Did you advance from grade to grade? use sign language or braille? go to school in a foreign country? If so, thank Jesus.

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:40

We left off yesterday with examples of the impact that Christians have had on the education system over the centuries. From, “Person of Interest,” pages 168-170,

If you found satisfaction in advancing from one grade to the next, you can thank Johan Sturm (1507-1589), the Lutheran layman who introduced the notion of grade levels to motivate students to study so they could earn the reward of advancing to the next grade.

If you had access to an education as a person with disabilities, you can thank:

• Charles-Michel de l’Épée (1712-1789), the ordained priest (called the “father of education for the deaf”) who developed sign language for use in schools;
• Laurent Marie Clerc (1785-1869), the committed Christ follower who brought sign language to the United States;
• Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet (1797-1851), the Congregational clergyman who opened the first school for the deaf in the United States;
• or Louis Braille (1809-1852), the Catholic priest (known as the “father of education for the blind”) who developed a system of reading and writing for the blind and visually impaired.

If you received an education in a foreign land, you can thank the inspiration of Frank Laubach (1884-1970), a Methodist missionary (known as “the apostle to the illiterates”) who traveled to more than 100 countries, developed primers in 313 languages, and created a literacy program that has been used to teach nearly 60 million people to read in their own language.

Jesus matters to the history of education. Jesus followers laid the foundation for schools as we know them today, from kindergartens to universities. Christians contributed to the progress of education and founded more universities and colleges than all their religious predecessors. Even though Hindus had a 2,300-to 1,500-year advantage, Jews had a 2,000-to 1,800-year lead, and Buddhists and Zoroastrians had a 600-year head start, Christians established more universities than all the other groups combined, by a magnitude of ten to one.

Tomorrow, we dive into SCIENCE. I think you will be amazed!

Abba, the Fallout of the life, death, and life of Christ is still going strong. The number of ministries that have reached out to Turkey and Syria are a great indication that the life and teachings of Jesus are alive and well. May we never lose our desire to help and serve in any way we can. Amen.