Homeschool Bible Studies

Our Responsibility to Our Children's Education

Deuteronomy 4:9, 10
-9- "Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren,
-10- "especially concerning the day you stood before the LORD your God in Horeb, when the LORD said to me, 'Gather the people to Me, and I will let them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.'

Deuteronomy 11:18-21
-18- "Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
-19- "You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
-20- "And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates,
-21- "that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth.

Proverbs 6:20-23

2 Timothy 3:14, 15

Also read Deuteronomy 6:6-9 and Proverbs 22:6.

We find that God's purpose is for our children to learn to fear Him; to have their days multiplied upon the earth; to be led, kept and spoken to by our instruction; and to be made wise unto salvation. These are all biblical goals which we must take seriously as children of God.

In addition to these we also have personal reasons that lead us to homeschool our children. These include protecting our children and disciplining them in a way that is simply not possible when 7-8 hours of each day are spent under the authority of others. Many parents also want control over the curriculum and the ability to challenge each child at their own level through one-on-one interaction. And finally, it is viewed by some as our job as parents to teach and influence our children as they grow to become Godly adults. All of these are reasons to help keep us focused on our primary goal as homeschooling, Bible believing families: to raise children who will be arrows in the hand of God.

The Father's Role in the Homeschool

Deuteronomy 32:7
-7- "Remember the days of old, Consider the years of many generations. Ask your father, and he will show you; Your elders, and they will tell you:

Proverbs 1:8
-8- My son, hear the instruction of your father, And do not forsake the law of your mother;

Proverbs 4:1, 3-5
-1- Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding;
-3- When I was my father's son, Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,
-4- He also taught me, and said to me: "Let your heart retain my words; Keep my commands, and live.
-5- Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.

Ephesians 6:4
-4- And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.

Also read Proverbs 5:1, 2, 7; 13:1; 23:22

Dads do better in many areas. Now that's a newsflash for today! God created men and women differently, to do different tasks. Sometimes we need to be reminded of that, but the natural order of things proves God's wisdom once again! Dads are more often involved with physical activities with their children; not just physical games, but also more hands-on teaching opportunities. They also frequently are able to function as a sounding board for mom because 1) they have a different perspective and 2) they often have a different teaching style.

Husband and wife are to be a team when it comes to teaching their children. And the father, as the spiritual head of his family, should be intimately involved with all aspects of rearing his children. He should be leading family worship as well as backing up mom's teaching and filling in the gaps where necessary. Homeschooling is a FAMILY affair, not just "what mom does."

Shielding Our Children

Proverbs 12:5
-5- The thoughts of the righteous are right, But the counsels of the wicked are deceitful.

Proverbs 12:26
-26- The righteous should choose his friends carefully, For the way of the wicked leads them astray.

Proverbs 13:20
-20- He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed.

Proverbs 20:11
-11- Even a child is known by his deeds, Whether what he does is pure and right.

Proverbs 22:15
-15- Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.

Consider this: If foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, then why is it considered appropriate to confine thirty children to the company of one or two adults for the majority of their waking hours for 180 days each year? Does not foolishness beget foolishness? The modern concept of "school" is NOT biblical.

It is our duty as the teachers of the children whom God has lent to us to teach them properly and to protect them from harm. This extends to harmful physical circumstances, harmful philosophies and harmful influences. It is not "burying our head in the sand" or "babying our children" as so many suggest. It is performing our God-ordained duty to our children.

The Bible tells us to be IN the world, but not OF the world. This concept is best taught early and thoroughly to our offspring. It is much easier to teach our little ones from the beginning than to try to instill this idea in them after years of exposure to humanism, evolutionism and unitarianism. When they have a solid foundation, we can have peace in the fact that they will not be going into the world without adequate spiritual preparation and protection.

Copyright by Cyndi Egbert
Used by permission

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