Nehemiah 4:18
"And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built."
(English Standard Version)
This verse encapsulates for me our place in the history of the world, the job that needs to be done, and the attitude to be had whilst performing it.
Place in history.
We stand at a time when the idea of absolutes is unpopular. This church has become captive to this mentality, and in attempts to become 'relevent' has lost sight of the importance of the purity of it's beginnings (both in apostolic times and during reformation). At the same time, pius members have reacted to the increase in compromise in a manner which has driven the divide further apart. Christianity today is like it was at the time of Nehemiah - much of it is captive in Babylon and Jerusalem (Foundation of Peace) is in ruins.
Work to be done.
'Jerusalem' needs to be restored. The walls need to be rebuilt. Truth needs to be reclaimed and proclaimed. At this time when there is supposedly no absolute truth, there is a need for Nehemiahs and Ezras to unite the people who are returning to the site of the foundation of God's church in a work of rebuilding. This cannot be done as it has been done in the past. Truth must now be defended by the rules of academia, or, when applicable, demonstrating the inherent inconsistencies with those rules and proposing superior ones. Truth will stand up to any test, and must stand up to any test to be truth.
The attitude needed.
This endeavour will not go unchallenged by the forces of darkness which have brought about this present situation. There will need to be a united effort, with swords at our sides. The Bible is needed today, more than ever, to be read, spoken, understood, and lived. Only in this way can we be protected in our work and see the restoration of the principles of truth.
This is my mandate in a nutshell and it informs my projects and direction. I will probably expand on it more in the future.
