Family-Integrated Christian Education

In the days of national reformation in Israel, one of the key aspects of that renewal was the reading and teaching of God's Word to the whole assembled people of God, "in the presence of the men and the women, and of those that could understand" (Ezra 8:3). Ezra, like Moses' before him, who had commanded the Israelites to "gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully observe all the words of this law" (Deut. 31:12) did not impose an arbitrary age limit upon the reading and teaching of God's Word. Rather, they specifically acknowledged the presence of children--whom they assumed, to one degree or another--would be able to understand and profit from God's Word.

In a similar fashion, we at Covenant Reformed have made a self-conscious decision to educate our families as families each Lord's Day during the Sunday School hour, welcoming children into each class and encouraging them to learn with their parents--not just their peers. For not only does the Lord invite "the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven," (Matt. 19:14) suggesting that children are able to remember and understand far more than most adults give them credit; but He has also given them parents to explain and reinforce that instruction at home. As Moses said:

These words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. (Deut. 6:6-7)

At present, we are offering the following classes, though in time more topics may be added:

What Do Presbyterians Believe?                                  

Given the variety of churches with Presbyterian in their name--some of which believe the Bible, others which do not; some of which teach the historic doctrines of Presbyterianism, many of which do not--there is no small amount of confusion regarding what Presbyterianism is or what the Presbyterian church has taught historically regarding God & man, sin & salvation, Christ & His church, creation & the future, Christian ethics & education, and a host of other issues. The answer to these questions are to be found ultimately in the Bible; and by way of summary, the Presbyterian church has sought to set forth its understanding of the Biblical teaching in the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) and the Westminster Larger & Shorter Catechisms. Each Lord's Day morning at 9:30 AM we working through these various biblical doctrines using the Westminster Confession of Faith as a peg board for summarizing each.  9:30 AM--Chapel Sanctuary