There is so much to know, we have so many things to learn. We have true education and counterfeit education. The world is flooded by many forms of doctored education, all with different intentions. If we are not careful, we will be clouded by gross darkness. In the instruction given in our schools, the natural and the spiritual are to be combined. The laws obeyed by the earth reveal the fact that it is under the masterly power of an infinite God. The same principles run through the spiritual and the natural world. Eliminate God from the acquisition of knowledge, and you have a lame, one-sided education, dead to all the saving qualities that give true power to man. The Author of nature is the Author of the Bible. Creation and Christianity have one God. God is revealed in nature, and God is revealed in His word. In clear rays the light shines from the sacred page, showing us the living God, as represented in the laws of His government, in the world’s creation, and in the heavens that He has garnished. His power is to be recognized as the only means of redeeming the world from the degrading superstitions that are so dishonoring to God and man.
Artificial life and deviation from
true education
Almost everything is turning out to be synthetic; organic organisms are replaced by inorganic organisms as demonstrated by the evolution of biotechnology and genetic engineering. AI (artificial intelligence) systems could become so powerful as to take over the world. The modern generation has witnessed different skilled tasks partially taken over by machines, including research, translation, journalism, and other complex undertakings. Furthermore, entertainment, tasks requiring empathy and care have also been overtaken by robots.
The Science-Fiction addicts are connected to virtual reality equipment and intravenously fed. It is a solemn warning to us all, that now or in the future we may be lured into virtual environments. These can lead us to escape the dimness of our realities in the real world and become dependent on it at the expense of our mental, physical, and emotional health. Ultimately this will cost us our eternal life. It is a thought-provoking and serious revelation of the future.
“When Christ came to the earth, humanity seemed to be fast reaching its lowest point. The very foundations of society were undermined. Life had become false and artificial. The Jews, destitute of the power of God’s word, gave to the world mind-benumbing, soul-deadening traditions and speculations. The worship of God ‘in Spirit and in truth’ had been supplanted by the glorification of men in an endless round of man-made ceremonies. Throughout the world, all systems of religion were losing their hold on mind and soul. Disgusted with fable and falsehood, seeking to drown thought, men turned to infidelity and materialism. Leaving eternity out of their reckoning, they lived for the present.
“As they ceased to recognize the Divine, they ceased to regard the human. Truth, honor, integrity, confidence, and compassion were departing from the earth. Relentless greed and absorbing ambition gave birth to universal distrust. The idea of duty, of the obligation of strength to weakness, of human dignity and human rights, was cast aside as a dream or a fable. The common people were regarded as beasts of burden or as the tools and the stepping stones for ambition. Wealth and power, ease, and
self-indulgence were sought as the highest good. Physical degeneracy, mental stupor, and spiritual death characterized the age.” –Education, p. 74–75
Born amidst poor surroundings, sharing a peasant’s home, a peasant’s fare, a craftsman’s occupation, living a life of obscurity, and identifying Himself with the world’s unknown toilers,—amidst these conditions and surroundings,—Jesus followed the divine plan of education. The schools of His time, with their magnifying of things small and their belittling of things great, He did not seek. His education was gained directly from the Heaven-appointed sources; from useful work, from the study of the Scriptures and of nature, and the experiences of life—God’s lesson books, full of instruction to all who bring to them the willing hand, the seeing eye, and the understanding heart.” –Ibid., p. 77
Most people in our time value all things that are determined by outward show. The value system on materialistic things centers their self-worth and self-esteem, on rewards and the praise of others. Religion has declined in power and increased in pomp. The education systems seek to command respect by display and ostentation.
The history of Joseph and Daniel is an illustration of what He will do for those who yield themselves to Him and with the whole heart seek to accomplish His purpose. “The greatest want of the world is the want of men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.” –Ibid., p. 57. But such a character is not the result of an accident; it is not due to special favors or endowments of Providence. A noble character is the result of self-discipline, of the subjection of the lower to the higher nature, and the surrender of self for the service of love to God and man.
Education is not just about acquiring knowledge, but also about learning how to apply that knowledge in the real world. While modern education systems provide a wealth of information, they often neglect the development of moral and ethical values. It is very important to recognize the importance of true education, which comprises training both the mind and the heart. Intellectual education may develop the mind, but it is value-based education that influences the heart. Education that fails to instill strong moral and ethical values can be dangerous for society. It is crucial to build fundamental character traits such as honesty, compassion, courage, persistence, and responsibility in our schools.
The Schools of the Prophets
Wherever in Israel God’s education plan was carried into effect, its results testified of its Author. But in very many households the training appointed by Heaven, and the characters thus developed, were alike rare. “These schools were intended to serve as a barrier against the wide-spreading corruption, to provide for the mental and spiritual welfare of the youth, and to promote the prosperity of the nation by furnishing it with men qualified to act in the fear of God as leaders and counselors. To this end, Samuel gathered companies of young men who were pious, intelligent, and studious. These were called the sons of the prophets. As they studied the word and the works of God, His life-giving power quickened the energies of mind and soul, and the students received wisdom from above. The instructors were not only versed in divine truth, but had themselves enjoyed communion with God, and had received the special endowment of His Spirit. They had the respect and confidence of the people, both for learning and for piety. In Samuel’s day, there were two of these schools—one at Ramah, the home of the prophet, and the other at Kirjath-jearim. In later times others were established.” –Ibid., p. 46
International Missionary Society and
the establishment of higher learning
Institutions
With the help of God, the General Conference has invested in opening missionary schools and colleges/universities, one of which is Kibaha Berea Adventist Institute. If well managed, it has the potential to grow to become a great university. The institute is offering online courses, which is a modern way of learning. The online course, “Bible Science,” is centered on true education which is rare to find in this worl00d.
We have well-organized subjects that a student should cover before graduating:
- SCIENCE OF SALVATION
Understanding the current condition of the human being and his regeneration to restore the image of God as it was at the beginning of creation. This process that must be known and applied in a genuine conversion and religious experience.
- PRINCIPLES OF FAITH
Knowing the biblical foundation for the beliefs that make up biblical truth is vital to leading a life consistent with faith. Then using this knowledge to instruct others in the same biblical principles.
- BIBLIOLOGY
The Holy Scriptures in their diversity of authors, historical periods, and richness of content in both the Old and the New Testaments are of growing importance to anyone interested in the Bible.
- BASIC EVANGELIZATION & CANVASSING
Knowing the modalities of approach in the process of communicating the gospel to different classes of people is essential for every enthusiastic believer in biblical truth. Skills in marketing and innovation are keys to success.
- HOMILETICS
Applying the general principles of rhetoric to the specific art of public preaching to efficiently present the Word of God.
- PROPHECY
Biblical predictions throughout the Old and New Testaments in their historical context and projection in time are a fundamental part of the biblical content.
- ADMINISTRATION AND ORGANIZATION
To be able to fulfill the gospel commission, to accomplish much work in a relatively short time, and to guarantee peace and united action. Exact order and organization are indispensable.
For more information visit our website or send an email:
Website: https://www.kibaha-sda1844.org/apply-and-enroll
email: [email protected] or [email protected]
You can study online, anywhere your are comfortable with.
“What we need is knowledge that will strengthen minds and souls, and will make us better men and women. Heart education is of far more importance than mere book-learning. It is well, even essential, to have a knowledge of the world in which we live; but if we leave eternity out of our reckoning, we shall make a failure from which we can never recover.” –Sons and Daughters of God, p. 87. There is a science of Christianity to be mastered, a science that is much deeper, broader, and higher than any human science. It is as high as the heavens are higher than the earth.
The drama of the great controversy opening with the inception of sin in the heart of Lucifer and the fall of our first parents, and moving forward to the time when the New Jerusalem becomes the abode of the redeemed was repeatedly opened to Ellen White in vision. “God’s greatest gift was bestowed to meet man’s greatest need. The Light appeared when the world’s darkness was deepest. Through false teaching the minds of men had long been turned away from God. In the prevailing systems of education, human philosophy had taken the place of divine revelation. Instead of the heaven-given standard of truth, men had accepted a standard of their devising. From the Light of life, they had turned aside to walk in the sparks of the fire which they had kindled.” –Ibid., p. 74
Having separated from God, their only dependence being the power of humanity, their strength was but weakness. Even the standard set up by themselves they were incapable of reaching. The want of true excellence was supplied by appearance and profession. Semblance took the place of reality. Thus hidden, they can see God, even as Moses saw Him. By the power and light that He imparts, they can comprehend more and accomplish more than their finite judgment had deemed possible.
The system of education instituted at the beginning of the world was to be a model for man throughout all time. As an illustration of its principles, a model school was established in Eden, the home of our first parents. The Garden of Eden was the schoolroom, nature was the lesson book, the Creator Himself was the instructor, and the parents of the human family were the students.
Our ideas of education take too narrow and too low a range. There is a need for a broader scope and a higher aim. True education means more than the pursuit of a certain course of study. It means more than a preparation for the life that now is. It has to do with the whole being, and with the whole period of existence possible to man. It is the harmonious development of the physical, the mental, and the spiritual powers. It prepares the student for the joy of service in this world and for the higher joy of wider service in the world to come.
The source of such an education is brought to view in these words from the Bible, pointing to the Infinite One: In Him “are hid all the treasures of wisdom.” Colossians 2:3. “He hath counsel and understanding.” Job 12:13
The world has had its great teachers, men of giant intellect and extensive research, men whose utterances have stimulated thought and opened to view vast fields of knowledge. These men have been honored as guides and benefactors of their race, but there is One who stands higher than they. We can trace the line of the world’s teachers as far back as human records extend, but the Light was before them. As the moon and the stars of our solar system shine by the reflected light of the sun, so, as far as their teaching is true, the world’s great thinkers reflect the rays of the Sun of Righteousness. Every gleam of thought, every flash of the intellect, is from the Light of the world. Higher than the highest human thought can reach is God’s ideal for His children. Godliness, godlikeness, is the goal to be reached. Amen.
Daniel Kimeu