Living In Babylon

I had a double whammy this week. A good one. While in the middle of a study on the book of Daniel, I came across a movie entitled “Time Changer.”

The movie wasn’t the most well-produced one I’ve seen. But it was spot-on in its context. Its theme reinforced what I had been studying in the first half of Daniel . . . living life with integrity in a corrupt culture.

In the book of Daniel, I was witnessing the integrity of a few young Hebrew captives living in Babylon, purported to be the richest and most beautiful kingdom of its day. Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego could have assimilated into this wondrous new culture, like many other captured Hebrews. But they resisted the temptations and remembered their one true God. It came at a cost.

Remember Daniel thrown to the hungry lions, and the other three thrown into a deadly, fiery furnace?

God delivered them because of their faithfulness in the midst of wicked Babylon.

In the “me first” culture of excess, selfishness, and ungodliness, they retained their integrity.

Jump over to the time travel movie, set in the 1800’s. A Bible professor trying to convince a colleague, a fellow Bible scholar, that the book he wrote and wanted endorsed by their seminary, though beautifully written, was encouraging people to stick to high moral values without including Jesus as the one who set the standards.

His colleague didn’t get it. He wanted to teach high morals but keep Jesus’ name out of it lest it offend some people.

How did the Professor convince the author of the book?

Yep. He sent him forward in time by way of a transporter. (I love time travel movies.) It was a time and place which the Professor himself had already visited.

One hundred years into the future.

Talk about culture shock! The colleague was fascinated by the advancements made in one hundred years, but totally disillusioned with the people and their way of life.

Selfishness and rudeness, disrespectful and rebellious children, and lack of face to face communication were disturbing. Many didn’t think their actions were wrong. Some thought being a good guy was enough. Others didn’t even know who Jesus is.

His biggest disappointment were the people of a church he visited. They were geared more to a social experience than a spiritual one.

While he sang the hymns with great enthusiasm and absorbed the sermon, most people seemed to just go through the motions. When he went out with the visitation group, there was no mention of the gospel . . . just advertising the activities.

He was appalled to hear people take God’s name in vain; apalled by the lack of modesty and the sexual titillation all around.

He stood up with integrity. He tried to convince people that Jesus is our only Savior, and the Bible should set the standard for living. He spoke of heaven and hell. His urgent feeling: “We must protect our children!”

Of course, many thought he was stranger than strange, including some people in the church.

The final straw was when he watched television in his hotel. He scanned the many channels and was horrified by scenes of violence, cursing, sexual immorality, rebellion, selfishness, and more meanness between people than he had ever witnessed.

He was heartbroken and asked God for forgiveness, finally understanding that teaching moral living was not enough. Jesus had to be in the forefront.

There’s more to the story, but being a Biblical scholar, he might have thought he was encountering a modern day Babylon. Beautiful and filled with any material thing a person could desire, but corrupt and self-absorbed.

He encountered a librarian at the University library, who was a dedicated follower of Jesus Christ. She talked about the “me first” concept of life. She spoke about media of all types being a tool of Satan, that through the years had desensitized people to evil, including herself until she met Jesus. Including many who claimed to be Christian.

Does any of this sound familiar?

As the world moved into more and more evil, some of the Church trailed along behind with the thought that “I’m not as evil as the world, so I’m okay,” all the while being desensitized to their surroundings, falling into Satan’s deceit.

I believe we are living in a culture that mirrors Babylon. I want to live in it with Christ-like integrity. I want to be like those young Hebrew men.

I’m most concerned for my grandchildren . . . all children . . . who live in this self-absorbed world. I want to be an example of godly integrity in a sin sick world.

As the Church, we must be aware and ask ourselves, “Am I allowing myself to be desensitized to evil, even in the smallest of ways?”

My desire is that the Church will take a stand, be strong, uplift Jesus, and spread His gospel.

Do we want to live a life of faithfulness and integrity in the midst of modern day Babylon?

I do. May God help us.

I had a double whammy this week. A good one. While in the middle of a study on the book of Daniel, I came across a movie entitled “Time Changer.”

The movie wasn’t the most well-produced one I’ve seen. But it was spot-on in its context. Its theme reinforced what I had been studying in the first half of Daniel . . . living life with integrity in a corrupt culture.

In the book of Daniel, I was witnessing the integrity of a few young Hebrew captives living in Babylon, purported to be the richest and most beautiful kingdom of its day. Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego could have assimilated into this wondrous new culture, like many other captured Hebrews. But they resisted the temptations and remembered their one true God. It came at a cost.

Remember Daniel thrown to the hungry lions, and the other three thrown into a deadly, fiery furnace?

God delivered them because of their faithfulness in the midst of wicked Babylon.

In the “me first” culture of excess, selfishness, and ungodliness, they retained their integrity.

Jump over to the time travel movie, set in the 1800’s. A Bible professor trying to convince a colleague, a fellow Bible scholar, that the book he wrote and wanted endorsed by their seminary, though beautifully written, was encouraging people to stick to high moral values without including Jesus as the one who set the standards.

His colleague didn’t get it. He wanted to teach high morals but keep Jesus’ name out of it lest it offend some people.

How did the Professor convince the author of the book?

Yep. He sent him forward in time by way of a transporter. (I love time travel movies.) It was a time and place which the Professor himself had already visited.

One hundred years into the future.

Talk about culture shock! The colleague was fascinated by the advancements made in one hundred years, but totally disillusioned with the people and their way of life.

Selfishness and rudeness, disrespectful and rebellious children, and lack of face to face communication were disturbing. Many didn’t think their actions were wrong. Some thought being a good guy was enough. Others didn’t even know who Jesus is.

His biggest disappointment were the people of a church he visited. They were geared more to a social experience than a spiritual one.

While he sang the hymns with great enthusiasm and absorbed the sermon, most people seemed to just go through the motions. When he went out with the visitation group, there was no mention of the gospel . . . just advertising the activities.

He was appalled to hear people take God’s name in vain; apalled by the lack of modesty and the sexual titillation all around.

He stood up with integrity. He tried to convince people that Jesus is our only Savior, and the Bible should set the standard for living. He spoke of heaven and hell. His urgent feeling: “We must protect our children!”

Of course, many thought he was stranger than strange, including some people in the church.

The final straw was when he watched television in his hotel. He scanned the many channels and was horrified by scenes of violence, cursing, sexual immorality, rebellion, selfishness, and more meanness between people than he had ever witnessed.

He was heartbroken and asked God for forgiveness, finally understanding that teaching moral living was not enough. Jesus had to be in the forefront.

There’s more to the story, but being a Biblical scholar, he might have thought he was encountering a modern day Babylon. Beautiful and filled with any material thing a person could desire, but corrupt and self-absorbed.

He encountered a librarian at the University library, who was a dedicated follower of Jesus Christ. She talked about the “me first” concept of life. She spoke about media of all types being a tool of Satan, that through the years had desensitized people to evil, including herself until she met Jesus. Including many who claimed to be Christian.

Does any of this sound familiar?

As the world moved into more and more evil, some of the Church trailed along behind with the thought that “I’m not as evil as the world, so I’m okay,” all the while being desensitized to their surroundings, falling into Satan’s deceit.

I believe we are living in a culture that mirrors Babylon. I want to live in it with Christ-like integrity. I want to be like those young Hebrew men.

I’m most concerned for my grandchildren . . . all children . . . who live in this self-absorbed world. I want to be an example of godly integrity in a sin sick world.

As the Church, we must be aware and ask ourselves, “Am I allowing myself to be desensitized to evil, even in the smallest of ways?”

My desire is that the Church will take a stand, be strong, uplift Jesus, and spread His gospel.

Do we want to live a life of faithfulness and integrity in the midst of modern day Babylon?

I do. May God help us.

I had a double whammy this week. A good one. While in the middle of a study on the book of Daniel, I came across a movie entitled “Time Changer.”

The movie wasn’t the most well-produced one I’ve seen. But it was spot-on in its context. Its theme reinforced what I had been studying in the first half of Daniel . . . living life with integrity in a corrupt culture.

In the book of Daniel, I was witnessing the integrity of a few young Hebrew captives living in Babylon, purported to be the richest and most beautiful kingdom of its day. Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego could have assimilated into this wondrous new culture, like many other captured Hebrews. But they resisted the temptations and remembered their one true God. It came at a cost.

Remember Daniel thrown to the hungry lions, and the other three thrown into a deadly, fiery furnace?

God delivered them because of their faithfulness in the midst of wicked Babylon.

In the “me first” culture of excess, selfishness, and ungodliness, they retained their integrity.

Jump over to the time travel movie, set in the 1800’s. A Bible professor trying to convince a colleague, a fellow Bible scholar, that the book he wrote and wanted endorsed by their seminary, though beautifully written, was encouraging people to stick to high moral values without including Jesus as the one who set the standards.

His colleague didn’t get it. He wanted to teach high morals but keep Jesus’ name out of it lest it offend some people.

How did the Professor convince the author of the book?

Yep. He sent him forward in time by way of a transporter. (I love time travel movies.) It was a time and place which the Professor himself had already visited.

One hundred years into the future.

Talk about culture shock! The colleague was fascinated by the advancements made in one hundred years, but totally disillusioned with the people and their way of life.

Selfishness and rudeness, disrespectful and rebellious children, and lack of face to face communication were disturbing. Many didn’t think their actions were wrong. Some thought being a good guy was enough. Others didn’t even know who Jesus is.

His biggest disappointment were the people of a church he visited. They were geared more to a social experience than a spiritual one.

While he sang the hymns with great enthusiasm and absorbed the sermon, most people seemed to just go through the motions. When he went out with the visitation group, there was no mention of the gospel . . . just advertising the activities.

He was appalled to hear people take God’s name in vain; apalled by the lack of modesty and the sexual titillation all around.

He stood up with integrity. He tried to convince people that Jesus is our only Savior, and the Bible should set the standard for living. He spoke of heaven and hell. His urgent feeling: “We must protect our children!”

Of course, many thought he was stranger than strange, including some people in the church.

The final straw was when he watched television in his hotel. He scanned the many channels and was horrified by scenes of violence, cursing, sexual immorality, rebellion, selfishness, and more meanness between people than he had ever witnessed.

He was heartbroken and asked God for forgiveness, finally understanding that teaching moral living was not enough. Jesus had to be in the forefront.

There’s more to the story, but being a Biblical scholar, he might have thought he was encountering a modern day Babylon. Beautiful and filled with any material thing a person could desire, but corrupt and self-absorbed.

He encountered a librarian at the University library, who was a dedicated follower of Jesus Christ. She talked about the “me first” concept of life. She spoke about media of all types being a tool of Satan, that through the years had desensitized people to evil, including herself until she met Jesus. Including many who claimed to be Christian.

Does any of this sound familiar?

As the world moved into more and more evil, some of the Church trailed along behind with the thought that “I’m not as evil as the world, so I’m okay,” all the while being desensitized to their surroundings, falling into Satan’s deceit.

I believe we are living in a culture that mirrors Babylon. I want to live in it with Christ-like integrity. I want to be like those young Hebrew men.

I’m most concerned for my grandchildren . . . all children . . . who live in this self-absorbed world. I want to be an example of godly integrity in a sin sick world.

As the Church, we must be aware and ask ourselves, “Am I allowing myself to be desensitized to evil, even in the smallest of ways?”

My desire is that the Church will take a stand, be strong, uplift Jesus, and spread His gospel.

Do we want to live a life of faithfulness and integrity in the midst of modern day Babylon?

I do. May God help us.