Academics and Christ: part 1

How are academic excellence and Christ-centered worldview related to each other? Are they mutually exclusive or mutually supportive? Are they indifferent to each other? The educational orthodoxy of our culture would probably choose indifference as the relationship because it sees any claim to spiritual reality as optional and indifferent to fundamental real-world truths – fine if you choose it and it’s meaningful to you, but don’t claim it to have real substance or to make a real difference, at least not for me.

Where, as a school, do we stand on this question and how would we explain or defend it to others? Of course, biblical affirmations of sovereignty play a part here. David proclaims: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world and all who live in it” (Psalm 24:1). Some express it thusly: “All truth is God’s truth.” So God is in charge of all our learning, all within that is true, and has claim on our allegiance in everything we do, including education.

That leaves an honest question. While as a believer, I must pursue education under the Lord’s direction, it might still be the case that He leaves most of that education in the arena of His broader permissive will, guided by common grace and general revelation. In other words, use the common sense God gave you and learn what the world has to teach. Then submit it all to the test of the scriptures so that you might discern elements which contradict God’s specific revelation. As Daniel learned in the courts of the Babylonians while meeting the challenge of obedience to God’s commands and submission to God’s direction, we are to learn from our broader culture and seek the Lord to guide our way in the world.

Daniel in the Courts of the King

There is truth here. This does, in some respects, describe our residence in the world with citizenship elsewhere. We see, though, another fundamental truth here. Daniel learned from the culture and was sensitive to particular commands by God which differed from that culture. He also had a broader identification with the Lord, seeing the world of the Babylonians through the eyes of faith. Being obedient to God meant not only abstaining from certain foods, but also looking for guidance from God and not the ways of the wise men and wizards. Daniel’s worldview was centered on the sovereign Lord, and his performance at court showed a God-blessed excellence. This blessing came not only from specially revealed interpretation for dreams, but also “God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and language.” (Daniel 1:17)

Was this only a particular grace to Daniel for God’s purposes? Certainly it could have been and perhaps was, in part. But here we include our own lessons from experience and knowledge of educational research. More on that next time.