“And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird! For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury.” And I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. ”
Notice the wholistic nature of Babylon. The language of “fornication” is referring to the fact that she is spiritually unfaithful to Christ and is therefore a false representation of Christianity, again, flowing out of the history of Western Europe. Yet, remember she is not merely religious in appearance, but is also deeply intertwined with the culture, mainly through government (fornication with kings) and business (fornication with merchants). Revelation 13:11-18 reveals that the United States of America is not only apart of this system, but is the primary agent used to bring it’s image and influence around the world! And the sins of this system have now reached up to heaven, inviting the just judgment of God. Jesus calls you to come out of allegiance to the fallen system of Babylon, because…
LOVE DEMANDS JUST JUDGMENT
Notice that God is calling out of Babylon those He calls “My people.” Jesus has His people, from all walks of life, within many religions and denominations including Roman Catholicism, that He is calling out. It’s not just about coming out of the confusion of false religion that paints a wrong picture of God, but also about coming out of a way of thinking and being in the world we live in. He’s saying to break allegiance and loyalty to the fallen system of this world.
It’s like when God called His people, specifically Lot and his family, out of the city of Sodom. God was so patient with Lot and his family as they delayed coming out, but in an act of sheer grace, quickly escorted them out by two angels. However, as the city was being destroyed, despite God’s loving command to flee and not look back at the city, Lot’s wife tragically turns around to see the city she was loyal to and then immediately became a pillar of salt. She may have physically left Sodom, but her loyalty to Sodom was still in her heart! You can physically leave the way of the world, another religion or denomination and join this one and still have Babylon in your heart! To you Christ says come out!
The call to come out of Babylon in Revelation 18:2-5 is just a repeat and enlarging of the 2nd angel’s message of Revelation 14:8, which says…
“Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.”
The Kingdom of God on earth, through Christ’s loyal followers, becomes so revolutionarily counter-cultural, in the most beautifully compelling and attractive way imaginable, that they increasingly come in direct conflict with the fallen system of Babylon. Their supreme loyalty to the ways of Christ’s Kingdom subverts or undermines the system of End-Time Babylon, and in the wake of Babylon’s rejection of the Gospel, results in Babylon’s fall. Understand that when Bible prophecy refers to the Little Horn power of Daniel 7, The Anti-Christ system in 1st & 2nd John, the Beast from the sea in partnership with the Lamb-like Beast (the United States of America) from the earth in Revelation 13, the 10 toes of the statue representing Rome’s global influence through the nations of Western Europe, it is speaking of the same development of what constitutes the global, religious, political and economical fallen system of End-Time Babylon. And do not think that the lamb-like beast is only going to speak as a dragon, through coercive religious oppression, in the near future. Revelation 13:11 says that it is speaking or speaks like a dragon, meaning in the “present continuous tense”, it has always had the guise of Christianity, while speaking like a dragon through force and oppression. The oppression develops eventually into outright religious oppression, however you can spot the ugly stain of oppression throughout the history of our beloved country even to this day! He that has an ear, let him hear!
So ask yourself this honest question: What really has my allegiance? Is it Christ and His Kingdom or is it the culture, making of money or your political party? Is your version of Christianity one you try to baptize Western Culture into? Are you more passionate about these or any other thing than you are for Christ and His Kingdom? To you, Jesus loving calls to come out. Come out of loyalty to these things and give your love, supreme loyalty and allegiance to Him.
You see the call to come out of this way of being in the world, this fallen oppressive system is a Good News message!
The call of the Gospel is to Come Out of allegiance to the Fallen System of Babylon, to Come In to loyal love and allegiance to the Kingdom of God. You come out to come in! Jesus leaves no middle ground.
You see, Jesus is like a mother longing to gather her children to herself. And even though when He came to His people the first time to be received as their King, they rejected His reign of love, He still willingly suffered their abuse and went to the cross. And their He died, taking on the punishment, they, you and I deserve for our sin. There He revealed, in clearest light, God’s loyal love for you in forgiving all of your sin. And when you trust in the tidal wave of His overwhelming love for you revealed at the cross, guilt is gone! Shame for your past mistakes… all gone! And then loyal love for Him begins to well up in your heart for Him. As it beautifully states in the Desire of Ages…
“Only by love is love awakened.”
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