Principles. When it comes to education, what are they? Where do they come from? How do you get them? “I’m totally confused. This is nothing like we learned.”
Ever feel that way? It is so hard to teach an old dog new tricks. Now, I’m not calling you names; just pointing out that old habits die hard. But we must not conform to the pattern of the world (even if that is the pattern we were raised in and the only one we know.) It’s true, this isn’t the way we learned. Most of us learned to memorize facts for a test. But, in addition to not conforming, we are also not to “reform” the world’s way (by tacking Scripture meaninglessly on to our lesson pages or adding a separate “Bible” class to the typical “scool curriculum”). But we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds, that is being formed to only His Word! Yes, at times transformation can seem confusing. You know you aren’t what you were, but you aren’t quite sure what you are becoming. But remember, He is not the author of confusion. He is bringing you from glory to glory.
When it comes to learning Biblical Principles, many people want the 1, 2, 3 steps, and make it snappy. Not going to happen. Renewing the mind takes time, and it doesn’t come through a formula. There is only one way to get the Wisdom of God, ask Him. He tells us that’s the way to get it, and even tells us He’ll give it to us. How? Well, most reliably, through His Word – the only place that we can be 100% positive that it is none other than His voice. So what’s this got to do with finding Biblical Principles?
Biblical Principles, which is what Wisdom is – call it “God’s Way” or perspective, even a Biblical Worldview, – can only be seen by the mind that is renewed by the Word. The better you know the Word, the easier it will be to see Biblical Principles that apply to all of Life. There is no getting around spending much time in God’s Word and asking His Holy Spirit to speak to your heart through it, and to renew your mind by it.
Then as you read and study elsewhere, do it with the same reliance on the Holy Spirit to be your Teacher. Look for Biblical Truths throughout. God has applied His principles to His Creation and His Story, to give us Real Life examples! Look to see God’s hand at work – His Providence displayed throughout the lives of People – Individuals and Nations. The problem sometimes comes when trying to see these things in the writings of others, especially those that don’t hold to this view. If they don’t believe that there are absolute Biblical Truths or God’s Providence, then those parts of the stories or evidence will be left out, as it is unimportant to them. That’s why it is important to use Primary Source Documents; and when using other resources, to look for those that do acknowledge Biblical Truth and Providence so those things won’t be edited out.
God has retained a remnant for Himself that would preserve HisStory. Even in our Post-Christian society, there are those that continue to stand for Biblical Truth and Providence. They have done the research, poured over the Primary Source Documents, and made them available to us. There are those who have searched out the Truths and hand of Providence. We can learn from them. Not just what they have learned, but how to learn more ourselves.
The Word of God is inexhaustable. It is written so very condensed that though you spend a lifetime searching it, you will always find something new to you. There are not just a handful of principles that someone has already gleaned and set in stone. God is Infinite and so are His Truths.
So, whether you begin with applying the Prinicples others have found, or God leads you to others through your own studies, matters not. As there is no “right” set of Biblical Priniciples that exclude or supercede others. They all build upon one another. They all show different aspects of our multi-faceted God who made a multi-faceted Creation. We can look at it through many various angles, but as long as we’re looking through the eyes of Faith, we will always see God, His Hand and His Plan at the core.
Some resources that will help you see God’s Principles, Truths and Providence are:
1) any publications by the Foundation for American Christian Education (FACE) and its authors, Verna Hall, Rosalie Slater, Carol Adams, Elizabeth Youmans, and more. Click here for our link to purchase their resources.
2) resources written by Steven McDowell, Mark Beliles, Marshall Foster, Mary-Elaine Swanson, James Rose, K. Alan Snyder, ….. These are just a few authors that write educational resources specifically from these point of view. I could not begin to list ALL such authors. Many Christian authors write fromsuch a viewpoint. Sadly, many also do not. It is disheartening, but all too common to pick up a “Christian” book that has a humanistic rather than Biblical worldview. Some of these authors can be found on our home ed catalog webpage.
3) Encyclopedia of Bible Truths by Ruth Haycock. This resource goes through typical “school subjects”, outlines them according to Biblical concepts and shows Scriptures to correlate with them. This is very helpful in planning studies. Even if you have a fairly well developed Biblical Worldview, Mrs. Haycock has probably gleaned a few different things than you have thought of so far. Remember, no one person can learn all there is to God and His ways.
Just a very few of the Biblical Principles we have found and applied in our studies- just to show you how easy it is:
Governments Foundations:
1) God is the Sovereign Ruler over ALL!
2) All (human) government begins with me (self-government).
3) God ordains human realms of government to control sinful mankind. (family, church, civil)
Creation Foundations – just a couple to get you started:
1) God is the Creator of ALL!
2) Creation consists of a tri-unity to reflect the Nature of the Creator. (Time, Space, Matter – Each of these three is also triune in itself.)
