God created human beings, who are made in His image (Genesis 1:27) with mental capacity and abilities far beyond all other creatures. Humans have the ability to learn in a more advanced way and then employ that learning to serve the common good.

At its most basic, education helps us to survive and thrive in the world around us. God’s better story for children involves them learning to live well as adults. It is a vital and necessary part of growing up, and even Jesus himself grew in knowledge and understanding when he lived on earth (Luke 2:52).

We want to use our brains to glorify God: when asked what the most important commandment was, Jesus said “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30).

We read in Proverbs that “The Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding” (Proverbs 2:6). Education teaches us about the world which God has made; his is the Sustainer of all things (maths and sciences), the Lord of the nations (geography and languages), the Sovereign one (history), and the great Creator who inspires art, music and literature. When we study God’s world, we get a glimpse into God’s mind.

Throughout history, Christians have had an incredible legacy when it comes to education. The earliest universities were all built on Christian foundations. Christian missionary endeavours have helped to promote education globally as well. God gave us minds so that we could think!

Within the world of the Bible, the primary responsibility for the education of children lies with their parents. Proverbs 22:6 says “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Under the law of Moses, parents were to recite the law of God to their children: “Take to heart these words that I give you today. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you’re at home or away, when you lie down or get up” (Deuteronomy 6:6). In today’s world, they may in turn choose to delegate some of that responsibility to schools and to trained, professional teachers.

We do not find the Bible prescribing the specific form of schooling parents should seek for their children (a state school, private school, home-school etc.). But at its best, education honours and upholds God’s good plan for human flourishing Much of what is taught in schools is about explaining how things work (such as maths and the sciences, or languages), and would not cause a Christian any concern.

Yet of course, any school will teach a worldview. This is often where tensions arise between Christian parents and schools. This has been especially clear in areas like gender identity and the teaching of relationships and sex education. We want a government to encourage schools to teach contested areas in a way which is consistent to what God has revealed in the Bible, or is at worst, balanced and neutral, rather than being actively hostile to it.