It is a common thing in life for the parent and their child to seek higher education after they've graduated from high school. Though higher education is no a bad thing, is it the will of the Lord for His servants?
When a person "feels" called of the Lord, they believe it is time to run to the nearest Bible college or seminary to become a minister. I myself was once in this place. But if we are to look into Scripture we don't see a single Christian with higher education except for Paul who considered it as dung (Php 3:8).
George Barna noted the following on this perspective "Can the Bible only be correctly interpreted by people who have years of intense training in theology?" He found that "this argument, which goes back to the Protestant Reformation of several hundred years ago, was rejected by 76% of adults. The segments most likely to agree with this idea were African-Americans and Hispanics (24% of each group) and Catholics (22%). Even among those segments, however, less than one-quarter believes that accurate comprehension of the Bible is beyond the capacity of the average person."
The following was written by a pastor (Patterson) from his book Deepening Your Conversation With God. (pages 28-29): "The best thing we have to offer the world is not a seminary degree, not the preaching classes we have taken, not the books of theology we have read, not the management and leadership seminars we have attended, but the fruit of our walk with the Lord—what is borne in us from the time we have spent with him. As helpful as these things can be, they are at best spokes in the wheel—but never the hub. That’s why Dwight L. Moody said he would rather learn how to pray than how to preach. For Jesus’ disciples never asked him to teach them how to preach, but how to pray. Beware the preacher, the theologian, the professor who does not pray.
Where did we get the silly idea that a graduate degree in theology qualifies one to pastor the church of Christ? The clergy of the North American church is perhaps the best educated clergy in history. The church itself has more money, more books, more media tools than the church in any other place on earth. Yet with all this, the church overall is shrinking, not gaining in numbers."
John the Baptist, the greatest prophet (Lk 7:28), had no higher education; neither did Jesus, or Peter, or James, or John, or the other disciples, but were considered unlearned and ignorant men because they didn't have a degree or higher education, though it was noted that they were very knowledgeable in the things of the Lord and this was simply because they had been with Jesus (Acts 4:13).
I have had times when pastors would cut me down because others thought alot of me (even calling me a scholar, which I didn't think much of at the time because the praise of man is vain). The pastors would say things like "you've never been to Bible college" or "do you think that you're better than me?" Pride was a great factor in their thoughts. I never once said or acted as if I was better than them, but they felt threaten by what the others said about me. All I could boast of was that I had been with Jesus, but this wasn't good enough for them.
So before you go running off to Bible college, get on your knees and seek the Lord. Lean not upon your understanding or the understanding of your parents, or your pastor, or any other person for that matter. See what the Lord wants you to do. I, even as Paul, see that higher education and all the trimmings and stumbling blocks which come with it are nothing but dung. May the Lord open your eyes on the value of higher education. By the way, who approves of you're higher education? Have you ever looked at your diploma? Who gave (awarded) it to you, God or man? Remember we are to study to show ourselves approved unto God and not to man. The diploma may bring man's approval, but what about God's? (2 Cor 10:18)
What is the ministry really all about? Are these plans what you are setting your hopes on? Are you standing on your own dreams and schemes? Quite often this is the case for those who go to Bible college; it's their plan or dream and not God's. Sometimes they get so hyped up that they aren't thinking straight or even listening to the Lord. Sure the Lord may call them for a certain work and they'll try and do it in their own strength and understanding, even like Moses, who tried to do things in his own way to deliver his people, but it wasn't until 40 years later under God's direction that it came to pass.
It is common to see Christians make plans and then ask God to be with them or to bless their plans. These people have things backwards. We are to wait upon the Lord and He will show us what to do. Remember that Jesus only done what He seen the Father do? How about you? Can you say the same? Did you wait on the Lord for His direction before you went to Bible college or did you listen to the people around you? Did you follow God's blueprint for your life or are you following mans? If you have discovered or realized that God did not tell you to go to Bible college and you want to make things right, I have good news for you: you can still wait on the Lord and follow His direction! Many pastors have realized that it wasn't His will for them to be a professional pastor and have cast it off like dung and now walk by faith, waiting on the Lord and doing what their Master shows them...and so can you!
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