Leaving Babylon pgs. 12-13
The first and most difficult step to leaving Babylon is to recognize who and what she is so that we can change our thinking. We must also understand what has happened to humanity since our fall to realize why we must leave. We have become comfortable and even feel successful here. Therefore, it will be difficult to begin “uprooting” our minds. This uprooting will only come through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The second step is emerging in the desert as children of God. As God’s children we must learn to depend on Him and choose His ways over Babylon in all circumstances. The desert is the testing and growing place for us. It is the place where we learn to know our God—the place where God Himself provides for us. Finally, we must establish ourselves in the kingdom by complete trust and obedience to Him. “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land” (Isa. 1:19, nkjv).
The journey will be difficult, but in Christ we have the victory. There may be setbacks and failures along the way, but He is more than able to see us through to our destination. Others have made it. We can too. Remember the words of the author of Hebrews:
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish… Think about all He endured when sinful people did such terrible things to Him, so that you don’t become weary and give up” (Hebrews 12:1–3, nlt)
God could give you everything you needed to live a carefree life, but then He knows you well; if you did not need others, you would live your life selfishly. He designed you so that you would need others. Whether it is for food, clothing, shelter or relationships, it is a part of His perfect design that we work and live together.
Sessions in Pain pg .184
“…30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’No other commandment is greater than these” (Mark 12: 30-31 BSB).
If we could believe that God does care for the beautifully dressed wildflowers, then we could grasp how much He would care for us. We speculate at the cliff of faith, contemplating the risk of leaping into His arms. We haven’t yet decided if He’s God or not. Is He Love or not? And if He isn’t, I want to know now so that I don’t waste another minute on this—but the only way to know is to leap!
Sessions in Pain, pg. 202
The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it (1 Thess. 5:25 BSB).
LEAVING BABYLON PG.72
I have found that when it comes to the cleansing of my mind from the ways of Babylon, it is my human goodness and human wisdom that gets in the way of the Holy Spirit more than anything else. I justify my right way of resolving issues over the still small voice of the Holy Spirit, over and over again. I’m like a person clinging to the rocks in path of the River. Once again, I become stagnant because I will not move on with the Spirit of God. The rock I cling to may be fear or pride. I cling to it at the expense of my River journey out of Babylon. But I can choose to release my grip by faith and allow the Spirit to carry me where He wills. I must choose to consult Him about every situation so that I remain on the course of His mighty River. “The old life is gone. A new life has begun!” (2 Cor. 5:17, nlt).
Beloved, God may allow your dreams to be broken, your heart to be broken, and your things to be broken—all to bring you to Him; and in doing this He is being good to you. God is the One and only place of true security and love, and He is passionate about you and will not let anything or anyone stand in the way of bringing you to Himself. Sessions in Pain pg.181
AUTHOR’S COMMENT: So many things can get in the way of our drawing near to Christ. We don’t ask for these things, it just happens in this troubled and complicated world. But Christ is faithful and determined to run through a troop and leap over walls to get to you – this is Love.
“He is faithful who promised” Hebrew 10:23b
Where we were born
Leaving Babylon pg.72 As we are coming to understand the massive change that is taking place in this new life we have in Jesus Christ, we must come to grips with who we were before. We were born in a swamp. We must realize the existence of the former influences that we operated under. If we ignore the truth of what we came out of, we will not recognize it when it tries to creep back into our minds. If we believe we were essentially good people before Jesus came into our lives, we will miss the importance of the mind renewal that we need. We must embrace the Guardian of our hearts and minds and understand our need for His protection. Only He can warn us when the enemy approaches. When you smell the subtle stench of the swamp
What we become in Christ
creeping toward you, allow the River to carry you far away from it.
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12 NLT).
Beloved, perhaps there is no place in our human experience to suffer without shame but there is a place above and beyond the shame. Jesus made that place possible for us—possible for us even when it was our fault, even when we did commit the sin, even when we deliberately and willfully did what was wrong.
Sessions in Pain pg. 86
AUTHOR’S COMMENTS: The songwriter wrote, “Amazing Grace” will always be my song of praise, for it was grace that bought my liberty. I’ll never know just how He came to love me so. He looked beyond my faults and saw my needs.” Andre Crouch.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8 NKJV).
Leaving Babylon pgs. 56-57
The nation of Israel continues to serve as God’s wedding ring to humanity, a symbol of His love for us. And just as a wedding ring tells everyone that we are committed to someone, the presence of the nation of Israel speaks to Babylon that the earth and mankind belong to God. This is why Babylon continually seeks to remove this wedding ring from the earth. Babylon will be judged for this. Once a wedding ring is removed, the promises made are soon forgotten. Married people who chose to commit adultery will often remove their wedding ring first. This act tells them and everyone else that I belong to no one, and I am free to be intimate with another.
Most of the Bible is about this tiny nation that contended with God through thousands of years of human history. Israel’s presence on earth is a constant reminder that the Scriptures are true and that mankind has a covenant with God that can never be broken. However, Babylon continues to try to remove God and mankind’s wedding band. Through thousands of years of war and captivity, as recorded in the Old Testament, to contemporary times, as recorded in world history, about the holocaust during World War II, Israel battled to exist. Today, she continues to battle in the Middle East as Babylon tries to remove the wedding ring. Babylon wants to remove the reminder of our covenant so that she can wipe God’s memory from our hearts and the hearts of our children’s children!
Israel, though physically small as a nation, is all God needed to stamp the earth for His beloved humanity. Wedding rings are small, but they shine bright as a symbol of promise and commitment. I believe God created Israel small, deliberately. So as Babylon, in her arrogance, rises up against this tiny nation and fails to destroy her, there will be no doubt that God is on the throne and will forever protect His covenant with mankind.
Many Christians comment that the majority of Israelis and Jews do not accept Christ as the Messiah and Savior of the world. However, without the faith of the Jewish disciples of Jesus, we would not have the New Testament. Jesus’s prayer for this remnant is recorded in John 17. I am especially moved by verses twenty through twenty-one,
“I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me because of their testimony. My prayer for all of them is that they will be one, just as you and I are one, Father—that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me” (nlt).
June 23, 2017 Headline from “The Times of Israel” story:
Unveiling clock showing 8,411 days left for Israel, Iranians rage against Jewish state
See link below
http://www.timesofisrael.com/iranians-parade-missiles-shout-death-to-israel-in-annual-rally/
We have read and heard about many who have died for the faith. The mindset at this level of faith is that of a great warrior for God. The warrior has answered the question, “Am I willing to die for what God has called me to do?” Few reach this level. When we read about the martyrs for Christ, we can only imagine the faith in their hearts; but to experience this faith is something all together different. Sessions in Pain pg. 138
AUTHOR’S COMMENTS: The great apostle wrote, “I die daily” (1 Cor.15:31). To experience the great and awesome faith of a martyr you must begin with the “daily dying”. The dying of your tongue, your attitude, and your behavior must proceed the full laying down of your life for Christ. The faith of a martyr is attainable even as you continue living, but it must begin with the “daily dying”.
LEAVING BABYLON pgs. 67-68
Touching God in the 21st Century? – Modification of Michelangelos “Creation-of Adam” by pravoslavie.ru
Babylon is the master of distractions. Often she will not come to believers with overt sins but with the subtle tease of distractions, anything and everything to interrupt your focus on your destiny in God and your relationship with Christ. She does not want you to pray or study God’s Word—anything but that! She seeks to keep you preoccupied every minute to hold you up from refilling on God’s power brought through prayer and His Word. Babylon will keep you grabbing for the minor things as she robs you of the major thing—your relationship with God.
David prayed:
“With my whole heart have I sought You, inquiring for and of You and yearning for You; Oh, let me not wander or step aside [either in ignorance or willfully] from Your commandments. Your word have I laid up in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalms 119:10–11, amp)
Businessman Praying — Image by © Hans Neleman/Corbis
Your only resolve is to make the decision to no longer be Babylon’s comfortable captive, but unplug your ears and hear what the Spirit is saying to the church—to you. You must set your mind to lay down whatever the Spirit directs you to lay down. Do not fear, for your Father is rich and will restore to you, in abundance, what you have sacrificed to Him in obedience. Trust in His freedom. Follow Him to the gates and leave Babylon!
