The temptation to do whatever it takes to be prosperous is very strong. It is a kind of magic spell that beautiful Babylon puts over us. It’s like a potion that dulls our spiritual senses so we cannot fathom living any other way. Babylonian worldliness leads people to trust in their prosperity. It perpetuates the myth of security.

You would think that one thing every Christian would agree on is the need for personal and corporate holiness. After all, the Bible tells us repeatedly, “You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy” (Leviticus 19:2; 20:7; 1 Peter 1:16). As God’s people, we must strive for that holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14).

And yet, many Christians seem scarcely interested in holiness and little concerned by Scripture’s warnings for those who do not pursue holiness. It is easy to get Christians passionate about family matters, or cultural issues, or political concerns. But some Christians have actually argued that part of “knowing what time it is” in our cultural moment is recognizing that virtues like obedience, truth-telling and purity of speech are unnecessary obstacles to defeating our political enemies. More commonly, churches or pastors that lean hard into the Bible’s exhortation to holiness are likely to be called pietistic, legalistic and unloving.

We should not be surprised at these protestations. The world, the flesh and the devil have always hated holiness. How could they not? God is holy, and the unholy trinity (the world, the flesh and the devil) hates God. To be holy is to be like God, which means that a necessary step toward God is to flee the world. 

In Revelation 18:1-4, John hears a voice from Heaven calling Christians to come out of Babylon. Here, Babylon does not refer to one literal/historical kingdom. Babylon is a composite picture of many kingdoms—Rome, Tyre, Sodom, Nineveh and Jerusalem. Babylon is manifest today in the corruption, idolatry and immorality in America, in Canada, in the United Kingdom and in every other country. 

Babylon is the anti-church. She is the opposite of Christ’s pure, spotless bride. Babylon is corrupt society, fallen culture, decadent civilization. In a word, Babylon is worldliness. Wherever sin looks attractive, impressive and pervasive—and it seems that you cannot live without it—there is Babylon.

So how do we flee Babylon? It doesn’t mean we must leave our urban centers. There is often “Babylon” in the country as much as there is in the city. We come out of Babylon by not taking part in her sins (verse 4). Revelation 17 and 18 are a warning against spiritual adultery and compromise.

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