Christian educators realize that they are engaged in a work which aims at an outcome that is supernatural in essence, and which cannot be achieved apart from divine intervention. Our goal of fashioning students who will become faithful citizens of Christ's kingdom requires them being "called out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9). Our hope of seeing students sharing in our faith is dependent upon them gaining the ability to truly hear the Word of Christ (Romans 10:17). And our prayer that they will walk in love demands that they become an imitator of God himself (Ephesians 5:1-2). There are no natural means by which these things can occur.
But none of us has inherent supernatural ability. And what is more, even though Christians now have "the mind of Christ" (1 Corinthians 2:16), and even though we have been grace-gifted with unique abilities to serve in the context of the Church (Ephesians 4:7ff), we do not have the power to work supernatural change in the hearts of others.
An Important Question
So. If we lack the ability to conjure up supernatural power, then how does a Christian (whether a parent, pastor, school teacher, friend, etc.) go about ministering to others with the hope of affecting supernatural change in them?
Hopefully you can see that this is a very significant question.
I can affect natural change by giving a good speech or by crafting a compelling written argument. I can affect natural change by dumping a lot of emotional appeal on a person, perhaps by invoking fear or inspiriting aspiration. And I can even affect natural change just by being a good example. But none of these things are sufficient to accomplish supernatural change. This is because they are but natural tools.
Unfortunately, many Christians and churches in our day do not live by this reality. There are many who hope to see God's supernatural work in themselves and in others, but depend singularly upon natural means to achieve it.
And in case you think this is an outrageous thing to say, just realize that such errors were made by some early churches and required a harsh reprimand from Paul himself. The Galatians thought they could achieve supernatural growth by means of the natural morality of legalism. So, Paul said this in Galatians 3:3: “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” And to the Corinthians, who depended upon the sophistication of natural human reason, he wrote that “our faith [must] not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:5)
And if the error of the Galatians was that they relied upon ethos (morality) for supernatural change, and if the error of the Corinthians was that they relied upon logos (reason) for supernatural change, then the error of many American churches is that they rely upon pathos (emotion) for supernatural change. Keeping children entertained, teenagers happy, and the congregation in a musical trance are evidently the only things some churches know to do on a Sunday. If you think I'm talking about yours, just ask me and I'll let you know.
The Right Foundation
As concerns education in a Christian school setting we must be sure that, even though we seek to communicate through a balanced use of logos, ethos, and pathos, we do not depend upon any of them at the very foundation of all things. As important as logic, morality, and emotions are to Christian education, none of them are foundational. This is because none of them can accomplish supernatural change in a human on their own.
But there is something that can accomplish supernatural change on its own. And it's something that we can actually wield.
It's a source that can be handled by natural men and yet be used by God to accomplish divine things (2 Corinthians 4:7). It's a tool that pierces the human conscience (Hebrews 4:12). It's a weapon that assaults demons (Ephesians 6:17). It's a power that can raise the dead to life (1 Peter 1:23). It's the means by which natural men do battle in the supernatural realm (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
Hopefully, you can tell that I'm talking about the Word of God in the Bible alone.
If there ever was one thing that was entirely indispensable for the Christian educator, it would be the Bible. And because of its primary importance in accomplishing our goals, there is sense in which all elements of instruction in a Christian school are aimed at helping a student know their Bible better. Science and history and music and P.E. all contribute to fashioning a mind and body that is more and more capable of understanding the Truth of all truths, found in God's Word alone. And this Truth alone is able to transform the human soul (Romans 12:2).
A Word About the Spirit
Paul equates Scripture to the “sword of the Spirit” in Ephesians 6. There are a couple ways we could take this Greek genitive prepositional phrase: either it’s possessive (the Bible is the Holy Spirit’s sword), or it’s attributive (the Bible is empowered by the Spirit). I tend to think that either way is theologically okay, but I prefer the attributive sense because in the verse Paul commands us to “take” it. But no matter the way we go with it, it’s clear that we’re to actively don a weapon that the Holy Spirit energizes to accomplish His work.
What is also clear from this is that the Holy Spirit does not work in us apart from the Word of God. The only Spirit-empowered tool listed is the Word. There’s not a hammer of the Spirit or a sunglasses of the Spirit. So, we would do well to confine our expectations about what the Holy Spirit does to that which concerns the Word of God. He does not do supernatural things through sunrises or rainbows or hunches or voices. But we can be sure that he does mighty and powerful things through Scripture.
And so we Christian educators will keep taking up the Bible in all we do.