A Christian Homeschool Trap – Part 2: Some Solutions

I really meant to write this closer to the last article but that is life, it sometimes gets in the way of writing.

This post is in answer to a trap I have observed in Christian homeschooling circles, you can read that article here: A Christian Homeschool Trap – Part 1: A Problem.  The truth is it is often easy to find a problem and it can even be, at times, easy to provide quick solutions.  However, to find solutions that align with God and His Word often take some effort.  Not always to find the solution but definitely to discern the manner in which one accomplishes the desired ends.  So, here is an attempt to offer some solutions and if I do not answer every question at least, I pray, I have sparked some thought on the subject so that Biblical solutions are sought after and derived that best disciple ones children to glorify God in all of life.

If our culturally ingrained view of education tends to lead us in a wrong direction then what are we to do?  In Christian Homeschooling one of the greatest trials most parents face is in choosing ones “curriculum.”  It is even one place that can lead people to balk at homeschooling all together as they are just so overwhelmed at where to go and what to do.  If you have been to a homeschooling conference you will know what I mean. I believe this trial comes from what I think is a misguided view of education, or better yet discipleship, that has been ingrained in us by our current educational system and where it came from.  We have been taught for so long that our job as parents is to “educate” our children for their future, a future that is “better” than ours.  The problem with that premise, or perspective, is that we begin to partake in “education” and lose sight of our call to “discipleship” as well as often neglecting to ask God what we are to prepare our children for, serving Him.

If our call, our mandate, is to disciple our children, and it is, as we see in such passages as Deut 6:4-7; Prov 22;6 & Eph 6:4 then we need to be focused on that discipleship.  On discipleship that prepares our children to walk with the Lord and glorify Him for the entirety of their lives.  You will be hard pressed to find passages in scripture that tell you that your child needs to read by “X” age and/or be able to excel in Math but you will find that it is a child that honors God that most glorify Him.  For too long our focus on education, as Christian parents, has taken us away from what should be our primary purpose, that of raising children to honor and glorify God.  Yes they may do so in the current educational paradigm but I think if we are honest we will have to admit that glorifying God as He is wants to be glorified is often not done as it should be and we need to realize that how we disciple our children is one of the causes of this.

Let me add here that this does not mean we should not train our children to read, speak or even be able to add and subtract.  The Puritans, before they let their focus on education get the better of them, saw that training children to read was for the primary purpose of them being able to read God’s Word and understand it and thus called for by God. Just as reading is important so as to be able to read God’s word writing and speaking (speech) is important for the clear communication of the Gospel and the defense of the faith.  I should add here that when I say “speech” I am not talking about formal events or debate but that through the reading and use of God’s word we can teach our children how to communicate in both written and verbal forms.  We need to regain that focus.  So that when it comes to reading, speaking and truly any thing we teach, we see the true purpose of all teaching is to lead them to best glorify God.  The primary purpose of discipleship/education is not so our children can have a good job or so they can get into a desirable college and when we become focused on that goal we have lost our way and truthfully we will in the end often lose our children to the world.  One of the main reasons we often lose our children to the world is that they learn early that worldly standards are given precedence over God’s glory, even if not done purposefully, and this stays with them.

Is there a place for math and the sciences in our teaching?  I guess that is a yes and no question.  I do not want to sound like I am necessarily anti-technology but we really do need to remember why we do what we do.  If math and science add to ones appreciation and devotion for and of God then what greater joy could there be than that.  However, all too often, even in Christian households, that focus, if there at all, is often lost in the routine of the process.  I will also add here, and will touch on this more later, that we also need to begin to rethink what we view as desirable futures for our children.  The future of many children in Christian Homeschool families is little more than sanctified humanism with goals being very much the same as those in the world, but with a Christian veneer.

So, what about curriculum?  Well, much has been said by many about the subject and much more money has been spent, and lost, trying to find the “perfect” one.  Many simply want to give up because they cannot choose between one “Christian Based” curriculum and another with each one telling you it is the best.  I want to add here that often the intentions of the people that put out curriculum are good but I think they too have often been indoctrinated by a faulty worldview about what a “Christian Curriculum” should be.   I am sure that many that are “professionals” in the area of curriculum may scoff at this but I have a simple plan for a curriculum for at least the early years, maybe up to 8-10+, of a child’s discipleship.  We are a people that have been guided to turn over what we need to do ourselves to “professionals” and this happens in how we disciple our children as well.  So what is this revelation I think we need to get hold of – The Bible.  Yep, you heard it here, the Bible.

Just think about it for a moment.  What do your children need to learn so as to walk in the way of the Lord, God’s Word.  Where do you learn the Word of God?  Well, in the Word of God.  Before there was curriculum and most every family had a Bible, or pieces of it, that is what they used to train their children.  Yes there may have been small books people used but they were minimal and mostly biblically based.  Stop and think about it for a moment.  You can teach your child to read, spell and, yes with some ingenuity, even do math using God’s word.  The great benefit of using the Bible is that not only will your children learn to read but also they will be sealing God’s word in their heart.  That cannot be said about reading “Cat in the Hat” or “Jack and Jill”.  Again, I think it is a fear that our children will be different from others around us, yes even in the church, that tends to make us balk at such a simple curriculum.  But different from the world is what we want.

With regards to how long you use just the Bible, I am not sure and would not to set out a time.  In one sense it does not end and I also realize for example at some time one may want to teach other subjects such as maybe geometry as it is greatly helpful to carpenters and other such trades.  The issue then is not necessarily what is taught but how and for what purpose.  Thus, as one moves to possibly other subjects the child has been well grounded and knows the goal of all education.  This understanding will greatly benefit whatever direction one is led in the lives of their children, however never leaving the Bible as the foundation for all that is taught.  My hope is that by starting with the Bible we will progress from there keeping the Bible as the center of all that is done.  As I said in the beginning I do not have all the answers but any answer has to start and end with God’s Holy Word.  

Let me add here that as a family we did not do this with our children.  Others we looked to for guidance at the time did not lead us in this direction.  Also, even when we, well my wife, sensed we should go this direction we let peer pressure get the better of us.   Looking back I truly wish we had gone in this direction and fought the fear of doing so. I can tell you that if I could do it all over again we would follow this plan and I am encouraging my children to follow this path with their children.  

Now to the next step, as I touched on it in the last post, what do we do about college?  Let me start with our mindset because as Christians it needs to change with regards to college.  For far too long we have taken on the world’s perception that it is not only a right but also a necessity for everyone to go to college.  Without dealing with the issue of whether one needs to go to college we should agree it is not a right and it is not for everyone.  We often talk about how great, and productive, America is but that productivity came from a strong work ethic often displayed in trades rather than degrees.  In the early years of the US, and even today in some countries, a youth’s direction was set early in life and a trade was sought after and they were trained in that field.  This direction led people to be trained to produce and not simply consume.  Unfortunately many of the educational choices that many make in secondary education today end up creating consumers and not producers.

I think another issue is that we have become a people that seek to avoid work, especially hard work, even if we do not want to admit it.  Many farmers do not want their children carrying on with farming because it is hard.  Much of the direction of industry is to make work “easier” and many degrees that are sought after are the ones that avoid strenuous work.  I am not saying we need to work in a way that is not intelligent and wastes energy but when we seek to avoid hard labor in work we often end up moving in a direction that avoids hard work all together.   As Christians we need to see that working in a trade is not below us or our children and we need to move them in that direction as God leads.  Once we see that being a farmer, carpenter, plumber or some other tradesman is an honorable profession college becomes less necessary and we have then dealt with a large part of the “What about college?” question.

For those that are called to such things as medicine and such where college may be required then we have to work at rethinking how we accomplish that.  I am not sure there is a quick fix answer in this case but we need to be working towards one.  We as “the church” need to work towards creating truly “Christian” institutions.  Not just institutions that have “Christian” in the name but also have it in focus and doctrine.  Presently most, if not all, universities, and even some labeled “Christian”, that one may need to go to gain the degree they require for some professions are laden with evolutionary thinking and humanistic philosophy.  To send a young person to such a place is in most cases very dangerous and unwise.  We often think we have prepared our children for the challenge of college but in truth I have found very few young men that are ready for the challenges facing them by the onslaught of humanistic pressures and teachings facing them.  As I touched on in the last post if a more classical educational approach has been taken it is even possible we have primed them, albeit unknowingly, to be greatly influenced by the humanism that will surround them on the college campus.  I am sure there are some that can face the struggles and survive but from what we see of youth in the church today those numbers are very few and far between.

So you may say I have not given an answer with regards to college.  But, in some ways I have and that answer is to lead our children in directions that do not need college, and there are many.  I could add that many people, while maybe starting off at less pay and at a lower starting level, have been able to do the same jobs as the college educated – often better.  So if you change your mindset so that monetary gain is not a prime objective then college again becomes less important.  If a trade is the direction of your children then college again becomes a non-issue.  Then, if at the end of all this you still think college is necessary you must spend much time in prayer and then decide what is best for your child’s spiritual welfare, over their financial welfare.

I want to add here that I am not dealing with women in college as I think that is a topic for anther day, not sure when.  But sending ones daughters off to the halls of humanistic academia is extremely dangerous and I have to say unwise.  I am sure that does not sit well with today’s understandings of things but it has not always been so.  My encouragement in this area is to study God’s design and direction for women and I think if we are honest we will find something that looks decidedly different than we see in the professing church today.

If I have not answered all the scenarios I did not plan to.  I hope I have left you with some food for thought and that first thought is one that leads you to take a serious look at how we educate/disciple and what the focus and destination of that education is to be – The Glory of God.  No matter the occupation that ones children are led to if they are discipled to be godly and to glorify God in all things (1 Cor 10:31) the work will deal with itself.  If ones children have to work hard, by the world’s standards especially, for all their life that is not a bad thing.

Maybe the gist of this post is not just about discipleship and how we train our children but is also about working on having a biblical mindset with regards to work and vocation.

A Christian Homeschool Trap – Part 1: A Problem

Now this may offend some as it may be taken that I am anti-homeschool.  That cannot be farther from the truth, ask many who know me.  I write this so as to help preserve homeschooling or maybe I should be more specific, help preserve “Christian” Homeschooling.  I say “Christian” because by its very name it suggests that one homeschools from a Christian worldview and perspective and does not simply “Christianize” ones schooling at home.  I would go further to say that for homeschooling to be Christian it needs to derive its purpose and precepts from God’s word and not Dewy, Darwin or any of the other molders of our current educational system and society, which sadly many do, even if unknowingly. 

The trap that many fall into is they partake, knowingly or not, in schooling at home rather than homeschooling.  This happens by taking the way school is done presently and partaking of it in the confines of ones home.  This includes having many of the same goals and objectives; such as going to a “good” college, getting a “good” job and being “well” educated.  This mindset often leads people to raise children that may be, by all outward appearances, more prepared for what is ahead and they may even be smarter than the average Gov’t school indoctrinee but deep inside their worldview is often tainted and that tainted worldview will rear its head when taken out of the confines of the home.  You often see this happen when children are shipped of to some secondary educational facility away from home and begin being discipled by people ready and willing to mold the minds of your children to a different way of thinking.  Most parents may think they have readied their children for the road ahead but often they have unknowingly simply primed the pump to accept the worldview of the schools they are sent to by what they have been taught at home.  If, and I will deal with this more in a follow up post, children are not being discipled that the Bible is the final standard and authority in all of life those same children will be easily swayed by the “enlightened” worldview they are presented with outside of the home.  It may take some time but when you send your children off to college that is exactly what you give the college, time.  Thus much of the curriculum used at home, even if it references the Bible if entrenched in the “classics” teaches contrary to God’s word, even if subtly, and this does have an affect – a negative affect.

Maybe I am getting ahead of myself here.  I titled this post “A Christian Homeschool Trap” and that trap is not set by the Gov’t Schools, even though it often plays a part in it, but the trap is actually set by the family that falls short of seeking to have the Bible as the sole authority in how to educate, or maybe it would be better to use the term disciple.  All too often our focus is on “education” but what we are called to make, and this includes those in ones family, are disciples (Matt 28:19-20).  In all education making disciples is key and this is true even in the secular community as often one teacher is referred to as a disciple of another.  In scripture (Luke 6:40) it says a student will be as his master so you soon see how discipleship is key in all realms as well as the importance of who does the discipling, or teaching.  The issue for the “Christian” Homeschool then becomes how to avoid this trap and the first step in the process is to know there is one.

We often fight the Gov’t over schooling and the mandates it places on its citizens, which I would say is prudent but not so as to save the Gov’t schools but to stress that ones children are to be schooled by their parents and how that is done may take a number of forms but at the heart is the intimate involvement of the parents.  .  As I have already alluded to one of the greatest threats to "Christian" homeschooling is not the Gov't but "Christian" homeschoolers themselves.  I say this because if you listen to many “Christian” homeschool families or read much of what is said by them it is clear they have bought into the "educational paradigm" sold by the state.  I constantly hear about how homeschoolers are just as smart, if not smarter, than Govt schooled kids.  Much is said about how colleges and universities are looking for homeschoolers because of how "smart" and "self motivated" they are.  This mindset is one that loses sight of the goal of disciplining ones children.  I will cover this in a moment but this is not a new issue since the Puritans also faced this and failed, thus losing their children to a failed system.

First, is the issue of the "Educational Paradigm."  Where in scripture does it tell us our children need to excel in "academics."  Where does it say Johnny needs to read by “X” age and Judy needs to spell by the time she is “X”, it does not.  One can see the principle in scripture that our children need to be prepared for life but does "education" really accomplish that.  What we often find is that many of the most highly educated lack in other areas and this is because of an inordinate focus on “education.”  History reveals that many of the great men of faith were often schooled at home and not with any special "curriculum,” many times only having the Bible as their source of education, in the early years at least.  Which brings up the whole topic of curriculum.  

Next, part of the trap is that far too many professing Christians are quick to want their kids out of the Gov't system but then they simply teach much of the same material at home.  Sure they may avoid such things as evolution and gender roles as the Gov't schools teach them but then they turn to what may be a more dangerous curriculum due to the subtlety of its message.  Many “Christian” homeschool families rely heavily on the "classics" thinking that is the answer to all their problems.  The problem in this mindset is what you find ensconced in these “classics” by Shakespeare, Hawthorne or Twain.  These authors do not write apart from their worldview and even though many use “Christian” words and motifs this does not make their writings “Christian” or conducive to make godly disciples.  I do not have the time or space to cover the issue with many of these writers in this article.  Kevin Swanson has done us a great service by doing so in his new book – Apostate:The Men Who Destroyed the Christian West, which I highly recommend.   In taking this classical curriculum route to education what many well meaning “Christian” homeschooling parents were trying to avoid in the Gov’t schools they have taken their children out of is now introduced to them instead in the comfort of the home via the “classics.”. One might even say that the “classics” may be even more dangerous at home than the blatant and rampant immoral teachings being propagated by the Gov’t schools.  The reason being they indoctrinate in a much more subtle way and catch many unawares since it is done at home and is, at least in the minds of those teaching such material, antithetical to that being taught elsewhere and thus may be seen as “safe.” 

Then comes the issue of college and university.  One would often think that many "Christians" simply homeschool so they can send their children off to be indoctrinated at the best Universities or maybe better named Centers of Higher Indoctrination.  This is where we look at the Puritans.  Scott Brown spoke at the 2013 American History Mega-Conference on the downfall of the Puritans.  This is an important subject because no matter how the secular world wants to portray the Puritans the fact is they may be one of the godliest generations since the first century church.  It is not hard to see that in all that they did and wrote that Christ was central and living a life that honored God was of prime importance.  So what happened as it was not more than 3 or 4 generations before the mindset of the Puritans had mostly vanished.  I think the reason is a great picture of good intentions having negative results.  The Puritans were very high on education and initially the main reason was so one could read God’s word and understand it.  However this moved to there being laws and fines for not catechizing then from there it moved to the church or other institution taking over the program.  This even moved to the concept of educating so as to ready their children for the university, hmm sounds familiar.  Again, I think the motive or intention was good but the Puritan ideal of seeking to live by God’s word as being all sufficient moved them seeking to add to it to accomplish what they thought was a good goal, well educated children.  If the Puritan ideals could be lost in 3 or 4 generations how much more do we need to be diligent as we do not start, as a generation, anywhere close to that of the Puritans.

Universities and colleges, as they stand today, are in general a place to avoid.  Their goal is not simply being to teach somebody facts but includes indoctrinating their students to a way of thinking, a way of thinking in the most part antithetical to a Christian worldview.  I know many will balk at this saying their children are prepared to face the challenges of a pagan educational system but the statistics and stories out there speak contrary to this.  Sure if one is forced into such an institution God can work in them as He did with Daniel but that does not give us license to toss our children into the proverbial lions den ourselves.  I realize this will be tough if one wants some sort of professional job since most companies require lots of letters after ones name.  Also, such professions as being a doctor require much education in these institutions.  The answer may be to start truly Biblical institutions, since many of the so-called “Christian” colleges and universities that exist today are not much more than secular institutions with a few more rules and maybe a benediction at the beginning of the day.  The bottom line is one may have to change professional aspirations if the only recourse is send ones children off to Babylon.  Once we see the world from a different perspective that change should be less painful.  Really we should ask what is wrong with seeking occupations for our children that do not require the pagan institutions available today.  Why not raise a generation of Christian farmers, woodworkers, metalworkers and other professions?  There was a time, not all too long ago, when those were the professions looked up to as being noble and worthy. Ok, I think you get the idea.

The message of the Puritans direction should make it clear that we cannot lose focus and we cannot let up in our diligence to truly make disciples of our children.  We cannot assume that the next generation will simply get it since history shows this is usually not the case.  We need to stand up and say that the profession of our children is not paramount but their spiritual well being and moral compass is.  We need to cease at sending them off to the halls of Babylon and expecting anything but a Babylonian back.  Or as Voddie Baucham has often said: "If you send your kids to Caesar for their education don't be surprised when they come back as Romans."  I do not write this to condemn but to commend, to exhort my Christian brothers and sisters to do what is best according to God, and His word, for our children.  Seek out God’s word and I think you will find it hard to support the direction most in the church have taken the need for education.

 I also want add that for those of you that have committed to not sending your children to the pagans you are not off the hook.  This is not a license to not “educate” in some manner but to do so in a way that prepares your children as God leads.  It is not a license for sloth but a call to diligence and perseverance.  Even if you do all you can you still need to be in much prayer and preparation always being vigilant to not let your guard down.

I did not want to leave this as all about what we should not do as Christian Homeschoolers but want to address that in another post.  Thus, I will come back later and write a post on how we should face this particular trap.

Discipling our Children

I thought I would repost the links to a series I did a little over a year ago on the discipling of our children and some of the questions I often hear with regards to sending ones children to the government schools. I speak of “discipling” with regards to schooling since that is the goal, or should be, of education; yes the government schools are seeking to disciple your children as well. Since the disciple will be like his teacher (Luke 6:40) this should be enough for Christian parents not to send their children to government schools but sadly it often is not.

Below are links to the nine articles:

1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Homeschool Dropouts DVD

We just watched the new DVD Homeschool Dropouts last night and it is a must see for homeschool families. This DVD deals with the question of the current (2nd) generation of homeschoolers and how they will deal with homeschooling with their families. The conclusion of the documentary is that if the next generation is not diligent and does not deal with some specific sin issues they will lead their families down a different path.

I have long seen the issue with Christian homeschooling and its often inordinate focus on academics with a lesser focus on the biblical mandate to homeschool. This misguided focus will lead to the next generation not basing homeschooling decisions on scripture but on a myriad of other reasons all of which will probably lead them away from homeschooling. As with all things if they are not grounded in God’s all sufficient word they will not stand the test of time.

“From the producers of Return of the Daughters and Father to Son comes a revealing documentary featuring homeschool graduates who take a critical look at how to preserve the modern home education movement. Their findings may surprise you. Homeschooled children have unique advantages as well as a unique legacy. Will they build on it, or drift back into the spiritual wilderness? What will tomorrow’s homeschool graduates do with the vision, the foundation, and the freedom that their parents have provided for them? Careful research by the seven Botkin children opens a window on the true state of American homeschooled youth ages 15-30, revealing six specific sins that could lead to the death of the homeeducation experiment if not dealt with directly by second-generation Christian homeschoolers. This controversial documentary addresses the spiritual threats to the movement, and explores how faithfulness can be maintained for a hopeful future.”

What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

I was on Facebook the other day and the question came up with regards to homeschooling as to what a wife was to do when a husband wanted to send their children to the government schools. So this led me to add this question to my previous list, see the bottom of this post for links to past posts. While this is not really along the same lines as the other usual objections to homeschooling it is a very important question that needs to be addressed.

First I would like to address the opposite of this question, what if my wife does not want to homeschool. I will admit this question is heard very little but there may be those that hear it. For those husbands that have this issue the key is not to dictate that the wife is to school the children, husbands need to lead by example. I hope it has been clear throughout this entire series that the issue of homeschooling needs to be grounded in scripture and God’s decrees and not in the ineptitude of the government system, as inept as it is. So, as the leader of the family, husbands need to lead their wives to see that homeschooling is not simply a choice but God’s design for the family. However, things must not stop there as it is also not enough for husbands to convince their wives but they must also help as they are able. We as husbands need to serve our wives and sacrifice ourselves as Christ sacrificed himself for His church (Eph 5:2,25). This may take the form of moving from where you live and even taking a different job, doing whatever it takes to disciple your children as God calls us fathers to do. The bottom line is as husbands we need to lead in more than just words but also in action.

So in the instance where the wife is the reluctant spouse, husbands need to lead by action and not just dictate what needs to be done. Find ways to help in the process of homeschooling and show your commitment to the process. In all of this bathe everything in prayer and in leading your wife to see this is all being done in obedience to God’s word.

Now for the question I started with which is by in large the norm for most families. I will confess it was for our family as it was my wife that saw the need to homeschool years before I did, yes I said years. It was her diligent and prayerful conviction that allowed her to convince me to homeschool over what I am sure were years of frustration. But even then it took more years than it should have for me to come around. I was convinced that this homeschool business would be OK for the primary years but once high school came we would need to seek change. I thank God that He changed my heart before then. That gives you some background so you can see that what I am sharing here is what I should have done and not what I did. It is only by the grace of God that we are where we are today, but that is God. He is faithful when we are not.

So what are wives to do if their husbands do not want their children homeschooled? Well, I can do no other than start with scripture which says that wives are to submit to their husbands (Eph 5:22-23) and work to help their husbands see the need for homeschooling (1 Ptr 3:1), in a God honoring way. If you honor your husband, and thus honor God, God will strengthen you in discipling your children, along with your husband, until God changes his heart. The tough part of this for wives is that they are not required to submit to that which God forbids and so the question arises as how does this relate to homeschooling. Scripture places husbands as responsible for the family so the wives submission to them in this area is not the same as the wife desiring for their children to go to government schools. This is one of those areas where one needs place full trust in God for their children and I realize this is not easy with all that transpires in the government schools. If wives will submit to their husbands in a God honoring way I am convinced God will honor them and care for them and their children. God can give you the stamina and strength to disciple your children and to counteract the government schools until their husbands comes along. Remember that God does not simply call us to Himself for salvation and leave us but is working in all we do as well as having His hand on all those around us, even disobedient husbands. We may not know why God does not change their hearts but as with me He does this in His way and in His time.

As far as practical advise I would suggest wives give their husbands biblical reasons for homeschooling and resources that will help them see this. Some very good resources I have found and would have liked to have had earlier are: When You Rise Up by R.C. Sproul Jr. as well as the CD series from the 2009 Leadership Summit. Both these resources are biblically grounded and challenging. I know when I read R.C. Jr.’s book the lights went on for the first time as it related to God’s plan and reasoning for homeschooling/discipling. For too long I had simply been looking at what form of schooling appeared to offer the best education but I had neglected to look at what we are truly called by God to do and that is disciple God honoring children first and foremost. Education will happen but it is not our primary reason for homeschooling, raising children that honor and glorify God is. Another resource I have found is an article written by Israel Wayne called A Christian Education Manifesto which is chock full of verses and biblical evidence for the need to home educate.

While I do not like to tell people to change churches I do fear that there are too many churches with pastors that are falling short by condoning Christians sending their children to the government schools. If possible speak to your pastor and work to help him see what God desires but at the end of the day you may need to find a church that supports homeschooling. Pastors need to realize that by their lack of conviction with regards to homeschooling they are enabling fathers to keep their children in the government schools and they are in the process not doing wives or children any favors.

So that is a short overview of this issue and I pray it has been some help. You can read over the previous posts I have done on the subject of homeschooling, see below, as there is much biblical evidence in them and they may also help to answer some objections that are commonly used to avoid homeschooling.

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Isn’t how we educate our children a preference?

As I come to the end of the series on homeschooling I think this last question in its broadest sense is the one I have heard as much as any other. At the heart of this question is the idea that God’s word is not specific or explicit enough as to give an answer. For me this comes from a couple issues. One is from those seeking to justify sending their children to the government schools who are seeking to do so by claiming God leaves this up to each of us. The other angle that this question may come from is in not seeing God’s word as sufficient for all things thus there are things, such as how we school our children, that God’s word does not speak to in a clear manner. I think if you have read the previous posts on homeschooling you will see that this is not the case. God is specific that we are to raise our children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4) and this does not happen in government schools.

Now the actual answer to the question is Yes and No. It is yes in that there are no specifics as to curriculum or method of teaching explicitly set out. But even here I would say God’s word is more specific than most give it credit. By this I mean that while God may not say use Saxon Math or some other specific curriculum we are to judge even a math curriculum by where it places God in the context of the curriculum. Now this may sound strange to some as one may ask what does God have to do with math but He has everything to do with math. We need to raise children that understand that math does not work without God and thus God is to get all credit in the endeavor of math. This same principle applies to every subject so we need to see how any curriculum we are evaluating deals with God so that our children see God as integral to all areas of study. Remember that what your children learn early on they will carry into their later life. Thus there is room for preference in curriculum but that is only within the parameters God sets forth in His word.

But this is not the usual direction the “preference” question is intended to go. As I said before the usual direction taken is to find allowance to have others teach our children in the public sector, the question of homeschool vs. Christian school is for another day. The conclusion that seems abundantly clear from scripture is that while there is an area of preference in what is taught the area of preference with regards to being able to send our children to government schools is were God answers the preference question with a definite “no.” It is not only our duty to be responsible for the training of our children we are also tasked to protect them from all that the government run schools are seeking to instill in our children. Since Jesus says that a disciple will be like the one discipling them (Luke 6:40) it seems clear we as Christian parents should be the one doing the teaching.

Over the course of this series I pray that the articles were taken as they were intended. To both encourage and challenge parents to not simply do what they feel is right but to do what God commands as right. In a day and age that balks at absolutes let us understand that God’s word is absolute and in the area of schooling our children it is much more explicit than it is often given credit for. Even if the government schools were neutral, if such a thing was even possible, we would still be called by God to raise our children ourselves. As believers we need to make sure our decision to homeschool is not grounded in the state of our government run schools but is grounded in the all sufficient word of God. Yes the government schools direction should make our decision to homeschool easier, it really should, but even then our decision is to be grounded in God’s word not our preference.

My call to you, if you do not already, is to do whatever it takes to take your children out of the government schools. Seek God for the strength and direction to accomplish this change. It may not be easy and it may not happen overnight but it needs to happen. If your lifestyle must change it must change. If you need to seek help, do that as well. Again this must all be done with your conviction coming from scripture as it will be God’s word that will sustain you when things get tough and if your conviction is anything other than biblical you will be tempted to give in if things appear to change or the trials appear too hard.

Please read over the links below as much of the biblical grounding for our call to disciple our children is given in them. This is not a call we are to do in our own power as if that is the case we will fail. This is a call that is to be done in God’s power and for His glory.

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Do Parents Need Relief From Their Children?

This may not be a question you have asked but I have heard it said in passing a number of times. To make a confession I thought like this in a manner when we first started homeschooling many years ago. I would see my wife frazzled after a day with the children and seriously thought that the government school would be the answer. The truth is that I was more concerned about how my wife related to me than her well being. Instead of looking to see how I could help with the schooling I was seeking to, at least to my mind, eliminate the problem. What I should have done was seek out scripture and seek to help with the schooling and not try and find a way to avoid the issue by sending my children away.

This same mentality often permeates the church as I have heard many people speak of parents needing a break from their children during worship as a reason to send their children off to “children’s church” or some form of youth group. What is missed is the God given opportunity to train our children to worship as God calls them to by including them in the activities on the Lord’s Day alongside the adults. I mention this as the issue with children in the meeting of the church and the need to send children off to school to give mom a break often stem from the same misguided view of children.

Children are called a blessing (PS 127:3) in scripture but all too many Christians by their actions treat them as an inconvenience. I believe this results from not understanding why we as believers have children. If God’s purpose in everything is to glorify Himself, and it is, then children must be given to us so as to glorify Him. Thus the main purpose God gives us children is to raise them to glorify Him and to do this at all cost. If our mindset is to raise children to glorify God and that God will empower us to do so I think our mindset on needing relief from them would be less of a temptation.

We are a culture of relaxation and that mindset infiltrates every area of our lives and this includes the raising of our children. We do not see this drive for relaxation and relief when reading Scripture and in truth we do not see it from the great movements of God in history. What we do see is a pursuit to raise families that seek to honor God in all they do. Can children be difficult, can they being tiring, the answer is yes. The fact they can be all these things is not a reason however to seek to avoid our responsibility to raise them in any way we can.

Let me add here that the husband plays a great part in this. Where I failed to help as I should have I would encourage other fathers not to do the same. Seek ways to help in the raising of your children so that by mutual encouragement and support the temptation to seek relief from your children will not surface. Homeschooling is a family endeavor not simply a job for the wife. I would say, and I too failed here, the responsibility for the homeschooling lies with the husband. Scripture speaks of the father as the one that is to train the children (Eph 6:4) and while we as fathers may enlist our wives in this endeavor we are responsible to God and would add that responsibility is not just for the children but also for the welfare of our wives. If our wives are tired we need to care for the children not send them off to the government.

I started by asking if parents need relief from their children which often leads to the temptation to send ones children to the government schools. I hope you have seen that this is a question that should not be entered into as it stems from a wrong view of children and our responsibility to them. It is a question we need to repent of if we have asked it, and I have in the past, and ask God to give us the right mindset with regards to children.

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Why Do We Follow Man’s Standards for Education?

When it comes to Christian homeschooling have you ever noticed how much we emulate the government school system? We say we want to be different and not be part of the governments indoctrination plan for our children but then we simply take their practices and implement them in our homes. The curriculum may be a little different, I say maybe, but we tend to do everything else the same. We follow the school systems schedule their grading system and even their age graded manner of placing our children. We end up doing “schooling at home” rather than “homeschooling.”

I realize that this comes from years of having the world’s standards for education hammered into our heads but it’s a cycle we need to consciously begin striving to get away from. We need to begin to see the goals for believing parents are much different than the world’s standards. Our standards are not to raise contributing members of society, even though that may be an outcome, but it is to raise children that have as their sole passion to glorify God and proclaim His name in all they do. The issue with raising children to be contributing members of society begs the question as to who defines what is a contributing member and since the standards of those who live in the city of God are vastly different than those who live in the city of man we need to realize we will not raise children that meet the government schools idea of “contributing” in most cases.

Many Christian homeschool parents at this time of year speak of the summer being over and time for school to start. The truth is if one is to follow the Deut 6:1-9 manner of discipleship, which is a usual text to support Christian home education, teaching is to happen at all times and is not restricted to any season or time of the year. It is to take place wherever teaching can happen. This does not negate planning and being purposeful in schooling and the truth is you may start a new area of teaching in the fall but my point is that we would be doing this because this is where things happen to work out not because of some tradition run internal clock that says it is time to school.

A danger is that our children may glean from this that life is about having a time for learning and a time for fun and two shall not meet. How many of us that were schooled in the government system looked forward to summer so as to get away from learning? But the goal of Christian homeschooling should be to raise children eager to learn all that God has for them at any time. The conforming of our mind (Heb 12:2) to God’s leading is to happen at all times not at certain seasons. This can translate later in life to create a dichotomy between, say, work and home, between work and church and in other areas. But the truth is that all we do is to be done for the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31) so we need to be ready in season and out to learn and be led. There are no set times for any of this and we need to work to eliminate this mindset in our children. Again, there can be times of purposeful teaching but be very careful that this planning is led by God and not by man.

I pray you see that this is not a condemnation of those that have a school year that mimics the government system, we have done just the same in the past, but it is a call to step back and look at what we are doing and ask is it because of tradition, convenience or because it is what God calls us to do.

I am fairly certain that this mindset happens without us even thinking about it but that is the danger as what else do we do in our homeschooling that comes from ingrained tradition rather than from what God would have us be doing? How often do we think a child needs to read by a certain age, write by a certain age and if they do not meet the standards of the state or even our neighbors do we stress out? How many were thrilled to see that HSLDA showed statistics that homeschoolers have equal to or better test scores than government schooled children? It is great that there is empirical evidence for the benefits of homeschooling but we are not to build our foundation on those statistics but on the word of God and the goal of rearing godly seed to be used by God to further his kingdom in whatever manner He sees fit.

Let us seek to raise children by God’s standards and for His glory. Let us seek to use curriculum that has God at its center and not as an addendum so it can be called Christian. Let us break the grip the government school system has on our minds that is so ingrained in us and seek to raise a new generation that looks to God and not the state.

By the way I have struggled as a parent and as a father through all of these issues. I have failed miserably in the past and seek to, by God’s grace continue to change. I have had to shake off the concerns that my government schooling instilled in me such as: are my children going to be smart enough, whatever that means, are they far enough along in their various studies, do they have a grasp of the subjects Uncle Sam says they should be schooled in. But in all of this I came to realize that the goal of Christian parenting is to raise children to further His kingdom and thus need to be children that conform to His standards. Where they are in the educational process is secondary, at best, to raising children with Christian integrity and having a kingdom mindset. I claim no special revelation, except the special revelation of His word, just that God has convicted me over the last few years that I needed to change and thus so did my outlook on homeschooling. As we search out scriptures for our guidance we find there is little that mirrors the world's idea of education but much about discipleship in the ways of God. So let us seek to do things God’s ways and realize that from the beginning the worlds ways have always been at odds with God’s and it is no different in the education of our children.

By his grace and His mercy please consider your homeschooling and always be asking, as I ask myself, am I schooling by His standards or the worlds?


Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Aren’t Our Children to be Lights in the Government Schools?

This is probably the most used statement when it comes to sending children of Christian parents to the government schools. While I am sure the intent is noble the reality of this is that the children will probably be changed by the schools more than the schools being changed by the children sent there.

For one to be a light in a dark place that person needs to first be a light. Thus while some may be able to argue for their older children being lights this argument is lacking when it comes to younger children. I would add that having worked with youth in the past I can truthfully say I have seen very few youth that would qualify for being the light God speaks of in His word. To be the light God has called us to be is a result of discipleship not simply a profession of faith, it is to be a reflection of the true light that is Jesus Christ. Children need to be raised to be lights and sending them off to the government schools does little else but indoctrinate them into the darkness the government schools spread.

Also, to send children of any age off to a system that is antagonistic to God and teaches along those same lines is to be avoided at all cost. The result of this abdication of the training of the children of believers is that the fear of God that wisdom begins (Prov 9:10) with is nowhere to be found. Instead children are taught that to fear God is not for the enlightened people we are today.

One may think they can counteract this government schooling with training at home but when children spend vast amounts of their time in the government school system it would take an inordinate amount of time to simply correct the wrong teachings and even more time to teach what is correct. With the small amount of time that parents spend in the home and even less time spent in discipling thier own children counteracting the government indoctrination seems highly unlikely.

So let us not send our children to spend large portions of their days in darkness. We need to take the commands of God to teach our children seriously and not abdicate that responsibility to the state.

You can also read a previous post by Voddie Baucham on this subject: Salt and Light

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Should We Accept Government Schooling Subsidies

The question I would like to deal with is: Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools? A better way to ask this may be: Should we accept government subsidies?

At issue is whether when the government dangles out a carrot should we partake of the bauble it places before us. The initial reaction of many sincere parents is that they pay taxes so this is simply taking nothing more than they have already paid for and thus their right. Before I deal with why we need to avoid this let me deal with the assumption.

First, let me say I have felt this way in the past and still struggle at times with thoughts of taking what I think is mine. If we think about it there are lots of things that our taxes pay for that we would hopefully never seek to take part in. Our taxes pay for abortions, immoral art efforts, unbiblical government projects and the list goes on and on. While our taxes pay for these things we would not, I pray, think of partaking in them so why do we think we must do the same with things dealing with schooling. Not only are many of the things we pay taxes for unconstitutional more importantly we need to see that they are often unbiblical. So let us not seek to take the government carrot simply because we think we deserve, have paid for it or have a right to it.

Now for a reason not to take government funds. I would highly suggest watching the DVD Exposing a Trojan Horse as it speaks to many examples of how the government has offered something with one hand then takes more back with the other at a later date. Once you accept the help of the government you become beholden to it. It is the nature of a government that is seeking to control all aspects of life to do what is necessary to get that control. This may not have always been true but it has proven itself true with the government of today. Basically the same reasons we are not to send our children, as Christian parents, are valid for why we should not accept government subsidies for such things as charter schools and other aspects related to schooling.

Remember that living the life of the pilgrim we are called to be as believers will not be easy. It was not easy for Abraham, it was not easy for Daniel, it was not easy for the Apostles and it will not be easy for us. As we live in the city of God and journey through the city of man there will many things that seem attractive but are merely there to distract us from the true path God desires us to follow. The world tries to sell us the line that we are owed something and our sin nature often leads us to falls into the trap. Simply because we pay unjust taxes, actually a topic for another day, does not mean we should accept that which will jeopardize the goal of raising our children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4).

So, let us not accept government subsidies masquerading as benefits that will eventually enslave one to the state and hinder us from accomplishing our purpose of glorifying God in the raising of our children.

I would also suggest reading the Christian Education Manifesto by Israel Wayne.

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Should the government be involved in the education of our children?

As I continue looking at the education of our children from a Christian perspective another question that has to be answered is whether the government should be involved in their education at all.

I fear that many believers do not even contemplate this question because of the successful indoctrination of the government to train us to think it is natural and right to send our children to Uncle Sam for training. We have been told so often that teaching is a job for professionals that most parents do not even question this assertion. But we must question this premise since if we are told in Deut 6:1-9 that it is our responsibility to train our children would God not also equip us to do as He requires. I have heard Voddie Baucham when speaking on homeschooling and the ability of parents to teach say that a parent only needs to be one day ahead of the child when training, how true that is. We need to get it in our heads that the adage that “we need to leave the education of our children to the professionals” is incorrect, instead we need to keep the education of our children with the parent.

I should add that the mindset of education only being for professionals has infiltrated our churches as well. Believing parents so often hand their children over to well meaning youth leaders and Sunday school teachers and in the process do just as the education system has trained them to do. Keep in mind the whole concept of education used in most churches is also simply a spiritualizing of the world’s method of education.

Most of what I have just said applies to education as a whole and not just as it concerns the government. What has to be contemplated when sending ones children to the government school system is what is their goal. What are their stated and desired goals for children that come out of their system? No matter what you feel those goals are it should be obvious to believers that the one thing the government schools system does not want is God honoring students, students who give all credit to God and seek His guidance in all areas of life. This is obvious because the subject of God has been removed from schools so that if one is to work by the government standards God will not enter into education. Not only does God not enter into education when the government is involved He is denied access at all and is even ridiculed and negated at every opportunity. Children in the government school systems are trained to see life as having nothing to do with God. If God is even mentioned it is that God only plays a part in one area, the spiritual component, of a persons life and often even minimally then. The goal of the government is to train children to be freed from the “constraints of religion” and to be brought to the light of secular humanism.

This should be enough to make any believing parent not send their children to the government school system. But often we as parents try and justify our actions by saying such things as “my school is different”, “my child is well grounded”, “I will correct things when they get home” and many other similar statements. The problem is this attitude does not see the affect that an inordinate amount of time in the indoctrination process creates. Due to this large amount of seat hours in the government schools the minimal amount of time the child is left with parents does not allow for deprogramming and retraining.

Even if you would be fortunate enough to have Christian teachers in the government school system they are bound by the contracts they sign to teach within the parameters of the school. Thus, God is still to be left out of the education process and your children are still not being taught in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4). Let alone Prov 22:6 lets us see that as a child is raised so he will go and if that raising is primarily in the government school system that way will be the way of secular humanism.

I believe the present condition as a nation can be largely attributed to government control of education and the churches acceptance of the state of affairs. The church is too comfortable in the world and is fearful of the repercussion of not allowing the world to educate their children. This attitude needs to change and it will only do so when God’s word is seen as the only means of deciding ones child’s education.

I believe the answer is clear that we are not to have the government involved in the education of our children. With this in mind remember that the whole Charter School issue allows government involvement no matter how minimal it may appear presently it is sure to change. Let us not send our children to the government for their education. As Voddie Baucham has said in his great DVD, The Children of Caesar, "If you send your kids to Caesar for their education don't be surprised when they come back as Romans."

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

What is the Purpose of Christian Education? – Part 2

Last time, in part 1, I touched on a number of verses that speak to education. It is imperative to understand education from a biblical worldview if we are to raise children in the nurture and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4). As I have mentioned before this also is imperative because once we see what God calls for in the way of education it should became clear that the public education system is diametrically opposed to God’s plan for education and thus not acceptable for the children of Christian parents.

The public education system seeks to remove God from education but in truth He is simply replaced by the god of humanism. Everybody worships some god and the god of humanism is man himself and not the one God who created man. Any education children receive from the state is by its very nature and direction man centered and seeks to minimize or negate the God of the Bible, many times at all costs. Children in the public school system are bombarded by humanism for 8 hours a day which is difficult to counteract by most professing Christian parents with the remaining time left even for the most diligent parent. Needless to say it is easy to see where this leads to and that is a generation that has no more a biblical worldview than the schools they are taught by.

Here are some more verse that speak to the nature and direction of education:

Jer 10:2
Thus says the LORD: "Learn not the way of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them,

This verse speaks about the worthlessness of the cultures ways. This does not say we cannot teach what other cultures ways are but we are not to teach children so as they become their ways. In the public school system that is one of the main goals. That goal is to train children to be a part of society and fit the norms and morays of the people instead of teaching them to obey the commands of God. Keep in mind the worlds ways are not God’s ways and one cannot be taught one without it affecting the other.


Matt 12:30
Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters
When deciding if public school is for children of believing parents contemplate the words of Jesus here. The school system cannot proclaim that God cannot enter the classroom and at the same time be for God. Thus to send children to public school is to send them into a system that is against God.


Matt 18:6but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
These words of Jesus should give us pause as anyone contemplates sending their children to the government schools. To send them where the goal is to separate God from education is to put them in a position to sin. Contemplate the position you put your children into by sending them to public school and this verse becomes one we should be concerned with.


Matt 28:20teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
While we often think of this verse only in terms of evangelism we should do so with our children in mind as this is our first place of evangelism. We are called not to make converts but disciples and when we send our children off to be taught by the government we are definitely not raising/discipling them to obey God’s commands. The public school system does quite the contrary and in reality seek to undermine all that God commands.


Luke 6:39-4039 He also told them a parable: "Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher

This verse is imperative as it truly reflects the nature of the government educational system, that it is blind since it seeks its answers in man not God. The result of all of this is that the student will in the end be like the one that teaches them and in the public school system that is to become a “good” pagan humanist. As I have mentioned already, don’t fool yourself that minimal time at home and in some Sunday school will overcome the 8 hours a day the student is being indoctrinated.


2 Cor 6:14
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
While this verse is usually used with regards to marriage as well as business partnerships it is equally valid for education. The act of teaching is truly discipleship and when the student spends so much time with the teacher/teachers they are in a manner yoked to them. Not only are they yoked to the teachers but in the end the goal of government education is to be yoked to the state.



Eph 6:4Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

This may be the last verse listed but it is integral to understanding education from a biblical worldview. The training and discipleship of our children is to be centered on God not man as the humanistic public school system has as a focus. Many may balk at this and say what about math, reading, writing and the such but the point here is that all of those subjects when taught need to be taught with God as the focus and that will not happen in government run schools.

These are only some of the verses that speak to aspects of education and raising our children from a biblical worldview. The challenge for Christian parents is to realize God does speak to how we are to raise our children and His commands are not vague. We as Christian parents and especially fathers need to see that it is our position and duty to raise and to educate/disciple our children. It is too important a task to leave to others. I realize that many parents have gotten themselves to a place where a change is difficult but that should be no reason not to make the change. For those that are new parents I urge you to see what scripture says about educating your children and then seek to follow God’s commands.


Also, the following is a great post by Voddie Baucham: Top Five Reasons Not to Send Your Kids Back to Govt. Schools.

Here are the reasons he gave, you can read the post for the details.

5. You don’t have to
4. America’s schools are among the worst in the industrialized world
3. America’s schools are morally repugnant
2. Government education is anti-Christian
1. The Bible commands Christ-centered education


Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

What is the Purpose of Christian Education? – Part 1

A week or so ago I wrote on Homeschooling and Charter Schools and in the course of writing the post I touched on some questions we as Christian parents need to answer. But before I get to the first question I will deal with what we need to remember as professing believers we have gotten ourselves to a place where changing course is imperative but will be difficult. It will take hard decisions and may often even mean financial hardship. The question though has to always come back to not what we feel we should do but what God reveals we should do. I think as believers when we seek the road that has to be traveled we need to answer first; should believers rely on the government and public education to educate their children. Then the question is; as believers are we to educate our children or can we leave this to “Christian schools.”

So with this all in mind here are the questions I posed previously, but I have reordered them:

1) What is the purpose of education/discipleship for believer’s?
2) Is the government to be involved in the education of my children at all?
3) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
4) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
5) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
6) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
7) Isn’t the method of education of our children a preference?

I begin with the purpose of education because we need to understand this aspect of the caring for our children before moving on. As I want to put the verses with each reference I will break this down into at least two parts.

When one looks in scripture for education you will not find the specific word education as we know it is used. Instead we need to seek out words such as wisdom, knowledge, discipleship and the like. We need to realize that God’s call to make disciples starts with our children.

So let us look at some verses that touch on the education of our children. After the verse I will give a brief comment on each.

First is Deut 6:1-9:
(1) “Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the rules that the LORD your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, (2) that you may fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son's son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. (3) Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey. (4) “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. (5) You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (6) And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. (7) You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. (8)You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. (9) You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

We will also look at this passage later when it comes to who should educate our children but this passage shows the necessity of teaching/discipling our children about the commands of God. We are told in V6 that we as parents, especially fathers, are to have these very same commands on our heart and then we are to not only teach them to our children but to do so diligently. Then Moses, in case it was not clear, reveals what is meant by diligently. We are to spend a large amount of our time discipling our children in all places in all of life. So the education/discipling of our children is primarily to instill in them the commands of the Lord and to let them see by our constant contact with them that those very same commands are on our hearts.


Next is Prov 1:7-9
(7) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge;
fools despise wisdom and instruction. (8) Hear, my son, your father's instruction,
and forsake not your mother's teaching, (9) for they are a graceful garland for your head
and pendants for your neck.

This passage lets us see that the wisdom we are to teach our children does not start in some textbook or curriculum but in the fear of the Lord. That fear is only taught in scripture and is to be taught by the parents as V8 shows. The mainstay of the teaching of our children should be the fear of the Lord as revealed in scripture so that they can truly, by God’s power, be wise.


Prov 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go;
even when he is old he will not depart from it.

This verse makes it clear that the training of our children is to focus on “the way they should go.” This training is not found in a calculus book or some philosophy book but in God’s word. This does not say that math is not important or that other subjects are not useful. What I am saying is that those subjects are not where scripture has us start. A child that knows his 3 R’s but is not raised in the fear of the Lord or the way he should go is not prepared to be used by God. Again, as always. remember this is not about education as the world defines it but about education as God calls us to educate.


Isaiah 54:13
All your children shall be taught by the LORD,
and great shall be the peace of your children.

This passage shows God’s heart for His people to know Him and in this verse for their children to know Him. So we can discern that the education of our children is to make sure that they are taught about God. Yes, it is God that will call them and change their hearts to know Him but God can and often does use the training of children in His word to draw them to Himself. For so many, education is all about everything but God however in His word it is clear that God is most interested in His people and their children knowing Him first and foremost. Education that does not have God at its center is not the education He desires for His people.


I will stop there and look at some other verses later. Keep in mind that my purpose here is, as best I can, to help us see that the raising of our children is not something God has left to our discretion. He has instead set forth parameters that narrow our options so that we can know what God desires us to primarily teach our children. Many of these principles have a cross over when it comes to why we should not allow the government to educate our children as their goal for education is not based on God’s desires but man’s. I would also hope that even for those that already are convinced that public schools are not for the children of believers would see that we need a firm understanding of biblical educational principles so that we do not simply “school at home” but that we would seek after God in all of the curriculum we use.

Till next time, Grace and Peace.

Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?

Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools

Last night we went to a meeting of the Exploring Homeschooling Ministry, the topic was charter schools and we viewed the well done short documentary: Exposing A Trojan Horse. The documentary included such people as Voddie Baucham, Kevin Swanson, Geoff Botkin, Brian Ray and others dealing with the danger charter schools present to the Christian homeschooling community.

A question was raised as how does one answer those that ask “what is wrong with charter schools if they allow one to do as they please and one can still be reimbursed?”

As stated in the DVD and shown in other places around the US and the world, once the government gets its tentacles into something the rules quickly and suddenly change when they have the grasp they desire. It is not necessarily an issue of the current situation but what will come of charter schools in the future since the government controls them. The DVD title is Exposing A Trojan Horse, as that is what the charter schools are, a Trojan Horse, and they need to be exposed for what they are. Charter schools are an inviting gift that outwardly appears generous but once it is in the door it will be anything but inviting.

This all made me think about why anyone that homeschools, from a Christian perspective, would ever turn to the government for such a program. Why are we, as believers, so easily swayed by the baubles the world hangs before us when we have the creator of the universe to supply our needs? I am sure some would say that this may be God’s gift to us but an honest, closer, look will reveal the basis of the charter system is anything but based on God’s word. Again, the school some may be part of may have freedom now but we must always remember it is still part of a government system which by its very nature and rules does not allow the Christian perspective and guidance we as Christian parents should desire in the discipleship of our children.

So I thought I would set forth some thoughts on this subject.

First, we need to realize that God’s design for government as well as our constitution does not call for the government to have any say over education. It is only the integration of government into every part of life and the demise of the family that has allowed believers to acquiesce to even the thought of government intervention. We have over time, allowed the government to encroach into every area of our lives. As believers we need to realize this is not what God established for the role of government in scripture. Even more importantly, the government has taken over the role of parents in the discipleship. Yes, I said discipleship, as that is what education is toward our children and has specifically usurped the role of fathers in the family. Deut 6:1-9 and Ephesians 6:4 set forth that the discipleship of our children is the responsibility of the family and the father is central to this. When we give this responsibility over to the government, we have disobeyed God’s word.

The issue is not only about charter schools but a greater issue as to why believing parents would even consider sending their children to the pagan government schools at all. The following are questions we need to ask of ourselves and then be honest with the answers in light of God’s word. These are questions that relate to various reasons I have heard in regards to charter schools and even public education. So here are the questions we need to answer:

- Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
- What is the purpose of education/discipleship for believer’s?
- Is the government to be involved in the education of my children at all?
- Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
- Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
- Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
- Isn’t the method of education of our children a preference?

Over the next month or so, I will make an attempt to review each of these questions. If we function by God’s standards, as revealed in all of His word, we will find that the answers to these questions show that public education, including charter schools, is not what God calls us to partake of.

Below is a trailer for the DVD Exposing A Trojan Horse



Series Posts
1) Christian Homeschooling and Charter Schools
2) What is the purpose of Christian Education: Part 1 & Part 2
3) Should the Government be involved in the Education of our children
4) Why are we so easily swayed by the money & items offered by charter schools?
5) Should not my children be in the public school to be lights in a dark place?
6) Why do we need to meet man’s standards for education?
7) Why do we need relief or a respite from the presence of our children?
8) Isn't how we educate our children a preference?
9) What if my husband says he does not want to homeschool?