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Babylon (The Contemporary Christian Church) Is Fallen
"Babylon is fallen", is the cry of an angel with great authority coming down from heaven. Revelation 18:1-3 states: "Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird! For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury." Then, in Revelation 18:4, the Apostle John states: "And I heard another voice from heaven saying, "Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues." Who or what is this "Babylon" which has apparently housed God's people, because they are told to "come out of her"?
In Revelation 17:1-5, John is given a vision of a great harlot, of whom it is also said that she has committed fornication with the kings of the earth. And, Revelation 17:5 specifically states that the name written on her forehead is "Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots….." Therefore, since Babylon is depicted as being the "great harlot" in Revelation chapter 17, we can discover who Babylon is by simply identifying this harlot.
In the Scriptures, a chaste and righteous woman or bride often represents God's faithful people/Church. In writing to the Church, the Apostle Paul declares: "I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2nd Corinthians 11:2). Likewise, Revelation 19:7-8 also depicts Jesus Christ's true followers as His "wife", stating: "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His "wife" has made herself ready.
Just as a chaste and righteous woman or bride represents God's faithful people/Church, even so, an impure, "harlot woman" often depicts God's professed people/Church when they are unfaithful, disobedient and compromising with sin and the world. In Jeremiah 3:1 and Jeremiah 3:8, God refers to backsliding Israel and Judah, which were His Old Testament people/Church, as being "harlots" and having committed adultery. Also, in Ezekiel 16:26-39, God accuses them of being a harlot and an "adulterous wife". He states that they committed harlotry with the Egyptians, the Assyrians and with the land of Chaldea. And, in James 4:4-5, James refers to Christians who want to be "friends of the world" as being adulterers and adulteresses.
It is also noteworthy that Revelation 18:3 states that the "merchants of the earth" have become rich through the abundance of "her" (Babylon's or the Church's) luxuries. This additional "earmark" of Babylon also finds remarkable fulfillment within the contemporary Christian Church. The modern Christian Church in America has become fabulously wealthy, in terms of material wealth. American churches and ministries have assets totaling hundreds of billions of dollars. It can be truly stated that the "merchants of the earth" have become rich doing business with the American Christian Church; rich selling expensive tracts of prime real estate for mega church building sites; rich constructing elaborate mega church facilities; rich selling luxurious furnishings and state-of-the-art equipment to American churches and ministries; rich selling jets, yachts, luxury automobiles and multi-million-dollar homes to prosperity preachers making six and seven-figure salaries, etc. Yes, today's compromising and worldly churches and ministries (Babylon) have literally paid hundreds of billions of dollars to this world's merchants, thus helping them to become "rich".
Revelation 18:1-4 provides additional evidence that Babylon represents the churches in the last days. Why? Because, in Revelation 18:4, Christ's true followers are told to come out of "her" (Babylon). Where else would Jesus' true followers have been up until this time, but in the "churches"? However, because the churches in the last days have fallen into great disobedience and infidelity to God, to the extent that they are now referred to as a "great harlot" and as "daughter harlots"; therefore, true Christians, who want to remain obedient and faithful to Jesus, are now told to come out of the wayward, fallen churches/Babylon. True followers of Jesus must now choose between allegiance to "fallen churches" and allegiance to Jesus Christ and His word, the Bible.
About the Author
Have we already arrived at this point today, when it is time for true Christians to come out of the churches? Has Babylon (the contemporary Christian Church) fallen? For the answer to this question, and for an in-depth study of "Babylon", as well as a detailed listing of the numerous compromises and sinful practices within the 21st century Christian Church, read "Babylon is Fallen". And, also be sure to read other interesting and provocative articles at http://www.godormen.com.