Deuteronomy 4:6 NKJV
Therefore be careful to observe (the Word of God); for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’
Did you know that a primary textbook used in the founding era was called the McGuffey’s Reader? It was the mainstay in public education in America until 1920. As of 1963, 125 million copies had been sold, making it the most used and influential textbooks of all time. Here is a sampling of what you would find in McGuffey’s:
● "The Christian religion is the religion of our country. From it are derived our prevalent notions of the character of God, the great moral governor of the universe."
● "At the close of every day, before you go to sleep, you should not fail to pray to God to keep you from sin and from harm."
● "The design of the Bible is evidently to give us correct information concerning the creation of all things, by the omnipotent word of God."
Christianity in education was so revered by our Founders, consider what the National Education Association said at one time (in 1892): "If the study of the Bible is to be excluded from all state schools; if the inculcation of the principles of Christianity is to have no place in the daily program; if the worship of God is to form no part of the general exercises of these public elementary schools; then the good of the state would be better served by restoring all schools to church control.”
Benjamin Rush, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence wrote in 1796 in, A defense of the Use of the Bible as a School Book, “In contemplating the political institutions of the U.S., I lament that we waste so much time and money in punishing crimes and take so little pains to prevent them. We profess to be republicans and yet we neglect the only means of establishing and perpetuating our republican form of government; that is, the universal education of our youth in the principles of Christianity by the means of the Bible.”
Our founders understood that the word of God was the foundation for America and defended the right to have it taught in our early schools. They knew that gaining true wisdom comes from Gods word. They didn’t rely on the knowledge and wisdom of man alone. How things have changed.
Even though God’s word is not allowed in our education system today, what stops us from making it the foundation of our lives now? I challenge you to allow God’s word to be the foundation that you build your life upon. Spend time in it today. It says you are victorious, healed, whole, and loved. Find out what God’s word says about you and build a life that cannot be shaken.
Action steps
- Read - Re-read Deuteronomy 4:6.
- Think -Think about the foundations you have that have built your character.
- Write - List the influences you’ve had throughout your own life.
- Pray - Ask God to help you stay focused on His Word.
- Take away Be solid in your decisions today. Try not to be double minded. Make your decisions as you think about how solid you are becoming as you build your life on Gods promises
“Why may not the Bible, and especially the New Testament…be read and taught as a divine revelation in the [school] – its general precepts expounded…and its glorious principles of morality inculcated? Where can the purest principles of morality be learned so clearly or so perfectly as from the New Testament?”