Salt & Light Blog

Revelation 18 The Fall of Babylon

1/4/2016

Revelation 18
Yesterday we read about the prostitute, Babylon the Great, the city which represents the earth’s evil. It is a city (or nation or nations) of great prosperity. A place where people live to satisfy the flesh through lavish living and sexual immorality. It is a hedonistic city that sounds like much of the world we live in today. Today we will read about her fall which is one of the effects of the seventh plague, the seventh bowl of God’s wrath (Revelation 16:17-21). We have already been told how she fell but now we hear why she fell as it is proclaimed in Heaven. Verses 1-3 read,
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
    She has become a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt for every unclean spirit,
    a haunt for every unclean bird,
    a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
3 For all nations have drunk
    the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality,
and the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her,
    and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”
The city where once people lived opulent lives fed by thriving commerce and insatiable appetites will become a place where no one lives. It will be a ghost town where unclean birds and creatures scavenge the dead, where idols lay broken and useless and demons freely roam in the remnants of evil. She will be used up, her resources sucked dry by the beast and the kings who follow him. All the hatred she directed at the saints will be repaid to her. Jeremiah 51:34-37 describes Babylon’s demise this way,
“Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has devoured me;
    he has crushed me;
he has made me an empty vessel;
    he has swallowed me like a monster;
he has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
    he has rinsed me out.
35 The violence done to me and to my kinsmen be upon Babylon,”
    let the inhabitant of Zion say.
“My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,”
    let Jerusalem say.
36 Therefore thus says the Lord:
“Behold, I will plead your cause
    and take vengeance for you.
I will dry up her sea
    and make her fountain dry,
37 and Babylon shall become a heap of ruins,
    the haunt of jackals,
a horror and a hissing,
    without inhabitant.”
What awaits her citizens is horrible. But every one of us has been warned. Some chose to repent and become believers, but most were too stubborn, arrogant, and prideful to yield to The Lord, to the Truth of Jesus Christ. And they will get what they deserve. God will avenge the saints they murdered, He will receive recompense for their sins. Verses 4-8 read,
“Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
“Come out of her, my people,
    lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
5 for her sins are heaped high as heaven,
    and God has remembered her iniquities.
6 Pay her back as she herself has paid back others,
    and repay her double for her deeds;
    mix a double portion for her in the cup she mixed.
7 As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
    so give her a like measure of torment and mourning,
since in her heart she says,
    ‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
    and mourning I shall never see.’
8 For this reason her plagues will come in a single day,
    death and mourning and famine,
and she will be burned up with fire;
    for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”
The crux of her fall, what tips her over the edge toward her doom will be the saints she hated being called home to Jesus. When the saints leave and the Holy Spirit is not there anymore, she will not hear, see, or recognize God’s warnings or His wrath. And God’s wrath can freely be poured out so the bride will not be harmed alongside the prostitute. We will be gone and the vengeance of the Lord will be on her for her sins. What are her sins? What are the deeds she will receive double payback for?
She glorified herself. She exalted herself. She was filled with pride. Look around you and look at yourself. How is your pride? Are you a “can do” person? When you accomplish something, who gets the credit? Are you glorified for your strength, your goodness and your ability or is the Lord glorified? Pride is deadly. We can so easily become prideful and forget that apart from Christ we can do nothing and we have no righteousness of our own. Psalm 16:1-2 says it this way,
“Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    I have no good apart from you.”
Pride causes us to take credit for what God has done. Babylon’s pride led her to a languid lifestyle. Verse 7 tells us, “she glorified herself and lived in luxury” She feels she deserves to “sit as a queen” even though she has done nothing to earn that rank. She is so full of self-importance believes she should never have to suffer. She refuses to mourn the losses she had already faced and repent.
There does come a time when people deserve to rest from their hard work and suffering and be taken care of by others (1 Timothy 5:3-16). The problem is, the people of Babylon all look for early retirement, they all look for wealth and set themselves up as royalty by living as if they are kings and queens. They look for money to support them and provide for them instead of God. They choose to let people serve them instead of using their hands to work. It is God who provides for us, including the work we do. Psalm 90:15-17 tells,
“Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
    and for as many years as we have seen evil.
16 Let your work be shown to your servants,
    and your glorious power to their children.
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
    and establish the work of our hands upon us;
    yes, establish the work of our hands!”
The fall of Babylon has worldwide impact. All those kings who used her as the prostitute will no longer be able to use her. All the wealth she floated and the promises she made will be gone. Verses 9-20 record the reactions,
“And the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning. 10 They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
“Alas! Alas! You great city,
    you mighty city, Babylon!
For in a single hour your judgment has come.”
11 And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.
14 “The fruit for which your soul longed
    has gone from you,
and all your delicacies and your splendors
    are lost to you,
    never to be found again!”
15 The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,
16 “Alas, alas, for the great city
    that was clothed in fine linen,
        in purple and scarlet,
    adorned with gold,
        with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.”
And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning,
“What city was like the great city?”
19 And they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out,
“Alas, alas, for the great city
    where all who had ships at sea
    grew rich by her wealth!
For in a single hour she has been laid waste.
20 Rejoice over her, O heaven,
    and you saints and apostles and prophets,
for God has given judgment for you against her!”

One day she stands arrogant and enticing, the next she is desolate. She cannot lead the world in sin or promise riches, she is gone. Her future is promised. If her citizens will listen they can recognize it, repent and put their citizenship in Heaven, their faith in Jesus, and their future in New Jerusalem. But the future that awaits Babylon is not only bleak, it is nonexistent. She will be utterly wiped from the earth. Verses 21-24 read,
“Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,
“So will Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence,
    and will be found no more;
22 and the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters,
    will be heard in you no more,
and a craftsman of any craft
    will be found in you no more,
and the sound of the mill
    will be heard in you no more,
23 and the light of a lamp
    will shine in you no more,
and the voice of bridegroom and bride
    will be heard in you no more,
for your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
    and all nations were deceived by your sorcery.
24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
    and of all who have been slain on earth.”
There will be no more celebrating for Babylon, no more money making, and no more killing and hate of saints. She led the world to sin. She was prideful. She thought she was the greatest in the world. She hated the children of God. She did her best to stop people from believing in Jesus. And she will pay the price Jesus promised for that grievousness. Matthew 18:1-6 reads,
“At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”
Reader, are you proud of your accomplishments? Does your life glorify the Lord or yourself? Is your pride leading people to follow you or is your humility leading people to follow Christ. Babylon’ sins are rampant and easy to fall into. The prostitute calls herself a queen and she will suffer eternal death for it. The bride lets Jesus make her a queen and she will enjoy eternal life for it.

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2 Thessalonians 3:6-18 Busy with our Father’s Business not Busybodies

9/5/2015

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2 Thessalonians 3:6-18

Laziness is not a fruit of God’s Spirit in us. Idleness is not a good thing. It leads to boredom which leads to discontentedness and sin. It does not contribute to the work of the church, our Father’s business. And it puts a strain on our Brothers and Sisters. Paul addressed the problem in his letter to the Thessalonians. Verses 6-9 read,

“Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. 7 For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you,8 nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. 9 It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate.”

Paul as a leader of the church, a missionary, and an Apostle could have let the churches he planted take care of his financial needs. He had the right to do that. Our church leaders and pastors have a right to be paid for their work. But Paul chose not to burden the churches with paying him. He worked as a tentmaker and earned his own money. (Acts 18:3). He supplied his needs and those who journeyed with him. Acts 20:32-35 reads,

“And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel. 34 You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. 35 In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

Paul worked to set an example to the church. He also worked because the people of the churches he planted didn’t need another encumbrance. And because the people he spread the gospel to, the people he served, shouldn’t have been expected to give him money. He didn’t speak and teach and then say, “Okay, now pay me.” He didn’t heal a person and then request they compensate him. He worked and earned his own keep. He gave out of God’s grace.

Working keeps us from being useless in the Kingdom. Working, staying active keeps us from many sins. Verses 10-11 read,

“For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. 11 For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies.”

The lazy person has time, too much time to consider the desires of his flesh. He desires money and wants it given to him rather than earning it. That leads to all kinds of wrongdoing. (1 Timothy 6:10). He covets what other people have and is not willing to earn it. He has time to judge the people around him and spread his malicious thoughts to others with gossip. Paul gave instructions about young widows, who if cared for by the church rather than remarrying and caring for a household, would turn to frivolous idleness. 1 Timothy 5:13-16 reads,

“Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. 14 So I would have younger widows marry, bear children, manage their households, and give the adversary no occasion for slander. 15 For some have already strayed after Satan. 16 If any believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her care for them. Let the church not be burdened, so that it may care for those who are truly widows.”

We are supposed to care about each other, but we do that without being self-important meddlers who judge, gossip and attend to everyone else’s life but their own. We care for and love each other. We love each other too much to let a brother or sister stagnate in sin. Verses 12-15 read,

“Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.

13 As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. 14 If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother”

First we encourage that idle brother to work. We also have to pay attention to ourselves, not wishing we could live the life of leisure that work-shy brother lives and not growing tired of our service to The King. And if that brother still remains lazy, we have to do the tough love thing. We have to warn him, stop providing his needs, and ignore him for a while until he hears The Holy Spirit and repents.

I know a few people who think the church is there to take care of them. I know a woman who quit going to a church when the Pastor told her he couldn’t keep giving her the many things she asked for. I know another woman who shows up regularly to a church only to get the pastor to pay for a hotel room. The pastor and by extension the church is very generous and kind, but when he offered these women a long-term solution to their problems, they refused. They didn’t want the solution that would take some effort on their parts, they wanted the silver platter. So in love, the pastor had to turn them down. The first woman did repent, and is now thriving. The second woman did not yet repent, but she stays in our prayers.

Jesus knew the importance of working even as a child. We have one story about his childhood, told in Luke 2:41-52. His family went to Jerusalem for the Passover every year. When Jesus was twelve, on the cusp of adulthood after the feast had ended his family left, but Jesus stayed behind. His parents didn’t realize it. I imagine there were many reasons for that, Jesus was probably a very responsible young man, the family was large and they were walking with the many other families returning to Nazareth. They assumed He was with His friends. But when they realized Jesus wasn’t with them they rushed back to Jerusalem frantically searching for their son. When they found him, this child who was not yet old enough to sit in the temple with the men, was at the temple speaking to teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. These man were amazed by His understanding. Joseph and Mary were astonished by everything about it. When they asked why he had stayed behind. Jesus answered, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?” (Luke 2:49).

Some versions use the phrase “Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49 NKJV). To be in our Father’s house, to be a follower of Jesus, means we are about our Father’s business. When Jesus returned to Nazareth with his parents, he was submissive to them, He grew in wisdom, and he grew in God’s favor and men’s favor. (Luke 2:51-52). Being about our Father’s business is a vital part of our walk with Jesus. Our Father’s business entails the paying jobs He leads us to, the ministerial work we do, our witness, and the service and love we offer to others.

Part of Jesus’ love is that He behaved in a way that gained favor from God and man. Our reputation, our testimony matters. Laziness is not a trait that Jesus had and it is not a trait we want.

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Revelation 18 The Fall of Babylon

2 Thessalonians 3:6-18 Busy with our Father’s Business not Busybodies

Donna Campbell

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