The question before us tonight that I have been asked to speak on is, "Who is responsible for establishing and maintaining the spiritual theme of the academy? The theme is Romans 8: 37 “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who lived us.”
Thus, who is responsible? Well, if the theme is nothing more than a slogan, the school is clearly responsible. Bethel Prep needs to have a lot of pep rallies and spirit weeks to encourage and promote the slogan. But our theme is much more than a slogan. It is Scripture and it is true. We are more than conquerors. The responsibility, as Christians, lies within all of us. We all play a part in God’s kingdom and the advancement of it. My part tonight is to speak about how the staff will help to accomplish and be responsible for the theme.
How is it that we are more than conquers? The verse tells us, “through Him who loved us.” Him being Christ Jesus, our Savior. So, we are more than conquers because of Jesus Christ. It is His strength that makes us strong. It is His wisdom that makes us wise. We are nothing without Him. In order to be more than conquers we need to be like Him, imitators of Him, as Paul says in Eph. 5:1 “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.”
What makes children dearly loved? When they obey. So our job as Christian educators is help our students know God and to grow in their understanding and wisdom of God and His will. A great way to start is to begin with identifying what God loves and what God hates. Philippians 4:8 tells us,
8 Finally, brethren,
whatever things are true, whatever things are noble,
whatever things are just, whatever things are pure,
whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report,
if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—
meditate on these things.
We are told to focus on these things because they are what God loves. They reflect Him. Conversely,
Proverb 6:16 – 19 teaches us
16 These six things the LORD hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
17 A proud look,
A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that are swift in running to evil,
19 A false witness who speaks lies,
And one who sows discord among brethren.
Learning and remembering Scripture verses such as these is perfect for our Grammar students as they grow in their knowledge of God and His Word. When students internalize these truths and examine the world around them, they can become “more than conquerors” because they begin to recognize the lies and the temptations that world has to offer. This is where our Dialectic and Rhetoric Schools build off the knowledge our students gained in the Grammar school. They can use their knowledge of God to begin to critic the world around them, whether it is books, movies, music, philosophy or culture. And then they can begin to conquer the culture that surrounds them through Christ who strengthens them. That is the goal of Bethel Prep, to form and mold students that God can use to advance His kingdom here on earth. Students who will change the culture, but will do so not with the weapons of the world, but rather as Paul says in II Corinthians 10:4-5, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”
This is why the culture of each home and Church is important. The culture of the home and Church must be pleasing to the Lord. It must be a safe haven from the culture of the world. A place where young Christians can take refuge and seek wisdom as they grow in their wisdom and understanding. The home and the Church cannot be place that reflects the world’s desires. It must reflect, as we want our students to, what God loves and what He hates.
My final point is that in order to become “more than conquerors through Him who loved us”, we must serve Him. We must serve Jesus as Lord. And how do we do so? Not with the weapons of the world as Paul said, but rather as Jesus Himself said in Matthew 25:31 – 40, “31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”
What we learn from these verses is that as we serve each other, we serve the Lord who in turns strengthens us. And as He strengthens us, we are enabled to become more than conquerors.
It is important to note that the school exists to serve Christian families. It is difficult for the school to train students to accomplish our theme if a family is not living out the theme in the home. However, when the family and the school are in harmony in trying to grow men and women who can impact the culture around them, then by God’s grace we can accomplish His will.
Again, the school will do its part this year to train our students to love what God loves, hate what God hates and look to serve each other as we serve the Lord. Thank you.
