As a Christian, you may be wondering whether or not there is a Biblical basis for homeschooling. After all, if your children are not in school, how can they be 'salt and light'? While each Christian family must decide for themselves whether or not to homeschool, the Bible does not leave Christian parents without guidance when it comes to the education of their children.
Biblical Basis for Homeschooling in Dueteronomy 11
In Deuteronomy 11, God is instructing the Israelites to keep "His words" at the forefront of their lives. The essence of His instruction to them is to constantly be thinking of His law, His ways and His character. God even tells the Israelites repeatedly, that they should be careful to teach His laws to their children as they "sit down, walk in the road, lie down at night, and get up." In short, God is saying that the Israelites should be constantly talking about God's laws with their children. Given that parents are instructed to teach their children about God repeatedly in Scripture, many Christian parents have interpreted this to include homeschooling as well.
Raising Godly Children
For many Christians, the Biblical basis for homeschooling isn't merely about teaching Godly principles to their children. After all, a Christian family who chooses to send their children to public school would still teach Godly principles to their children. However, the advantage of homeschooling in this area is that you can literally teach Godly principles to your children throughout every minute of your day. You can teach God's character through science (Psalm 104), teach about God's hand in history, as well as include Scripture memory right into your school day. In other words, Christian parents would do well to consider the positive effects of having God "infused" in every area of study.
Keeping Away Ungodly Influences
Sometimes, teaching Godliness is not just about what you say, but what you avoid as well. Teaching your children to live by godly principles involves not only instruction in the Bible, but it also involves avoiding those things that are not godly. For some parents, this would include the public school system curriculum, as well as other children whose parents are not believers. While it certainly should not be implied that teachers or other students are inherently "evil", it cannot be argued that God, the Bible or Christianity is not taught in a public school system. Keeping away ungodly influences while children are young, can help build a foundation for training in the future.
Parental Responsibility
Another aspect to Biblical homeschooling that can be gleaned from reading Scripture is that education is always the parents' responsibility. Regardless of how the parents choose to educate their children, the education of those children is always the responsibility of the parents. Therefore, if the school system is inadequate or there are no other alternatives, many parents assume that the appropriate recourse is to homeschool.
Educated to Be Servant Leaders
Another advantage that homeschooling offers is flexibility for students to have a variety of enriching experiences. In the Christian home, these "extras" could take on the form of ministry with one's church, missions trips, or other volunteer work. While students who are schooled in public school could do this also, homeschooling allows more flexibility and therefore more opportunities. It also allows for the community service to be intertwined with growth in the faith.
Building a Solid Foundation
No doubt, Christians are called to be in the world but not of it. Homeschooling allows Christian families to build a solid foundation so that as children grow into young women and young men, they are capable to not only serve others, but defend their faith with confidence. Homeschooling is all about creating that solid foundation that parents are called to give their children.
