Playlist: Babylon, Allurement of (topic)
What's So Bad About Babylon? (2013) (Part One)
Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)Babylon represents a pervasive cultural system of prideful luxury, fornication, and idolatrous self-sufficiency that seduces nations, kings, and merchants through its abundance and manipulative power. This system originates with the ancient empire symbolized as the head of gold in Nebuchadnezzar's image and persists across …
What's So Bad About Babylon? (2013) (Part Two)
Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)Babylon allures through a deceptive cultural system that captivates the senses and ambition while promoting self-centered rebellion against God. From its founding in the land of Shinar, the builders pursued manufactured technology, concentrated power in cities and towers, and sought to make a name for themselves apart from …
What's So Bad About Babylon? (2003) (Part 2)
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe entire Babylonian system has an enslaving, addicting, and inebriating quality, producing a pernicious unfaithfulness and Laodicean temperament.
Communication and Coming Out of Babylon (Part 1)
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe demons who already inhabit the earth look upon us as interlopers. We need to monitor our thought impulses, lest we be bothered by demons.
Our High Priest
Sermon by James BeaubelleBabylon presents itself as alluring through its wealth and seemingly reasonable activities, appearing as a dressed-up painted lady that draws people in with music, pleasure, and claims that the present age offers the best time to live, with solutions to problems always near at hand. This allurement masks a core that is rotten, …
Laodiceanism
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by John W. RitenbaughOur love for beauty must be coupled with love for righteousness and holiness. Our relationship with Christ must take central place in our lives, displacing all else.
Laodiceanism and Being There Next Year
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughOur biggest danger at this time is to be lured into spiritual drunkenness by the pagan Babylonian system. Our God is not what we say we worship but whom we serve.
Maintaining Good Health (Part 12)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe church of God today resembles a patient languishing from a deadly disease, resulting from a diet of spiritual junk food and neglecting the bread of life.
Knowing God: Formality and Customs (Part Four)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughHair length and clothing are outward indicators of a person's inner spiritual condition. They serve as a testimony of what we are on the inside.
Ecclesiastes Resumed (Part Twenty-Five)
Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)Gossip about us from someone we may have trusted can be painful, yet our tongue has likely been just as detrimental against someone who may have trusted us.
Remaining Free
Sermon by David C. GrabbeIn Revelation 18 the apostle describes end-time Babylon as addicted to comfort and luxury, merchandising in gold, silver, and every kind of finery while also trading in the bodies and souls of men. The soul, rendered from the Greek psuche and often denoting the heart, reveals that Babylon enslaves the innermost part of a person. …
Decide Now How You Will Respond!
Sermon by Martin G. CollinsWhile temptation is universal, it is not irresistible; no one is forced to yield. Every temptation provides a choice between life or death, blessing or curse.
Ecclesiastes Resumed (Part Twenty-Six)
Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)To keep us secure from the temptations of the world, we must embrace our metaphorical sister, Wisdom, keeping us focused on our relationship with God.
Knowing God: Formality and Customs (Part Five)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe notion that it does not matter what we wear if our heart is right on the inside is foolish. Our clothing ought to reflect our inward character.
What Is Always True About the World?
Sermon by Martin G. CollinsTo guard against the world, we must be careful not to fall into idolatry, based upon limiting God to tangible objects or those things which occupy our thoughts.