Interacting With Babylon

Post 319

So how are we, as the people of the Messiah, supposed to interact with the people of Babylon in such a situation as the last Post describes? The fact is that Mystery Babylon as a young girl, is already here. And, as we have already concluded-- through scripture, and reason, and conjecture based on reality-- she will be here for some time, and will become the very center of the world’s commerce before she meets her end. And, as I have shown in previous Posts, God’s people will find themselves entangled in Babylon for an undisclosed duration and unspecified cause, but God will call them out a full year before he sends her judgment. You really need to read the whole of Jeremiah 51 but that can wait till later:

“And I will send unto Babylon fanners, that shall fan her, and shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about” Jeremiah 51:2.

“Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the LORD’S vengeance; he will render unto her a recompence” Jeremiah 51:6. (Compare this with Matthew 24:15-21 and the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD as a useful bit of historical pattern).

“My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the LORD. and lest your heart faint, and ye fear for the rumour that shall be heard in the land; a rumour shall both come one year, and after that in another year shall come a rumour, and violence in the land, ruler against ruler” Jeremiah 51:45-46.

“And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars… For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom… All these are the beginning of sorrows” Matthew 24:7-8.

“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities” Revelation 18:4-5.

“And the men (angels) said unto lot, Hast thou here any besides?... bring them out of this place: for we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxed great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it” “And when the morning arose, then the angels hasted Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city” Genesis 19:12-13, 15.

The question I have long pondered is, Why would God be so gentle and longsuffering and patient and benevolent, and urging, to call his people out of Babylon over an entire year before he brings Judgment to Babylon? (Jeremiah 51:45-46) The Jews didn’t get such a lengthy “warming up to the idea” opportunity in the fall of Jerusalem (Matthew 24:24:15-21). The only possible answer must be found in who the judgment is meant for. The fall of Jerusalem was because of the sin and iniquity of the Jews (Isaiah 1:21-25), while the fall of Babylon is declared for the sin and iniquity of the Babylonians, likewise Sodom and the Sodomites. Now if God’s people (the Jews) in Babylon were to be found guilty while there, I don’t see God calling them out, but rather destroying them with Babylon. Therefore we must conclude, like Lot in Sodom, and like Noah in the world, that God calls those Jews in Babylon righteous, as God himself makes the comparison (II Peter 2:5-8, Isaiah 13:19, Luke 17:28-30).
This is an important distinction, because frankly, it’s pretty hard for me to analyze Lot’s life and the conduct of his wife and daughters; both married and unmarried, and conclude that I find him righteous (Genesis 13:12-13, 19:8,16, etc.). God looks on the inward parts while we tend to look on the outward (I Samuel 16:7, Romans 2:28, Matthew 23:29-29, I Peter 3:3-4, etc.).
What I am saying is that in that future near-off day we might easily judge the Jews who are in Babylon and condemn them with Babylon for her wickedness, while God sees that they are there and involved yet not partaking. Therefore we must be cautious to look for another reason why these people of God might be so reluctant to leave Babylon, as was Lot from Sodom (Genesis 19:16). And in our cautious looking for answers I believe we get an insight in our study chapter:

“Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD’S hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad. Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed. We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reacheth unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies” Jeremiah 51:7-9.

What we see here, in this one-verse mix of a whole lot of information at her determined end, is that even then at the last, this Babylon has great value that seems to us worthy to be healed, or “reclaimed.” The people of God dwelling in her understand her great value and perhaps even the great cost to the earth if she were to be destroyed. I believe this verse tells us that in the year before her coming destruction God’s people will be frantically doing everything they can to save her… just as God’s people in America are doing today.
What might this mean? It seems to mean very clearly that Babylon, though very, very wicked, is not all bad. Babylon also has virtue of great value that simply cannot be replaced when she falls. Ignoring for a moment the loss of wicked pleasures and personal gain, we see the evidence of this “not quite redeeming” but nonetheless genuine global value, by the reaction of the world’s merchantmen after her fall:

“And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, 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. And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more” Revelation 18:9-11.

Yes, of course we know that extortion and greed and power usually come with the sale of merchandise to one degree or another, and clearly we see in the continuing passage that this is significantly involved here, but my point is that the world needs merchandise and this is where the world will get it at that time. Today I might not like the prices of the local merchandise in my small town stores, but I have nowhere else to go to buy the goods that I both need to survive as well as the goods that just make my life a whole lot easier. I play no wicked part in whatever greed of merchandising might be going on, yet I would be greatly troubled if these shops downtown were to go up in flames, because I would have nowhere to buy what I need or desire.
So what happens if my local grocer actually turns out to be a nasty human trafficker that also deals in child porn and drugs as well? Am I wicked for buying my produce from his store? The scriptures tend to tell us, No. Might a neighbor who is “in the know” and sees me shopping in his store conclude that I am participating in the nastiness? Sure. (Now I hope you understand that this a hypothetical discussion!). But in my case, because there is virtually no other way that I can get my needed goods, God does not find me guilty for shopping there, nor for buying heating oil and gasoline from the local one-shop monopoly extortioner, or allow myself to be cheated monthly by another business’s faulty metering system, or buy so many Communist Chinese goods for that matter, or buy a communist style Healthcare insurance required by a godless government, or any of a number of other such things I would rather not do. The scriptures tell us that Lot, living in Sodom, was deeply troubled every single day by the filthy lifestyle of Sodom’s wickedness, and he was a city elder! (Genesis 19:1a):

“And delivered just Lot, vexed (928) with the filthy conversation (391) of the wicked: (for that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)” II Peter 2:7-8.

Vexed 928 basanizo; from 931; to torture:-- pain, toil, torment, toss, vex.
Conversation 391 (not <931) anastrophe; from 390; behavior:-- conversation.

But now as we continue Peter’s thought we see how this applies to the Jews in Babylon just prior to her destruction, and how it applies to us today as we try to live in this wicked world:

“The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: but chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities” II Peter 2:9-10.

Oh there is a lot in this verse!
First: “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations.”
This should warm our heart in knowing that I have no reason to fall to the temptations thrust upon me by my wicked culture or society, even if that society is Sodom or Babylon itself. If I fall to temptation it’s because I am not godly. Period. This, while sounding negative, is actually a positive thing before the destruction comes, because it allows us to see clearly that we have some housecleaning to be done; we need to become godly in the specific area of our failure (James 1:2).

Second: “and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:”
Here we see that the very same setting for the good of the one is for the destruction of the other. God is not just tolerating this wicked City while biding his time, but rather His hand is deeply in this setting for multiple reasons. In fact, God declares that he has used this Babylon and her golden cup of unspeakable wickedness for his own purposes, and that is to make the world drunk with abominations, filthiness, and fornications:

“Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD’S hand, that made all the earth drunken:” Jeremiah 51:7.
“…having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornications:” Revelation 17:4b.

But this is still too generic in God’s intended use of Babylon to reserve the unjust for their judgment; Jeremiah tells us that with the general judgment of the unjust, God capitalizes on two specific groups of the unjust:

Third: “but chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government.”
This is really two-legs of the same beast if you will. The life that chases after the worldly flesh does so in two ways: lust of uncleanness and despising authority. In the BBC news article of the previous Post did we not see both these legs in the life-style choices and comments of those that came to help the poor women?

Leg 1:
“The Raelians believe that planet Earth was created and is still governed by extra-terrestrials who will one day return to judge humanity. They believe in UFOs and that our purpose on Earth is the pursuit of pleasure” - BBC News1 3-17-2014 (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26577358).

Leg 2:
“Dr Brigitte Boisellier, president of Clitoraid, says: ‘This wonderful mission has now been stymied by the Catholic Church and its cronies, who are conducting a smear campaign against it for their own selfish motives’" - BBC News2 3-17-2014 (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26577358).

Regarding Leg 2, the news reporter did some commendable legwork to get to the facts of the case rather than go with the emotional opinion, and found that both the Catholic Church and the government had a different take on why things went the way they did:

“The Catholic Church in Burkina Faso has dismissed this allegation as ‘poisonous rumour’”.

“I go to the regional Health Ministry in Bobo and ask why. The minister is out of the country but an official there tells me that it is for bureaucratic reasons. The hospital administrators failed to fill out the necessary forms to allow inspections to take place before opening. It sounds like a reasonable explanation until the Health Minister, Lene Sebego, tells a journalist from the Thomson Reuters Foundation that ‘medical organisations should be focused on saving lives and not advertising their religion in an attempt to convert vulnerable people’” - BBC News3 3-17-2014 (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26577358).

It is going to be very easy in the rising emotion of “righteous indignation” to combine two issues here, but we must not do that. Nobody said the intended medical work was not honorable, needed, and praiseworthy. The government even allowed the hospital to be completely built, so clearly they were in approval of the focused intent to help these mutilated women recover their loss. What we need to discover is, Why then would they shut down the work after getting so close?
Now understand this; I am a committed Christian with the foundational desire to spread my Lord’s gospel to all I possibly can. Yet even I understand that Christians are often thrust out of countries after they are approved and arrive under the visa of; teacher, doctor, laborer, translator, etc., because they were found to be intentionally using their position and visa to spread their religion where it was expressly forbidden. The governmental premise is that “our people need these ministers of good will” but religion and religious values were not a part of what these governments have approved. What we see is a clear separation between the kind of work done in the regulatory eyes of these governments. In their perspective they would also thrust out an approved translator if he was found conducting medical surgery. It just makes sense, you weren’t granted a visa as a preacher.
So IF these current medical people had left their strange religions and contendable moral values at home, and came to Bobo to perform the medical work their visas approved, they would have most likely been allowed to do the work. And IF they had done this, Christians would have no problem supporting their work and even participating in that work side by side with these doctors. BUT, because-- as the News Article itself identified a dramatic focus-- they came publicizing their odd religious and moral values, now neither the government nor the Christians can participate in their program:

“Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for [their: v.29] conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof. If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake” I Corinthians 10:25-27.

This also applies to the work of the Pleasure Hospital in the article, though the name alone causes a pain of; “I don’t want to know any more details for the sake of the good work I wish to do with you.”
But once they promote their godless values by; wearing and explaining such abominable jewelry, making such declaratory comments of their values and origins and support, etc., now it’s too late to continue:

“But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof:” I Corinthians 10:28.

Note, that as with the two-fold use of Babylon itself, the same reason is used in the “Do” as in the “Don’t”:

“for the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” Meaning; all things are available to use, and to be used to the glory of God.

If the charity work of the Pleasure Hospital was really the humanitarian motive behind the workers, then the News Article’s writer would not have even learned of the strange values and unrelated history of the aid-workers (did we learn of their marital status or their political affiliations?), but clearly it was important to them that this other was made public, and so it was in the article, and this disruptive value then became a key part of the issue regarding their work. By the remark made by the government Health Minister; the government would rather have their citizen women remain physically damaged and otherwise whole, rather than physically whole and otherwise damaged by the bazaar ideas and lifestyles of the foreigners who brought the aid. And so they were shut down, no different than English teachers in china deported or detained for spreading Christianity in the classroom. This is not a medical issue and I support the intended decision of the government for trying to protect their vulnerable people. --I must add here that I often cringe at the lack of wisdom in many Christian workers who flaunt their illegal proselytization in foreign lands to the point that a government which was willing to turn a blind eye for the sake of the beneficial work they approved, is then forced to take action. Wisdom says use discretion.
I believe this concept is why Ken Ham’s recent debate with Bill Nye the Science Guy sadly went the way it did, he was not permitted to keep the discussion on the science and he got rattled as the topic diverged to where he had not prepared and where secular science is not interested in going at this point. In essence Ken Ham was requesting a science visa but the discussion turned to religion and the visa was denied because his science fell down.
Like women working in a man’s world; a Christian must be on his "A game" just to break even in the secular world. They will intentionally test us beyond normal just to see if we can make the grade. This is reasonable. I would encourage Mr. Ham to get back up, learn the lesson, and prepare to try again with more wisdom. They’re scientists, so sell them the science and let the science lead them to God (I Corinthians 9:20-23).

So getting back to the topic, Can Christians and God’s Jews live and work within Babylon’s system? Yes. But if it doesn’t daily vex your soul as you try to go about it, then you must seriously question your godliness in the fear of not escaping before the judgment comes. And what about your children who also live in that influence?

Lot was reluctant to leave Sodom, Americans are reluctant to leave America, aid workers are reluctant to leave the Pleasure Hospital in Africa, and God’s people will be reluctant to leave Babylon, because there is much good contained with the wickedness that will be a great loss when it all falls, and so they frantically try to patch holes in a sinking ship for as long as is possible. This is the same issue as not rejecting “all that come back from a trip to heaven” because most all of them are indeed of Satan. It’s just not that easy anymore. We need a heightened sense of discernment today to make the righteous judgment of surgically dividing the cancer from the patient, and even going further, to identify a benign lump from life-threatening before we start hacking:

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” Hebrews 4:12.

This verse is often used, but rarely understood.
Do you understand that the soul and the spirit often have two different motives, and that it is important to discern which is coming from which? Do you comprehend that that the thoughts and the intents of the heart are not the same thing, and must be distinguished properly? A man is in fact as he thinks in his heart (Proverbs 23:7), but that is not always what his heart intends! (Genesis 6:5 vs 6:2, Proverbs 24:12). The real concern for today is in the complexity and confusion, the hope of the good will encourage many to simply quit arguing and “go with it in good faith” and thereby fail to identify the evil in time.
Slumbering is not a virtue! and this in not a licence.

God uses the golden cup of Babylon’s allurements to capture the wicked and hold them mesmerized for judgment, but he also uses that cup of temptation to refine his faithful people who refuse to succumb to the draw but instead learn to hate the very sight of it for the destruction it brings. The golden Cup will either vex your soul or make it lust. The war in your soul is in making that choice. The fire-tried righteous who find God’s Rest in the presence of the beautiful and alluring golden cup have won that war and made the right choice (Romans 5:1-4).

Can a Christian work shoulder to shoulder with a Raelian in the effort to help a bunch of poor and mutilated women recover their God given natural state? Why not!? Just be cautious of finding yourself caught in the middle of something you really don’t want to be a part of! This potential should vex you as you work, and bring wisdom in carefully regulating the conduct of what you agree to join for a cause. Ask Lot if he thought the end result was worth his time in Sodom.
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