CHRISTIAN EDUCATION/ BIBLICAL EDUCATION

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,

(Exo 31:1-3 KJV)

Aim of Christian/ Adventist education is prepare people for this world (mission or ambassadors of God) and also for the heavenly kingdom

We need to develop children who are like these biblical characters

And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the LORD, and also with men.

(1Sa 2:26 KJV)

And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.

(Luk 2:40 KJV)

So Christian education must have the following

There is a mission, to work for God in this world

Bezaleel’s mission was to help build the tabernacle or sanctuary

Bezaleel  :Means in the shadow/protection of God

Steps/ key aspects of Christian education

There must be a Calling and without saying an Isaiah-iac response to the call. “here am Lord send me”

Recognising that you are called among the many to be a special person for this mission

When you respond to the call, you will be converted and filled with the Spirit of God, the power to do God’s will

KNOWLEDGE: information, facts, data, without interpretation or application is nothing but useless. The importance of it is that with it you cannot make what is known as an informed decision, in order not to make fool of yourself in decision making both for this life and the life to come, knowledge especially about God is very important. Even faith comes but hearing the word (knowledge/ information) about God

WISDOM:  it that which is not foolishness, foolishness is saying there is no God. It is also the ability to assess people or situations accurately. This is God given or Holy Spirit driven.  It is a combinational application (not sum) of knowledge, understanding and skill driven by the will of God through the Holy Spirit.

UNDERSTANDING: showing careful consideration or attention long-suffering

ALL MANNER OF WORKMANSHIP: Skill: ability, proficiency, knack, competence, aptitude

We must distinguish skill from talent (endowment, gift)

It is possible to have a talent but fail to excel of you don’t develop it. So skill could be seen as talent developed

It is a combination of all these aspects that make one educated in the biblical sense