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| Continuing
Education
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This school year, Lisa and I decided to home school our
children. There are several reasons why we wanted to do so,
but one was we wanted to be more involved in their education
than would typically be possible if they were in public
school. As a general rule, parents are concerned with their
child’s education. They make sure they are progressing as
they should. They make sure homework is done and correct. They
help their children with reports and projects. They will hire
tutors if the child is struggling in a certain subject.
But education doesn’t stop with high school or even college.
Practically all fields of work require a form of continuing
education. For instance, physicians are required to attend
classes and conferences to stay abreast of new advancements in
medicine. Salesmen will have various training classes to
attend regarding products or sales techniques. Even those not
in the workforce recognize education is ongoing in various
aspects of life. Without continuing education, you get left
behind fairly quickly, regardless of your role.
What I find to be disheartening, however, is that numerous
Christians do not see the need for or the benefits of a
continuing education in the word of God. This manifests itself
in different ways. Probably the one that disturbs me the most
is when parents do not place the same (or more) emphasis on
their children’s Bible education as they do their secular
education. Parents, it is crucial that your children be
schooled in the things that have eternal consequences, much
more so than in those things that are important for only a
short while. While it may be important for your child to know
Shakespeare’s Hamlet for a test, if he doesn’t know
Matthew, Acts, Romans, etc. he won’t pass the one test that
matters.
This continuing education starts at home. Don’t rely on the
Bible classes on Sundays or Wednesdays to sufficiently provide
them the education they need. That’s not to say those
classes aren’t valuable, but it’s your job as the parent
to provide the continuing Bible education your children need,
not the Bible class teachers (Deut. 6:6ff; Eph. 6:4). This
includes at least 2 things: personal study at home with your
children and making sure their Bible lessons are completed. It
doesn’t matter if they’re in elementary school or high
school; this is continuing education and your responsibility
doesn’t stop as long as they live with you. Those of us who
are or have been teachers unfortunately witness students on a
regular basis who haven’t done their lessons. The Bible and
the lessons learned from its study are too important to let
this happen.
As I said, though, this is continuing education. That means
our learning doesn’t stop once we become adults. We, too,
must continue to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). Have you ever
found a book that is so engrossing you can’t put it down?
Many of you have become enamored with the Twilight series of
books. Most of the younger people have read the Harry Potter
series. While some people read the same books more than once,
as a general rule, once you read a book, you’re pretty much
done with it. However, though you may have read every passage
in the Bible, it is not a book that you are finished with once
you have read it all. The doctrines and examples within it
need constant study to be able to mine the riches of the truth
found in the words of the Holy Spirit.
Notice what 2 Tim. 2:15 says: “Be diligent to present
yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be
ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” The KJV says
“Study to show yourself approved to God...” The Greek word
translated “diligent” or “study” means to make haste,
to be earnest, to exert one’s self. It takes effort to be
able to present yourself approved to God. And Paul says we
must rightly divide the word of truth to accomplish this task.
This does not denote a casual reading of the Bible. This does
not mean we read it every now and then. This demands in-depth
study on a regular basis. How else can we rightly divide the
word of truth, that is handle it properly or apply it
correctly, if we’re not diligently studying it on a regular
basis? This is the continuing education we need to be approved
to God.
Not only do we need to continue our education in the word of
God at home, but we can do so when we assemble with the saints
on Sundays and Wednesdays. One of the purposes for coming
together is to study together. We have two opportunities each
week to participate in continuing education classes. But if
you’re not here, you’re not receiving the benefits of
those classes. Why would you want to miss the opportunity to
study the Bible? It’s the word of God, the words of life.
No matter our position in life, continuing our education is
important. But there is no education more important than what
we receive from studying the Bible. On the day of judgment,
how well we knew our ABCs and 123s won’t matter. How well we
knew and followed God’s word will.
Marshall Reid
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Copyright (C)
2008
Southside Church of Christ
All rights reserved.
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