Bible Quiz: Education And Redemption

I have learned so much this week. I might as well share what I got to others.

Good ending

Which of the following is NOT one of the descriptions of the relationship between God and His people?
A. a Father and His rebellious children who, eventually, come around
B. a Teacher and failing His students, until, at last, some learn it
C. a soldier and prisoners of war ✔
D. a love story gone awry, at least temporarily

The Bible story is not unlike our own human stories that we know so well - with one exception. What is it?
A. evil will triumph
B. education failed its mission
C. good ending is assured ✔
D. bad ending is expected

The story of God and His people is assured of a good ending, of reaching its goal. What assures that outcome?
A. God's judgment
B. human effort
C. Divine grace ✔
D. self righteousness

What is our foremost response to God's grace?
A. human effort
B. learning to know God ✔
C. self righteousness
D. legalism

We cannot earn such ___, but we can learn about it, and what is Christian education if not, at its core, teaching us about this?
A. sin
B. power
C. grace ✔
D. money

In the image of God

In Education, pp. 14–16, what is the goal of education?
A. to test the sufficiency of others
B. to restore in man the image of his Maker ✔
C. to study the history of Israel
D. to work one's own redemption

In Genesis 1:26-27; 5:1, 3, the phrase ___ has captivated interpreters of the Bible for centuries.
A. the image of God ✔
B. Rabbi
C. Son of God
D. work of Redemption

What is this image in which the first humans were created?

We need to remember that God made us to have a relationship with Him, somewhat as parents do with their children. So He can communicate with us and form a lasting relationship with us. This is precisely what happens in education, first at home between parents and children and later at school when teachers take over the work of education. Evidently God intended this process of education we know so well when, distinguishing us from many other life forms, He made us in His own image - He did it so that He can teach us and we can learn from Him, until His image (His mind) is reflected in ours.

The story of Redemption is a story of education from Creation to Incarnation, and from Incarnation to re-creation.

Jesus as teacher

The Bible uses many terms to describe Jesus. But to those people who knew Him best during His public ministry, He was a ___.
A. Messiah / Redeemer
B. Teacher, Rabbi, or Master ✔
C. Son of God/ Son of man
D. Lamb of God

Somehow Jesus' work of Redemption is akin to the ___.
A. work of teaching ✔
B. carpentry
C. reading of the laws
D. condemnation

Isaiah 11:1–9 portrays the coming Messiah in ___, someone who brings knowledge, counsel, wisdom, and understanding.
A. musical display
B. educational terms ✔
C. historical sense
D. royalty

According to Education p. 30, the work of education and the ___ are one.
A. work of Redemption ✔
B. condemnation
C. judgment
D. self indulgence

This means that the authority to teach others, even in the case of Jesus, comes from ___.
A. God ✔
B. self
C. sin
D. Satan

Surely teaching is a gift of God. It is commissioned by God, it was adopted by Jesus, and it is recognized by those who are taught as having divine authority.

Moses and the prophets

The Torah, is sometimes translated as “the law,” partly because there are many laws in these books. But Torah really means “teaching” or “instruction.” Many think the “law” in the Bible is about, namely, rules and regulations that we have to follow to remain in God’s good graces. Not so; the law is intended as teaching material...

The next two sections of the Hebrew Bible, the prophets, report on how well God’s people mastered this educational material and lived by it (the former prophets, or historical books), and what they ought to have learned from this educational material (the latter prophets).

The remaining part of the Old Testament (called the “writings” in Hebrew) is full of examples of successful and less-successful teachers and students along with their educational experiences.

Not all the teaching material in the books of Moses applies in our time... Deuteronomy 17:14–20...has some very explicit instructions about the selection of someone to hold the royal office. Today, of course, we do not appoint any kings in our church. How do we determine the proper application of all this teaching material in Scripture for our time?

Wise men and women

The words for school, study, and education are clearly understood in our time, but they are not common in the Bible. There is one word, wisdom or wise, which is much more common. For example, the Old Testament makes mention of wise men and women (2 Sam. 14:2, Prov. 16:23).

___ is singled out as a very wise man who spoke about animal and plant life and uttered proverbs with great wisdom, meaning as a man of education (1 Kings 4:29–34).
A. king Solomon ✔
B. king David
C. Lucifer
D. Gideon

According to the Bible, ___ is very much like our education today. It is something one learns from parents and teachers, especially while young (Eccles. 12:1) and all through life.
A. judgment
B. poetry
C. music
D. wisdom ✔

Yet, wisdom is not only practical, but it also has a theoretical side to it, for it begins with faith in God and follows certain foundational principles (Prov. 1:7).

Just like education today, wisdom does not answer all the questions we may pose, but it enables us to be content with what we know while continuing to search for what is still unknown, and that is a good position from which we can learn to know God and to trust in His grace.

According to Jeremiah 18:18, the role of the wise teacher is considered on par with the roles of priest and prophet.

Education in the early church

One of the remarkable principles of education in Scripture emerges as Jesus, the Master Teacher, prepares to leave His students or disciples. He provided His followers with ongoing or continuing education under the tutelage of the ___ (John 14:16-17).
A. Holy Spirit ✔
B. enemy, Satan
C. children of God
D. reliance upon self

Further thought

The reason Christians are always learning is not just intellectual curiosity or an eagerness to master knowledge, but rather that the Christian life and faith permeates every corner of daily life. There is so much to learn.

Work, social issues, worship, economics, family systems, food, clothing, and even getting old - both one’s personal life and life in this world. Understanding them does not come naturally. It has to be learned.

Overview

It is safe to assume God has the heart of a teacher. Teachers like to share all they know with their students, and Jesus shares a way that He and His Father are like that. (John 15:15)

What would happen if we read the Bible through the lens of the student-teacher relationship? What is God trying to teach me today from this lesson?

Perhaps part of God’s motivation for making us “in His image” is so that our similarity to Him would facilitate the communication of His love and knowledge to us. The lesson speaks of a “meeting of the minds,” one divine and one human, that allows this communion to happen. Being rational is one of those qualities that separates us from the rest of creation.

Illustration

A Christian may want to witness by sharing a favorite Bible verse with a college friend but soon realizes that the friend sees the Bible as a compilation of myths with zero credibility. Now what?

There are two distinct responses the Christian is encouraged to adopt.

One is to pray that his or her college friend will see the light and exercise faith in spite of the boatload of intellectual arguments compelling him or her not to.

The second response also would be to pray - but then to immerse oneself in the relevant academic literature... and other disciplines that would equip him or her to effectively handle the friend’s skeptical concerns.

So, which is it? Pray and leave it alone, or take advantage of the democratization of information and seek to educate oneself to the highest levels that are realistic in one’s given situation and to continue to pray, as well?

Two quotes

On first reading 1 Corinthians 2:1, 2, one could conclude that the only strategy in evangelizing should be the mention of Jesus and His crucifixion.

Perhaps two quotes can move us in the right direction, one from Peter and one from C. S. Lewis:

“Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (1 Pet. 3:15)

“If all the world were Christian, it might not matter if all the world were educated. But a cultural life will exist outside the Church whether it exists inside or not. Good philosophy must exist, if for no other reason, because bad philosophy needs to be answered.”—C. S. Lewis.

How did people see Jesus when He walked the earth? Search the four Gospels for all the times He was called “Redeemer,” and you’ll come up with nothing. Try looking for “Savior” in those same Gospels (three occurrences—two were spoken either by an angel or by someone before He was born). Search for “Rabbi,” “Master,” or “Teacher,” and one can quickly see how people saw Jesus. Of course, He was more than a teacher, but the point is He was never not a teacher. His saving work is tied together with His teaching work. How does this point affect how we share the gospel and what type of education we should acquire?

Sabbath School Lesson | Christian Education | Lesson 8 | November 14-20, 2020 | Education And Redemption