The American Crisis
In the last two blogs, we reviewed two examples of how historical events can be viewed through the lens of a biblical worldview versus a secular worldview. We have one more example to explore.
Egypt’s Battle To Recapture Israel:
- Why did Israel go around the Philistines to the Red Sea?
“And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt: But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.” Exodus 13:17-18
- How did Israel know where and when to go?
“And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.” Exodus 13:21-22
- Why didn’t the Egyptians overtake Israel when they were so close?
“And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them: And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.” Exodus 14:19-20
- What caused the waters of the Red Sea to divide and how long did it take?
“And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.” Exodus 14:21
- What happened to the Egyptian chariots when they entered the Red Sea?
“And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the Lord looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians, And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians. And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” Exodus 14:24-26
- What caused the waters of the Red Sea to return to its normal state?
“And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.” Exodus 14:26-29
We have looked at the accounts of three battles. The reason I wanted to discuss these examples is to illustrate how deep the secular/sacred divide runs, even among Christian educators. History will describe what took place at the Red Sea as something spiritual, with God being involved in every event. However, when history explains what happened in the other two accounts, God is absent and not mentioned. This is precisely what secular education aims to do. It may not explicitly deny the existence of God, but it simply ignores God's reality. Secular education strives to make itself spiritually "neutral."
If the crossing of the Red Sea were included in a secular textbook, it might read something like this:
"When Israel left Egypt, they wandered around and avoided the land of the Philistines because the people were well-armed and fortified. They ended up by the Red Sea. The Egyptian army pursued them, and just when it appeared they would be overtaken, a dense fog rolled off of the sea and settled between the two groups. The fog was so dense that the Egyptians could not advance against Israel.
Meanwhile, a once-in-a-hundred-years storm moved in from the East with hurricane-force winds over the Sea, causing the waters to appear to separate. This gave Israel the chance to escape the pursuing Egyptian army. As the fog lifted, the Egyptians tried to follow the Israelites and cross the Red Sea themselves. Unfortunately, the Egyptian chariots were too heavy and got bogged down in the muddy riverbed and couldn’t be controlled. At the same time, the weather front passed, causing the waters to return to their normal state. The result was that the entire Egyptian army, attempting to cross, drowned when the waters shifted. The Israelites were fortunate to have escaped the Egyptians this time."
The secular/sacred divide leaves God completely out of the equation. God, religion, and spirituality play no role in what happened. As followers of Christ, we know that God's hand was fully upon His people as they crossed the Red Sea. We have taught this truth to our children since they were born. We struggle to transition to the understanding that, just because something happens that is not mentioned in the Bible, it does not mean God's hand is not orchestrating the outcome.
The American Crisis is the battle over the teaching of worldview: a worldview where God is present versus one where God is absent. Looking at life without acknowledging God's presence is like going through a car wash and thinking that water is not involved. You wouldn’t go to a car wash without using water to clean your car, just as we cannot look at past, present, or future life without recognizing that God is always present.
Having our children learn from a "neutral" education system is not acceptable; in fact, it is foolish. The American Crisis exists because of this sacred/secular divide
This is the American crisis
Mr. Euler has over 20 years of experience working in Christian Schools, 13 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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