TODAY’S BABYLON
Ch. 8
THE PLAN OF GOD
A first step to fleeing from the great harlot is that every believer must
“get out” in their hearts. When our hearts are entwined with this world and all
the things in it, whether or not we actually live in the location called
“Babylon,” we in fact are in Babylon. James calls upon us to “purify our hearts”
(Js 4:8). It is here in our hearts that this issue of being in love with the
world and all of its security, pleasures and luxury, needs to be resolved. It is
in our hearts that we first need to be set free.
The spirit of the world
which is epitomized by luxurious, sensual Babylon is in direct conflict with God
and His plans for the human race. You see God made man for Himself. When He
created the human race, He did so with a specific intention in mind. Part of
that plan is that we would love Him supremely and put our love for Him and our
service to Him in first place. The heart of every human being is meant to be
captured and held by an intimate and total love affair with our Creator. This is
the position, the only position, for which we were made. He is to have the first
place in our hearts and lives. So when and if the human soul becomes attached to
other things, we then find ourselves in a position displeasing to Him.
This
present world, with all the things in it – the flash, the glitter, the
attractions and the pleasures – are a product of the devil’s kingdom. We read:
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world,
the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world – the lust of
the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is not of the Father
but is of the world” I Jn 2:15,16). Do you remember what it was that Satan
offered Jesus to tempt Him to disobey His Father? He offered Him “all the
kingdoms of this world and their glory” (Mt 4:8). The devil still uses the same
tactics today.
That’s right. The worldly things and pursuits which we find
all around us are not neutral. They are not merely “things” which have no
bearing or influence on the Christian’s or even unbeliever’s life. The
attraction of these things has a supernatural force behind it. It is as if there
is a kind of anointing which makes them seem more desirable than they really
are. This is the power of the devil working to attract and capture the hearts of
men and women. It is his evil scheme to distract us from God’s intentions and
bond us with the items and activities of his worldly system. In this way we will
be inhibited from focusing our affections completely on God, therefore
satisfying His desires. Further, we will never become any kind of a real threat
to Satan’s kingdom.
This loving of the world with all the things it has to
offer is one reason that Babylon is called a prostitute. She is yielding her
heart and life to any and all attractions which beckon to her. She willingly
indulges every sensual appetite which comes her way. Her lust for things and
pleasures is insatiable. Her passion is spent on any number of pursuits which
she believes might satisfy her cravings. Thoughts about her Maker rarely, if
ever, enter her mind. She is obsessed with luxury and pleasure and she gives
herself completely with abandon to anything she thinks will provide it. When we,
who should belong wholly to God, begin to think and act like this, we too become
part of the prostitute.
James, in his epistle, links this love for the things
and pleasures of the world with spiritual adultery. He writes: “Adulterers and
adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?
Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of
God” (Js 4:4). In the next verse he connects this love for the things of the
world with an abandonment of our love for God saying: “The Spirit who dwells in
us yearns jealously.” You see, God is jealous for our affection. His will is for
our love to be focused entirely upon Him. When it is not, we become spiritual
adulteresses. We become a part of the prostitute.
All believers who live
today in Babylon must have a real, profound, heart-searching time before the
presence of God and allow Him to purify them of all the things which would hold
them back from obeying Him. They must cleanse their heart of their love for the
world and all the things in it. Next they must begin to take steps to be
obedient to what He is saying to them today. When the situation becomes
critical, you will not be able to “go back to get your stuff” (Lk
17:31).
WHAT HOLDS US BACK
Many people love their country. Further, they love the place where they were
born and raised. Perhaps they appreciate the scenery, their neighbors and their
surroundings. Everything for them seems safe and familiar. Some are extremely
patriotic. Their love for nation is deep rooted, strong and unbending.
Consequently, the idea of abandoning all this and going to live in another
country with strange surroundings and even stranger people, not to mention
trying to cope with a foreign language, is practically unthinkable. Therefore,
these human sentiments hold them back from any thought of obedience to what God
might be saying.
Such sentiments are common, normal and understandable. In
and of themselves they are not sin. Most people have such feelings for their
home and country. However, there are times when God might require us to do
things which do not seem safe or comfortable. Our Commander might direct us to
move in some direction which is difficult, emotionally stressful and even
frightening. When He does, then we must deny ourselves the luxury of following
our sentiments and emotions and instead, follow Him. We must be willing to take
steps which might make us uncomfortable because we know we should be obedient.
Truthfully, there is no way for someone to leave home, family and country
without suffering strong emotional stress. This kind of move is easy for no one.
It is against human nature which always likes the safe and familiar. What God is
calling the inhabitants of Babylon to do is not going to be simple. There will
be many emotional and spiritual struggles involved. Therefore, don’t be put off
by these feelings. Don’t let them run your life. Don’t be seduced by them into a
false sense of security resulting in disobedience. Escaping Babylon will be very
difficult for almost everyone. Adjust your mind to this fact. Leaving will not
be easy. It will be an emotional and spiritual battle.
God called Abraham to
leave his home, family and country. He said to him, “Get out of your country,
from your kindred and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you”
(Gen 12:1). Do you imagine that this move was something easy for Abraham? Do you
think that it was easier for him, since he lived in another time and place, than
it will be for you? Certainly not! In order to obey God, Abraham had to face all
the difficulties, the battle with fears and emotions, and the dangers that any
one of us would encounter today.
In fact, I believe his move was even more
difficult for him since it is likely that there was no law and order to protect
him in any of the places which he was going. Further, he had no pictures,
atlases or videos to inform him about his destination. He had no opportunity to
go there on a vacation or mission trip to check it out. When he got there, he
couldn’t phone home to tell everyone had arrived and see if they were O.K. too.
Abraham had to simply move in faith, leaving all the safe and familiar behind,
in obedience to God Almighty. We too must be children of Abraham.
If you
decide to obey God and flee Babylon, you must prepare yourself to face ridicule.
People are going to laugh at you. They will think you are crazy. This no doubt
is the treatment which Noah received. Here he was building a large boat on dry
land. There was no way to get it to water. Nothing like a flood had ever
happened before. So everyone scoffed at him.
In the same way, the destruction
of Babylon will be like nothing which has ever happened, except perhaps for the
destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. No one in our generation has seen anything
like it. So when you begin to move yourself out of danger, others who see no
danger will ridicule you also. To them, just as with the men and women in the
days of Noah, things look safe and secure. They will believe that life will
always go on as it has before. Your preparations will seem idiotic to them and
they will let you know their opinions often and forcefully. Therefore, you must
prepare yourself mentally for this onslaught.
GOD’S COUNTRY
Another series of thoughts which might hinder those thinking about leaving
Babylon goes something like this: “God loves our nation. He has blessed us
greatly. There are many good Christian men and women here. How could it be that
God would allow this country to be destroyed?” Perhaps we can find some answers
for this by looking again in the Old Testament.
God chose the land of Israel.
He led His people there. It was a good land, full of all sorts of good things.
At that time, it was incredibly fertile and lush. It was “flowing with milk and
honey.” It was the kind of place in which it was easy and comfortable to live.
The Lord blessed His people there. He allowed them to build Him a temple in
Jerusalem. It was God’s chosen place, full of God’s chosen people who worshipped
at God’s unique temple on the earth.
But these people became disobedient.
They became sinful, immoral and proud. They never thought that God would judge
them or destroy their land because of all the foregoing facts which we have
mentioned. Yet He did. He did so because of the wickedness of the population.
Their sin became so great that finally He turned His back on them and judged
them. He arranged for another nation to invade them and utterly destroy them.
Today’s Babylon is no different and will not be treated differently from
them.
So if modern Babylon is massacring millions of unborn babies every
year. If they are sacrificing these children on the altar of their own
convenience. If many are regularly practicing fornication and adultery, not a
few of whom have different partners every night. If divorce, which God hates
(Mal 2:16), is widespread, a product of people’s insatiable desire for instant
gratification. If pornography is epidemic on the internet, the TV and in other
places. If strip joints and sex shops are popping up like mushrooms everywhere.
If homosexuality is increasingly common and blatant. If witchcraft and every
type of occult practice is on the rise, especially among the youth. And if all
these and many other sins are just as common or even more so inside the “church”
as they are in the world around them, will God not judge her? Certainly He will.
If and when a nation which God has previously blessed and even used for His
own purposes turns her back on Him, He will also turn His back on her and judge
her.
I’m sure that this sinful behavior of Babylon grieves you. It grieves
God too. But you cannot save your country yourself. You will not change God’s
mind or alter the clear prophetic utterance of the Bible. Neither will you
succeed in turning the entire nation back to God. Things have already gone too
far. Your best option is to obey Him. Through obedience, you may succeed in
saving yourself and some of your family from the judgment which God’s word
clearly tells us is coming. In this way, perhaps you will become an example for
others to follow and they too will be blessed by your obedience.
MAYBE YOU DON’T LIVE IN BABYLON
Perhaps some of you readers are understanding the substance of this message.
You are seeing how the love for the world and all the things in it, including
the luxuries, excesses and pleasures, are in opposition to the will of God and
His kingdom. Possibly you are even grieved in your heart that the world in
general is tending toward an increasingly promiscuous and luxurious direction.
You are seeing ever more clearly how seeking the things of the world keeps the
heart of man from intimacy with God.
But, you say, “Where I live does not
fulfill the previous description. It does not seem that where I live is the
Babylon of Revelation. My country of residence does not meet the criterion
discussed in this book.” For example, possibly where you live has no seaports.
It might be that the wealth of your country does not match what biblical Babylon
obviously has. Perhaps the worldly tendencies of the Babylonian spirit are
limited by poverty, governmental considerations, etc. Consequently, there is no
need for you to flee anywhere.
Yet there still is a critical question for you
to consider. Are you, as a child of God, pursuing the things of the world? Do
they attract and grip your heart? Even though you don’t live in Babylon, do you
wish you did? Has the wine of her fornication contaminated your being in a
manner that causes you to lust after all the pleasures and things that the world
has to offer? Are your thoughts and your time consumed with the pursuit of
success and money?
If so, then there is a need for a deep repentance. There
is a necessity for a genuine examination of your heart before the Lord. Anything
which He finds within us which is not wholeheartedly seeking His kingdom first
needs to be abandoned. The involvement of our heart with the things of this
world is spiritual adultery. If we are caught in this unclean, spiritually
immoral relationship, we desperately need repentance.
In these last days,
every child of God should be putting his relationship with God and his
co-operation with His will on the earth in first place. There is only a little
time left. We don’t have time to waste. Every believer who is in right
relationship with Jesus should be dedicating all his time, energy and money to
proclaiming the gospel and serving others. Instead of using our talents and time
to accumulate wealth and things, we should invest what we have – be it little or
much – in doing the work of the kingdom of God. In this way, and only in this
way, will we escape His judgment when we stand before Him.