Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Dec 29th, 2023 No More At All

Today’s Passage – Revelation 16 – 19 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)

(Second Milers also read – Psalms 141 – 145; Proverbs 29)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – James 4:10

Read the “1229 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read previous posts from today’s passage – “It Will All Be Gone Someday” and “Supper’s Almost Ready.”

“And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all. … And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great 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 harpers, and 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 the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” (Revelation 18:14, 21-23)

The prophetic context of these chapters in Revelation is the Great Tribulation Period, which is a time yet future when the true Church of Jesus Christ will already have been removed from the earth via the Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13 – 17; 1 Corinthians 15:51 – 52; Revelation 4:1). If you are saved, you will not have to worry about all this crazy stuff prophesied here because it will all happen after we are gone. (Praise the Lord!)

In Revelation 17, the focus is on the fall of religious Babylon, which I believe is a reference to the religious system, an ecumenical and apostate church that will be in place during the first half of the Tribulation Period. This system will be destroyed by Antichrist and replaced by a system of worship headed up by his false prophet (the second beast) and will be centered in the worship of himself (Antichrist). In chapter 18, the focus is on on commercial Babylon.

The question arises as to whether “Babylon” here refers to the actual geographical location on the Euphrates River where the city of Babylon was once located when it was the capitol of the world back in the seventh and sixth centuries B.C. Or, is Babylon a symbolic reference to the capitol of Antichrist’s kingdom. It is possible that wherever Antichrist’s headquarters is located geographically that it could be given the name, “Babylon.” While the actual location of this capital city may not be precisely known, we do know that it will be the center of both religion and commerce during the Tribulation Period.

My focus for this devotion is on the repeated statement in Revelation 18:9 – 19, “no more at all.” In these verses we see that all of the things that people think to be supremely important – the “merchandise” along with the wealth that could purchase it, was all stripped away, until there was “none left at all.”

Recently, during the Covid-19 pandemic, we saw grocery stores shelves stripped of their merchandise. Toilet paper and cleaning supplies were all being rationed, and there were shortages of food items as well. Perhaps, that was just a small glimpse of what is coming someday in the Tribulation Period. Possessions and pleasures are so important to people, but God will someday take away all that these people hold so dear.

The Apostle Paul warned Timothy about the love of money and possessions:

“For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (1 Timothy 6:10)

Jesus also taught extensively about covetousness.

“And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21)

Christian, we know that these Tribulation verses do not apply to us in the Church, but let’s try to make a practical application from the passage. The people in Revelation 18 are mourning because all the things that they lived for – the things that were most important to them – were taken from them. How about you? Do you place an unhealthy value on the things that this world has to offer? Do possessions even matter at all when compared with eternity? We need to be careful that we do not get to the place where our possessions become idols. We need things to live, but the things that matter most are not the tangible trinkets that commercial Babylon produces. The things that are really important will be able to follow us into eternity. Just a thought.