Choosing Faith: Witnessing Amidst Babylon's Deceptions

I heard another voice coming from heaven:

"Come away from her, my people. Do not take part in her sins, or you will be punished with her. For her sins are piled up as high as heaven, and God remembers her evil deeds. Due to her, as she has done to others, double her penalty for all of her evil deeds.

She brewed a cup of terror for others, so brew twice as much for her. She glorified herself and lived in luxury, so match it now with torment and sorrow. She boasted in her heart, 'I am queen on my throne. I am no helpless widow, and I have no reason to mourn.'

Therefore, these plagues will overtake her in a single day: death and mourning and famine.

You see this world system, this world system that bows its knee to Babylon, that uses money and economics and power to commit adultery against God, to blaspheme God, to call what's good bad and what's bad good, to call lies truth and truth lies. It's going to burn; it's not sustainable.

You see, economics and greed—if you read through all that description of Babylon—and this is what is so alluring about it, is because the promise of Babylon is: if you agree with Babylon, if you drink her cup, if you lie with her, if you follow the ways of this world, you can have great things. You can have splendor and luxury and extravagance.

But with that comes all of the penalty of it, the consequences of it. You drink the cup thinking that you're going to receive so much; what you end up drinking is the blood of the people whose lives she is shedding.

I can't help but think about the abortion industry. I'm going to hit every arrow today, every bullseye. The abortion industry has created its own economy. There are people making themselves rich off of killing babies in the womb, and how much money is being funded and being forced into political places of political power over abortion.

Think of the last election, the 2022 election. Because of Roe v. Wade being reversed, how many millions, if not billions, were poured into that election out of anger over abortion? You see, economics and idolatry are so deeply intertwined.

Verse 9:

Oh, continue. Verse 8:

She will be completely consumed by fire, for the Lord God who judges her is mighty. And the kings of the world who committed adultery with her and enjoyed her great luxury will mourn her as they see the smoke rising from her charred remains.

They will stand at a distance, terrified by her great torment, and they will cry out, "How terrible! How terrible for you, O Babylon, you great city! In a single moment, God's judgment came upon you."

And the merchants of the world will weep and mourn for her, for there’s no one left to buy their goods.

She bought great quantities of gold, silver, jewels, and pearls; fine linen, pure silk, purple silk, and scarlet cloth; things made of fragrant wood and ivory; goods and objects made of expensive wood, bronze, iron, and marble.

She also bought cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle, sheep, horses, wagons, and bodies—that is, human slaves.

That's interesting. The fancy things you love so much are gone, they cry. All your luxuries and splendor are gone forever, never to be yours again.

In a moment, it is all gone, and there’s no one left to buy their goods. The merchants are mourning because all their wealth is gone in an instant. All their splendor is gone forever. Everything that they held so dear is gone because of the judgment of God.

We see the contrast between the destruction of Babylon and the rejoicing in heaven over her demise. The destruction of this world system is cause for celebration in heaven because it represents God's victory over evil, His justice being carried out, and the salvation and redemption of His people.

It's a reminder that the kingdom of God will stand forever while the kingdom of darkness will be destroyed. It serves as a warning to Christians to not be entangled in the sins of this world, not to be seduced by the allure of riches and power, but to remain faithful to God and His kingdom alone.