2025 - A "Perfect Square Year"
Morgan Nel | ACSI South Africa Assistant Director
Isaiah 55:9 (NIV)
“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
As we enter the year 2025, it is fascinating to reflect on its significance. Mathematically, 2025 is a “perfect square year” because it is the square of 45 (45 x 45 = 2025). A “perfect square” in mathematics refers to a number that can be expressed as the square of an integer. This concept can serve as a profound reminder of God’s perfect design, sovereignty, and the ways He works in our lives and in the world around us.
For Christian teachers, this year provides a unique opportunity to reflect on the ways God has perfectly designed both creation and our roles as educators. Just as the number 2025 reflects the multiplication of 45 by itself, so too does God’s presence in our classrooms often reveal a multiplicative effect – a ripple of influence beyond what we can immediately see.
- God’s Perfect Design in Education
The concept of a “perfect square” can symbolise the perfection with which God designed the world and all its systems, including education. God, the Creator of the universe, is not only the Master Designer of the physical world but also the One who established the systems and structures through which knowledge, wisdom, and truth are imparted. As teachers, we have the privilege of participating in this divine process, guiding students to learn not just facts, but eternal truths.
Psalm 19:1 tells us, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” In a similar way, every lesson taught, every interaction, and every moment of growth reflects the Creator’s handiwork in the lives of students. In 2025, let us reflect on the opportunity to be part of God’s perfect plan, influencing young minds with His wisdom.
- Multiplying Influence in the Classroom
Like a perfect square, where the number is multiplied by itself, your influence as a teacher has the potential to multiply far beyond what you can see. Your students carry what they learn into the world, passing on knowledge, kindness, and wisdom to others. In Matthew 28:19, Jesus commands us to “Go and make disciples of all nations.” For educators, this call takes on a unique form as we make disciples through our teaching.
Consider this: Every lesson you teach is a multiplication of God’s truth. Your classroom is not just a place for academic growth, but also for spiritual development. Whether you’re teaching Maths, Literature, or History, you are laying the foundation for students to learn about the greater truths of God’s kingdom. The values and integrity you instil will multiply in the lives of your students, potentially impacting their families, communities, and the world.
- Trusting in God’s Perfect Timing and Plan
The perfect square of 2025 also reminds us of God’s perfect timing. There is a sense of divine order in the way things work out, even when we cannot see it. Isaiah 55:9 tells us that God’s ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts higher than our thoughts. As teachers, it’s easy to become caught up in the challenges and struggles we face in the classroom. However, 2025 presents an opportunity to trust in the divine pattern that God has woven into every moment, trusting that His perfect plan for our students and ourselves will unfold in His time.
Let this year be a reminder to us that the work we do, the lessons we teach, and the love we show are not only impacting the present, but are part of God’s greater and perfect design for the world. Our influence as educators, like the perfect square, has the potential to multiply in ways that will glorify God for generations to come.
May we embrace the year 2025 as a year to reflect on our role in God’s perfect plan, and seek to magnify His glory through our calling as teachers.
Some more facts to ponder:
2025 = 45² is a “perfect square year”.
It is represented by the square of the sum of all the digits of the decimal numbering system.
(0 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 + 9)² = 2025.
It also represents the sum of the cubes of all the digits of the decimal numbering system.
(0³ + 1³ + 2³ + 3³ + 4³ + 5³ + 6³ + 7³ + 8³ + 9³) = 2025.
The last “perfect square year” occurred in 1936 and after 2025 will only occur in 2116.