. Science can build a gun, but what I do with it is a
moral issue. An engineer may design a bridge, but designing it to be safe is a
moral imperative. Knowledge carries with it responsibility and responsibility
is predicated upon morality. The Bible says, "The fear
of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge." Christian education
promotes a Christian worldview. This is also a faith-based
presuppositional view of the world. It is founded upon the presuppositions that
God exists and that He has revealed Himself in the Bible. The Christian
worldview is God-centered and Bible-centered. It promotes Christian character
and ethics, and addresses the whole man, body and soul. It views the
world as a complete system, with God as the ultimate reference point of all
things (including math, science, and history). It provides children with a
moral and ethical framework to view the world that accurately reflects God’s
Laws, human nature, and our responsibility to those Laws. The naturalistic ethics of
"survival of the fittest" cannot hold a candle to the moral laws of
God in the Ten Commandments, the virtue of love expressed in 1st Corinthians
13, the ethics of the God’s Law expressed in loving God and loving your
neighbor, or the mercy of God in the gospel. It is not enough for our children
to simply acquire knowledge; we want them to make the right choices with that
knowledge. Christian ethics, embraced in the Christian worldview, provides a
solid foundation for taking knowledge and morally expressing it in culture. If
self-interest is the basis of morality, or even if any mere human interest is
the basis of morality, then what happens when lying, hatred, murder, anger, or
cheating serves that interest? Naturalism has no moral foundation. For instance
it says, "If guns can kill people then guns must be responsible, therefore
get rid of the guns." Christian ethics puts the onus of responsibility
upon the people, because we are ultimately responsible to God, and that is a
worldview that can be applied to any situation. Which belief system is right? It
is a matter of faith! But we must not kid ourselves into thinking that
naturalism is neutral. It is a faith-based presupposition, just like
Christianity. So why not educate our children from a Christian presupposition?
Why shouldn’t Christian parents seek to educate their children from a Christian
worldview and buttress their knowledge with a solid moral foundation? Christian education is more
relevant and needful today than it was fifty years ago. At one time in America
the Christian worldview, with Christian character and ethics that are expressed
in the Bible, was at least respected and openly allowed in the public forum.
Today, while there are well meaning people, the bias of naturalism has created
an atmosphere of intolerance toward the Christian worldview in our public
institutions. Therefore, we need Christian education.