Jump Ship.
Read time: 9 mins
“After all this I saw another angel come down from heaven with great authority, and the earth grew bright with his splendor. He gave a mighty shout: “Babylon is fallen—that great city is fallen! She has become a home for demons. She is a hideout for every foul spirit, a hideout for every foul vulture and every foul and dreadful animal. Then I heard another voice calling from heaven, “Come away from her, my people. Do not take part in her sins, or you will be punished with her. Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a huge millstone. He threw it into the ocean and shouted, “Just like this, the great city Babylon will be thrown down with violence and will never be found again.”
Revelation 18:1-2, 4, 21 NLT
It has been said that when a mighty ship starts to sink, you should get as far away from it as possible. The idea is that as the ship sinks and water rushes into its cavities, you risk being sucked down by a vortex caused by the violent flow of water. Charles Lightoller, the second officer on the Titanic, describes this phenomenon as suction from the rush of water pinned him down twice. Miraculously, he was able to escape later and swim away. Other passengers of the Titanic give the credit of their safety to the strong men who rowed away far enough fast enough so that they wouldn’t be caught in the suction caused by the sinking ship. When a ship is destined to go down, you need to get away if you don't want to go down too.
There's another ship that is sinking that you must get away from if you don't want also to get sucked under and impacted by the same fate that awaits it. Revelation 14 gives us imagery of three angels with news that is a cause for celebration for everyone throughout all time. Like the news the angels shared with the shepherds that Jesus would be coming, It’s a joy bringing, peace promising everlasting gospel for every tribe, nation, language, and people. The first angel implores us to celebrate because the creator God has won. He is the judge and has ruled the case in your favor.
If that wasn't good enough news for you, another angel follows the first and tells us good news from a different angle. Not only has God won, the devil has lost. The devil has a counterfeit for everything God has. God has a kingdom that rests on self-sacrificing love and the devil has a kingdom that's built on a foundation of self-aggrandizing and oppressive pride. Babylon represents that demonic kingdom. Babylon, the seat of pride, confusion, and oppression has lost the war. God has won, and the enemy has lost. And if the response you should have isn't clear enough by now a third angel comes and tells us to choose the winning team. The angel reminds us that selfish pride doesn’t bring success like love and others-centered sacrifice does. The pride of Babylon doesn’t work. It is actually destined for a fall of destruction. The enemy's ship is going down, and you don’t wanna get stuck on that ship. You don't want to keep investing in a kingdom that is destined to implode on itself.
As humans, we seem to need a lot of reminders about simple truths. So the angelic messages don't stop there. In Revelation 18 we get another reminder. Babylon has fallen. She will sink like a boulder thrown into the sea. It’s not worth it to stay connected to a condemned edifice. You don't want to get pulled under with a ship that is sinking. So the angel continues and says “Come away from her, my people!” “Get out or you will be punished with her!”
So what is Babylon and how do I get away? What does it represent? What is being condemned here? What are we being warned away from putting our faith in? Who are we being called to stop giving our allegiance to? We must remember the history of Babylon. In Genesis, Babylon was erected on a foundation of mistrust in God and arrogant self-reliance on man. The people of Babel started to believe the same lie that Eve believed and many of us are being tempted with today. That is the lie that God isn't good or to be trusted. And when God can't be trusted, I can only trust myself. When I can only trust myself, faith isn't enough and I will be overcome with shame and burnout as I find identity in the self-righteousness that Paul calls pathetic. When I can only rely on myself, I have nothing of real strength or security to stand on. This is what leads to confusion, destruction, shallow arrogance, and violent oppression. This distrust leads to separation. And that separation leads to the fearful pride that is the seed of all the sins of racism, violence, greed, and hatred we see today.
Biblical authors don't tell us that pride comes before a fall as an abstract array of idle words. This is an exhortation of warning based on the foundational physics that governs our world. Pride comes as a prerequisite to destruction. It always has and always will. This is what we see Lucifer or the devil succumbing to. When you distrust God, you place trust in yourself. And when you place your trust solely in yourself, you seek to usurp God of His role while unraveling a world around you that you were never qualified to control. When you put the weight of the world on your shoulders instead of those of your Savior, you begin to crumble and cower under a pressure you were never meant to carry.
At the core of Babylon's destruction, Eve’s sin and and devils fall was distrust in God. This distrust in God led to the fearful response of overreliance in self, and that pride will always lead to the falls we keep seeing.
Our call is to taste and see for ourselves so that we know God is good and can be trusted. Humble yourself enough to let God really be your foundation. Even though a works-based and self-reliant, legalistic religion may sound pious or safe, it is just as arrogant as the pride that led to Babylon, Eve, and the devil's falls. Thinking that I am good enough to earn and maintain my own safety and salvation is saying the same thing the devil said before being kicked out of heaven, “I can fulfill God’s role in my life better than He can.”
The way you come out of prideful, confusing and destruction destined Babylon is by humbling yourself and turning to the winning team. Jump off the sinking ship of pride and find yourself safe in the rescue boat that is the arms of Jesus. Don’t try to rely on your own strength, allow Jesus to carry you. Don't rely on your own emotions or know-how. We must trust that God is good and will not withhold any good thing from us, even when we don't understand His methods. We must be humble enough to realize our role in this. We are sinners who are sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore. The only reason we are alive today is because we have been blessed to have a Savior who covered us when we couldn’t swim for ourselves.
Stop trying to fight on your own and rely on yourself. Salvation is only possible when you find your trust completely in the Savior. Put your weight solely in the strength of the Savior. Not in how you feel or what you see. Things may not make sense, but when you are honest about your weakness, God has the space to show His strength.
Why does the Bible remind us so much that God is good and can be trusted? Why does the Bible remind us so much that we can sabbath and rest in the finished work of God? Why does the Bible remind us so much of how broken we are without constant reliance and connection? Why does the bible remind us that God has the foresight and heart to provide all your needs before you know you need them? Because it is only by putting your faith completely in Jesus and not your own ability that you can be saved. Whenever I start getting a big head and wander away from complete dependence on God is when I fall. Whenever I try to approach temptations with my strength and not God’s is when I fall. Whenever I start walking without the hand of my Savior, I'm reminded that I'm just a toddler who can’t do anything without His father. When I believe in my own power, understanding or know how more than God’s Spirit, I am setting myself up for a fall.
So my call is the same as the angels and so many others in the Bible. Come out of Babylon. Come out of the worldview that says you have to do it on your own. Come out of self worship and reliance. Lean on Jesus. Try Him for yourself. Rely on Him. The ship of self reliance is destined to sink and will lead to your destruction if you don't come out of it. Pride always leads to falls, and if you don't wanna fall, don't live in pride. Find your identity and security through vulnerability and acceptance of Jesus. It may be scary but I promise it's not only worth it, it's the only thing sustainable.
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