Christian Education (Evangelism)
"Pulling Down Strong Holds and Building Up Relationships" (2 Co. 10:3-8)
Christian Education is a lifelong process of learning to observe all things the Master commanded us; it is concerning every area of our lives to be submissive to the will of God which is found in His word. The church should be heavily involved in seeking ways to aid believers to live the saved life. This has never been optional, but in a day of moral upheaval and spiritual confusion, it is more imperative now than it has ever been. The church should be involved in teaching the whole counsel of God, and seek to "bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ."
We can not expect people to get on board the churches program unless they know what is expected of them. They must be presented with a manual of how we operate. They must be presented with rule but not legalism.
It is to our shame that we have so long tolerated mediocrity in church school, which we would not accept in secular school. All teachers should be taught and they should complete a prescribed course of study and be certified before teaching. Our teacher's training should go on consistently.
Many think that Doctrine divides people and that as long as "you know Jesus," you don't have to worry about anything else the Bible says. Much of the religious confusion of our day can be traced to this kind of thinking. But Doctrine is like the bone structure of the body and without bones to hold the body together, the muscles and nerves cannot move the body along. Serious attention needs to be given to Doctrine.
An on going Stewardship Class is a must, and each person applying for membership in the church should be instructed in the meaning of Church Membership and Christian Discipleship. This would be pertaining to the entire sphere of what it is to be a Christian.
Throughout the calendar year, there should be special sessions to focus on areas of special needs.
Sunday School, as we know it, is an educational monstrosity; from the stand point of education alone, it is totally inadequate. The only redeeming feature of the Sunday School is its subject matter, the work of God. So despite our inadequacies, God overrules and uses our attempts to His own glory and honor. But if we are really serious about Christian Education, we must recognize that Sunday School needs radical adjustments. Sunday School in most churches meets for an hour and one-half on Sunday mornings. When you deduct the time spent in opening, closing, passing to classes, reassembling, record keeping, etc., you only have about 20 minutes for half an hour for the actual teaching. All too often the teacher is not qualified or ill prepared. We would never tolerate this in our children's secular schooling. I dream of a time when each teacher will have completed and approved course of study and be certified. We also need our curriculum changed to provide for more comprehensive and in depth study of the Bible, we will do this by incorporating catechism in our Sunday School for a start. Also, there is a need for a change in the time to allow for sufficient time to do an effective job. We cannot possibly do the job that is needed in 20 minutes, once a week. Some Jewish children attend Synagogue School several hours in the week; we need to consider such ideas.
Rev.
Michael E. Coleman, Senior Pastor
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