Christ Kona?

Feature
The Truth as
It Is in Jesus
Why
education,
and those
who educate,
are so
important.
BY E. EDWARD ZINKE
Beginning less than a decade
after its organization, the Seventh-day
Adventist Church
made a major commitment to
education. Along with its
commitment to publishing and health
institutions, education was—and is—
important to the proclamation of the
everlasting gospel, the full message that
God has been pleased to give us through
His Word, the Bible.
A Seventh-day Adventist education
was vital because it provided an environment
in which students were given
the opportunity to understand our
world from the standpoint of God’s
Word, rather than from the secular and
even atheistic worldviews of education
in general. Education was important
because it gave Adventist students the
opportunity to develop a well-balanced
approach to life, including the spiritual,
mental, physical, and social dimensions.
Part and parcel of the above was the
opportunity to commit one’s life to the
God of Scripture, and to prepare for and
engage in the mission to give the world
the opportunity to respond to Jesus’
offer of salvation in view of His soon
coming. It was also important because
the present generation of young people
was perceived as the future generation
of church leaders, pastors, evangelists,
medical missionaries, and educators—
all working together to proclaim the
three angels’ messages.
Preserving Our Legacy
Thus the church took on the awesome
responsibility of developing an educational
system that has become a major
strength in fulfilling its sacred duty to
provide Christian education to its youth
and to spread the message of the soon
return of Christ to the world. This
required the dedication, energy, commitment,
and finances of the youth, fathers
and mothers, grandparents—of the
entire church over many generations.
The responsibility of Adventist education
was to fulfill this God-given role of
providing a biblically based education
for young people within the parameters
of the church. It was not the task of educators
to challenge in the classroom the
doctrines that had been accepted by the
church as biblical. That could and
should be done within the context of the
larger church. While education would
acquaint students with broad issues in
the world, it would not advocate as truth
doctrines or worldviews contrary to
those accepted as biblical.
Parents took seriously their responsibility
to raise their children within the
safety of the supporting church family,
including its educational system. Close
families and churches are built in part on
a shared worldview and a common goal
of dedicating one’s life to a shared vision.
In this case, the shared vision was the mission
and message God gave us as a church.
Many educators, parents, and young people
still commit themselves to this vision of
the role of education in the Seventh-day Adventist
Church. Praise God for their intentionality,
vision, and tireless efforts on
behalf of students, parents, and our church!
Remaining Faithful
The Christian church has always had
the challenge of remaining faithful to
God’s Word while being in but not of the
28 (444) | www.AdventistReview.org | May 16, 2013