There is a battle taking place for the hearts and minds of the next generation.
Our children are being discipled every day. The question is not whether they are being discipled. The question is who is discipling them and toward what end?
Every classroom, social media platform, friendship, television program, coach, teacher, and cultural message is communicating something about truth, identity, morality, purpose, and God.
That reality should cause parents, pastors, and educators to recognize something incredibly important:
We cannot afford to disciple the next generation in isolation.
God has placed powerful influences around children, but three institutions carry particularly significant responsibility: the home, the church, and the school.
When these three operate independently, or worse, in opposition, we create confusion. But when they operate together under the authority of God's Word, something powerful happens.
We create a system of honor.
God's Design Begins With the Home
Scripture makes the responsibility of parents unmistakable.
Deuteronomy 6:6–7 says:
“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children…”
Notice where biblical discipleship begins. It begins in the heart of the parent. Before God says, “teach them,” He says His Words must first “be in thine heart.” The home is the first discipleship center. Parents cannot outsource the spiritual formation of their children to a pastor, youth ministry, Christian school, or Bible teacher. Those institutions can reinforce the work of the home, but they were never designed to replace it.
God also established the local church. Ephesians 4:11–12 describes God giving pastors and teachers:
“For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”
The church provides spiritual leadership, biblical teaching, accountability, community, worship, and opportunities for believers to serve. A healthy Christian family needs a healthy local church. Likewise, a Christian school should never attempt to become a family's church. We should encourage families to be planted, involved, serving, giving, worshiping, and growing within the local body of Christ.
Then there is education. Children spend thousands of hours during their formative years in educational environments. Education is never worldview-neutral. Every educational system eventually answers questions such as:
Who created us?
What is truth?
What makes something right or wrong?
What is the purpose of humanity?
Where does knowledge come from?
A Kingdom Education philosophy recognizes that Christ cannot simply be added to education. Christ must be the foundation of education. Colossians 2:8 warns:
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.”
Kingdom Education, therefore, becomes an important partner with Christian parents and the local church. Not a replacement. A partner.
The Power of Alignment
Imagine a child hearing the same foundational truths repeatedly.
At home:
God created you.
At church:
God created you.
At school:
God created you.
At home:
God's Word is truth.
At church:
God's Word is truth.
At school:
God's Word is truth.
At home:
Your life belongs to Christ.
At church:
Your life belongs to Christ.
At school:
Your life belongs to Christ.
Now imagine the power of that alignment over 18 years. This does not mean parents, pastors, and teachers will always agree on every preference, method, or decision. They won't. Honor does not require perfect agreement.
Honor requires recognizing the God-given role each has been called to fulfill. Parents honor pastors. Pastors honor parents. Schools honor churches. Churches honor Christian educators. Teachers honor parents. Parents honor teachers. And all of us submit ourselves to the authority of Scripture.
Our children are watching us carry out this daily honor. Perhaps one of the greatest dangers occurs when adults publicly dishonor the very authorities they expect children to respect. When children continually hear parents attack teachers, teachers criticize parents, churches dismiss schools, or schools diminish churches, we unintentionally teach children something dangerous:
Authority is only worthy of honor when I agree with it.
That lesson will eventually travel much further than we intended. Romans 12:10 tells us:
“Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another.”
Honor should characterize Christian relationships, especially relationships surrounding our children.
The stakes are eternal. Kingdom Education has never simply been about producing academically successful students. We want excellence. We want achievement. We want young people prepared to lead. But our ultimate goal reaches beyond graduation. Jesus asked in Mark 8:36:
“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
That question should shape everything we do.
The home cannot accomplish this mission alone. The church cannot accomplish it alone. The Christian school cannot accomplish it alone. But imagine what can happen when all three intentionally stand together.
One biblical foundation.
One system of honor.
One generation being pointed toward Jesus Christ.
About Mr. Euler
Mr. Euler has 27 years’ experience working in Christian Schools, 17 as a Head of School and is currently the Head of School at Word of God Academy, Shreveport, LA., a ministry of Word of God Ministries.
Website www.wogacademy.org
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“EQUIPPING FUTURE GENERATIONS FOR LIFE AND ETERNITY”
Early Childhood: 6645 Bert Kouns Ind. Loop, Shreveport, LA 71129 | Telephone: 318.698.4093 | Fax: 318.698.4119
Lower School: 2820 Summer Grove Drive, Shreveport, LA 71118 | Telephone: 318.687.9003 | Fax: 318.687.9607
Upper School: 6645 Bert Kouns Ind. Loop, Shreveport, LA 71129 | Telephone: 318.698.4093 | Fax: 318.698.4119
Shekinah School: 2820 Summer Grove Drive, Shreveport, LA 71118 | Telephone: 318.687.9003 | Fax: 318.687.9607