Matthew Sanders
about the teacher
Matt has been an enthusiastic student and teacher of science for over 30 years. He and his wife, Diana, served on the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ after graduating from the University of Virginia in 1981. He went on to teach Bible, biology, chemistry, and physics in a traditional private Christian high school setting. In 2008, Matt began teaching science classes in home school centers, and now teaches Biology and Chemistry in three local centers.
In 2000, Matt completed a master’s degree in Biology, which involved three summers of genetics research at the City of Hope National Cancer Institute in Duarte, CA. He then began to teach at Azusa Pacific University as an Adjunct Professor, where he continues today.
Beside his faith and his family, Matt’s passion in life is to share his excitement for how proper science fully supports God’s Word. He loves to help Christians (especially young people) to see that they can be proud of their faith and their God and His Word, and do not need to be intimidated by the often atheistic assault of the secular science establishment.
Matt has also lived and taught for short periods of time in China, India, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Guam, and has welcomed over a dozen international students as “daughters and sons” into his home. He serves as the Chairman of the Board of Hope for People, a ministry which has a Christian school and hospital in India. In this capacity, he has led ministry teams each summer since 2010 to India to conduct science fairs, VBS, and training conferences for teachers, pastors, and their wives. He loves the outdoors, and has run numerous marathons and adventure races. Matt and Diana have been married for 38 years. They are members of Lake Avenue Church in Pasadena, where Matt gives leadership to the Discipleship Mentoring Ministry. Their daughter, Aliviana, is an elementary school teacher in Romania, and their son, Micah, just graduated from the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music.
Teaching Philosophy
Perhaps my teaching philosophy could be summed up using the famous hymn title, “This is My Father’s World”. I have loved both science and the Lord since I was a child, and the more I have learned, the more I see that the physical world reveals the majesty and glory of God. For me, science has been apologetic – helping to build and to strengthen my faith. Romans 1 says that through creation we can see something of the greatness of God. I strive to show this to my students – how the wonders of our created world reflect the amazing God who made it.
I have always been fascinated with science, and with learning how our world works. I hope that my enthusiasm and fascination will be caught by my students, as well as my faith in a Great, Intelligent Designer. My goal is to build and strengthen faith, as well as to teach excellent science.
A final part of my philosophy is that every person is made in the image of God, and therefore has great worth. As C.S. Lewis put it, “You have never talked to a mere mortal . . . it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit - immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.” I strive to treat each person with whom I deal with the love and respect due to an “everlasting splendor”.
Statement of Faith
I became a Christian as a teenager, and have been a disciple of Christ ever since. Many years of involvement in Young Life and Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ) as a student and staff member helped to build in me an excellent foundation of the truth of God’s Word, and of the importance of ordering our lives by it. During those years, I became aware of God’s call on my life for lifelong personal discipleship, and also to the Great Commission. Since then, I have viewed all of my personal and professional life as an expression of that call to Christ and to ministry.
Today, I am full of thanks and praise to the Lord. I often think that my life is a wonderful testimony to the truth of “Seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you”. Over the years, God has added so many blessings to my life. I am happily married to a godly woman. We attend a dynamic, growing church (Lake Ave Church, in Pasadena, CA), where I give leadership to our discipleship mentoring ministry. I teach what I love (science) in five Christian institutions (Azusa Pacific University, three home school centers, and Kepler Ed). In each of these places, I am able to combine my love for the Lord and my love for science in order to help to build the faith of my students. The Lord has truly given me the desires of my heart!