When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13)
[Paul] writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. (2 Peter 3:15-16)
Do your best to present yourself to God as an approved worker who has nothing to be ashamed of, handling the word of truth with precision.(2 Timothy 2:15)
Education is one of the topics that I seldom see addressed in men’s ministry. This oversight may be because most men’s ministry happens with adult men who are already in their chosen vocation. With the significant decline recently in men graduating with college degrees, male education has become a hot topic in the general population. This downward trend presents an opportunity for the church to step in and fill the gap.
With our current cultural deficit in male education in mind, I’ve been wondering lately what kind of advice I would give a young Christian man in high school who wants to love God “with all his mind”? Here are my suggestions:
- You don’t have to be educated to be a Christian. But you do need to be educated to be an informed Christian who can discern truth from error. Can’t read? You will be dependant on others to read the Bible to you and tell you what it means. Can’t write? You will not be able to express yourself in many different venues, including the Internet. Don’t know history? You will be unable to understand current events in context. Can’t defend your faith? You will fall victim to some very persuasive arguments against Christianity. Ignorance in any field makes one subservient to its “experts.” As G. K. Chesterton has said, “Without education,weare in ahorrible and deadly danger of taking educatedpeople seriously.”
- Make an honest assessment of your Christian maturity. If you sense that you would not do well in a secular college or university – meaning that you feel you have a weak foundation in your faith – then consider a Christian college or university instead. However, if you have a good understanding of why you believe what you believe, are already living as a consistent Christian, and are involved in a church on a regular basis, you may thrive in a secular environment. Most secular campuses have excellent Christian groups you can participate in and having to defend your faith in the public square can be a huge opportunity for you to grow spiritually. As a young man, I was accepted to both a Christian college and to a public university. I chose to go to the public university and it turned out to be one of the greatest periods of spiritual growth in my Christian life.
- Get as much education as you possibly can as fast as you can. Your single years are the perfect time to focus on your education. The more you learn, the more valuable you become, not only to our culture, but to the cause of Christ.
America and the world need educated Christian men who can live out their faith thoughtfully and consistently. Be that man.
This post first appeared in NewCommandment.org.
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