The Bible teaches that there is only one God, but He is three distinct persons. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. There are not three Gods but only One Triune God

(Genesis 1:26; Psalm 110:1; Matthew 3:16-17; 28:17-20; John 10:30; 15:26; 2 Corinthians 13:14).

We Believe the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments are inspired by the Holy Spirit and are accurate, without error, and that nothing can be added to or taken away from what has been written.

 (Psalm 19:7-11; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Proverbs 30:5-6; Revelation 22:18-19)

We believe God desires all to be saved and to have a relationship with Him (1 Timothy 2:4-6; Matthew 23:37). We grow in our relationship with God through the reading and hearing of His Word in the Bible (Romans 10:17; Luke 11:28). God’s undeserved grace has been demonstrated through Jesus’ death on the cross (2 Cor. 5:21; Rom. 5:18). God also builds this relationship with His believer(s) using visible means through which the Holy Spirit works and preserves faith and thus accomplishes the sinner’s salvation. These Means of God’s Grace include the Word of God, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper (Acts 2:37-41; Romans 6:1-11; 1 Corinthians 11:1-34).

Christian Education at Immanuel Lutheran School

God instructs us to bring our children up in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:7). The primary goal of Christian Education at Immanuel is to fulfill God’s instruction to raise our children with Christ-like hearts and well-prepared minds. It is a result of the Holy Spirit working through the hearts of believers to create faith in the redemption that is found only in Christ Jesus. It relies on a wide range of efforts made by a wide range of individuals. We pray that the Lord will continue to bless these efforts and continue to bring our young people the many blessings of Christian Education at Immanuel Lutheran School.

THE WORD OF GOD The effectiveness of Christian Education comes from the gospel contained in God’s Word which is infused in every aspect of school. God’s Word is vital for building faith, and is extremely critical in achieving all other goals of Christian Education. Education combined with God’s Word is not simply about preparing students’ minds for this world, but is about preparing students’ hearts and minds for this world and the next. It is God’s Word which both gives us the goals and the power to achieve them!

CHRISTIAN FAMILIES

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6

Christian Education begins with dedicated families who make sacrifices of their time, energy, and finances. The members of Immanuel Lutheran Church have shown strong and continual support for the important work at Immanuel Lutheran School. Parents can take comfort in the fact that their children’s friends at school will share and therefore support their faith in Christ, rather than be an obstacle to it. Families who attend Immanuel Lutheran School have chosen to ask Christian educators to assist them in this important task of raising children of faith in today’s challenging world.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATORS Christian educators are an important part of Christian Education. These individuals have been moved by their Savior to dedicate their lives to the service of those whom our Lord places under their care. Christ’s work on the cross continues to be at the heart of decisions and actions and is the very motivation for which the educators continue to serve. While Immanuel has been blessed with a diverse staff with a variety of backgrounds, skills, interests, and roles, we all have one primary goal and motivation: to strengthen the faith in the hearts of young people in Jesus Christ as their Savior from sin.

STRENGTHENING FAITH “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” Romans 10:17

The greatest blessing of Christian Education is strengthening of faith in the hearts of young people. This is a faith which repents over the sinful condition of our hearts then praises God for His payment for and forgiveness of each of our sins through the death of His Son Jesus Christ. This is the greatest blessing the Lord has for His people: saving faith which results in an eternity with Him. We present the gospel in every aspect of what we do, because we know it is through His Word that faith is strengthened.

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” I Timothy 3:16

LIVES OF WORSHIP Christian Education is infused into the entire school day at Immanuel. Students in grades K through 6 will start their day with prayer and religion class. Students in grades 7 to 12 will take time between 3rd and 4th period to dedicate to God’s Word and worship of our Savior. Students in grades 7 to 12 will have religion courses which build upon students’ knowledge of God’s Word. All students will be led by their teachers in prayers to God with their fellow students at meal times. Students in grades K to 6 will meet in the sanctuary on Fridays to gather together around His Word. Students in grades K to 10 will benefit from memory work which will keep God’s Word in their hearts for many years to come. Teachers and students are blessed through the continual front and center location of God’s Word in every school day at Immanuel.

ACADEMICS AND EXTRACURRICULARS “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.” Colossians 3:23

Academics and Extracurricular activities are motivated by our goals for Christian education. Like all schools, our students build their understanding in Social Studies, Language Arts, Math, Science, Art, Music and many other subjects. Unlike many schools all subjects are taught by Christian educators from a Christian perspective. We study Social Studies in order to see how our God has worked out all of History to achieve His goals for our eternal salvation. We study Language Arts in order to build skills which will help us better understand His Word and share that Word with those around us. We study Math and Science in order to further our understanding of our Heavenly Father through the work of creation and preservation of all that we see around us. We study Art and Music to use these things to worship our Savior. We do all these things, as well as many extra-curricular things in order to develop our skills and abilities to His Glory.

Discipline Students are encouraged and behavior is managed using biblical concepts of sin and grace. We instruct our students to recognize that they are sinners and to see the effects of sin in our hearts, words, and actions. We remind our students that we all fall into sin, yet every sin has been paid for and forgiven by our Savior Jesus Christ. We encourage our students with the gospel message so that the Holy Spirit may impact their hearts, words, and actions as we live our lives as forgiven sinners.

GROW IN GRACE AND KNOWLEDGE We have confidence in our Savior that He has worked through the many aspects of Christian Education to bring the blessings of Christian Education to many Immanuel students in the past. We pray that He will continue to work through our efforts so that our young people may continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

— PRINCIPAL KYLE OCHSNER OCTOBER 2017