The First Family
We haven’t been given many details – none, really – in the initial pages of Scripture regarding the kind of family education that went on in the earliest days of human history, though we can be sure that it was in the family structure itself that education took place back then.
“The system of education established in Eden centered in the family. Adam was ‘the son of God’ (Luke 3:38), and it was from their Father that the children of the Highest received instruction. Theirs, in the truest sense, was a family school.” — Ellen G. White, Education, p. 33.
And though we don’t know exactly what was taught, we may be sure that it dealt with the wonders of creation and, after sin, the plan of redemption.
What do the following texts teach, and why would these surely have been part of the education that Adam and Eve imparted to their children? Genesis 1-2, Gen. 3:1-15, 2 Cor. 4:6, Luke 10:27, Gal. 3:11, Rev. 22:12.
“The system of education instituted at the beginning of the world was to be a model for man throughout all aftertime. As an illustration of its principles a model school was established in Eden, the home of our first parents.” — Ellen G. White, Education, p. 20.
Christian education is a commitment to educating families and members in doctrine, worship, instruction, fellowship, evangelism, and service. Home is where you minister to family members about the love and promises of God. It is where Jesus is introduced to children as their Lord and Savior and friend, and where the Bible is upheld as the Word of God. Family is where you model what a healthy relationship with our heavenly Father looks like.
In Genesis 4:1-4, we have both Cain and Abel bringing their offerings to the Lord. We surely can assume that they learned about the meaning and importance of the offerings as part of their family education regarding the plan of salvation. Of course, as the story shows, a good education doesn’t always lead to the kind of outcome that one would hope for.
Whatever your home situation is, what choices can you make in order for it to be an environment where truth is taught and lived out?
