He has studied multiple disciplines and obtained a ThD in Apologetics, PhD in Quantum-Nuclear Physics, DSc in Alternative Medicine, and DNYS in Naturopathy. He has published more than 50 books and 2500 articles and research papers in Bible, apologetics, communication, information technology, and computer science. From India he also serves as the Chancellor of Scofield Graduate School of Theology in USA. He was part of the team at the prestigious School of Advanced Studies in Physics at the Jiwaji University that introduced advanced degrees in computer sciences for the first time in India. He was also a pioneer, before the days of wide distribution of digital computers in India, in the fabrication of Analog Computers that were able to solve second order differential equations in real-time. The work earned him much praise in Jiwaji University, and the manual he wrote were used by students for almost three decades — before the analog concept was superceded by the digital computation.

He is the founder and current Principal of Trinity School of Apologetics and Theology, the largest Apologetics distance school in the world. In its non degree and degree programs, TSAT has students in more than 140 countries. More than 600 students take advantage of the free non degree courses every month.

Dr. Philip has produced a large corpus of material in Christian Apologetics. Unlike other apologists who offer apologetic to readers and listeners, Dr. Philip’s materials introduce the “Tools” of Apologetics to people. He has maintained that such tools need to be understood, developed, codified, and passed on to the common man so that instead of listening to the “what” in apologetics, they learn the “how” of apologetics. Only this — he maintains — will multiply the number of people involved in Evangelism through Apologetics.

He can be contacted at: DRJCP@hotpop.com

His websites are: http://www.ApologeticsWiki.com | http://www.Apologix.org | http://www.TrinityTheology.org | http://www.BiblicalArcheology.net

Who did not hear about the DaVinci Code? Really, we should speak, not of the “code”, but the “lie of the Code”. Why? The answer is simple. Although this book of Dan Brown was written as a novel, it is necessary to say that from the beginning of his work he mentions that its text speaks about “historical facts”. Really, he certainly reinvented the history, because nothing in this book and film reports the truth on Jesus Christ. Here are 5 questions and answers which would be necessary to put before us to demonstrate clearly that this book of Dan Brown’s legend is only a “madness”. Let us go on in the following order.

1. Was Jesus married to Mary Magdalene?

No. Mary Magdalene was certainly close to the Lord Jesus. She wept at Jesus’ tomb (John 20). Jesus even entrusted her to return and tell the disciples about his resurrection. But we have no reason to believe they were married. Brown says that Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper reveals the secret. He writes that the figure to Jesus’ right, traditionally known as the apostle John, is actually Mary. It is not true. Artists often gave characters feminine features to portray youth. The apostle John was the youngest of the disciples. Brown correctly observes that few Jewish men of Jesus’ day did not marry. But why, then, did the apostle Paul, himself celibate, not mention Jesus and Mary when he argued that apostles could marry (1 Cor. 9:5)? Is it not a fair and legitimate question to ask to ourselves?

2. What about these alternative gospels that aren’t in the New Testament?

It’s true that the Bible did not arrive as a “fax from heaven,” as Brown writes. The New Testament canon (insprired books) in its current form was first formally attested in 367. Nevertheless, church leaders applied important standards when compiling the Bible. Authors of accepted writings needed to have walked and talked with Jesus, or at least with his leading disciples. Their teaching could not contradict what other apostles had written, and their documents must have been accepted by the entire church, from Jerusalem to Rome. Church leaders considered earlier letters and reports more credible than later documents. Finally, they prayed and trusted the Holy Spirit to guide their decisions. The so-called Gnostic gospels, many discovered just last century, did not meet these criteria. Many appeared much later than the Bible and were dubiously attributed to major Christian leaders. Their teachings contrasted with what apostles like Paul had written. For example, many Gnostic writings argued that Jesus did not appear in the flesh, because flesh is evil, or they rejected the Old Testament.

3. Were there really competing Christianities during the early church?

Yes, in the sense there were many disputes about the nature of Jesus. It has always been like that anyway. And the church has done its best to vanquish challengers to orthodoxy. Once the church decided against the Gnostic writings, they gathered and burned all the Gnostic manuscripts they could find. Later church councils convened to discuss other threats to Christian orthodoxy. Constantine, the first Roman emperor to make Christianity legal, called the most important of these meetings in 325. Leaders from around the Christian world gathered in Nicea, where they debated Arianism, which taught that God created Jesus. Brown writes that Constantine called this council so he could introduce a new divine Jesus on par with the Father. On the contrary, documents from before Nicea show that most followers of Jesus already called him Lord, the Yahweh of the Old Testament. The church leaders at Nicea rejected Arianism and affirmed that God and Jesus existed together from the beginning in the Trinity. This council produced the first drafts of what became the Nicene Creed, a landmark explanation of Christian belief.

4. What is Opus Dei?

A conservative religious group within the Roman Catholic Church. Opus Dei urges priests and laypeople to strenuously pursue sanctification through everyday discipline. The group has taken criticism for its conservative views, zeal, and secretive practices. There is no evidence that Opus Dei has resorted to murder; nor has the Vatican entrusted Opus Dei to violently guard the church’s deepest secrets, as Dan Brown claims in The Da Vinci Code.

5. Does the Priory of Sion really exist?

Yes, but not as described by Brown. Researchers suspect that members of the real-life Priory of Sion, founded in 1956, forged documents that placed major historical figures—such as Isaac Newton and Leonardo da Vinci—in an ancient secret society. There is no evidence for this group beyond dubious documents. Any story relating this group to a dynasty begun by Jesus and Mary Magdalene is a fanciful work of fiction.

In the past four centuries, all kinds of religious and spiritual beliefs have come under intense attack at the hands of radical philosophers and critics. Of this assault, the Christian faith has received the major portion because of a number of historical reasons some of which will be mentioned later.

These criticisms against the Christian faith have received so much media coverage that even a good number of well informed non Christians are aware of some of the major charges labeled against the Christian faith. Interestingly, books published against the Christian faith and sold from secular shops become bestsellers even in countries where the buyers are not Christians. This is the result of all this adverse publicity against the Christian faith.

Today all around us there is an atmosphere where criticism of the Bible and related subjects is widespread. Most of the Christian students have to face these attacks from other students in some form or other. It is quite common to meet Christian college-students who are perplexed by questions that are hurled against their faith. The volley of questions come with such high frequency that they find themselves at a loss in answering even a portion of them all. Moreover, since most of them never faced these questions before this assault, they usually do not know what to think and what to answer. Further, they often fall into the trap of thinking that if they do not know the answer, then correct or satisfactory answers do not exist.

Once a person erroneously concludes that answers do not exist for the questions raised against the Bible, his own faith is the next victim. His faith in the inspiration, authority, and the infallibility of the Scriptures suffer very much. He then finds himself in a split mentality: he knows that it is these Scriptures which have brought the message of true salvation to him, but at the same time he does not know what all things written in this Book are believable !

Apologetics is the solution to this problem. A person who has some background in the Christian apologetics can help this person to see the answers to the problems and questions which he is facing. Further, a Christian Apologist can pass on information to the doubting person, using which he can better face the people who raise questions against the Bible.

The last four to five centuries have been a time in history when anti Christian philosophies and thought patterns have flourished to the full extent in Christian societies. Humanism, a philosophy in which man has been elevated to the position of God, is the philosophy of the present times. It is the foundation of almost all the present-day ways of thinking and education. Therefore, students who have been brought up in any of the present day schools or colleges learns many things which are contrary to the Word of God. By the time a person passes out of his college, he accumulates hundreds of such ideas against the Christian faith. The cumulative weight of these ideas give so much doubt to young believers that all over the world they are struggling to overcome problems of distrust and doubt.

No individual can possibly solve each and every doubt that these people have, but with the help of apologetics they can definitely help the people in doubt. An apologist can give answers to a good number of their problems, and can then teach them the basics of the humanistic philosophy. This will help the inquirers not only to overcome their doubts, but will also help them to see the root causes of the problems. This will also give them a capability to deal effectively with at least a good number of questions as they come to them in future.

There is no person in this world who does not face problems. Everyone faces puzzles, questions, and fears of different kinds. Such difficult situations will not go away merely by ignoring them or by pretending that they do not exist. Facing a problem is a difficult affair, and people do resort to tactics which avoid them instead of facing them. This can be seen frequently in relation to the Bible. The attacks against the Scriptures come from such diverse fields and sometimes from people of such high learning that it becomes difficult to answer all of them. No one can ever hope to master all the disciplines of study from which these questions are raised. It is precisely this difficulty which induces many people to avoid facing the issues. But there is actually no need for doing this. Acquiring the basic tools of Christian apologetics will be sufficient to face most of the attacks.

No person can ever hope to answer all the questions that are put to him, but every Christian should definitely know something about what godly men are doing in the field of Christian apologetics. Today the Christian society has numerous highly qualified and dedicated men belonging to all disciplines of study who are trying to answer each and every question that has been hurled against the Bible. No individual can face all of it, and it is natural for individuals to become fearful of these attacks, but once a person realizes that so many people are working on these problems, then he can rest assured that it will not be long before the answer is published. In fact, today there are several thousand scholars around the world who are publishing their conclusions in defense of the Christian faith through hundreds of professional journals and popular magazines. They are accessible to anyone who is willing to take interest.

The Bible shall always be attacked, and there will always be people whose faith will be shaken by such attacks. Only the proper use of Christian Apologetics will help such people.

Dr. Johnson C. Philip
Webmaster: Apologetics Wiki

A perusal of the apologetic writings of the Bible and the Fathers would show that the nature of the attacks changed in each generation, and that the reply had to be tailored to meet the needs of each generation. In spite of this changing approach and emphasis, the purpose of apologetics has remained unchanged for all the past millennia.
Contents

THE UNCHANGING PURPOSES OF APOLOGETICS: The methods and priorities of Christian Apologetics keep changing with time, but the aim remains the same, and they are:

* To refute all the accusations that are brought against the Bible and the Christian faith.
* To demonstrate that only the Bible and the Christian way of life work in the actual life, and that only the Bible and the Christian faith provide permanent peace and happiness.
* To remove the sincere doubts in the hearts of believers and unbelievers, so that the hindrances to the growth and establishing their faith are eliminated.
* To provide SUFFICIENT evidence for achieving the above goals. It is necessary for the apologist to understand the difference between sufficient and total proof.

Because man is finite and limited in his knowledge and perception, total proof is never possible for anything. Total proof is possible only if every case in the world related to the subject is examined. This is humanly not possible. This is why scholars do not insist upon total proof for anything in any branch of science or history. Rather, everything is decided on the basis of sufficient proof. The same is the case with Christian Apologetics. What Can Apologetics Do?

Christian Apologetics is a constantly developing subject, with each days’ arguments becoming more and more powerful than the previous day. In a fast expanding subject like this, people can often forget or overlook the role played by that subject. This is specially apparent in Christian Apologetics.

Thus four different ways of thinking can be seen from time to time about Christian Apologetics, not all of them valid or biblically sound. These are:

SKEPTICISM: Despite the widespread acceptance of apologetics, there is a small group of people who are totally skeptical of Christian apologetics. They do not see any value in apologetics, and even oppose the defense of Christian faith.

Most skeptics are people who avoid grappling with real-life problems. Further, they totally overlook the numerous passages in the Bible itself which encourage apologetic activity. This group is only a microscopic minority in Christendom, and has no serious thinkers or theologians advocating it.

CHRISTIAN RATIONALISM: According to this view, reason can completely demonstrate or prove the validity of the Christian position. Thus all what is needed is to place a comprehensive set of arguments in favour of the Bible in front of a person, and he would be able to see the truth. However, everyone knows that things are not as optimistic as this viewpoint maintains.

Christian Rationalism places too much trust in the capacity of the human intelligence/intellect in perceiving and recognizing truth. They have such faith in the wisdom of the fallen man that they often exclude the need or role of the Holy Spirit in illuminating the fallen and sinful human beings. Though very interesting, this viewpoint has never been widely accepted among Christian apologists.

LOGICAL CHRISTIANITY: According to this view, reason is the starting point of everything, and thus it goes a long way forward to the discovery of spiritual truth; the last steps of this process are taken by faith. This viewpoint is more Biblical than the first two, but it is still not fully correct.

Some proponents of the Logical Christianity view have gone to the extreme of claiming that since God can be known and understood through natural revelation alone, there is no need at all for the Bible. Christian Apologists have never/widely accepted this viewpoint.

REASON DEFINITELY AIDS FAITH: This is the most widely held view among evangelical and fundamentalist scholars. According to it, faith is the starting-point of everything in the Christian faith; once faith is established, it can be shown to be consistent with truth and reason. This is a viewpoint which is Biblically tenable and acceptable, and it will form the backbone of this series of studies on apologetics.

Thus the evangelical Christian apologist uses apologetics, not to create faith but to aid with the creation and maintenance of faith. Even for this task he depends upon the role played by God the Holy Spirit in helping communicate the message to people. The recipients also need the help of the Holy Spirit to understand and accept the message. The Purpose Of Apologetics

As said in the previous section, Christian Apologetics is a fast growing discipline. Thus it is possible to misunderstand or confuse the role, purpose, and contributions of apologetics. Students should take great care in noting what apologetics is meant to do, and also what it is not meant to do. The following points would help to clarify some of these issues:

APOLOGETICS IS A MANWARD OPERATION: The purpose of developing a discipline like apologetics is to defend the reliability of the Bible. It therefore addresses both the reliability of scriptural narratives as well as the premises upon which the Christian faith stands. However, Christian Apologetics is not an activity directed towards the Bible. In other words, the purpose of Christian Apologetics is not to defend the Bible with the attitude as though it is a helpless book. Rather, it is a manward operation meant to help those who are perplexed or distressed due to doubts. The Bible is defended to them so they might overcome the doubts that they have.

The Scriptures are quite capable of self-defense. It has stood assaults successfully for four thousand years while the critics and their contentions have been passing away. Hence the purpose of apologetics is not to lend a helping hand to the Scriptures, but to help the sincere inquirer. Thus the defense of the Bible is presented not for preserving the Scriptures but to preserve the faith of the inquirer. This is what’s meant by “manward operation”.

Understanding this manward operation is necessary both for helping those who need apologetics and also for those who don’t need it. Our churches have a lot of people who have never had a problem with their faith. They have not doubted anything in the Bible, nor did they have to face any attacks against their faith in Christ. Many of these people can therefore become alarmed when they hear of “apologetics”. They start thinking that the apologist is trying to defend the Bible for the sake of the Bible — to ESTABLISH that the Bible is the word of God.

Since these people almost never faced any serious challenges to their faith, and since they know that the Scriptures do not need to be defended by man, they tend to become skeptical or hostile towards apologetics. Unless the apologist explains to them the manward role, there is a possibility of them rejecting apologetics due to their ignorance.

Thus, to put the apprehensive people at ease, the apologist himself should first understand the motive and aim of apologetics. Only this clear understanding will help him to employ the methods of apologetics with the proper motive and in the right manner to the right audience. He would understand that not every Christian is his target. Only a person with this understanding will be able to put tense and skeptical, but God-fearing, Christians at ease.

APOLOGETICS HAS LIMITS: Since apologetics is a manward operation, it can never be used to prove that the Bible is the word of God. The best that it can do in this matter is to point to the unusual character of the Bible in matters of unity, accuracy, consistency, history and life-changing power. The rest is left to the inquirer. Accepting the Bible as God’s word comes only by an act of faith in which apologetics can play a very supportive role.

Thus the purpose of apologetics is neither to establish the Bible as God’s word, nor to create faith in skeptical minds. Rather, its purpose is to aid a person to see that the attacks brought up against the Bible are NOT valid. Once it is demonstrated that statements of the Bible and the facts of science do not conflict with each other, the way is cleared for the sincere inquirer for making the leap of faith.

BARRIER REMOVAL IS THE PRIME TARGET: The purpose of apologetics is not creation of faith as much as it is to remove the barriers that hinder faith. Such a removal of hindering factors often helps sincere inquirers to take a leap of faith and accept the Lord Jesus as personal Saviour. For others, who are already saved, the removal of barriers helps them to make a deeper commitment to Christ.

RATIONALIST DEMANDS MIGHT BE A BOON: Our rationalist age places a lot of demands before a statement is accepted as true. Many people think that this rationalism is sure to destroy the Bible. On the contrary, this is a blessing in disguise. Many demands placed by rational thinkers give us excellent standards with which to evaluate our statements objectively.

Enough information and evidence exists today to show, using the more sound principles of rational thinking, that the Bible is a unique book. But no amount of evidence can force a person, claiming to be a rationalist, against his will to believe. Even though the rational content of Christianity is fully logical, accurate, and reliable, Christian Apologetics is not meant for these people. Apologetics is meant for those sincere seekers who want to know how reliable the rational content of the Bible is.

PROCLAMATION IS NOT TO BE MINIMIZED: The saving message of the Bible will bring much fruit whenever it is proclaimed — even if there is much unbelief in the air. Therefore the purpose of apologetics is not to establish the divinity of the Bible first so that the gospel can follow. Unbelief will not change even if the most amazing proofs are presented. The purpose of apologetics is, therefore, to help that person who wants to abandon his unbelief that has been there due to his lingering but sincere and honest doubts.

APOLOGETICS DEMANDS WILLING RECEPTION: Apologetics is not treatment for deliberate unbelief. Rather, it is meant to serve as a cure for sincere doubts. It can work wonders when presented at the right time in the right manner for helping sincere inquirers.

There is no cure for unbelief except divine intervention. The best thing to do in such cases is to use the sword of the Spirit repetitively. It will discern and pierce the thoughts and intents of the heart. Apologetics, if needed, should be used only after such a breakthrough.

APOLOGETICS HELPS SEEKERS MOST: Apologetics has a definite value when one presents the gospel to unbelievers. Sincere and true seekers, whether from a Christian or non Christian background, definitely have many doubts that hinder them from taking the leap of faith necessary to trust in Christ. Apologetics helps by removing these barriers.

However, the purpose of apologetics is not to prove the divinity of the Bible first, so that the gospel could be presented on that basis. This would be only putting the cart before the horse. The gospel message works by its own power, and there is not a need to convince the unbeliever of this power. At the same time, if he expresses his doubts, apologetics can be used to point to the uniqueness of the Scriptures. By doing so, the messages (the gospel and the defense) are placed in the proper sequence.

APOLOGETICS IS NOT SCIENTISM: Scientism is the belief that ultimately everything has to be explained with the help of science. This is a false belief.

Modern science has been developed only for studying matter an energy. Thus nothing beyond matter or energy can be studied with the help of modern physical science. Thus the apologist recognizes that his aim is not to explain everything with the help of science. Rather, he uses science where it is a scientific subject, history where it is a historical subject, logic where it is a logical subject, and so on. He also recognizes that in some places none of these subjects apply, but that the subject can be understood only with faith. In such places he emphasizes faith.

Dr. Johnson C. Philip
Apologetics Wiki

Non-interest In Christian Apologetics: Among Christians there are some who do not take any interest and who do not give any encouragement to Christians interested in Apologetics. They do so not due to any fault of apologetics, but mainly due to their own misconceptions, and misunderstandings. Such people can be divided into six categories:

• People who never had any doubts in these subjects.
• People who never had to face questions and attacks from scornful people.
• People who have indeed faced personal doubts and external attacks, but who have been running away from facing the challenge.
• People who believe that the Bible does contain errors.
• People who have lost sensitivity towards the pains and problems of others.
• Pseudo Apologists who love prestige, but who have never mastered the subject.

THOSE WHO NEVER HAD DOUBTS: Of these five, people who have never faced any problems are fortunate, but they should not assume that others will have a similar experience. Nor should they assume that others are having doubts because they lack spiritual commitment. A healthy person should never feel proud against a sick one. The right Christian response would be sensitivity and sympathy.

THOSE WHO NEVER HAD TO FACE ATTACKS: People who never faced any attacks against their faith from friends, coworkers or the popular literature have no justification to assume that others are equally safe or insulated. In fact the majority of people among our young educated people face some sort or other of attack from their peers or contemporaries. Thus people need to be sensitive to their doubts rather than ignoring their need for apologetics.

PEOPLE WHO FLEE (Escapists): People who have faced doubts and external attacks, but who are running away from it all are doing great harm to themselves and also to others. Doubts and fears never decrease by avoiding them. These have to be faced objectively and courageously. Those who run away never develop a balanced or whole spiritual life. The fear they are trying to hide will gradually eat up their mental peace.

PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE IN ERROR-PRONE BIBLE: Some people believe that the Bible contains errors. They prefer diluting the historical and scientific accuracy of the Bible. They want the best of both the worlds (which in itself might be a legitimate desire), and feel that the Bible should be diluted to achieve this goal (which is a wrong assessment). Consequently many of them become quite hostile when they spot anyone defending the Bible.

People who believe that the Bible contains errors become panicky when someone defends the Bible. Unfortunately, and unknown to many of us, there are plenty of these people within the Christian world. They get annoyed when someone starts talking of a literal creation, history of the Bible, or anything that seems to imply that the scriptures are beyond error. They are spiritual compromisers, and they will surely attack anyone who takes a non compromising attitude.

PEOPLE INSENSITIVE TO OTHERS: Some people become spiritually so insensitive to other believers that even the slightest mention by others of their spiritual problem or doubts provokes great anger, hostility and contempt from them. Since apologetics starts with the assumption that people can have problems and difficulties in believing the Bible, any mention of this subject acts as a great provocation to insensitive people.

People who have become insensitive towards the needs and pains of others are never able to appreciate the problems faced by others. Most of such people live in an artificial world of their own selfish creation, where they never have to be sensitive to the needs of others. Thus they become more and more hardened towards others who face real-world problems and dilemmas.

PSEUDO APOLOGISTS: The Christian world has many pseudo-apologists. Usually these people have some qualification in the sciences or humanities, but very little training in apologetics. When faced with troubling questions, they use their own human knowledge to build up a private system of apologetics. Not having a background in theology or apologetics, and not having come in contact with Christian apologists, their private system of apologetics might be quite deficient or even outright faulty. Yet due to non-contact with real bible-based apologetics, they continue to live happily with their own brand of apologetics in their world of ignorance.

Many of them recognize this deficiency as soon as they hear the presentation of a trained apologist. Thus they feel quite threatened when they listen to apologists. Instead of broadening their grasp of the subject by mutual interaction, they take recourse to attacking other apologists.

Of the categories of people mentioned above, none has a valid biblical objection against the discipline of Christian Apologetics. Their objections and oppositions stem from their personal prejudices and ignorance. Consequently, the apologist should never worry about the opposition they put up. Rather, he should always expect some antagonism from them and try to use these to examine and refine further his presentation of the subject.

People who believe that the Bible contains errors, who are insensitive to others, and who would not like anything except their own private system of apologetics find their world collapsing when they see Christian Apologists in action. This is not a problem of theological origin. Rather, it is a personal problem that has no easy solution. Further, these people are not truth-seekers or sincere inquirers. Their aim is to impose their erroneous views upon others, and therefore their conversation is not marked for humility or the spirit of free, objective inquiry. Their aim is to impose their erroneous views upon others so it may be a waste of time arguing or discussing with them.

The first three category of people above might readily listen to a good apologist if he is willing to explain the whole situation to them — that a lot of genuine seekers are indeed struggling due to these questions, and also that they should not run away from their own doubts. However, the last two categories (the compromisers and the spiritually insensitive people) may not listen all that easily. One should be quite discerning when talking with them lest one end up wasting time and losing patience.

The Lord Jesus Himself provides a good example that proof seekers are not to be shunned. When doubting Thomas demanded proof of resurrection, the Lord did not refuse his request. Rather, at the appropriate occasion he Himself personally, and with all compassion, invited Thomas to attempt his empirical verification.

The Lord did say that “blessed are they that have not seen, and yet believe”, but surely this was not a rebuke for doubt but only a comparison of insights that different people had about Lord Jesus. This becomes very clear in the light of what the Lord Jesus did to other disciples even without their asking.

Most Bible readers overlook the fact that the Lord Himself was the first to offer empirical evidence to ALL the disciples, even without the disciples asking for it. The gospel says, “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself : handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see me have” (Luke 24:39).

Doubt about spirituals is common even among dedicated Christians. If such people are sincere, one should surely help them by emulating what the Lord did with Thomas and the rest of the disciples.

Opposition to Apologetics

There are some Christians who are opposed to the very idea of apologetics. They do this because of a number of reasons, some of which are as follows:

DISTRUST OF REASON: Some people oppose apologetics because they are completely distrustful of human reason in the spiritual realm. According to them, faith and reason are to be placed in totally separate compartments, having no role to play in each other’s realm. For them, reason is for the natural world while faith is something for the spiritual world. However, such a view that compartmentalizes truth lacks coherence. The Christian approach to truth is an integrated one where one has to accept that faith and reason do mix with each other in many realms of spiritual truth.

FEAR: Some people oppose apologetics because they find themselves ill equipped to face the attacks. So instead of facing the problems, and instead of making a defense for the faith that is in them, they prefer to run away from it all. Since apologetics is a very difficult subject to study and master, running away from the reality is easier for them than facing it. However, cowardice is NOT the way of Christian thought or practice.

Faith is the starting-point of Christianity, and once faith is established Christianity can be shown to be consistent with truth and reason. There are may who will be strengthened in their faith if this consistency is shown to them, and it is the task of the apologist to help every genuine inquirer.

WILLFUL BLIND OPPOSITION: Many people oppose Christian Apologetics due to their ignorance. Such people can be engaged in mutual conversation and a reasonable explanation will convince them that their opposition is ill founded. However, some people oppose Christian Apologetics and Biblical Creationism willfully and due to their stubbornness. It is usually futile to waste time upon them.

All serious apologists should expect some hostility. They should not waste their time either in worrying about the attack or in trying to counter the hostile parties. They should realize that a person willfully opposing apologetics is not a sincere inquirer. Further, there is no medicine to cure willful opposition.

In summary, every apologist should expect intense hostility from some people, but they should steer clear of them for the sake of their own effectiveness.

Dr. Johnson C. Philip
Apologetics Wiki

We stand at a turning point of history today. Several historical events and movements have completed a significant amount of time in history. It is now time to take notice of what all we have achieved and what all we have lost. An awakening is an immediate need.

The historic Protestant Movement has completed five centuries of existence and growth. Tthe movements associated with the Reformation brought freedom from spiritual bondage and tyranny. They brought in an unparalleled era of diligent Bible studies. If spiritual momentum is to continue, we must once again capture the essence of this movement.

Unfortunately believers have very short memories when it comes to the evil that entices them to fall. This is particularly so when the evil takes a religious, social, or national form. The history of the people of God in the Old Testament is a good example of this paradoxical behavior. They kept going back to pagan gods and practices even though they had seen the slavery it brought to their people. Even after personally seeing God’s hand of deliverance, they were quick to turn to the idol of the calf god.

Today a large number of the Christian churches are going back into a similar kind of slavery where there is no place for the gospel of Christ. The fantastic spiritual freedom that we have today, and the mighty missionary work that people of God are doing today, is all a result of the Protestant Reformation which took place five centuries ago. Reformation was not a very simple event; nor did it come easy. Tens of thousands of people around the world were murdered by the Roman Catholics for the reason that these people dared to believe in the message of the Bible.

In general, the Protestant faith is based upon the doctrine of salvation by grace, available to anyone who is willing to place his trust in Lord Jesus. No mediator is needed, or allowed by God, except the Lord Jesus. The Roman Catholic system denies these basic Biblical doctrines. To them salvation comes through one’s merit. Since a person is never sure of the quality or quantity his own merits, priests, saints, and Virgin Mary the “Mother of God” are brought into the picture. A whole system is opened up in which the ignorant and gullible sheep are manipulated and exploited for increasing the power and money of the Mother Church.

Selling “salvation” at the prevailing market price is still going on in these churches, even though it is not done as openly today as it was done before the days of reformation. Gone is the era when certificates and similar talismans were issued for a price that guaranteed its possessor a front seat in the coming divine kingdom. In those pre-reformation days there was no individual freedom for spiritual activities or for discernment. Everything was dictated by the Mother Church. People were forbidden from reading the Bible, lest they discover the truth and spoil the whole business.

In the sixteenth century the Lord gave light to many people and prepared the way for Martin Luther to lead the reformation. His actions can be compared with any of the most heroic deeds in the history. That was an era when the Roman Catholic church ruled the world with an iron rod. In name it was a body of Christian people, but in reality it was a group of religion-political corrupts who ruled the whole world in the spirit of Anti-Christ.

No one be they kings rulers, or noblemen dared to oppose these spiritual Masters; the sure penalty for questioning the Mother Church was death. Many people have estimated that if a tally of all the people tortured and murdered for their faith by the Roman Catholic church is taken, the tortures and murders committed by Hitler would pale in their light. Wives had to witness their husbands, parents their children, and congregations their leaders, being murdered before their own eyes.

The cost paid by the reformers is unbelievable. One of the methods which the Roman Catholic church used for murdering the Protestants was to BURN them publicly. If any of the readers is naive enough to ignore the pains of being burned at stake, let them try holding a single finger ever fire for a mere ten seconds. Then they would understand the courage of men who were fried in slow fire for hours together, yet who did not disown their faith.

The Protestant Reformers forget a battle not only for the Bible, but also a battle of courage. They had to give away everything they had, including their life to give us spiritual freedom.

Most of us received everything already prepared for us. We did not have to fight for our spiritual liberty, and we never had to pay any cost for the spiritual riches which we have inherited from our spiritual Fathers. Familiarity breeds contempt, and hence the children of Israel complained that they were fed up of eating the ‘tasteless’ manna day and night. In the same manner, our spiritual freedom is something so familiar to us that many of us have started longing for the slavery of the past days.

Roman Catholics have been creeping in craftily into Protestant institutions, and we have been sitting unconcerned. They have been dictating our policies, and we do not even note. Recently a Catholic priest was honoured by many Protestant in Kottayam for finally bringing Protestant and Catholic preachers on the same stage for preaching the “gospel”. Actions like this betray an ignorance of the past.

Spiritual freedom does not result automatically. It has to be fought for, won, and maintained. Here is where the Israelites failed repeatedly in Canaan, and it is here that we seem to be failing. Protestant Reformation was a gift of God. Let us not betray the Reformation by going back to spiritual slavery.

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The pursuit to become like God became an organized movement with Nimrod and the Tower of Babel. There one observes the seeds of the first one-world religion and government, both contrary to the course of human history as decreed by God. Consequently, God dispersed this movement. Yet Satan, the architect of this movement, continued in his struggle to raise up another all-world religious and political union. The story that unfolded in the millennia that followed is quite complex, but what one needs to know took place only in about one century.

Since time of the dispersal at Babel, there was no convenient communication-medium available to Satan to influence all the people at the same time. However, mass-media took a massive leap towards the close of the last century. The beginning of the twentieth century brought cheap newspapers, books, radio, TV, Telephones, CDs, INTERNET, and other mass-media tools. Such means to contact a large population effectively, economically and trans-linguistically became available for the first time after Babel. Thus the millennia old Satanic efforts started having effect.

It was during this period that the Theosophical Society was founded by Helena P. Blavatsky and her companions. This Occult-based organization immediately became popular among the educated, the rich, and the rulers of masses. The movement even tried to present one of its trainees as the Christ of the Second Advent, but this attempt did not work. Yet they did not lose courage and continued to influence people in the highest circles with one-world Occult philosophies.

Unsatisfied with the depth of Occult activities in Theosophy, Alice Bailey moved out and established the Lucipher Trust. Since this name was too obviously that of the Devil’s, she soon modified it to Lucis Trust, Lucis being the Latin synonym for Lucipher. Soon a demon by the name of Dhwaj Khul started dictating books to her, and she produced a massive amount of writings. The essential message in all these books was the same: the Christian faith must be destroyed and a New World Order should be ushered in. Her books are very popular with Occult groups all over, including the widespread Pranic Healing people who have put her books into “essential study” category.

Numerous people received inspiration and went on to establish thousands of organizations worldwide to spread the message of the erstwhile Lucipher Trust. From these organizations was born the New Age Movement in the Nineteen Sixties. At the dawn of the twenty-first century it has already become one of the largest international movements. Marxism, Humanism, Atheism, Pantheism, and almost all aberrant streams have directly or indirectly joined hands with this movement making it very powerful. The version of Christian theology that is popular in the radical churches, the ecumenical movement, and the “dialogue” crowd is Christian only in name, but is New Age in outlook and essence.

Doctrines Of The Movement

New Age doctrines are a vast collection of flexible and fuzzy philosophies based primarily upon Eastern Philosophy and Mysticism. Consequently, every religion and philosophy in the world is welcome here except the historic Christian faith. The following are some of the major tenets of the New Age.

1-The world and God are one and the same in essence, but appear as different to humans. Actually every person is a part of God, and the very God himself.

2-As a consequence of the above, no one is a sinner in the absolute sense. Sin is only ignorance and illusion. Even the perceived world is an illusion. Escape from this illusion and recognizing that one is part of God is the key to salvation.

3-Christ is not the name of a historical person. Rather it is the name of a Cosmic Spirit called the Cosmic Christ. We can also rise to the same level of this Cosmic Christ (who is actually Lucipher).

4-Salvation can be attained through any religion (except perhaps the Evangelical Christian faith). All religions, faiths, and even Occult practices lead people to the same blessed salvation.

5-The Universe is controlled by a hierarchy of invisible spirits. Humans can also join this hierarchy, and rise to higher levels. The highest hierarchy is called “Masters Of The Universe”, and these ten or so many Masters reside in a secret place in Tibbet. Above them is the Occultic spirit being called “Cosmic Christ”.

6-Bible is NOT to be read an understood in its plain (direct) meaning, but only though its hidden and mystical meaning. Only Occultists know this mystical meaning and the mystical use of the Bible.
7-Bible is not the only inspired word of God. All holy books of all religions are equally inspired and equally holy. Perhaps some of them are at a higher plane than the Bible.
Any discerning Christian can see that each one of the above doctrines and their implications are totally contrary to the Bible. There is no meeting-place between the New Age Movement and the Biblical Christianity.

Strategies And Expansion

The New Age strategy is to control seven key areas: Philosophy, Theology, Sociology, Psychology, Education, Science/Technology, and Medicine. Once this is done, the world is ready for the domination of Anti Christ, the emissary of Satan who is the mastermind behind the New Age movement. The movement has been amazingly successful in contaminating all the seven fields mentioned above. For example, in theology there are many who now propagate the idea that ultimately everyone would be saved, irrespective of whether he accepted or rejected Christ during his earthly life. There are others who claim that information leading to salvation is available in all religions.

Even a field like Physics has been successfully contaminated by these people. Almost everyone has heard about books like The Tao Of Physics, The Dancing Wu Li Masters, etc. These books are not pure physics at all. Rather, their aim is to expound physics in terms of Eastern Mysticism ! A special area of conquest for them is Medicine. What is called “holistic medicine” today is a New Age offshoot. There are an estimated four hundred systems of medicines that call them alternative medical systems or holistic medicines. Almost eighty to ninety percent of them are ultimately rooted in the Occult or Paranormal philosophy.

The best examples are Pranic Healing and Reiki. Claiming to be totally science-derived, actually these systems receive their healing power through demonic sources. Yet even many Christians practice them because the New Age Movement has convinced them that these “spirit guides” (demons) that help them are agents of the Holy Spirit. Any discerning believer should realize that these are “angels of light” who are here only to deceive.

New Age movement is a powerful movement. Eventually it will unite the whole world under a single religio-political leader. That would be the time of the Anti-Christ. Workings of this movement are so subtle that the anti Christian element is often difficult to discern. The best strategy is to compare the ultimate philosophy of every group with the seven cardinal points of the New Age Movement given above.

When Mordeccai wrote to Esther that God might have placed her in a unique position perhaps “For a time like this”, he declared an important Biblical principle: God ‘s children pass through one spiritual crisis or other in each generation (or even in each day of their lives). This might lead many of them to disappointment or even bitterness, but God desires that His children rise to the occasion, and play important roles — exactly in times like these !

As we write these lines we are very much conscious that the world as a whole, and the church of God here in particular, are passing through unparalleled crisis: social, political, and spiritual. Democratic countries have repeatedly destroyed terrorist outfits, but peddlers of terror continue to be aggressive inside and outside against all free nations. Innocent people are being killed every day because the enemy realizes that freedom-lving countries are not sufficiently prepared to retaliate though there is enough arms an ammunition to annihilate the enemy. Every day we are paying dearly for our unpreparedness caused by our unwillingness to put a full stop to aggression.

At the spiritual front we notice an increase in persecution, escalation of compromise, and the absence of strong leaders. True, there are many well-known leaders today, but one has to realize that most of them attained this so-called greatness not exactly through spiritual leadership, but rather through their earthly achievements such as education, administration, oration, propaganda, or even manipulation. Many of them are perceived as great because of their
earthly achievements and not because a great character.

Political, social, or spiritual instability have a direct impact upon the spiritual life of God’s children. This results in increased stress in the church life, attempts to solve spiritual problems through earthly means, and attempts to rise to positions of prominence in the Church through earthly or even carnal strategies. We witness all of this today among the children of God in our country. All of this will have serious impact upon the atmosphere in which Christians live, and will also affect the way they are led by spiritual leaders. As people living in this generation, therefore, it is our responsibility to prepare well. The book of Nehemiah would be a good starting-plalce to study the art of rebuilding when adversity strikes. There is practically no Christian who can ignore the truths presented in this book, and there is no one who shall remain untouched if he studies this book with devotion.

Lack of Direction: The absence of strong leadership in any country, society, or institution eventually results in an overall lack of direction there. Similarly, the absence of strong spiritual leadership in the church or even in a family results in a lack of direction there. In the spiritual realm this loss of direction can be noticed in many ways. For example, there was a time when family prayer was a compulsory item in all God-fearing households. Prayer was also a time for systematic teaching
of the word of God, giving rise to a generation that was thoroughly familier with the fundamental priciples of Christian life, and willing to test everything in the light of the Scriptures. However, the decreasing number of families that are committed to regular family prayer now is one indicator of the increasing lack of direction.

The increasing strife in churches, the dicreasing of spiritual/biblical content in messages, and the increasing ifluence of false doctrines is also an indicator of the lack of direction, because a group that has a sense of direction does not accept or tolerate a doctrine (or practice ) that is contrary to the original norms of the group. But such have we now become — a group without any sense of spiritual direction. The same influences can be seen in families where men refuse to
lead, women refuse to submit, and children refuse to heed. These are all manifestations of a malady that is far deeper than the symptoms. And the same is the reason why in increasing number of young people are now saying goodbye to sound principles of living and adopting the fatal outlook of “if it feels good, then JUST DO IT !!”.

The Role of Leaders: To many Christians “Leadership” seems more to be a social or political concept than a spiritual idea. However, the Scriptures point out that leadership is basically a spiritual concept, affecting all areas of life. Further, when taken in the biblical sense, EVERY person whether king or pauper, scholar of unlearned, man or woman, is a leader of one or more groups of people. Most people do not realize that they are “Spiritual Leaders”

Right from the time of creation God has emphasized the need of good leaders as well as the need to follow them in every sphere of life. This is why He instructs children to obey parents, wives to obey husbands, people to obey God-ordained leaders, and leaders to be totally subject to God. The results of obedience can be seen during the reign of great leaders while that of disobedience can be seen during the absence of leaders — when everyone begins to do what suits his desires. The presence and ministry of godly and strong leaders are essential for the proper functioning of the church of God.

A good leader is able to give a sense of direction to people. In addition, he is able to inspire them to follow the counsel of God even when the human flesh resists the spiritual walk. He does it in three ways: through his own life ‘s example, through motivation, and through implanting proper principles in their heart.

In the spiritual realm a Christian leader influences an entire generation, or even more, through his own life, through scriptural motivation, and through a systematic teaching of Biblical principles. The teaching part may not always involve an academic classroom, but it does involve some sort or other of teaching the Bible. We see examples of the above in Moses, Joshua, Mordeccai, Paul, etc. However, the one leader I wish to highlight in this study is Nahemiah, the greatest Post Exillic leader and spiritual reformer.

So committed was Nahemiah to his God-given call that he was able to mobilize the entire Jewish population ranging from the commoner to noblemen to complete the task at hand. So strong was the motivation created by him that all of them worked day and night till the end in spite of continuous threats.

However, when we speak of leaders in the past (whether from biblical records or church history), there is a natural tendency on the part of present-day believers to exclaim, ”Oh, but these men were superhuman beings”. This is a wrong response. Attributing superhuman strengths to others for the purpose of justifying one’s personal failures is an excuse not proper for a child of God. Rather, each one of us should recognize that almost all the great leaders were common people. They reached unusual spiritual heights not because of their above-average abilities, but rather because of their above-average commitment. And that is exactly what God is looking for today. Thus as we study the book of Nahemiah, each one of us would do well to ask to himself, ”in what special ways does the Lord want to use me in my generation”. The question becomes all the more relevant today because the situation of the present-day church exactly parallels the situation of the Holy City at the time of Nehemiah: compromise is rampant, the walls of the church are broken in most places, and many enemies of the gospel have occupied rooms, and staked a permanent claim, inside the church of God . Let the Nahemiahs and Esthers of our generation rise up and build the wall.

Why This Compromise: No spiritually minded community or individual Believer loves compromise. They would oppose every attempt at diluting the fundamental truths. Consequently, no community falls suddenly into compromise. Spiritual compromise and eventual downfall is always a gradual phenomena.

Just as those people who revolt at the idea of consuming poison do not react at all at the consumption of slow-poisons, the spiritual community that vehemently opposes compromise often becomes silent when the same thing is done gradually. And this is the way in which Satan eventually takes over entire Christian populations or reform movements. The book of Nehemiah is a good reminder of these.

Ezra, Nehemiah, and Zerubbabel stand tall as heroes after the people of God went into slavery and dispersion. Experts in spiritual leadership frequently look back to them even two and a half millennia after they lived. That is because their leadership and life was based upon certain abiding principles that remain unchanged with times and seasons.

Nehemiah was the Cup Bearer of Artaxerxes, a very powerful and prominent Emperor of his times. A ‘Cup Bearer’ might look like a mere domestic servant in today’s society, but that is a totally false impression. On the contrary, this was the most responsible position as far as the Emperor’s life was concerned. Many were the enemies of such a powerful king, and attempts at assassination for a forceful takeover of the throne were common. Since the Emperor was always surrounded by powerful and skilled warriors, killing him with swords or daggers was close to impossible. Thus food and drink was the only route left.

Since food and drinks are a necessary part of life, and since many poisonous materials can easily be mixed with them without any alteration in taste, poisoning was one of the best alternatives for assassination. Only a totally loyal baker and cup bearer could ensure safety. The Emperor’s life was literally in their hands. Thus Nehemiah enjoyed total confidence of the King, and with such confidence came intimacy with the Emperor and unparalleled authority derived from that proximity. Yet we notice that his heart with in Jerusalem, and not in Persia. Consequently, when his brother Hanani came, instead of boasting about his own position, Nehemiah questioned him about the people of God. “I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem”, Neh. 1:2.

Obviously, the response was not all that encouraging. “And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire”, Neh 1:3. Nehemiah could have expressed his sorrow, and told them that he was praying for them. He could also have told them that he would ‘speak’ to the Emperor about this. And with that he could have left the matter there. He was in such a powerful position that the others could not do anything even if he failed to move his little finger for the people of God. However, instead of shrugging the shoulders, or instead of saying these things were inevitable, he get into the act. We see him doing several things, and each one of these is essential for those in positions of spiritual leadership. For it it here they demonstrate excellence through adversity. We see him doing the following things:

First of all, “And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven”, Neh 1:4. Rarely do adult men weep, specially when they hear about a group of people. It is an act simply not acceptable in most human societies, and all available historical evidence suggests that the Persian society was no different. Yet, Nehemiah did not try to suppress his grief. He was so deeply pained that the weeping and mourning continued for days, and he also abstained from food. Then he begins confession. Instead of finding fault with others, he confesses his own role in the sins and inequities of the people of God.

True spiritual leaders are full of commitment, however they show their commitment and capability in a special way when adversity strikes. What they do is not to find fault with others, but self-examination with humility. They recognize that as humans all of us are part of the problem. We are guilty, at least by omission if not by commission. And this spirit of humility opens the door for God to work further in the lives of the leaders, promoting them to do things deemed impossible thus far.

When the Emperor asked him the cause for his sorrow he became terrified. Any mood change on the part of people close to the ruler could immediately have caused suspicion, and this could have in turn led to their death. For emotional disturbance could be because they were indulging in doubtful activities which could endanger the ruler’s life. Yet, after an initial shock at the Emperor’s question he recovers his composure and speaks boldly about the problem.

A large number of people aspire to become leaders. More so in the spiritual world where competition is less and chances many. Yet a large number of them become cowards. They find it impossible to take a stand on issues that matter. However, to become a man God uses, one needs to be a person who speaks for God. And that is the second principle. In the case of Nehemiah we notice that in spite of his terror, he indulges in no excuse. Rather, he comes to the point and that also forcefully. And God saw to it that Nehemiah became the most powerful and influential spiritual leader of his generation, in spite of adversity sufficient to threaten his life.

Each action leads to more steps. The third action we note is “And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it”, Neh 2:5. He was ready to take action and he asks permission to do so. It was a costly decision. He would have to leave his comfortable position in the palace and be away in a deserted land for an unknown period of time.

All leaders know they will have to pay a price. Some are willing, most are not. Some serve the people, others serve themselves by keeping the position. It is this minority that builds up the people of God, but then they pay a cost which is often terrible in terms of human comfort. Nehemiah recognized this, and he was willing to pay it.

The fourth principle is seen when we read “So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.
And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem: neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon”, Neh 2:12, 13. The pitch dark of the night was definitely not a time to roam about in an ancient city, specially that it was deserted from all sides. Danger was lurking just around the corner, wherever he went. Yet he did go.

A dedicated Christian will have to burn midnight oil, take risks that others would not, and venture to directions which others dare not. People are terrified of uncertainties, but a leader is not. And the result is all history now. Jerusalem was built, and it was built in spite of all adversity.

Summary

Adversity shapes people in many ways. Some become worse, others become indifferent. A few rise to the occasion and build up. They rise to great heights, and in that process they become a blessing for multitudes. Circumstances do not break or make people. It is one’s response to circumstances that makes or breaks what one is. Adversity is the time when great leaders have a way to respond that makes them stand taller than their contemporaries.

To Continue …

As we look at the decisions that Nehemiah took, we should not see his actions in isolation to his social situation. None of us ever takes decisions totally independent of the milieu around us. Worse, many of us fall victims of the prevailing thought-patterns and end up opting for things that are not biblically sound. It is in this light that we should study Nehemiah and the decisions he made.

Nehemiah was in a highly elevated civil position in Persia. He could easily have continued in that job without getting his hands dirty in the task of reconstructing the city of God. He could easily have managed with “concern and prayer”, hoping that God would someday provide a solution. This kind of ‘detached commitment’ is very common among evangelical Christians. They frequently reason that they cannot fix what they have not broken. Nehemiah could easily have reasoned that way because the current situation in Israel and Judah was not his creation. The Jews of his time were mere nominals, paying only lip service to the Scriptures, and often more paganized than than the pagans.

Perhaps the root of it all can be traced to the time of the judges. Eli failed to be a model judge, and people were totally dejected. Still they felt they had some hope in Samuel, who looked a very promising judge. Eventually it became clear that he was no better than his predecessor. As a reaction, the people of God rejected Theocracy, the rule of God, because the key representatives of Theocracy had failed them. They felt that the solution now lay in Monarchy, the rule of a human and visible king. This was a serious error, for they attempted to solve a spiritual problem in a political manner. That led to the rule of Saul, David and Solomon. Eventually Solomon’s misdeeds caused the kingdom to split up into two factions, Israel and Judah.

Israel was ruled mostly by wicked kings, and thus God eventually punished them by sending the nation into slavery. Judah was ruled by a mixture of bad and good kings. The godly kings were frequently able to lead many reforms, and therefore Judah remained free of foreign oppression for a longer time. Eventually even Judah degenerated to such levels that God sent them into slavery and dispersion. This took place in 585BC under Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon.

Eventually Babylon fell to the Medo-Persian kingdom. In that kingdom arose king Cyrus the Great, whom the Lord motivated to grant freedom to the Jews. Many Jews returned to their homeland under the edict of Cyrus, a history that comes to conclusion under the leadership of Nehemiah. This is where Nehemiah recognized his call to get involved and dirty his hand building up the city [and people] of God.

Two group of people had returned to Jerusalem after this edict, but they were not able to fulfill their ultimate goal, which was to rebuild the temple as well as the walls that protected the city. Of these, the first group went under the leadership of Zerubbabel. The Lord greatly encouraged him, as recorded in the books of Haggai and Zachariah. However, the opposition was so great that the people became discouraged and they could not complete the work. A life of ‘compromise’ with the ground realities seemed better, and they all settled into the land without any more rebuilding. Gradually everyone fell into “doing what pleased each individual”. The correspondence with the present-day ‘if you like it, then do it’ should not be overlooked. Since this is not what the Lord wanted for His people and his chosen city, He sent a second delegation eighty years after that under the leadership of Ezra. This group was able to do some more of the work, but could not complete the task when the opposition mounted. Then came the turn of Nehemiah, God’s chosen leader for that task, and ‘for such a time as this’.

Ninety years of freedom is more than sufficient to reconstruct a town and resume a normal life. In fact even a tenth of that time was not needed, specially because the Jews had authorization for such reconstruction from the Persian ruler. People like Nehemiah who worked in distant countries obviously assumed the best for their own people. There were no newspapers to inform them of the daily developments. Thus Nehemiah was utterly shocked when he heard about the condition of the Jews and the temple of God. By this time, the temple and the city of God lay without protection for almost 90 years from the departure of the first group under Zerubbabel.

The situation was so bad that God’s people were totally discouraged. The city walls were in ruins, and the people of God enjoyed no protection from predators and plunderers. They gentile opponents were totally hostile, men who had great political clout around and also with the Persian empire. They were so conniving that they were able to subdue the most powerful Jews through inter-marriages, and eventually even came to possess portions of the Jewish temple where in principle no gentile could even put his foot. The things were as dismal as possible and Nehemiah could have easily escaped from any involvement by saying that he is only an individual, totally helpless against a hostile and violently aggressive social and political system.

A look at the church today will reveal the same situation. The walls of separation are broken down through all kinds of intermarriages — marriages of convenience where biblical stipulations are openly violated. The people of God have brought in strange people as bedfellows in alliances that bring them money, fame, power, or other coveted pleasures of life. Curious doctrines and interpretations have become common, as they tickle the ears without touching the moral life of people. Church has become a social entity so that the world and church no longer harbor any kind of enmity of suspicion against each other. Members of one are most welcome to sup with the other without discrimination.

Spiritual meetings have changed their face and tone to accommodate peoples of all beliefs, practices, and hues. Preachers are instructed to temper their words so as not to offend the sensibilities of the ‘secular’ dignitaries present in the so-called church-programs. Nay, the secular dignitaries often even grace the pulpits to present a facilitation or even to inaugurate and declare as ‘open’ a meeting where God is the purported head. A class of spiritual leaders have arisen who are tuned to the needs of the changes society, and conduct the spiritual meetings with such sensitivity and dexterity that none is offended and everyone is pleased — except God, that is.

It is easy for each one of us to excuse our inactivity and apathy. Most of us can claim that we are just ordinary and plain folks without any power or influence in the church, and that we cannot fight against the system. The few influential people, on the other hand, can claim that as highly respected people they do not wish to rock the boat or create confusion. It is a strange situation where every person claims that his situation does not allow him to do anything. However, just as Elijah was a man feeble and fallible like us, all the great leaders were ordinary people. What they had different was an extraordinary commitment to help the people and build the community of God. When He finds a commitment of that level, the Spirit of God takes that man and gives him a new vision. Along with that is given a new enabling that is needed to put that vision into practice. Adversity only made his commitment deeper and trust in the Lord stronger. That was Nehemiah, and that can be you and I.

The task begins, most assuredly, with laying the foundation of doctrines. That was the unshakable ground on which our predecessors stood, subduing the whole world to the Word of God. They were called the “people of the Book” and we also need to be the same.