Instruction with a Goal

Christian Education and the Reformed Baptism Form (10): Instruction with a Goal

The instruction of covenant children is the rearing of royal children of King Jesus. In this blog, we have treated several passages of the baptism form that deal directly with Christian education. Now we come to the goal of that education. Wielenga concludes his commentary on the form with a section on the glorious prayer of thanksgiving. The prayer in the form is that our Triune God will govern our royal children to the end that they may eternally praise and magnify him who is king of kings and lord of lords. Let us look at several phrases of this thanksgiving prayer as we conclude our treatment of “Christian Education and the Reformed Baptism Form.”

The first goal of pious and religious education is that the child “increase and grow up in the Lord Jesus Christ.” The figure is that the child is like unto a living plant that must mature in the grace of Christ. Wielenga states that the “Christian and godly rearing. . . is not a self-creating, not a giving-oneself-life, but only a developing of a seed of life that is already within. The purpose and fruit of the rearing of a child of the covenant is not to make a bad child good, but to cause a child who is good in principle to mature in the good” (p. 405). This is humbling to the parent and educator. We do not “have to give or apply something, but take away and improve something” (p. 406). Indeed as regards to parents, “the pure life, the good principle in your child is not your work but God’s work. Under the blessing of the Lord, your rearing can at most serve that your little child grows and increases in the Lord Jesus Christ” (p. 406). All of the education given by parents, educators, ministers, and the church is because the covenant children are living spiritually. Wielenga exclaims to parents: “What a wonderful principle! Your child is not a withered cutting but a living little plant. Not a piece of dead wood but a living seed. That is your hope!” (p. 409).

The second goal is that covenant children acknowledge God’s fatherly goodness and mercy. We desire that the children “one day awake to the realization, to the wealth of knowing God, if baptism will reach its goal. The seed of faith is in the regenerated child, but that seed must develop into the act of faith. For such a child, believing would mean becoming aware of the fatherly good that God has already showed to him” (p. 410). Christian rearing has the purpose that our children become mature Christians who take their place as confessing members of God’s church.

The third goal flows out of the second goal in that we want our children to mature in their faith so that they consciously live in the three-fold office of all believer. Namely, that they “live in all righteousness under our only Teacher, King, and High Priest, Jesus Christ.” Wielenga sums this up this way: “Through the head, wherewith man thinks, he reveals himself as prophet. Through the heart, wherewith he loves, he reveals himself as priest. With the hand, with which he fights and labors, he reveals himself as a king” (p. 415).

As the Christian young person grows in his or her faith, they are called to live the antithesis. In the form we ask God to govern our children so that they “manfully fight against and overcome sin, the devil, and his whole dominion.” The idea of battle is prevalent in this petition of the form. The commentary states: “Wherever opposing forces meet each other, a battle is ignited. In life the Christian meets enduring forces that are hostile to his principle, his ideal, his God” (p. 417). In this battle of the antithesis, the mature believer has a goal. That Christian warrior loves life (p. 419). “For him the fight is never the goal, but always the means. The reason that during this time he is not fainthearted is surely because the hope lives in him” that he will receive the crown of life (p. 421).

What a blessed hope that we pray for with regard to our covenant children. We end with the beautiful phrase of the form: “to the end that they may eternally praise and magnify Thee, and Thy Son Jesus Christ, together with the Holy Ghost, the one only true God.” We praise Triune God, under whom our children receive the sign of baptism. What a blessed goal for all of their instruction! Our children are reared by parents, ministers, teachers, and the whole covenant community, not only that they may live as mature Christians on this earth but also that they may eternally praise God. Covenant instruction in the Christian day school must have this as its goal! Otherwise Reformed Christian instruction is a worthless cause.  We have a goal for Christian education that is very high. That goal humbles the educator. We pray to our Triune God that all of the education of our covenant children may be to his glory alone!

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This post was written by Mike Feenstra, a member of the Protestant Reformed Church in Crete, Illinois. Mike also teaches fifth grade at a Christian school in Indiana. If you have a question or comment about this blog article for Mike, please do so in the comment section on the blog.

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