1999 issue 3 - what sort of christian education will build a truly christian culture? - counsel of...

8/12/2019 1999 Issue 3 - What Sort of Christian Education Will Build a Truly Christian Culture? - Counsel of Chalcedon

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I. INTRODUCTION: ThePlace of Christian Education

in Building a ChristianCulture

A. The Building of ChristianCulture

Building a truly Christianculture is our God given task(Genesis 1:26-28; Matthew 28:18-20; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Colossians 1:17,18). All Christiansmust do what they can with thetalents God has given them totransform the culture in whichthey live. They do this for God sglory, by his Word and Spirit,and with faith in his promises.The God given task of Christianculture building is possiblebecause Christ is the

Savior,Lord, Restorer, and Judge ofculture. His person and

to see the relevance of Christ toall areas of life. This is the job ofall Chri stian teachers, whether inthe school or home. ... We wantour children with us to see thevision of the all-conqueringChrist as he wrests the culture ofmankind away from Satan and

brings it to its consummationwhen the new heavens and thenew earth on which righteousness shall dwell, at last appears.We would have our young menand women become true soldiersunder Christ as with him they goconquering and to conquer everydomain of life for Christ(Cornelius Van Til, Essaysin

hristian Education 27).

I. The Scriptural Foundationsof Christian Education

God; all.men are fully accountable to him. Christian educationis necessary, therefore, if we areto learn about God and hisrequirements upon our life. tought to be seen that adherenceto the very first commandmentforces us to reject religiously

neutral, statist education.2. The Bible teaches that

this God exists in three persons .I The one true God exists in

three persons, Father, Son, andHoly Ghost, each of whomcontains the fullness of deity.There are three persons withinthe Godhead, but there is onlyone God. n God, unity anddiversity are equally ultimate.God s

onenessand

threenessare

equally necessary to his deity.

work have made culturepossible again. Consistent Christianity mustmaintain that theunique person and work

What Sort o ChristianEducation Will Build a TrulyChristian Culture

He would not be God ifhe were not one; hewould not be God if hewere not three.

ii The biblicaldoctrine of the trinitymeans that Christianeducation does not have

of Christ is the-sole The Implicat ions of Deuteronomy 6:1 18

for Christian Educat ionfoundation for culturalprogress, civil justice,and world peace. Only

by turning to him in

the irresolvable diChris Strevel

~ = = = = = = i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i = = = = = = i Jlemma which faces allfaith and repentance will Western and indeed world culturerecover its purpose, standard,and motivation.

B. The Necessity of ChristianEducation in Building a

Christian Culture

Christian culture is builtas Christian parents seek togive their children a consis-

tent ly biblical educationThis is an indispensable aspectof culture building. When we aregone, i t is our children who willpick up the standard and marchon in faithfulness to their greatKing. They cannot build aChristian culture, however,unless we train them. Theycannot obey God s culturalmandate unless they are taught

Christian education has adefinite starting point. Ourfoundations are revealed on thepages of Scripture. n particular,Moses gave Israel a reason toeducate their children from a selfconSciously Christi an perspective.

A. Our Faith in the TriuneGod (Deut. 6:4)

1. The Bible teaches thatthere is only one God. He is theLord over every area of life. Allmen and nations owe allegianceto this God. They will be judgedby him if they refuse to governthemselves by his law. Ourdoctrine of God motivates us toreject humbly all neutral andantiChristian approaches toeducation. There is only one

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nonChristian education. Unbelieving philosophiesof education have been unable tocombine the one with the many,the universals with the particulars, without destroying meaningfor man. Beginning with hisassumption of ultimate autonomy, the unbeliever musteither affirm the supremacy ofimpersonal, abstract logic (the

one) or brute, meaningless facts(the many). n the triune God ofthe Bible, however, the universa lsare never at war with the particulars, or vice versa, because he hascreated them both. All lawscorrespond with the facts as hehas created them. All the factsare in harmony with his createdlaws. hristian educationprovides what no other


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system o f education can: aunified, comprehensive,objective outlook on life thatjustifies both the particularso man s experience and thelaws that govern the uni-verse. I t is able to do so becauseof its faith in the personal, triune

God of the Bible.3. The Bible teaches that

this God is the Creator of heavenand earth.

I God has created all thingsfor himself. In the beginning,God made the heavens and theearth (Gen. 1;1). All thingswere made by him (John 1;3;Col. 1;16). Chris tian educationproceeds upon the assumption

that God has created all things,and that redeemed man mustlearn how to live and think inGod's world. Because God hascreated all things, there is meaning in the universe. God createdit for his own glory. Itis revelatory of himself. Moreover, Godcontinues to govern creationthrough his providence. Thisensures that his purpose forcreating the universe will be

realized in human history.Christian education endeavors toteach covenant children themeans by which to realize God'splans for his creation.

ii The doctrine of tempora lcreation by the triune God of theBible means that God's interpretation of the universe is the onlyone available for man. Accordingly, the doctrine of creationplays a vital role in Christianeducation. I f we are to obtain anunderstanding of ourselves andthe universe we must go to ourCreator in humble submission.We must ear the Lord (Prov.1;7). Christian education makesno pretense about beingrevelationalin character. Unlesswe begin with God's revelation,his interpretation of the facts, ourknowledge is fatally flawed.

a. How can man have trueknowledge? Howcanhetrulyeducate? HemustthinkGod'sthoughts after him. Education is

implication into God'sinterp retation ... To think God'sthoughts after him, to dedicatethe universe to its Maker, and to

be the vice-regent of the Ruler ofall things; this is man's task.Man is prophet, priest, and king.I t is this view of education that isinvolved in and demanded by theidea of creation (Van il 124).This is Van Til's way of sayingthat the fear of the Lord is thebeginning of knowledge. Unlesswe recognize that God is theCreator, Controller, and Interpreter of every fact, and that manmust take God's view about everyfact, man cannot have trueknowledge about anything.

b. Christian educationmakes a bold claim; true education is possible only if we maintain the doctrine of creation andthe Creator-creature distinction.Christian education claims that i talone has any reason to educate.I f we do not admit that we are

God's creatures, completelydependent upon him fo r life,light, and knowledge, we cannever know any single factcorrectly.

c. We may characterize thewhole situation by saying thatthe creation of God is a revelat ionof God. God revealed himself innature and God also revealedhimself in the mind of man. Thusit is impossible for the mind ofman to function except in anatmosphere of revelation ..Wemay therefore call a Christ ianepistemology a revelationalepistemology (Cornelius VanTil ASurvey of Christian Episte-molo8. 71 .

B Our Faith in the Redemptive Covenant (Deut. 6:1-3)

1. We canno t stop with the

triune God and creation, however. We must move on to redemption. Man needs redemptionbecause he broke God's covenantin the Garden. Man refused tosubmit to God's interpretation.Adam and Eve doubted tI,atGod's knowledge was original,

authoritative, and certain. Theychose to put God to the test.

2. In mercy and grace, Godgraciously entered into a bond offriendship with his elect people.In tllis covenant, he takes uponhimself their salvation. Heprovides a way for llis justice tobe satisfied by means of a bloodysacrifice. In tllis covenant, hepromises to be their God. Inreturn, man promises to live inaccordance with God's interpretation of life. Man recognizes histotal dependence on God forsalvation, and his duty to obeyGod in all walks of life.

3. Christian education isinseparable from the covenant ofgrace, and i t must always becarried on in this context. Godhas saved his people, and theymust now live as redeemed

people. Christian education inthe home, church, and school,teaches the child of God how tofunction as a Christian in God'sworld.

I The Philosophy ofChris t ian Educat ion

(Deuteronomy 6:14-16)

A The Goal of ChristianEducat ion

The goal of Christian educa

tion is to know God and keep hiscommandments. Covenantchildren must be taught God'slaws, statutes , and judgments ifthey are to be faithful members ofGod's family. The LORD requireshis people to live, think, andconquer by his Word. The peopleof God can take and keep theland of promise (Matthew 5:5)only as they remain faithful to

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hiscovenantandteachtherrchildren to keep his laws. Thegoal of Chri stian education iscomprehensive.

1. The Threefold Objectiveof the Goal

I The Development of a

Christian Life. As Christ ians,we have been placed in a veryspecial relationship with God.We have been adopted into hisfamily. As members of his family,we bear his name, are herrs to allhis promises, and are requITed towalk worthy of our calling. Thefamily of God is called the

church. The Church of Godconsists of all those throughout

the world that profess the truereligion, together with theirchi ldren (Westminster ConfessionofFaith, Ch. 25, Para. 2).Our children are members ofGod's family, the Church, even aswe are. We must teach them theways of God's covenant, hislaws, statutes, and judgments.They must learn to love God withall their heart, soul, and strength.Christian education teachesour children to l ive as mem-bers o God s family

ii The Development of aChristian Mind. The blessingsof salvation flow from God'sgrace. However, salvation entailsresponsibility. Members of God'sfamily are not free to walk as theyonce walked, in the futility oftheir own thinking. Paul makesthis clear in Ephesians 4:17-24.We are to put on the new man.

We are to be transformed by therenewing of our mind. Beingsaved by grace, we are nowobligated to put God's laws inour mind and in our heart.Christian education teachesour children to think likeChristians.

iii The Development of aChristian Culture. As unbe-lievers, we revolted from God 's

rule over our lives. We would nothave him as our Judge, King, orLawgiver. We were a law untoourselves. Being made a memberof his family by sovereign grace,we are placed into the kingdomof light. We are the infantry ofthe King. Hence, it is our privilege to stand for his Lordship inall walks of life. We are toconquer the land before us bymaking disciples of all nationsthrough the gospel of JesusChrist. One of our first responsibilities as promoters of God 'skingdom is to make sure that ourchildren understand theirresponsibility to stand forChrist 's comprehensive claimsover all men and nations. Theymust disciple all nations byGod's law. Christian educa-tion teaches our children toseek first the kingdom ofGod

2. The ComprehensiveNature of the Goal

I Throughout Culture

a. There are only two sidesin the battle for culture, and those

sides embrace radically antagonistic philosophies of education.There are two, and only two,

mutually exclusive philosophiesof education. These are involvedin two mutually exclusivephilosophies of man and his goalfor human civiliZation andculture (Van Til 36). Culturaland educational goals are tiedtogether. Unbelieving man trainshis children to build unbelieving,

antiChristian culture. Christianman educates his children to fearthe Lord in all things.

b. Christian education mustbe faithful to its goal. t mustteach its children to take thebattle for Christ's kingdom toevery area of culture. t mustteach the next generation ofChristians to live, think, andconquer by the Word of God.


There is no area over whichChrist does not claim Lordship.Likewise, there is no area o f lifein which man is not totallydependent upon God for trueknowledge. A Christian philosophy of education based uponanything short of a unifiedoutlook on human life in terms ofthe teaching of Christ in Scripture alone, is not able to challenge men to forsake the way ofdeath and walk in the way oflife 36).

ii Through the Teacher

a. The Christian educator,parent or teacher, must alwayshave this goal in mind. t willdetermine his attitude, goal,method, and standard in theclassroom. Whatever subject heteaches, it will be his goal toteach the Christian student to usethat knowledge to glorify Godand build Christian culture. Forthe Christian educator, knowledge and action are interrelated.He wants the student to use thatknowledge tofurther the cause ofChrist on earth This is thebiblical goal of eve ry subject. Allknowledge must teach ushow to subdue the earth forGod's glory.

b. The Christian educatormust also teach the studentthenecessity oflooking at every factfrom the perspective of God'sWord. t will be his goal to seethat the studen t learns science,math, literature, and history froma Christian perspective. Equallyimportant, the Christian educatorwill seek to teach his studentsthat there is no other way to lookat the facts except through thecorrective lenses of God's Word.The Christian perspective is notone among many. t is the onlyperspective which can explainthe facts as they really are. Onecannot account for history,science, or math upon any other


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foundation except that revealedon the pages of Scripture. Thisapproach to educat ion is vital toaccomplishing God's goal foreducation: the subjection of everyarea of life to the Lord JesusChrist.

c. This, then, is the point.The war between Christ andSatan is a global war ...But thewarfare is also carried on whereyou might least expect it. t iscarried on in the field of readingand writing and arithmetic, inthe field of nature study andhistory. At every point Satanseeks boys and girls, as well asmen and women to take theattitude that he got Eve and

Adam to take at the beginning ofhistory. Everywhere and at everypoint Satan' s theme-song is:'Let's be broad-minded' Van Til26).

iii In the Student

a. The Christian studentmust remember the goal of hiseducation as well. The final goalof his educat ion is not a nicehouse, car, and job. These are

desirable, and God will bless hispeople to enjoy the works of theirhands (Isa. 65:22). The covenantchild is educated so that he cantake his place in the army of theLord. Wherever he finds himselfin life, he is a solider underorders. His orders are to bringevery thought captive to JesusChrist. His education is hispreparation to advance Christianculture. He must approach hisChristian educat ion as anopportunity to learn to live,think, and conquer like a Christian.

b. How wasteful and sinfulit is, then, for Christian studentsto be haphazard and lazy in theirschool work. Student, you mustconsider your Christian education as a precious giftfrom God.Out of thankfulness to him and

love for his Son, you must pursueyour studies with diligence,prayer, and devotion. Only inthis way can you truly profitfrom your studies. Only in thisway will you be faithful to yourGod. Only in this way can yoube an instrument of culturaltransformation in his omnipotenthand.

iv. Through the Curriculum

a. Thoroughly Reformedteaching materials are sometimesdifficult to locate. Nevertheless,as much as possible, we mustutilize curriculum in the classroom which challenges thestudent to excel, not for himselfbut for the honor and glory ofGod. The tools we give him mustenable him to accomplish God'sgoal for his life or else oureducational efforts are in vain.

b. Above all, we must usecurriculum which presupposesthat God's revelation is necessary for all areas of life. The toolswhich we use in the classroommust constantly stress that

Christianity is not one philosophy among many. t s rather theonlyworIdview that does notdestroy human experience andproduce skepticism, pessimism,and ignorance. We cannot followthe gods of the people around us.Our curriculum must be asexclusively Christian as ourphilosophy.

c. Where good curriculum

isnot

available, we must becritical. t is true that 2+2=4 inall mathematics textbooks. Butthe Christian teacher will becareful to emphasize that 2+2=4because God rules the universe.There is no other explanation forthis axiomatic mathematicalprinciple. f God did not createand control the universe, therewould be no reason for 2+2=4. Inother words, the Christian

teacher must teach his studentsthat it is God who makes thefacts what they are, and only byadopting his interpretation of thefacts can they understand God,themselves, and the universe.

B The Method (Standard)of Christian Education

(Deul. 6:4-9)1. The Absolute Truth ofthe

BibleI As we educate our children,

our most ultimate presuppositionis the truthfulness of the Christian position. The Lord our Godhas spoken. His Word is our life.To refuse to follow his word ismoral, intellectual, and culturalsuicide. His Word is the life andbreath of our educationalmethod. Our children must seethat Christianity is not n explanation of the facts, not an ap -proach to life, but the onlyexplanation and approach whichwill glorify God and provideanswers for man. We presentJesus Chris t as the way, the truth,and the life (In. 14:6). We submitto his Lordship in every aca

demic discipline. The studentsmust see this. t will not besufficient to begin your math,science, history, 01' logic classwith prayer. f you never mention God again you have notpresented your subject truthfully.Your students must learn to seethat if they are to have correctknowledge about any area of life,they must begin with what Godsays in his Word. Christianteachers know that not a single'fact' can really be known andtherefore really be taught unlessplaced under the light of therevelation of God. Even the lawsof arithmetic cannot be knownotherwise (Van Til 186).

ii The Reformed Faithfrankly begins with the presup-pOSitions of the absolute truth ofthe Christian position. t is this



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that the teacher tells the pupil.As he has learned the goal ofhuman life can be known onlyfrom the authoritative revelationof God, so he knows that thecriterion by which man must livecan be found only in this revelation too (Van Til 81).

2. The Centrality of theBible

I The Bible is the textbook ofthe Christian educator. The Bibleis not a science, logic, or historytextbook, but it is the book bywhich all other books are to bejudged. Students must be taughtthat the Bible is the light bywhich every claim to knowledgemustbe judged. f he Bible trul ycontradicts the lat est scientificclaim, then that claim is erroneous. This is how confident weare that the Bible is the infallible,all-sufficient , self-attesting Wordof Almigh ty God. Wherever itslight is shunned, moral andintellectual darkness results.

ii "We need to become moreconscious of these distinctions.Unless we are conscious of them

we shall never have genuinelyChristian schools. To be conscious of these distinctions doesnotme n that we must spendmore time on the direct teachingof religion than on other matters.

f we teach religion indirectlyeverywhere and always we mayneed less time to teach religiondirectly. To be conscious of thesedistinctions does mean that theplan of curriculum is to be Godcentered. Man exists for God(Van il186).

3. The Consistent Instruction of the Bible

Christian education must bedaily, habitual, and practicaltraining out of the Word of God.Christian education never ends.Even if your covenant childrenare enrolled in a Christianschool, their education in the

covenant of God does not end at3:00 PM. It is your responsibilityto teach them to apply what theyhave learned to all areas of life.You can never begin too young,and you can never teach toooften.

4. The Triune God of theBible

What gives Christian educational methods their success isunity. f we are going to educateour covenant children to beagents of cultural transformationunder the banner of Christ , if weare going to teach them thenecessity of the Chri stian worldand life view, then they mustbegin to see the unity of lifeunder the comprehensive plan ofGod. As we have already noted,it is the triune God of the Biblewho provides unity to oureducational method. In him, theone and the many are equallyultimate, equal ly meaningful.His law gives meaning andstructure to the facts which hehas created. Hence, we can movefrom subject to subject, confident

that his Word is relevant, necessary, and sufficient wherever wego. All areas of life are dedicatedto the Lord, important to thebuilding of Christian culture,and understood correctly only inthe light of his Word (Zechariah14:20; Psalm36:9).

C The Motivation forChristian Education

(Deut. 6:13-19)

1. Faith in God's revelationmotivates the Christian educatorto present the Christian positionas the only interpreta tion available for man.

I Reformed Christian educationmaintains that we (selfconscious Christians) are theonly ones who can consistentlyeducate. Because we begin withGod and his all-sufficient revelation in the Bible, we have a


foundat ion for knowing. ThenonChristian educator does nothave this foundation. Hisuniverse is ruled by chance. Hisknowledge is uncertain, a bestguess, or a pooling of ignorance.He has no standard by which heshould educate. One standardfor thought and life are as goodas another.

ii The Christian educator ismotivat ed to teach his students tofear the Lord. He realizes thatGod jealously guards over hiscovenant children. God forbids.his children to follow other godsor interpretat ions of life. Godalone is to be worshipped. Hisway alone is truth. Therefore,

Christian educators will zealously guard the hearts and mindof those covenant childrencommitted to them. They areGod's children. His truth is theirlife.

iii The knowledge of God isthe Christian educator's greatestmotivation. Whatever subject heteaches, he knows that it is hisprivilege and responsibility topresent God's opinion on thatsubject to his students. Becausehe begins with God's revelation,he has objective, cer tain knowledge to communicate to hisstudents. He has an objectivegoal and standard for his educa-tion which no other philosophyof education can boast He isexcited about his subject, and heis anxious to equip his studentsto advance God's kingdom

through his truth. "We want theChris tian schools to become amighty bu lwark for the defense ofthe Christian faith and, as such..the means by which the wholeman, and mankind as a whole,may be challenged to forsake thePrince of Darkness and turn tohim who is Lord oiall (Van Til42).

2 Faith in God's victorymotivates the Christian educator


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to train his students to stand forthe interests of Christ in everyarea of life.

I The Christ ian teacher orparent is motivated to pursueGod's plan for culture, thekingdom of God on earth, theequipping of the saints for worksof service, because he is confidentthat God will win in history.Christ is going forth to conquer.His enemies will be made afootstool for his feet 1 Corinthians 15:25; Hebrews 10:15).Hence, they exuberant ly imbibein their students that God'sinterpretat ion will win out.There is no other interpretationThe nations wi ll be converted.

God's inte rpreta tion will beembraced progressively andcomprehensively by all men andnations. The Christianeducator's work is not in vain inthe Lord. (Gen. 22:18; 26:4; Ps.22:27; 72:11,17; 82:8; 86:9; Isa. 2:2;66:18; Jere. 3:17; Dan. 7:14; Zech.14:16; Rev. 7:9; 12:5; 13:7; 15:4)All the nations that refuse tosurrender to his Lordship andplans for histo ry will be progres

sively dest royed by the breath ofhis mouth. The nations whichforget God will be cast into hell(Psalm 9:17).

ii Obviously, this eschatological opt imism is lacking inmuch of today' s Christianeducation. While there is nological connect ion between anoptimistic eschatology andChristian education, there is

certain ly a theological one. Whyeducate from a biblical perspective if God's plan for history isnot going to be realized? f Godis not interested in anythingbeyond men's souls, if historyand earth belongs to Satan andthe wicked, then Christiansought to avoid the complexitiesof education and expend theirenergy on gett ing people saved.An eschatology of victory is an

indispensable aspect of Christianeducation. t provides theteacher and student with aneducational and cultural motivation.

iii Herein precisely ourinspiration is to be found. Youwho seek to educate childrenmay tell those who are entrustedto your care that they are children ofthe king. They do not livein a make-believe kingdom ofNarnia. They live in the kingdomof the Lion of the tribe of Judahunto whom all power in heavenand on earth is given. You mayconvey to them the promise of theking when he says:' All thingsare yours, but you are Christ's

and Christ is God's.' f you seekfirst the kingdom of heaven thenall things will be added to you(Van Til 8-9).

I. The Reformation ofChristian Education

A The Rejection ofSeparatism (6:18-19)

1. The Christian educato rmust reject any educational goalsand methods that deny thecultural relevance of Christ'sredemptive work. t is sinful notto train our covenant children tostand for the Lordship of Christover every area of human life. fwe adopt a defeatist, pietistic,separatistic approach to education, there is no need for Christian education. The motivationhas been ripped out of theeducative process. f God is notgoing to win in history, if Chris'tian culture is not to be built,then Christian education isunnecessary.

2. Sadly, while manythousands of Christian studentshave been educated in suchschools, they have made verylittle impact on Christian culture.They are living out their education. The end is coming. Christians can do nothing about it.

Let's wait for the rapture andsave as many souls as we can.These children were never taughtthat the Christian is the only onewith answers to our society'squestions They were nevertaught that in addition to witnessing on Tuesday nights, theymust stand for Christ in theoffice, town hall, and ball fieldsof our country. They were nevertaught the comprehensive natureof the redemptive work of JesusChrist. Reformed educators, letitnever be said of you that youtrained a generation of culturallyirrelevant covenant children. fyou do you have sinned againstthe Lord Jesus Christ. Christ isLord of all. Our educationalgoals, standards, and motivationis to see our students stand forhis Lordship in all walks of life

3. Satan knows that Christis the Savior not merely of men'ssouls for eternity but of theirculture as well. f only we defySatan in the name of Christ whenhe claims anything for himself orfor those who follow him, thenwe need not fear. ro Rege (Forthe King - CBS) was the title of athree-volume work of AbrahamKuyper. t is our motto andwe place i t before the gen-eration o God's children. Inthis sign conquer " (Van Til 9)

B The Rejection ofSynthesis (6:13-16)

A synthetic approach toChristian education has always

been in vogue, and manyadvocate such an approach today. Asynthetic approach to Christianeducation is similar to that inapologetics. t assumes that theunbeliever is basically correct inhis approach to the universe. fhe will only add Jesus to the top,then he will be basically Christian. Hence, we should adopt hisinsights, methods, and goals ineducation. Look at all the glori-



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ous achievements which he hasmade Unwittingly, manyChristian schools adopt such a i lapproach to education.

1. There are many apparentbenefits to synthetic Christianeducation.

I It will not alienate theunbeliever. We do not want tochallenge the unbeliever'sapproach to the world. He maynot listen to us any more. Hemay not respect us. We desire toremain friends with the unbelieving scientists and educators asmuch as possible. We certainlycannot be intolerant of theunbeliever. He has a right to hisopinion.

ii t provides commortground with the unbeliever.Much of what the urlbelieverdoes is essentially correct. Thereis no reason why we cannotbuild with him where he iscorrect. f we work with him inthe laboratory, classroom, andgymnasium, maybe he will giveus a few minutes to talk to himabout Jesus.

iii t will provide balance toour program. We cannot throwaway the glories of ancientGreece and Rome. We wi l l robour children if we are limited bywhat the Bible says. Of coursethe Bible is correct about religion.The unbeliever, however, hasmany insights which we shoulduse to give our children a balanced view of life.

2. While these benefits mayseem to warrant such an approach, the dangers make suchan approach not only undesirable but also sinful. SyntheticChristian education commits thefollowing errors.

I It never challenges theautonomy of the unbeliever. Thebasic assumptions of all unbelieving philosophy and educa-

tion are wrong. A syntheticapproach to Christian educationassumes that the basic assumptions of the unbeliever about theworld are correct. This is a sinagainst Almighty God. f Godand his Word are expelled fromthe universe anywhere, then he isLord nowhere. The sovereigndominion of the living God is anall or nothing proposition. t isan absolute God we posit in theReformed faith, and we maynever as Christian educatorsallow that the unbeliever canknow one fact for what it really isapartfrom God's revelation.

ii t never challenges thefoolishness of the unbeliever. As

we have seen throughout thisstudy, the unbeliever 'santiChristian presuppositionshave devastating consequencesthroughout his worldview.While God allows him to discover much that is relatively true,his entire philosophy is bankrupt. He must live as ifman canpossess objective truth , accountfor the uniformity of nature, aI\d.develop a universal mora lstandard, but his unbelievingpresuppositions do not allowhim to justify any of these convictions. He must think one wayand live another. But this is toadmit defeat. Why would theChristian want to adopt such anapproach to life? While it iscertainly legitimate and desirableto utilize what the Lord hasblessed him to accomplishdespite his worldview, we mustnever adopt his methods or buildupon his presuppositions.

a. He must presupposeChrist to educate at all. f theworld were not what the Christian says it is, then the unbelievercould not educate. There wouldbe no objective interpretation ofthe facts. There would be no wayto identify the facts. There wouldbe no way to organize the facts.

18 - THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon - April/May 1999

There would be nothing butchaos, darkness, and emptyvacuum. Hence, to begin toeducate, the unbeliever mustpresuppose that 1) he lives in anorderly universe, 2) that objective knowledge of the real worldis possible, and 3) that there areobjective standards of humanconduct. Only the Christianeducator can account forth';se The unbeliever mus tmake a blind leap o faith

b. He must operate onborrowed capital. The unbe-liever is operat ing on ourworldview Anti-Christianitycannot operate unless i t presupposes biblical Christianity. All of

the cultural advancements whichthe unbeliever has made havebeen in spite of his presuppos itions, because the Christianworldview is true, and onlybecause of God's common grace.

iii It never challenges theunbeliever with the Lordship ofChrist. A synthetic approach toChristian education denies thatthe fear of the Lord is the begin

ning of knowledge.t

repudiatesthe reformed belief that man mustbelieve in order to understand.Consistently biblical Chr istianeducation stresses that sin hasblinded the natural man in everyarea. Christ's redemptive work isnecessary to restore man untoknowledge and holiness. Allmen must surrender to hisLordship or incur his wrath. Thesynthetic approach says thateven if men do not submit toChrist's Lordship in academicsubjects, they are basicallycorrect. We can work with them.This is a denial of the faith of ourfathers. This is a departure frombiblical Christianity.

iv. t never challenges men toforsake their darkness. Jesuscommands all men everywhere torepent. Repentance is the turn-


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ing of the whole man away fromsin to God. Men sin with theirmind as much as with theirhands. Men must forsake theirintellectual and moraldarknessof which Paul speaks in Romans1:18-32. The synthetic approachto education says that man doesnot need to repent of doingalgebra apartfrom God's Word.The Bible, however, does notallow that the unbeliever can seeanything correctly a part from thelight of God's Word.

C The Maintenance of theAntithesis in Christian

Education

Christian education has notbeen the cultural shaping forcewhich it once was. In order forthis generation of Christianeducators to train a generation ofculturally relevant, victoryoriented, confident Christianscholars, they must recover thefollowing three things.

1. Christ ian education mustrecover its covenanta l context

The purpose of modemeducat ion is the glory of man.Man wants to learn to dominatethe world for himself. Humanistic education is implication intoman's interpretation. t selfconsciously makes man themeasure of all things. Christianeducation must maintain thebiblical purpose for education.Education is necessary to teachGod's people to know him andkeep his commandments. t

equips them to glorify him andserve him in all areas of life. Wemust not separate education fromobedience. For Christian education to be faithful to God, it mustteach his covenant children tolove God with the entirety of theirhearts and minds.

2 Christian education mustrecover its cultural relevance.

Christian education in this

century has been defeatist inmentality. t has denied therelationship between obedienceand blessings in history. Mosesspecifically affirms this relationship in Deuteronomy 6 Christian educ tion is necessary inorder to pass on Christianculture to the next generation.They must occupy the land ofpromise and subdue it for theglory of God. Christian education must recover its passion forthe crown rights of King Jesus Itmust teach Christian youngpeople that the future belongs tothem They are the heirs of allthings through Jesus Christ. fthey will be willing and faithful,they will eat the good of the land(Isaiah 1:19).

3 Christian education mustproclaim its educational exclusivity.

Christian educators nee d notbe embarrassed by their commitment to biblical revelation. t stheir glory By God's grace, theyunderstand the objective, certaintruth about God, man, and theuniverse. They can boldly teach

their students that this approachto life is not one approach amongmany, held by a backwards,uneducated, unscientific group ofreligious radicals. Rather, theireducational foundation andphilosophy is the only one whichallows man to educate at all.

I Christian educationalone understands the worldcorrectly.

a. The Christian educatormust always maintain thatChristianity alone can accountfor the facts, and that all otherworldviews must presupposethat Christianity is true. There isnot one fact which can be knowncorrectly apar t from God's light.n tlle classroom, he must con

stantly expose and oppose allattempts to understand life apartfrom God's Word.

b Now here we have a fulladmission of the indispensab leness of Christian schools. Theground for the necessity ofChrist ian schools lies in this verything, that no fact can be knownunless it be known in its relationship to God."

ii Christianity aloneprovides a foundation foreducation.

a. This is quite an unpopu-lar claim. Many Christians areafraid to make it. But if ourdoctrine of God is correct, thenwe have no choice but to pro-claim it. f God's creatures are toknow anything correctly, theymust come to God for illumination. Because Christian educa-tion is self-consciouslyrevelational, that is, our education presupposes thetruili of theBible, it alone provides a c o r r ~ c tunderstanding of the universe. I talone is in accordance with thefacts. t alone gives a foundationto speak of the facts." All oiliereducational attempts will produce darkness, skepticism, and

cultural chaos. On his ownpresuppositions, the unbelievercannot educate. He has no goal,method, or motivation for education. t is because God's common grace keeps him from beingfully consistent with his presup-positions that he even attempts toeducate.

b When speaking of theabsolute antithesis that underliesthe educational policies of ourschools, it is not too much to saythat if any subject could betaught elsewhere than in aChristian school there would beno reason for having Christianschools. The only reason why weare justified in having Christianschools is that we are convincedthat outside of a Christiantheistic atmosphere there can beno more than an empty process of



9/9

one abstrac tion teaching abstractness to other abstractions.No teacrungis possible except inChristian schools (Van Til 200).

iii Christian educationalone offers any hope for thefuture.

a. Our culture is in despair.The Christian capital uponwhich our society has beenoperating for 250 years is nearlyexpended. Pragmatic solutionscannot rescue Western civilization. Our unbelieving culture iswalking n the twil ight of chaosand confusion. Our departurefrom the historic Reformed faithhas produced devastatingconsequences throughout everylevel of society.

b. Christian education hasbeen part ofthe problem. t hasnot been comprehensivelyreformed by the Word of God. thas not confronted the unbelieverwith the comprehensive claims of

the risen Christ nor exposed withthe gospel's scalpel his intellectual and moral blindness.Rather, it has allowed that inmany areas of life, the unbelieveris essentially correct in his goals,methods, and motivations. To theextent that Christian educationhas not been self-consciouslyrevelational, it has been part ofthe problem, and has sinnedagainst the Lord who commissioned i t in the first place. Notbeing self-consciouslyrevelational, it has lost theconfidence to be the culturalshaping influence it once was. I tnow claims to be one approachamong many. Separatism andsynthesis in Christian educationhave trained generations ofyoung people who are Christiansin their homes and churches, butwho do not understand how orwhy they must keep God'scommandments in every level ofsociety.

C. Christian education mustbe reformed. Its teachers andparents must maintain theantithesis in Christian education.It must maintain the exclusiveclaims of Christ over all of life. Itmust teach the cultural relevanceof the redemptive work of Christfor every area of life. t mustcommand all men everywhere torepent and keep God' s covenant.I t begins that task by removing itschildren from the lairs of thecovenant breakers, i.e., the staterun and sanctioned publicschools, and by giving its children a life preparatory educationin which Christ and his Word arethe relevant and all-sufficientfoundations for every academicpursuit.

1All subsequent quotations arefrom this same work unlessotherwise noted.

Roots fI.-< \Tines Rebecca B. Morecrafl,Becky to her friends, writes fuma rootednessV i in the soil of her native Vir$nia- seven e,enerations lone, _ and from

Acollection of poems by Rebecca Belcher Morecraft a fertile Christian herit.se,e. Visit the home place with her - he down

on the biE, rock and watch her Cranny pick black raspberries from vines brolll)htover on a ship e,enerations ae,o; swine,with her on Uncle Tommy's tire swine,and then pull up a bucket of cold water from the stone-mouthed well. Go home tothe mountains with her. meet the folks and you maynot want to leave

Becky orecraft writes out of her Own infectious exhilarationwith the bubbling stuff of ife. I sense that her antennae are outthere, paying attention, combing the air for messages fromBeyond, and for insights about Here and Now, which sheturns into vivid, heartwarming verses so that we may get themessage too. A joy to read, this collection is reality transformedinto art " Luci Shaw, author of "Writing the River;" and W a ~ter My Sou/."

"Beauty, grace and godliness come together n BeckyMorecraft's

Becky's poetry is born in the soul of one who Sees andunderstands. She stirs the heart and sends the spirit soar-ing through an atmosphere of bountiful beautiful, delicious

words. Each thread from word t thought is impeccably wo-ven. You will read her work and quietly exclaim, 'Thatis exactly how I felt . that is precisely what I wantedto sayl''' Judy Rogers, singer/songwriter/recordingartistof 'Why Can't [See God?" and IfYou love Me

Songs from the Ten Commandments).

poetry. am sure her work will stand the test of time as more "Becky Morecraft's poems give new meaning to the idea ofand more Christian children learn to appreciate the grandeur heritage, for here is a Southern feast of words accompanied byof being born into Christian homes where many generations l the full and haunting strains of the bagpipe. I cannot help buthave loved and served KingSabaoth. Her voice will teach the . . smile at the tenderness, humor, and downright deliciousness ofway back as we begin to reclaim a godly covenant heritage. :\ her language. The underlying vision is serious, for the soil of allSusan Burns, author and Managing Editor of The Chalce- Ii Mrs. Morecraft's poems ; Christ the Lord." Suzanne Clark,

d o n e p o ~ I _ u _ t h _ O _ ~ _ S _ k e _ t _ c h _ e _ s _ o _ f _ H _ o _ m _ eThis 'chapbook' of poems (also includne, a mountain ballad and raspberry cobbler reCipe ) is available

from the author for $10.00 plus $2.00 postae,e and handhne,.&lnd checks made out and addressed to her to:Becky Norecrafl, 6819 Post Road, Cummine CA 30040.


1999 issue 3 - what sort of christian education will build a truly christian culture? - counsel of...

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