I like to think that I did fairly well, academically, in high school, college, and beyond. However, there are still days that I echo what Forrest Gump said, “I may not be a smart man.” In today’s world of non-stop access to information, along with advancements in technology and continued scientific discoveries, I realize that I don’t know that much afterall. And to some degree, I am ok with that. After all, in the grand scheme of eternity, it is not necessarily how much you know but what you know to be true that matters. I believe that is the issue when it comes to the discussion about excellence in academics.
Although, Scripture does not have much to say about schooling, it does speak to the issues of knowing, wisdom, and learning:
- Some people were “always learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth.”
- Some were babes in Christ “for though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God…”
- “Aquire wisdom! Acquire understanding!…with all your acquiring, get understanding.”
- Daniel “showed intelligence in every branch or wisdom, endowed with understanding and discerning knowledge” but he also understood that God gave him and his friends “knowledge and intelligence in every branch of literature and wisdom.”
- “Knowledge puffs up”
- This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God…”
- The Holy Spirit will “teach you in all things.”
- God’s word can make us “wiser than our enemies”, give us “more insight than all my teachers”, and allow us to understand “more than the aged”.
- In Acts 17, Paul appeared to have knowledge of the culture he engaged in.
- Paul told the church to be “wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil.”
- “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”.
- “Continue in the things you have learned and become convinced or, knowing from whom you have learned them…knowing the sacred writings which are able to give you wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.”
- God has given us everything we need for life and godliness, “through the true knowledge of Him”.
That is quite the array of information when it comes to the topic of knowing and learning. So, what can we summarize from this when it comes to the excellence in academics that we desire for students in Christian schools?
First, knowledge apart from God’s word and purpose is vanity. We must make sure we are not just building college prep schools, but are building life and eternity prep schools that are giving each student the biblical knowledge and tools, teamed with the appropriate skills and talents, to engage the culture in a way that advances His kingdom and brings Him glory.
Second, though knowing facts and truths about how the world works and how we can better contribute to the good of society is something that God desired since creating us to have dominion on the earth, we must remember that God, through His Word and Spirit, gives us all that we need to impact the world for Him. Does what and how we teach, lead students to a deeper knowledge of God and His word?
Third, it is important that the teachers, coaches, and leaders in our Christian schools fear the Lord and know Him first and foremost, as they pass their values, beliefs, and knowledge on to their students.
Finally, there are aspects of knowing that we should continue to be ignorant of, like perversion and certain aspects of evil. It is the consumption of such knowledge that is leading people away from Christ.
When the academic excellence we seek has its foundation in God’s word, in order to live God’s way, so that we might impact God’s world, I say let’s give our all in that effort, to the glory of God!
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