The Conclusion of the Matter

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

These are the final verses of the Book of Ecclesiastes. Pretty straightforward stuff. I recall using them on the high school graduation diploma I presented to my son during his graduation ceremony in 1996. It is a portion of Scripture that has come up early and often in the course of the home education of my children.

The conclusion of something is a summation statement of all that has come before. At times it can act as the logical progression of a series of propositions. By implication, if one is at the point of hearing a conclusion, one has also heard the introduction and the body of the idea or thesis. So, fearing God and keeping His commandments would imply that the listeners or readers knew God enough to know He is awesome and One to be feared and revered. They would understand that He has likes and dislikes that have been communicated in the form of authoritative directives. Moreover, these statements of His will have everything to do with what is vital for mankind to live successfully; they are possibly the only truly important concepts human beings need to learn and apply. Finally, we are told at the very end that these commandments act as the "yardstick" to measure goodness or wickedness, faithfulness or faithlessness. In other words, there is no mystery in what it takes to please God.

Yet, few Christians make this their starting point in determining the rightness or wrongness of modern day practices. Instead of filtering all ideas and notions through the sieve of God's written Word, they often go along with what the culture promotes without giving the Commandments of God their function of determining right and wrong. For example, what about gender-changing surgeries? What portion of Scripture covers such practices? Why is drug use wrong? Does Scripture address it? Where? What about the process of freezing embryos for future use? Where in Scripture is one given guidance on this? When (if ever) is it appropriate for someone with a devastating and ravishing illness to say, "Enough is enough. It's time for me to die?"

I am not suggesting that the answers come without study and purposeful application of God's Word. Even those of us who have saturated ourselves in the Law of God for decades have hearty discussions that sometimes reveal differences of opinion. But, in those cases, we are arguing (in the good sense) based on common biblical presuppositions. What do those who say we are no longer under God's law argue from? They do have presuppositions and a law base they are drawing from. It just isn't the Bible. In short, many Christians think like humanists and act like humanists because that is the worldview from which they operate.

The Christian homeschooling teacher had better be an expert on biblical law (or strive to be one) in order to impart to his/her students the necessary starting point for them to successfully live out the conclusion of the whole matter. Ultimately, nothing else really matters.

Amazing Story -- Amazing Grace

Thought I would share an email I received from a good friend evidencing the amazing grace of our Lord God. I invite and challenge you to share this story with believer and non-believer alike.


I am a great aunt for the second time today! The doctor's first comment after congratulating my nephew John and his wife Tina, was, "This baby should not be alive." Tina lost Bailey's twin early in the pregnancy. Not knowing she was having twins she mourned the loss for a few days before discovering she was still pregnant.

As the doctor examined the placenta after the birth, he saw the umbilical cord was not attached to the placenta but to the sac, with veins running to the placenta. He explained that these veins were not enough to sustain life for the duration of the pregnancy. (Mind you, she had just been born, full term and healthy). What’s more, Tina's water broke a full 24 hours before the baby was born. The veins should have collapsed as soon as the water broke. The couple are not believers and I'm praying they recognize that their baby is truly a gift from God.

Fix It When It Breaks

Although in the car business, my husband is not a mechanic. Thus, we've had to "outsource" the regular maintenance on our vehicles. He has a hard, fast rule: If something goes wrong with one of our cars, he gets it fixed right away. Not only do we have well-tuned reliable cars, we have cars that have retained their value; this is very beneficial when we decide to trade in a car to purchase another one.

This "fix it when it breaks" policy was recently applied elsewhere when we discovered that our two dogs, having gone bonkers over all the fireworks and firecrackers during this 4th of July, had demolished our screen door (once again), having feverishly tried to get into the house while we were elsewhere. Hundreds of dollars later, we still have skittish canines, but we have an operational screen door.

Too often in the homeschool environment, when parents see malfunctions in their children’s lives they assume an "it will take care of itself in time" point of view, instead of applying a "fix it when it breaks" mentality. The problem with such a philosophy is that it doesn't work. Rather than improve over time, the situation (whether behavioral, academic, or medical) often becomes intertwined with other factors and variables making it difficult to discern what exactly is causing what.

Maybe the problem or situation is not one that a parent feels capable or competent to diagnose or rectify. That is where the greater Body of Christ enters the picture. By being in a healthy, God-honoring church that embraces and magnifies God's Law, there will be people around to offer advice, lend a hand, or make a referral to a competent resource.

The homeschool is crippled if there is not an absolute standard (for both parents and children) to establish what is right and what is not. If the Law of God is not the standard, then some other law will be. It is very sad that many Christians will tell you they are no longer under the Law of God, but they can't tell you exactly what law they are under the jurisdiction of. Simply put, if you don’t know what it should look like, how can you effectively identify it when it is broken?

I can attest that sometimes the hardest part of fixing something when it breaks is admitting that it is broken. However, there are definite promises in Scripture that tell us that wisdom, grace, and a straight path are available to those who trust in the Lord with all their heart.

Son Shine

We are told in Scripture to let our light shine before other people so that they may see our good works and glorify our heavenly Father. That portion of the Gospel of Matthew has been a signature verse in my own life and one I have emphasized over and over with my children. However, I must confess that the way I have always oriented myself to this portion of God's Word had to do with achieving or excelling in some enterprise or activity, and then having the successful person give credit to God. This past week my 15-year-old daughter taught me a lesson when she followed the command of Matthew 5:16 in a way that impressed and instructed her father and me.

In a golf tournament that meant a lot to her, she performed quite poorly. In fact, it proved to be a situation where most people would experience extreme humiliation. However, our daughter, although humbled and quite frustrated, didn't feel compelled to hide her head in shame or avoid meeting up with fellow competitors who had scored much better than she. In fact, our girl was ready and available to console others who had frustrations and upsets of their own – despite the fact that their scores were significantly better than hers. In other words, her light was shining.

However difficult it may be to accept, sometimes God intends for us be salt and light in less than flattering circumstances. Moreover, since we believe in a predestinating God who foreordains whatsoever comes to pass, we must be ready to receive the outcomes He has planned for us, whether or not they conform to our desired results. There is no qualifier on the command to let the light of Christ shine -- it applies to all places and all times.

That evening, we attended a dinner for the contestants and their parents. I'm sorry to report that most were only interested in sharing how they or their child played that day. Some even "congratulated" my daughter, without even asking how she played or knowing what her score was. Yet, as I sat next to my daughter -- a young lady who knows she is a child of God and is secure in that fact -- I was gratified to realize that in spite of my years of being a homeschooling mom, I continue to have plenty to learn. Indeed, I am taught by my students.