From the Principal’s Desk
Dear Parents,
Recently I was telling someone that the purpose of our school is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. A disciple is a follower. Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 29:19 to go into the world to make disciples of every creature. This is done through the church. To make a disciple of Christ, one must preach the gospel. When the sinner repents and believes the gospel, then he is baptized and begins a life-long journey of keeping all things that the Lord commands.
Teaching believers to observe all that the Lord commands takes place in at least two ways: through instruction and through example. For a person to grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ, he needs biblical instruction and godly examples. We are thankful that the students in our classrooms have the advantage of both. Last time we talked about the biblical instruction that takes place at Bethel, and this week we will talk about the godly example.
The presence of a godly example is necessary in following Christ. An example is a model, a living example of truth; we could say that an example is truth in action. Children need godly examples because one of the ways we learn is through what we see. A consistent presentation of truth shows children not only what they need to be living but also how they should go about living it.
The apostle Paul echoed this theme to young Timothy in II Timothy 2:2: “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” In his earlier epistle, Paul instructed Timothy of his own responsibility to be an example to others: “…be thou an example of the believers, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (I Timothy 4:12).
A good example persistently illustrates the right way—in what words to say and not say, in how to order one’s life, in how to love, in right attitudes to have, and in pure thinking and behavior. A bad example contradicts the instruction of truth, and in fact, becomes the predominant influence because how a person lives tells most deeply what he truly believes. This is why it is so important that what we say matches what we do.
Be assured, every teacher in every school has values, and they communicate those values to their students. Unfortunately, not every teacher is a good example. The teachers at Bethel are good examples. They love the Lord and are serious about keeping His commandments. They live out this obedience each day and throughout the day, modeling what it looks like to follow Jesus Christ. They also have a biblical way of viewing the world, which allows them to make scriptural analysis of what is going on in society, government, and religion and to influence our children accordingly. We are careful in selecting our teachers to make sure that they are good examples, to fortify the values we are trying to teach to your children when they are at school, all with the goal that they will follow Christ.
Sincerely,
Pastor Sutton
Dear Parents,
Recently I was telling someone that the purpose of our school is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. A disciple is a follower. Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 29:19 to go into the world to make disciples of every creature. This is done through the church. To make a disciple of Christ, one must preach the gospel. When the sinner repents and believes the gospel, then he is baptized and begins a life-long journey of keeping all things that the Lord commands.
Teaching believers to observe all that the Lord commands takes place in at least two ways: through instruction and through example. For a person to grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ, he needs biblical instruction and godly examples. We are thankful that the students in our classrooms have the advantage of both. Last time we talked about the biblical instruction that takes place at Bethel, and this week we will talk about the godly example.
The presence of a godly example is necessary in following Christ. An example is a model, a living example of truth; we could say that an example is truth in action. Children need godly examples because one of the ways we learn is through what we see. A consistent presentation of truth shows children not only what they need to be living but also how they should go about living it.
The apostle Paul echoed this theme to young Timothy in II Timothy 2:2: “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” In his earlier epistle, Paul instructed Timothy of his own responsibility to be an example to others: “…be thou an example of the believers, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (I Timothy 4:12).
A good example persistently illustrates the right way—in what words to say and not say, in how to order one’s life, in how to love, in right attitudes to have, and in pure thinking and behavior. A bad example contradicts the instruction of truth, and in fact, becomes the predominant influence because how a person lives tells most deeply what he truly believes. This is why it is so important that what we say matches what we do.
Be assured, every teacher in every school has values, and they communicate those values to their students. Unfortunately, not every teacher is a good example. The teachers at Bethel are good examples. They love the Lord and are serious about keeping His commandments. They live out this obedience each day and throughout the day, modeling what it looks like to follow Jesus Christ. They also have a biblical way of viewing the world, which allows them to make scriptural analysis of what is going on in society, government, and religion and to influence our children accordingly. We are careful in selecting our teachers to make sure that they are good examples, to fortify the values we are trying to teach to your children when they are at school, all with the goal that they will follow Christ.
Sincerely,
Pastor Sutton