Revelation 18 august 26 2012 sermon slides

3. Revelation 17 . . .
“a literary triumph of
imaginative power”
“one of the most complex
passages of the entire book”

4. Rev. 17
Rev. 18

5. “Apocalyptic literature is a
special kind of writing that
arose among Jews and
Christians to revealcertain
mysteriesabout heaven
and earth, humanity and
God, angels and demons,
the life of the world today,
and the world to come.”

6. Apocalyptic literature
“reveals” these mysteries
through the use of striking
visionsand highly
symboliclanguage.

7. Don’t miss the forest for
the trees! Let’s not get
lost in the details and
therefore miss the
message Jesus has for us!
Our Guiding Principle

8. Chp. 1Chp. 2-3 Chps. 4-22
“Things
which
you have
seen”
“Things
which
are”
“Things which will take place”
Vision of Christ Vision of Consummation
TheophanyTalksTribulationsTriumphTogether!

9. Babylon the Great portrayed as a
woman, the Great Prostitute who rides
upon the beast (the AntiChrist)
Whoor whatdoes this Great
Prostitute symbolize?

10. Babylon derived from word “babel”
(Tower of Babel –Genesis 11)
Genesis 11:4
Let us build a name for ourselves.

11. Babylon in the Bible becomes more than
just a geographical city … it becomes
symbolic of this evil world system and its
design to write the true God out of the
equation of life. It is a mindset that says,
“I will be my own god! I need no other!”
Babylon the Great symbolizes . . .

12. Babylon the Great portrayed as
the Great Prostitute
Babylon the Great portrayed as a
great commercial center … a city of
great wealth and influence!

13. The realityof Babylon’s fall
(vv. 1-3; 21-23a)
The reasonfor Babylon’s fall
(vv. 4-8; 23b-24)
The responseto Babylon’s fall
(vv. 9-20)
Outline of Revelation 18

14. Revelation 18:1-2a
After this I sawanother angel coming
down from heaven, having great authority,
andthe earth was made bright with his
glory.And he called out with a mighty
voice, “Fallen, fallenis Babylon the great!
The REALITY of Babylon’s fall

15. Revelation 18:2b-3
She has becomea dwelling place for demons, a
hauntfor every unclean spirit, a hauntfor every
unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and
detestable beast.
The REALITY of Babylon’s fall
For all nations have drunk
the wine of the passion of her sexual
immorality, andthe kings of the earth have
committed immorality with her, andthe
merchants of the earth have grown rich from
the power of her luxurious living.”

16. Revelation 18:21
Thena mighty angeltook up a stone like a
great millstone and threw it into the sea,
saying, “So will Babylonthe great city be
thrown down with violence, and will be
found no more.”
The REALITY of Babylon’s fall

17. Jeremiah 51:63-64
When you finish reading this book,tie a
stone to itand cast it into the midst of the
Euphrates,and say,“Thus shall Babylon
sink, to rise no more, because of the
disaster that I am bringing upon her,and
they shall become exhausted.”
The REALITY of Babylon’s fall

18. Revelation 18:22-23
Andthe sound of harpists and musicians, of
flute players and trumpeters, will be heard
in you no more, and a craftsman of any
craft will be found in you no more, andthe
sound of the mill will be heard in you no
more, and the light of a lampwill shine in
you no more, and the voice of bridegroom
and bride will be heard in you no more.
The REALITY of Babylon’s fall

19. The realityof Babylon’s fall
(vv. 1-3; 21-23a)
The reasonfor Babylon’s fall
(vv. 4-8; 23b-24)
Outline of Revelation 18

20. Revelation 18:4-5
Then I heard another voice from heaven
saying, “Come out of her, my people,lest
you take part in her sins, lest you share in
her plagues; forher sins are heaped high
as heaven, andGod has remembered her
iniquities.
The REASON for Babylon’s fall

21. Revelation 18:6-7
Pay her back as she herself has paid back
others,and repay herdouble for her deeds;
mix a double portion for herin the cup she
mixed. As she glorified herself and lived in
luxury, so give her a like measure of
torment and mourning, since in her heart
she says, ‘I sit as queen, I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.’
The REASON for Babylon’s fall

22. Revelation 18:8
For this reason her plagues will comein a
single day,death and mourning and
famine, andshe will be burned up with
fire; formighty is the Lord God who has
judged her.”
The REASON for Babylon’s fall

23. Revelation 18:7
As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
so give her a like measure of torment and
mourning, since in her heart she says, ‘I sit
as a queen, I am no widow, and mourning
I shall never see.’
The REASON for Babylon’s fall
Self-indulgence

24. Revelation 18:23b-24
Foryour merchants were the great ones
of the earth,and all nations were
deceivedby your sorcery. Andin her was
found the bloodof prophets and of
saints, and ofall who have been slainon
earth.
The REASON for Babylon’s fall

25. Who is in control of Babylon
the Great? Who controls
this evil world system?
1 John 5:19
We know that we are from God,
andthe whole world lies in the
power of the evil one.

26. Revelation 18:23b-24
Foryour merchants were the great ones
of the earth,and all nations were
deceivedby your sorcery. Andin her was
found the bloodof prophets and of
saints, and ofall who have been slainon
earth.
The REASON for Babylon’s fall

27. John 8:44
You are of your father the devil, and your
will is to do your father's desires.He was
amurdererfrom the beginning, and
does not stand in the truth, because
there is no truth in him.When he lies, he
speaks out of his own character, for he is
a liarand the father of lies.
The REASON for Babylon’s fall

28. The realityof Babylon’s fall
(vv. 1-3; 21-23a)
The reasonfor Babylon’s fall
(vv. 4-8; 23b-24)
The responseto Babylon’s fall
(vv. 9-20)
Outline of Revelation 18

29. Revelation 18:9-10
Andthe kings of the earth, who
committed sexual immorality and lived in
luxury with her,will weep and wail over
herwhen they see the smoke of her
burning.They will stand far off, in fear of
her torment, and say, “Alas! Alas!You great
city, you mighty city, Babylon! Forin a
single hour your judgment has come.”
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

30. Revelation 18:9-10
Andthe kings of the earth, who
committed sexual immorality and lived in
luxury with her,will weep and wail over
herwhen they see the smoke of her
burning.They will stand far off, in fear of
her torment, and say, “Alas! Alas!You great
city, you mighty city, Babylon! Forin a
single hour your judgment has come.”
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

31. Revelation 18:11-12
Andthe merchants of the earth weep
and mourn for her, since no one buys
their cargo anymore,cargo of gold, silver,
jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth,
silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented
wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all
kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze,
iron and marble,
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

32. Revelation 18:13-14
cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh,
frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat,
cattle and sheep, horses and chariots,
and slaves, that is, human souls.“The
fruit for which your soul longedhas gone
from you, and all your delicacies and
your splendorsare lost to you, never to
be found again!”
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

33. Revelation 18:15-16
The merchants of these wares, who gained
wealth from her,will stand far off, in fear of
her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,
“Alas, alas, for the great city that was
clothed in fine linen,in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold, with jewels, and with
pearls!Forin a single hour all this wealth
has been laid waste.”
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

34. Revelation 18:17b-18
Andall shipmasters and seafaring men,
sailors and all whose trade is on the sea,
stood far offandcried outas they saw
the smoke of her burning, “What city
was like the great city?”
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

35. Revelation 18:19
And they threwdust on their heads as
they wept and mourned, crying out,
“Alas, alas, for the great citywhere all
who had ships at sea grew rich by her
wealth! Forin a single hour she has
been laid waste.”
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

36. Revelation 18:20
Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you
saints andapostles and prophets,
forGod has given judgment for you
against her!
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

37. Deuteronomy 32:43
Rejoice with him, O heavens; bow down
to him, all gods, for he avengesthe blood
of his children and takes vengeanceon
his adversaries. He repaysthose who
hate him and cleanseshis people's land.
The RESPONSE to Babylon’s fall

38. How should WE respond to Babylon
and its impending fall?
Revelation 18:4
Then I heard another voice from heaven
saying, “Come outof her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins, lest you
share in her plagues.

39. We must avoid the
snare of the mindset of
this world . . .
Pride
Self-indulgence
Self-sufficiency

40. “This is a call to live ‘in’ but not ‘of.’ In
the city, for where else can we go? But
not ofthe city. It’s no easy task. That is
why we need each other. That is why we
need Christian community. That is why
Jesus gives us Revelation! The imagery
sharpens the issues. The wild imagery
sharpens the choices. He gives us the
book to reveal (among other things)
what we do not otherwise know:

41. that the ‘great city,’ whatever its name, is
not as ultimate as it thinks. It is falling.
And right in the middle of it is the Lamb
who is Lord of lords and King of kings,
who is able to lead us in the ways of the
‘greater city to come.’ Jesus gave us
Revelation to free his church from its
‘Babylonian captivity’ –to free us for the
new city which will never fall.”
(Darrell Johnson)

42. Check out
the hair!!!

43. We need to WAKE UP and GET OUT of
bed with Babylon! GET OUT of the
cesspool known as Babylon the Great!
Am I living IN the world?
OR
Am I living IN the world but not OF the
world?