Education of Children

The Foundation, Christ and His Church

Before discussing some of the details regarding education, we need to consider carefully some foundational issues, because if we are on the wrong foundation, we cannot help being wrong in the outworking. The first thing we must see clearly is that the family is not the primary goal. While the family is very important, God does not build around the family unit. He has chosen to sum up all things in Christ (Ephesians 1:10). Everything else must take this into account--and not just in theory. Closely associated with this fact is God's purpose in the church.

The church is the body of Christ in reality, not just in theory. Families fit into the church, not the church into families. If this is not seen in the right perspective, in the end we will fail with our children. Our children can be well-trained, well-educated, go on to be wonderful citizens of the world, and still miss God. As Christians, our purpose is to see our children in Christ. If they are in Christ, they are in God's plan for eternity.

The essential factor in seeing this come to pass is the example that we as parents are setting. Are our lives controlled by Christ, and by what God is doing in the body of Christ, or are our lives centered in our families? As parents, if the focus of our lives is the family, we will never be able to point our children to, Christ, because we teach far more by example than any other way. The revelation of Christ and His purpose in the church must dominate and control our entire lives. Christ said, "I will build My church..." (Matthew 16:18). He did not say He would build the family.

A properly ordered and functioning family is essential if the family is to be a part of His church, but it cannot be the center. Each of us must personally answer the question of where our focus is, in light of the purpose of God. A further discussion of the church itself is outside our subject here, but it cannot be overemphasized that this forms the foundation for our movement in God.

Next: In the World But Not Of the World