A Battle for the Mind: The Christian and Education

by R.C. Sproul

There is no such thing as a neutral education. However we choose to educate our children, their upbringing is our responsibility. Are our children establishing their understanding of the world and their values on the foundation of God’s truth? Or are they learning a worldview that has no place for God and is ultimately hostile toward Him?

In A Battle for the Mind, Dr. R.C. Sproul stresses the importance of developing a distinctly Christian philosophy of education. These biblical principles can vitally shape the lives of young people—and our own lives—for the glory of God.

Genres: Christian

39 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 7, 2024

About the author

Dr. R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, an international Christian discipleship organization located near Orlando, Fla. He was founding pastor of Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Sanford, Fla., first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine.

Ligonier Ministries began in 1971 as the Ligonier Valley Study Center in Ligonier, Pa. In an effort to respond more effectively to the growing demand for Dr. Sproul’s teachings and the ministry’s other educational resources, the general offices were moved to Orlando in 1984, and the ministry was renamed.

Dr. Sproul’s radio program, Renewing Your Mind, is still broadcast daily on hundreds of radio stations around the world and can also be heard online. Dr. Sproul produced hundreds of lecture series and recorded numerous video series on subjects such as the history of philosophy, theology, Bible study, apologetics, and Christian living.

He contributed dozens of articles to national evangelical publications, spoke at conferences, churches, and academic institutions around the world, and wrote more than one hundred books, including The Holiness of God, Chosen by God, and Everyone’s a Theologian. He signed the 1978 Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy and wrote a commentary on that document. He also served as general editor of the Reformation Study Bible, previously known as the New Geneva Study Bible.

Dr. Sproul had a distinguished academic teaching career at various colleges and seminaries, including Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando and Jackson, Miss. He was ordained as a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America.

Reviews

[My Little Happy Nook]

5 ⭐️

What a concise and helpful read regarding education and the importance of understanding and passing on truth to the next generation. I have already been relatively interested in classical education, and this certainly pushed me further in that direction. Since this was written, thankfully, some changes have been implemented, at least in my state, to ameliorate the financial strain of choosing alternative, Christian education for children. I believe even as an adult that I might benefit from adding in some classical education to my life. I love how he focused on God throughout.


Here are some of my favorite quotes from this read:

“Educating children without reference to God sets forth the idea that although truth and reality exist, they can be understood apart from the ultimate foundation of the self-existent God. This is not a neutral standpoint; it is a view that takes a particular position with respect to God and how He relates to this world.”

“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (vv. 6–7). God does not say, “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart, and then you should pray that somehow they may also enter into the hearts of your children.” Instead,”He commands, “You shall teach them diligently to your children.” Two commands follow immediately upon the Great Commandment. The first one is that God commands the Great Commandment to be in our hearts. The second command that follows is the divine mandate that parents should teach His words to their children—not that the parents should send their children somewhere else to learn these things. The responsibility is given to the parents.”

“That is, parents are to be diligent to teach the things of God every single day: the notes on the refrigerator, the pennants in the bedroom, the signs over the door will all include the diligent communication of these things to the children.”

“Language is in crisis. Logic is a lost art. Behind it all is a loss of our sense of the majesty and the character of God. Education that is vital is concerned about language, it is concerned about logic, and it is concerned about God.”

[Molly Duncan]

This is an excellent, short, Biblical argument for why Christians may be interested in educating their children somewhere other than public school.

The latter chapters make an argument for classical Christian education specifically, and I felt that argument was a little less grounded in Biblical principles and more grounded in Sproul's personal preferences (that's not a criticism--he was just making an argument and did not try to imply it was the only Biblical viewpoint), but it was still a useful perspective on educational philosophies.

[Cornbread Caleb]

I had already planned to homeschool my kids, but I still found some valuable takeaways. He doesn’t just blame the school system for producing children who lack critical thinking skills; he also places responsibility on parents for not following Deuteronomy. He also encourages the reader to study logic and teach it to their kids. I had not considered this but now I plan on studying logic for my children.

[Jonah Chitty]

Good little book on education.