Hello all,
Frequently I run into these two concepts on this site and forums:
"A woman in Scripture is a symbol for a church."
"Babylon is the church."
I have searched the site and have not found the scriptural, two witness, rock solid proofs, to back them both up. They each need at least two I believe. I see these concepts used frequently in the forums and figured that you folks toss them around so much that you would easily be able to provide this for me. I would like to have these proofs so that when I speak of these things to others, I can back them up.
Thanks in advance to all those who reply.
Fester
Short answer is all that economic stuff is physical and not trying to compete with the Gospel of The Kingdom.The economic stuff is the only thing that tries to compete with the Gospel of the Kingdom on the mass scale that it does in fighting for the attention of every believer. While they're worried about their bills, how they're going to feed their kids or send them to college, then obviously the Word has departed from before their eyes, from their ears, from their hearts, and their hands and feet aren't moving in the direction of the Word day and night while they're living hand to mouth and suspicious of preachers that are getting a bit too close to what they have in their hands.
The Religions of The World All teach man's way to be God and perverts all the good things from God for their own version of immortal mankind. Commerce is how we in the physical world work and live and learn even when in the control of oppressive people or government.Again, the deceitfulness of riches. The rich prosper in the world while the righteous prosper in God. We're not supposed to add to ourselves or to take thought for our lives, but to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and then all of these things are abundantly added to us besides because God gives us richly all things to enjoy when all fear's been cast out of our lives and we're not living in greed. A lot of people live in greed that don't have a dime 'cause their one consuming thought is how to get more rather than how to get the Word out and add to other people.
Ray and The Scriptures make the point that God is calling man out of Christendom in this age.God isn't calling man out of Christendom. He's calling man out of man-made traditions that make the Word of none effect. I love Ray. Don't misunderstand me. And I probably agree more with him on most things than with most others, but on this one point, God is calling us to be salt and light and to hold forth the Word of life before a crooked and perverse generation. You can't do that detached from people 'cause then how are you going to hold forth the Word of life before someone else? In the mirror??
Btw if you notice Religion today is the big business, who gets 10% + 10%Even if religion were big business, which I seriously doubt with personally knowing how much it costs to do anything. Ray probably knows by now with the costs associated with this website that the more people you minister to, it winds up being a bottomless pit on the bills. But if religion were a big business, that of itself wouldn't invalidate it. Walmart's a big business, but it's disgusting on other terms. Not 'cause it's big. Did God make the money for the gangsters or for His children that walk with Him? However the Babylonian mentality that tries to put as many people on minimum wage as possible and then to randomly cut their hours and benefits at will, while making unreasonable demands upon them the rest of the time that stress them out, stress out their families, stress out their time with the Word of God to where most wind up falling away from the amount of time that the Word demands from every man -- now that's evil. Doesn't matter if it's a multi-quadrillion dollar business whose shareholders are only making 2% because of expenses inherent in what they're doing. Anything that forcefully deprives one of their time and attention to the Word, the Blood, their faith, and the Anointing is AntiChrist, or Anti the Anointed One and His Anointing, which removes burdens and destroys yokes.
+ 10% and provide nothing but lies and distortions other than politics today.
At least business pays it workers something for their time and effort.It never pays enough to anyone. It takes more than it ever gives back. God's the only One that'll start paying you what you're worth if you avoid getting offended, protect your heart with all diligence, and not stray to the right or left from the exceeding great and precious promises that you're holding before a crooked and perverse generation.
Now that is my 2 cents worth of understanding, what is yours. ???I can't get into most of it and make a good faith attempt at abiding by the rules of the forum and being respectful in another person's house where Ray's ministry is concerned. But this one thing of calling the wheat and the tares Babylon is one of my very, very few peeves. Revelation says that it's the one that the Kings of the earth were consistently committing fornication with. It can't be the Kings of the Kingdom 'cause St. Paul said that if you're in fornication then you can completely forget about inheriting the Kingdom. Yes, restored ultimately in the last day, so don't misunderstand me on that since I'm a newbie to this particular forum. But Revelation is being specific about the world's kings being in fornication with it. The only thing that fits the description is the love and coveting after riches in trying to add to themselves rather than casting all of those cares upon the Lord and letting Him exalt them. God wants absolutely all of us exalted without measure by the abundance of His revelations, but He doesn't want any of us trying to exalt ourselves. He wants us revealing Christ. While we're revealing Christ, He'll reveal us. There's never a need to worry about that. This is one of the ages during which He's showing the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. But more attention is drawn to all of the different aspects of an economy in detailing what Babylon has seduced people away from the Word with, than specific rituals, traditions, ideologies, etc., in the book of Revelation.
When I read through the book of Revelation, Mystery Babylon seems more like an economic system than a religious one...
Even if religion were big business, which I seriously doubt with personally knowing how much it costs to do anything.
Walmart's a big business, but it's disgusting on other terms. Not 'cause it's big. Did God make the money for the gangsters or for His children that walk with Him? However the Babylonian mentality that tries to put as many people on minimum wage as possible and then to randomly cut their hours and benefits at will, while making unreasonable demands upon them the rest of the time that stress them out, stress out their families, stress out their time with the Word of God to where most wind up falling away from the amount of time that the Word demands from every man -- now that's evil.
Anything that forcefully deprives one of their time and attention to the Word, the Blood, their faith, and the Anointing is AntiChrist, or Anti the Anointed One and His Anointing, which removes burdens and destroys yokes.
It takes more than it ever gives back. God's the only One that'll start paying you what you're worth if you avoid getting offended, protect your heart with all diligence, and not stray to the right or left from the exceeding great and precious promises that you're holding before a crooked and perverse generation.
I can't get into most of it and make a good faith attempt at abiding by the rules of the forum and being respectful in another person's house where Ray's ministry is concerned. But this one thing of calling the wheat and the tares Babylon is one of my very, very few peeves.
But I still don't see the scriptural reference to Babylon being the church or christendom except that Ray says that's what is being referred to.
I admit, it could very well be that I am being left in the dark. So be it. But until God opens my eyes to this "mystery" I can not, in good faith, rely on man's interpretation. I am not into bashing the Catholic church, or any church for that matter because I believe it serves its purpose. However, just using the term "mystery" reminds me of the answers that the catholic church would give for questions posed for which they had no scriptural answer, such as the trinity....it could not be scripturally answered so they said it was a mystery. Same answer for the transfiguration of bread and wine into body and blood.
Anything I learned regarding "Mystery Babylon" was learned here at BT. This was never referenced in my former church. I just don't see the scriptural reference to Babylon representing christendom.
I pray daily for God to show me things that frustrate my understanding. Not His will yet, I guess. :(
Eileen
Marques,
I really appreciate your guidance but I think Judith is right. I just won't see it until God wants me to if ever. I admit it frustrates me to the point of wanting to give up the fight sometimes. And if that happens, I guess that would be of God too. It's certainly not my will. I want to know. I have spent half my afternoon (since reading your post) reading the scriptures you referenced in Revelations and Ezekiel. I saw in Rev. the mention of the seven churches and the calling of people out of babylon. But I just don't see the Babylon=Church connection. I wish I could for it would put my mind at ease. :(
Thanks again.
Eileen