CHAPTER 8
Knowledge, Wisdom, Education
No Compromise
The moral high ground is not something that is obtained by a lifetime of study and work. This high ground is obtained by faith in the Creator of the Universe who has revealed Himself through His Son Jesus. This is why even a child’s understanding can trump the ideals of an old and weathered old man in determining right from wrong. The spiritual laws are as real as the physical laws in the God’s universe. That is why the Ten Commandments I have just outlined cannot be compromised without a retreat from the high ground. The battle for morality becomes much more difficult once we lose the high ground.
Even more than this, the Ten Commandments form the foundation for our developing understanding of how we are to determine right from wrong. As we face life in this world many times there are situations that arise in which the issue of right and wrong is clouded. It is at these times that it is most important that we do not waver in our confidence of the Word of God. Compromise will leave us on shaky ground and may lead to a slippery slope from which recovery is very difficult.
Knowledge
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Pr 1:7 NAS95)
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do [His commandments;] His praise endures forever.” (Ps 111:10 NAS95)
Knowledge is an essential element in every aspect of our lives. It has been estimated that until the 19th century knowledge doubled every century. They claim that now human knowledge is doubling every 13 months. They project that human knowledge will soon double every 12 hours. Sounds impressive, doesn’t it? Yet with all of that knowledge available, how come so many people do so many stupid things? How did humans survive up until this point in time if they didn’t have all of our (so called) knowledge?
Thank God that He programmed into all of his creation some basic knowledge that is necessary for us even reach the level of where we can begin to learn and accrue knowledge. You know, important things like how to breathe and how to suck, things that we recognize as instinct, things we just know. Most of creation, which is usually refer to as nature, is driven and controlled mostly by the instinct that is programmed into it. The more complex creatures have the ability to learn and adapt to their environment.
Human learning goes to quite another level though. We were created for a higher purpose than just to exist. We are never happy simply by existing. We have a desire to know. One of the problems that arise is that not all of knowledge is pleasant, because we live in a fallen world. Knowledge in its purity is truth, and sometimes that is hard to deal with. In our age knowledge has increased dramatically, but mankind is still struggling to find truth. Much of what is presented as knowledge today is merely information, and much of that information is tainted with false ideas and concepts that lead more to confusion than to enlightenment. The questions then remain: What do we know? And how do we know it?
When we accept the Bible as truth we then have a standard to judge the tremendous amount of information that we are today bombarded with. No other book can compare to the Bible’s history, traditions, and content. But beyond this it has simply proven itself through countless ages to provide the wisdom and answers for life. Many are the honest skeptics who have attempted to disprove the claims of this Book, but ended up proving it to be true and bowing to its wisdom. “Yet wisdom is vindicated by all her children.” (Lu 7:35 NAS95) We hold the high ground when we determine true knowledge based upon the revelation of Scripture.
Education
There is no doubt that knowledge is liberating. Our founding fathers believed this and attempted to create the most educated society that the world had ever known. Ignorance opens the door to enslavement. Lack of understanding can make you fear that which is beneficial and make you fearless of something that can cause you great harm. Lack of knowledge can make us susceptible to be controlled by evil and evil men. Knowledge is power.
“Wisdom [is] the principal thing; [therefore] get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” (Pr 4:7 AV)
Knowledge can be used for good or for bad. Wisdom insures we handle knowledge properly. Understanding takes us to the next level. God’s intent for man was to bring man into the realm of understanding. This is the realm in which purpose, meaning, and beauty fully reveal themselves. We know that in this life we will not fully get there because of our physical limitations. But we have glimpses into the mind and heart of God, enough so that we can fully trust His direction and leading.
When our forbearers first settled in this country they perceived it as an opportunity to create a society based upon the Word of God. Freed from the close oversight of kings, rulers, and the dictates of man, they chose to follow the commandments from Heaven. It was the recognition that the laws of heaven were intended to preserve freedom in a fallen world that inspired the founders to create a society governed by that law. Later the architects of the United States would follow their lead in drawing up our founding documents.
But even in those early settlements they recognized the importance of education if their society founded on Biblical principles would be preserved for future generations. All of our early universities were created for this purpose, to train young men in the ways of the Lord. Education was the key to perpetuating a society living freely, protected by God’s Law. Even more than this was the hopes that this new society would be an example to the whole world. We were to be as a city on a hill, a light to the world, promoting the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of peace.
In as much as that vision was followed this society flourished. The foundation that was laid in many of those early colonies set the tone for the emerging republic that followed. All of our founding documents reflect the acknowledgment and reliance on God and His Law. E arly in the development of our Government the importance of education again rose to the forefront. The Bible was approved as a textbook, for all our early leaders recognized its importance in maintaining the foundational basis of our society and government.
How times have changed! How could anyone have imagined that the very laws that were created to protect and defend our foundation would be twisted to remove that foundation from the educational system created to perpetuate and protect it for future generations? How could this happen? Subtly the focus was redirected away from that which was most important, the foundation.
Remember: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; … (Pr 1:7 NAS95) When a people lose their fear of God, then gratitude and thanksgiving are replaced with pride and arrogance. Such was the case as the intellectual world attempted to rationalize God out of existence. We all know where this all led, but most people are unwilling to acknowledge why it happened. The 20th century was the bloodiest in all of human history. Countless millions of people were slaughtered and tortured. What happened to the city on a hill, the light to the World? That city was besieged, attacked from every side. The educational system was hit hardest. Many are the brave soldiers that stood their ground, but eventually the educational system was infiltrated by those who sought to destroy its foundation.
Most of the benefits of education are revealed in the future. Our founding fathers knew this. Evil men understand this. An entire culture can change direction in one generation through the education of their youth. What you teach your youth is crucial for the future of that society. But you simply can’t hold the high ground in any discussion about education if you exclude God and the Law of God. The fear of God is the beginning of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. Anything less is a perversion of truth and always leads to destruction.
Several years ago I stood before the school board in our small town. A biology teacher was removed from his job because every year he deviated from the evolutionary textbook for two days of the year to present the concept of intelligent design. He had been doing this for ten years, but now one student and the ACLU had threatened the school district with a law suit if this process was not stopped.
I knew that at that time almost every board member and the superintendent were members in Christian Churches. I challenged them, asking them how they could believe in God and yet insist that their children be taught that they are just a product of time and a series of accidents. I stood and spoke to them, wrote letters to them, a huge community meeting was organize, all to no avail.
The answer I received was that it was imperative for them to avoid a law suit and most important was that the educational process not be interrupted. One bold member, who was a dairy farmer, likened the situation to his business. He said, “The most important thing I do is milk my cows. In the same way it is most important that we make sure the education of our children goes on uninterrupted.”
I countered his comment by saying, “You are wrong, the most important thing is what you feed your cows, because if they don’t get the proper food there won’t be any milk. You have all focused on education and education is important, but the most important thing is what we teach our children, not simply that we teach them. Education will be counterproductive if what we teach our children is not true.”
Fear won out and the high ground of truth and integrity in education was lost in my small home town and everywhere else in America. Today a large portion of the students in our town end up in an alternative school so that we can pretend that they have received an education. The very foundation of our society and knowledge of it has been outlawed from our educational system. It is no wonder that our society is imploding since we removed its foundation from our public school system, distorting our principles, laws, and causing even a rewrite of our history.
The battle for what our children are taught continues to be fought with high sounding phrases like: “No child left behind”, or “Common Core”. Discussions on every level argue what children really need to know to flourish in our society. Some argue for knowledge without morality. Some argue for morality without authority. But if we are to preserve this Nation and its government that have proven to be the most successful in history, then we cannot lose the high ground concerning education.
“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people”. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
– John Adams
If we do not teach our children, first and foremost, a reverence for God and His Commandments, then our Constitution will not be adequate to govern their affairs. If we do not use God’s Word as blueprint for their education, then we will not preserve a society that upholds the sanctity of the life of each individual citizen and their God given rights.