Mm. One day, God will severely judge the world system known as Babylon. But does that have any application for Christians right now? Today, on Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah says yes, with a biblical response to the judgment of Babylon that believers should take to heart.
From the series Escape the Coming Night, here's David with the conclusion of his message: the collapse of the world market. Can you imagine a time in the world when all of commerce? Dies all at once, and everything stops, and there's no trading, and there's no business. The Bible tells us in Revelation chapter 18 that because of the iniquity, the influence, the infidelity, and the inhumanity of the commercial world during that time, God will judge them. And the Bible tells us that the monarchs, the merchants, and the mariners will all mourn over the loss of their financial lives.
As the world comes to an end, we will The collapse of the world market is part of the story. And today, on the Monday edition of Turning Point, we're going to tell you part two of that story from the 18th chapter of the book of Revelation. Hey, friends, please remember that during this month, Our resource for the month is a brand new book called Vanished. A fiction novel that we wrote together with Sam O'Neill. It is a timely and relevant book, creating a new way for readers to imagine the future.
It's fast-paced, it's page-turning, it's a biblical insight, and it includes discussion questions at the end of the book. The book is meant to open the eyes of those who read only fiction. To how it might be at the end when the world is coming to a conclusion as we know it today. The book is called Vanished. It is released in the bookstores on the 1st of July, so it is available now there, and you can get your copy here at Turning Point for a gift of any size during this month.
Just ask for the book, and we'll send it to you right away. Here now is part two of the collapse of the world market. The New Age movement has described us in terms that could be written back into this chapter. We are now God. We are in charge.
We are able to determine our own destiny. And if you read the philosophers of the New Age movement, they are saying that it's just a matter of time until we can genetically control our own conditions and we can be totally in charge of this world. And death will be taken away, and sickness will be gone. Man is the supreme God. Glory be to man.
Notice what it says. She glorified herself. That's infidelity. Who alone is worthy of glory? Only God.
And whereas in the past the idols of this world have taken glory away from God, in our day and age, man has taken that glory to himself. and committed infidelity. Notice the fourth reason. Babylon is destroyed fourthly because of her inhumanity. As we come down to verses 12 and 13, we are told about twenty-eight different items of merchandise.
Now, I want you to just look at these items. Gold and silver and precious stones come first. These are the earthly treasures which have first place in the hearts of men. That hasn't changed much, has it? Everything gets on the gold standard sooner or later.
Then come the things which are for show and personal adornment. You see those? Then come the choice articles of rare and precious wood, metal, and ivory. Then come the perfumes and the other luxuries which speak of the sensuousness of modern living. Then come the more substantial commodities, including horses and chariots.
Please note before we go any further that none of the things on this list so far are necessities. They're all luxuries. None of them are staple necessities. The list sadly ends with a very interesting inclusion. And the end of verse 13 we read, and slaves And the souls of men.
Now, notice they're listed in the list of commodities which are owned by the system. The word slaves is the Greek word that is translated in most places by the word bodies.
So people own gold and silver and garments and precious stones and wood and vessels and bodies. And the souls of men. People are put on the list of things that we own. Because you see, when commercialism and humanism and Babylonianism is allowed to reach its final stage, it is so dehumanizing that the human soul is of no value whatsoever. As long as the beast can advance his cause, one more body, one more slave, one more human soul will of be no value.
in the final system of commerce that will characterize the world. of the tribulation period, man will be nothing more than a commodity. He will be viewed as something to own and something to sell. The world system championed by the Beast will dehumanize mankind, as any system will do without God. Every single one of these inhuman Philosophies.
Start. when man says God did not create life. that God is not the creator. of each one of us. That God is not the author and the source.
of life as we know it. Once you say that man is an accident, That he came into being through the evolutionary process and he just. has happened to Rise. It really doesn't matter whether he lives or dies. But if he is A creature of God.
he is of inestimable worth. Mm-hmm.
So we need to thank God for our creation of students and scholars who are championing the cause of making sure we don't forget how it happened and where we came from and how we got here. Because that's down underneath all of this. Babylon is judged because of her inhumanity.
Well, let's talk now not about the reasons for her judgment, let's talk quickly about the reality of her judgment. Notice The eighth verse of the 18th chapter says, Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death and mourning and famine, and she shall be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. Notice the tenth verse, standing far off, alas, alas for the great city Babylon, that mighty city, for in one hour is thy judgment come. Verses 21 to 23. Jump down in your Bibles to those verses.
And a mighty angel took up a stone like a millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. And the voice of the harpers and the musicians, and of pipers and trumpeters shall be heard no more at all in thee. And no craftsman of whatsoever craft he be shall be found any more in thee. And the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee. And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee.
And the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee. For thy merchants were for the great men of the earth, for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
Now watch carefully. Please note that the phrase no more is used Six times in verses 21 to 23. And let me tell you, it is the strongest way the Greek language could say. Not at all. Not at all.
One writer has described the scene like this: The angel's words announce. most impressively, the vanishing forever of all the joys and delights of the great city. The music and the song, the hum of industry, the brightness of its illumination, and above all, the rejoicings of the bridegroom and bride, which in the Bible stands for the highest of all human joys. No more at all will songs fill the streets. No more at all will the artificer be found in her.
No more at all should the woman grind their corn in the city. No more at all should lamps light the night. No more at all should the bridal processions break the stillness of the evening with shouts of joy. No more at all. What a picture of desolation.
When God judges a nation or a city or a system, the judgment is sure and swift and final, and it's over. In this city, the greatest kings of the earth will be found, but in one hour, all their greatness and might and majesty will be gone. In this city all the best merchants of the world will be found, but in one hour the harvest will be gone and the bright and dainty things will perish. There will be no one left to buy or enjoy the things which they have for sale. In this city were the best dressed of all the world's people, but in one hour all the expensive and costly garments are gone.
In this city lived the best musicians, but in one hour every note was silenced. This city was the center of great weddings and bridal parties, but in one hour, and with one stroke of heaven's judgment, every sound of joy is hushed and the voice of the bride and bridegroom are heard no more at all. That is one of the most picturesque descriptions of the judgment of God I have ever read. Do you know that's what it's going to be like when God judges this earth? That's what it's going to be like when the rapture comes for a few moments.
And the joy of this earth is taken from those who have heard the word. But that's surely what it's going to be like in the tribulation. No more at all. Everything in which we find fulfillment will be gone.
Now, I want you to notice as we read in the rest of this chapter the reactions to the judgment of Babylon. And there are three different groups that react, and I can just point them out to you real quickly, and you can see them. First of all, The monarchs. Secondly, the merchants, and thirdly, the mariners. Watch carefully.
The monarchs will mourn. Verses 9 and 10 And the kings of the earth who have committed fornication and live deliciously with Babylon shall bewail her and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city, Babylon, that mighty city, for in one hour is thy judgment come. The kings who ruled and reigned and thought that power was all theirs, they're going to mourn because the city is gone. The great capital city of the Beast Empire has been destroyed. The merchants of the earth will mourn.
I guess. And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her, for no man buyeth their merchandise any more. Verse 11. The merchandise of gold and silver and precious stones and of pearls and fine linen and purple and scarlet and all fine wood and all manner of vessels of ivory and all manner of vessels of most precious wood and of brass and of iron. And on and on it goes, and the merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, and saying, Alas, alas, the great city that was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, for in one hour so great riches has come to nothing.
I just weep and mourn for people who pour their life into things. Who believe that life is wrapped up in what you own? How much money you have. Is so absolutely ridiculous when you realize that in a moment of time. It's all just erased.
The merchants lament because the economic hub of the world is gone. Bankruptcy faces the West. The stock exchanges will crash and the banks will close their doors and it's over. And people who put all of their energy into humanism and the Babylonian system of commerce, which says, get all you can, can all you get. They're just gonna die when they see it all go up in smoke and it's over.
Not only will the monarchs mourn and the merchants mourn, but the mariners are going to mourn. Notice what it says. Every shipmaster and all the company in ships and sailors and as many as trade by sea stood afar off and cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city? By the way, some of you might think it's kind of silly to think that the merchants would be trafficking with ships. But remember, this city, if it's rebuilt as we believe it will be, will be at the head of the Persian Gulf.
And in the tribulation, that Persian Gulf will be flooded with merchant ships coming from Babylon, the great center of world commerce. And then one day, when the merchants come into the Gulf and into the Gulf of Persia, they're going to look at the head of that Gulf, and the city where they have docked to trade their goods is going to be in a huge blaze of smoke and fire. And everything in their ship will be of no value, and everything they hoped to pick up while they were there will not be possible, and the entire system upon which they have built their whole lives will be gone. And they're going to mourn. John, in his letter, pictures the great fleets of the world standing far out in the gulf, and the captains and the crews of these vessels are filled with terror as they watch the city burn.
Yeah.
Now That's all pretty awesome and pretty sobering. But let me remind you that while this is all going down on earth, up in heaven, they're having a party. You say, well, wait, wait a minute now.
Well, I want to show you this. This is really important. The Bible says that up in heaven They are going to be rejoicing over her. Thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets, for God hath avenged you on her, and in her was found the blood of the prophets and of the saints and of all that were slain upon the earth.
Now, I want you to notice at the end of the chapter. That just as there are three different classes of people who mourn down on the earth, there are three different classes of people who rejoice up in heaven. Down on the earth, The monarchs, the merchants, and the mariners are mourning. But up in heaven, watch now. We notice that up in heaven, the apostles and the prophets.
And the saints. are all rejoicing. Why are they rejoicing? Because it was that system that martyred them in the first place. It was that system that wouldn't let them adhere to their faith in Jesus Christ.
It was that system that said, take the mark or die. It was that system that cut them to ribbons and flayed them in front of others and boiled them in hot oil and hung them up to die and sent them to the lions and martyred them. It was that system. That stood for everything that was against their faith in Jesus Christ. And one by one, they died during that period of time.
And it seemed as if nobody knew and nobody cared. And they came, as we learn in the sixth chapter, and the souls of those who were beheaded cried out from the altar, Lord, how long before you avenge our blood? And the Lord said, Wait just a while, just a time, take a rest until the cup of iniquity is full. And at last these who have tortured and judge the people of God. Are going to feel the judgment of God, and as heaven looks down and watches.
Heaven rejoices, not because of the judgment, but because God has been vindicated. and his people. have been supported. There's an interesting thing that happens. The prophet in the twenty-first verse we are told sees an angel take a great stone like a millstone into the sea as a symbol of the violent destruction of Babylon.
When the Lord was on the earth, do you remember what he said? He said that it was better for men to have a millstone hung around his neck and drowned in the depth of the sea than that he should offend one of God's little ones.
So this great godless power that is filled with the blood of the saints and prophets has a tremendous millstone placed around her neck, and she is thrown into the abyss of judgment as a reminder you don't mess with God's people. It seems sometimes as if we are Lacking a defense. Seems like sometimes we're out there all by ourselves, but God is not unmindful of what is happening. And one of these days, the score Will be settled once and for all. Do you know that this is the first time?
in this book of Revelation of Tears, that the command to rejoice is given? The saints in heaven from the time of the fourth chapter, and there is worship and honor and glory and power given by them to God, who is indeed worthy to receive this praise. But here, as though the saints now had their eyes adjusted to the glories of heaven, the command of rejoicing is given. The saints are called to look down upon the world they have left, and they see that the vile Babylon against which they have struggled and which poured out its scorn upon them has come to a complete and final doom, and they know that this world system will never rise again, and that's something to shout about and praise God for, and they just have a hallelujah time. And then there is One last thing that I want you to note.
Here in this text, and that is our response to the judgment of Babylon. The response to the judgment upon Babylon and upon the city. is Found in the fourth verse. And I want you to look there. And I heard another voice from heaven saying, Come out of her, my people.
That she be not partakers of her sins. and that she received not of her plagues. Who are his people? They are people who have Somehow embraced Christ during the tribulation period, maybe Jewish Christians. But apparently the pull Toward the system is still there.
Perhaps some of them have begun to move into the system itself. And this is a clear call from the Word of God to separation. From the system of the world. Listen to me now. Babylon represents the world system.
Let's be clear. What is the world system? It is materialism, pure and simple. It is humanism, it is everything that is apart from God.
Now, the call to each one of us is this. Come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the LORD. Do you know what the church is? The church is the eklecia. The ecclesia, the word means the called out ones.
Seven times in the Word of God. God's people are told to separate themselves from Babylon, starting in the Old Testament all the way through to this very last time here in the 18th chapter. You say, Pastor Jeremiah, what does that mean?
Well, it doesn't mean isolationism.
Sometimes Christians who have taught separation have thought that that means you don't ever have any contact with the world.
Well, if that were true, you'd have to go out of the world. You couldn't live in this world if you're not going to contact the world. And one of the reasons why we don't win people to Jesus Christ like we ought to, we don't have any unsafe friends. He's not talking about walking around with a holier than thou attitude and saying, I am not going to talk to anybody who's not a believer. There are some folks who have that idea.
Separation and coming out of the system doesn't mean we reject the people. It means we reject the doctrine, we reject the philosophy, we reject the practice, and we ask God to keep us from being sucked into the world's mold. And we don't buy into materialism, and we discover that there is something more important than the almighty dollar. That affluence for us has something to do with spiritual truth. Not just how much we can sign up on our bank book.
We don't get ourselves caught up into the game of power and prestige and performance and all of the rest that's up in this system. We stand quite apart from it and when people see us, They see men and women of God who are filled with love, who are having a great time in life, and can smile and laugh, and yet there's a different quality about us. that they can't understand. because we've separated ourselves from the system. Paul wrote similar instructions to the people in Corinth.
He said, Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God hath said, I will dwell in them and walk in them and will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you, and I will be a father unto you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord God Almighty. The reason why We are to flee from Babylon is twofold.
We are to separate so that we can keep from participating in their sins. And we are to separate so that we won't experience their plagues. That's what it says. Be not partakers of their sins, and receive not their plagues. Basically, what that's saying is this: if you want to live in the world system, you're going to pick up some of the plagues of the world system.
Even though you're a Christian, if you try to live as close as you can to the world and imbibe all of their philosophy, you're going to get some of the pain that goes with it. But if you separate yourself and live for God, And be a holy, righteous person. You can avoid that. I am absolutely convinced that if the people of our church would embrace this concept. And began to ask the tough questions that we ought to ask.
Lord, not how much should I give, but how much of what you have provided for me dare I keep for myself, providing as much of the rest for your work. You know, the best way I know to keep from getting caught up in materialism is to continually be giving to God's work more than you think you can. Always be challenging yourself. To putting more and more of what God has entrusted to you back into circulation for the Lord. It gets harder and harder as God blesses you more and more, and that's why you have to work at it over and over again to make sure you continually are reinvesting what God has given you back into His work.
so you don't get caught up in the money game. Materialism and Babylonianism is alive and well in our world today, but I hope you see what's going to happen to it someday. It's all going up in a puff of smoke. And I'd rather put my time in something that's going to last. I'd rather emphasize the Word of God and the people of God who are going to live forever.
There'll never be a chapter 18 about the things I'm committed to. The Bible says We are going to live forever and ever with our God. Amen.
Well, tomorrow we continue our journey toward the end of the book of Revelation with a two-day discussion of the marriage supper of the Lamb. It is a subject you will hear very little about in messages preached from pulpits, but it's an important part of what God is going to do in the future, and you owe it to yourself to find out what it's all about. I hope you'll be with us tomorrow as we delve into that. Ladies and gentlemen, we are going to New England and Canada in October, and the ship that's taking us has allotted us a certain number of rooms, and they're filling up quickly.
So let me just remind you that we'll be sailing on Holland, America. Zeiterdam is the name of the ship. And we'll be leaving October the 4th, coming back October the 11th and seeing some beautiful sights along the way. If you haven't already checked into this, please go to davidjeremiah.org. There, you will find all the information you need to be a part of that conference cruise.
In the meantime, be sure to join us tomorrow right here on this good station. Thanks for listening. Our message today originated from Shadow Mountain Community Church and Dr. David Jeremiah, the senior pastor. If this ministry is an encouragement to you, let us know by writing to Turning Point PO Box 3838 San Diego, California 92163, visiting our website at davidjeremiah.org slash radio or calling 800-947-1993.
Ask for your copy of David's exciting new novel, Set in the End Times. Vanished. It's yours for a gift of any amount. You can also view over 1,200 of Dr. Jeremiah's sermons on any screen, anytime you like.
On our Turning Point Plus streaming service for a monthly gift of any amount. Visit turningpointplus.org for details. That's turningpointplus.org. This is David Michael Jeremiah. Join us tomorrow as we continue the series Escape the Coming Night on Turning Point with Dr.
David Jeremiah.
