Israel Wayne - Education: Does God Have an Opinion?: A Biblical Apologetic for Christian Education & Homeschooling

First printing: April 2017
Third printing: July 2022

Copyright 2017 by Israel Wayne. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles and reviews. For information write:

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ISBN: 978-1-68344-034-5
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Contents

How to Use This Book

I frequently hear that the Bible is silent on the topic of education. Most Christians believe God doesnt care, one way or the other, how our children are schooled or what methods we employ. It will be my attempt in this book to prove otherwise from Scripture.

What you read in this book will radically challenge your assumptions and preconceived ideas. Please pray and ask God to open your mind and your heart to His word and His truth. Ask Him to give you discernment to help you to understand how He sees the issue of education. I am not asking you to take my word for anything. I am asking you to weigh what I write against the Word of God. If I am wrong, then please demonstrate so (at least in your private study) from Scripture itself.

Over the years , I have had hundreds of people tell me that they disagree with, or dont like, my thesis. However, I have yet to have anyone prove it false from the Bible. They tend to oppose it with their own set of opinions and emotions. Theyll even say, I prayed about it , and God told me something different than He told you . There is only one standard for our lives: Gods nature and character as He has revealed it through the teaching of the 66 books we call the Bible. If what we believe does not match up to what we find in the Bible, we need to be willing to change our thinking, as painful, humiliating, and costly as that process may be, to make it conform to what God says.

This book is divided into two parts. The first deals with establishing a truly biblical philosophy of education. If we were stranded on a deserted island and had only the Bible to use to figure out what education should look like, what would we decide? Would we in any way conceive of our modern, institutionalized government school model? If not , from where did we originate our current constructs of traditional schooling? If they dont come from the Bible, then how did they emerge? Well dig into that.

The second part is taking the right thinking about education (a biblical worldview) and learning to apply it strategically and systematically to all areas of education. Think of The Core Subjects section as a set of lenses through which you, as a teacher, will approach these academic disciplines. You need to understand how to think properly about these matters before passing them on to your student.

Some of the terminology I use in this book may be new to you. Ive tried to explain and define terms as I go. Im not a fast reader, so for some readers like me, this book will be a challenge to plow through and finish. My encouragement to you is that this book will act like the box top of a 5,000-piece puzzle. There are thousands of random, fragmented facts and bits of information you will handle during your time as a teacher. You need to know what the big picture looks like, and how everything fits together as a cohesive whole. I truly believe this book will accomplish that for you.

You may wish to come back and review the individual subject chapters, as you are in the process of teaching those particular subjects with your students. You will need to constantly remind your students why they are studying these various topics. If they dont understand the why, theyll never remain motivated enough to endure the what and the how.

The future of your childs education, and therefore his or her life, is ultimately in your hands . Much is at stake here. We dare not get this wrong. If I am right (that God has a definite opinion about this education issue), wouldnt you, as a Christian parent, desire to find out what it is and how you can best implement His wisdom?

I think this book will be, for many readers, analogous to opening a door to a home where youve lived for many years but never explored. Imagine that you have spent all the years of your life in the enclosed porch. Suddenly, someone gives you a key and opens the front door. This book represents the living room. There are many, many other doors and rooms that you will be introduced to, once you start this process of discovery and engage in this new educational paradigm. Its a completely new and radical way of thinking. I expect it will inspire you as you see how much more there is to learn and discover for yourself as a teacher.

After you have finished the book, Id love to hear your thoughts. Please look me up on social media or contact me through my website to discuss it if you have any specific questions after you finish. May God richly bless your diligence to learn His ways and make them known to others!

Introduction

A persons world view is the collection of his presuppositions or convictions about reality, which represent his total outlook on life.

W. Andrew Hoffecker

As Christians, one of our primary endeavors is discipleship. Our goal is to transmit the Christian faith from generation to generation. Unfortunately, many studies have revealed that evangelical Christians have largely failed in their attempts to effectively disciple their own children.

Evangelism is important, but unless discipleship occurs, Christianity will not grow. If each generation fails to successfully pass the baton of faith, Christianity will diminish in numbers and cultural influence.

There is almost no topic that is as relevant to the future of Christianity, or as controversial, as the education of children. Students in school classrooms spend a minimum of 10,800 seat hours being instructed by people who are not their parents. There is almost no way to calculate what a powerful force this is for influence.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the vast majority of Christians have embraced the idea that it is a proper role and function of the civil government to control and guide the education of children. There have certainly been some dissenting voices. However, the majority of pastors, theologians, and church leaders have just conceded the point. The State (the civil government) has asserted a right of ownership over the domain of education, and Christians have acquiesced to their claim.