their appreciation for you sending
your pastor to preach to them as well. These churches at Dudley
and at Ballymoney, both very small groups, just a few people, I'll continue
doing what I can to assist them, and I appreciate you doing what
you can and sending me to those places and praying for me. I'll
be at home now until the first of the year. I'm scheduled to
go to Alaska, preach for the folks up there. I ask that you
continue to pray for them as well. The Lord has, for some
reason, in his good providence, given us a voice in this generation. Let us faithfully, faithfully,
faithfully give ourselves to the business of preaching the
gospel of his free grace. Success in this thing of serving
our God is not something measured by men. and we should never attempt
to make the measurement. We should never attempt to make
the measurement. God does what he will with his
instruments where he will at his time. Let me give you two
examples. I just read this past week a
biographical sketch of David Livingston, the famous missionary
who went to Africa, labored all his life His whole life, his
whole life. One man in the African continent
heard the gospel and was converted, just one. Just one. Think he'd give up? No. God sent him and God used
him. And then that one man God used
literally to spread the gospel across the continent. Mr. Spurgeon, on January the 9th,
I think it was, cold winter day, couldn't make his way to the
regular place where he went to worship and stepped in off an
alleyway into an old primitive Methodist church and just half
a dozen people there. Preacher couldn't make it. And
one of the men in the church just got up and took a text from
Isaiah 45, 22. Look unto me, be ye saved all
the ends of the earth. For I am God, and beside me there
is none else. And he's looking around that
empty building. and trying to do as best he could to preach
or to exhort and to explain the passage and do what he could
to fill in. And there were just a few folks there, just half
a dozen or so, and he saw Spurgeon sitting over at one side. He
said, young man looks to me like you need to look. And he did. And God was pleased to use him
in such a remarkable, remarkable way. We measure success in the
cause of Christ by one word, faithfulness. That's all. Just faithfulness. Just faithfulness. I thank God for you faithful
men and women giving yourselves to this cause. Let's turn tonight
to Isaiah chapter 21. Isaiah 21. The title of my message
is The Burden of Babylon. Our text will be verses one through
10. In this short chapter, God's
prophet faithfully declares the burden of Babylon, the burden
of Duma, and the burden of Arabia. Let's look tonight at the burden
of Babylon. It's described here as a grievous vision of treachery,
theft, idolatry, cruelty, and judgment. Now don't be so foolish
as to read the prophet's words as no more than a historic account
of God's judgment upon an ancient people far removed from us. If you read the passage like
that, you read it with no profit to your soul. rather read the
divinely inspired word from God Almighty as God's message to
us, as God's message to his church today, the message we must faithfully
deliver to our generation, just as Isaiah faithfully delivered
it to his generation. For God's elect for his church,
this is a message of assured victory over a relentless foe. It is a message of assured victory
over a relentless foe. One of the things that helped
me many years ago to understand the book of Revelation, William
Hendrickson in his little, not really a commentary, just his
comments on the book of Revelation called More Than Conquerors,
made this observation. He said, John was given seven
visions of Christ and his church. And those seven visions, each
one begins with the first coming of our Lord, with the incarnation,
and ends with the second coming of Christ, taking in the whole
of this gospel age. And the message of each vision
is the same. The message of each vision is
the sure triumph of Christ and his church by the gospel. the
sure triumph of Christ and his church by the gospel. Christ
always prevails, and his church always prevails, no matter how
things look. Christ always prevails, his gospel
always prevails, no matter how things look to our natural eye. So this message, the burden of
Babylon, is for God's elect for his church, a message of assured
victory, of assured triumph, of the assured conquest of a
relentless foe. To all who oppose Christ and
his gospel, to all who oppose the church of God and his kingdom,
this is a message of certain judgment and utter destruction
under the wrath of God. If you oppose God and his Christ,
If you oppose Christ and his gospel, if you oppose the church
and people of God, you court certain destruction, utter and
everlasting destruction by the hand of God. Read the prophet's
words with me and tremble as the prophet himself did. Would
to God we could read these words as Isaiah wrote them. the burden
of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass
through, so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land. A grievous vision is declared
unto me. The treacherous dealer dealeth
treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up O Elam! Besiege, O Medea! All the sighing
thereof have I made to cease. Therefore my loins filled with
pain. Pangs have taken hold upon me,
as the pangs of a woman that travaileth. I was bowed down
at the hearing of it. I was dismayed at the seeing
of it. My heart panted. Fearfulness
affrighted me. The night of my pleasure hath
he turned into fear unto me. Prepare the table, watch in the
watchtower. Eat, drink, arise, ye princes,
and anoint the shield. For thus hath the Lord said unto
me, Go set a watchman. Let him declare what he seeth. And he saw a chariot with a couple
of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels. And
he hearkened diligently with much heed, and he cried a lion. My lord, I stand continually
upon the watchtower in the daytime. and I am set in my ward-hole
nights. And behold, here cometh a chariot
of men with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon
is fallen, is fallen, and all the graven images of her gods
he hath broken unto the ground. Oh, my threshing and the corner
of my floor, That which I have heard of the Lord of hosts, the
God of Israel, have I declared unto you. This is a prophecy
regarding the destruction of Babylon, who would, many years
later, take the children of Israel into captivity for 70 long years. but God graciously gives a word
to his church long before the captivity took place, preparing
them for trouble. How gracious, how wise, how good
our heavenly father is to his children. Before trouble comes,
he sends comfort. Long before, excuse me, long
before the children of Israel were taken into Babylonian captivity,
the Lord gives them this word of assurance. I'm going to destroy
Babylon. I'm going to destroy that nation
that takes you into captivity. I'm going to destroy those people
who spoil you. I'm going to destroy that nation
and her gods and I'm going to deliver you. He speaks of that
glorious deliverance and that's the message of verses 1 and 2.
He says the burden of the desert of the sea, this refers to Babylon
as we're told in verse 9. As the whirlwinds in the South
pass through, so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land. A grievous vision is declared
unto me. The treacherous dealer dealeth
treacherously, and the spoilers falleth. Go up, O Elam. Besiege, O Medea. all the sighing
thereof, that is all the sighing of Israel, my people in Babylon,
all the sighing of my people who've been in captivity for
so long, all the sighing of my people who have been abused for
so long, I have made to cease. Elam and Medea were ancient names
for the people of Persia, modern day Iran. Isaiah here declared
that the Persian empire would conquer the Babylonian empire.
With God give an eye of prophecy, Isaiah sees the Persian armies
marching against Babylon and prevailing. John Trapp made this
observation. God often uses one tyrant to
punish another. God often raises up one tyrant
to punish another. Here we see him stirring up the
Persians to plunder the Babylonians. Now, try to imagine this. Try to imagine this. What Isaiah
is describing is Iranians marching against Iraqis to deliver Israel. Iranians marching against Iraqis
to deliver Israel. That's exactly what he's describing.
We know then that all things work together for good to them
that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
The Iranians, the Iraqis, heathen, barbarian, idolatrous, corrupt,
vile, dirty people who always hated God's Israel, one marching
against the other for the deliverance of Israel. So it is with all
powers that be. Paul made this statement in Romans
13 and I saw it more clearly in this light this past week
than I've ever seen it by studying this chapter. The powers that
be are ordained of God. The powers that be are ordained
of God. No matter how evil, no matter
how cruel, No matter how viciously those powers oppose and persecute
the Church of God, the rulers of this world are ordained of
God as ministers of good to the Church of God. And that's all
they accomplish. That's all they accomplish. They
only do us good. What they do may hurt for the
time. What they do may be frustrating
and painful for the time. But the powers that be only accomplish
that which is good for God's church, for the salvation of
God's elect. You see, the rulers of this world
are ordained of God for the building of his church and kingdom. blessed
consolation for our souls in such days as these. When Darius,
turn over to Daniel chapter nine for a minute, or chapter five
rather. When Darius the king, the Median, took rule of Babylon,
Daniel and the faithful with him in Babylon must have remembered
this prophecy of Isaiah with joy. Y'all remember what Isaiah
said? Isaiah said that God was going
to send the Medes and Persians down here to deliver us out of
the hand of these Babylonians, and here it's come to pass. I'm
sorry, turn back to Isaiah 21 for a minute. We'll get to Daniel
6 in a moment. Now, look at the next verses
here in chapter 21. Though this burden of Babylon
was a declaration of assured deliverance of God's chosen people,
though the Babylonians fully deserved the judgment coming
upon them. They deserved it because of their
treachery, because of their idolatry, because of their corruption,
because of their opposition to God and his people. Though they
deserved the judgment, God's prophet was heartbroken as he
delivered the word of judgment against them. In verses three,
four, and five, he speaks of the judgment of God upon the
Babylonians. Now listen carefully. As though
it were upon himself. Oh, Spirit of God, give me such
grace. Make me such a preacher. Verse
three. Therefore, Isaiah is speaking
now, are my loins filled with pain. Pangs have taken hold upon
me as the pangs of a woman that travaileth. The same prophet
writes in Isaiah 66, eight, as soon as Zion travailed, she brought
forth her children. I was bowed down at the hearing
of it, at the hearing of this judgment, God's sure judgment
upon people who deserve his wrath. I was dismayed at the seeing
of it. My heart panted. Fearfulness
affrighted me. The night of my pleasure hath
he turned into fear unto me. prepare the table, watch in the
watchtower, eat, drink, arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield. Now look at Daniel 6. It seems to me that Isaiah put
himself in the place of Belshazzar. He seems to have had terror in
his very soul for the king of Babylon. This king of Babylon
brought unto the judgment of God justice. This king of Babylon
who was the abuser of God's people. This king of Babylon who despised
God and his people. This king of Babylon who mocked
the worship of God. Isaiah trembled for him. Isaiah trembled for him. Daniel
chapter 5 verse 1. Belshazzar the king made a great
feast to a thousand of his lords and drank wine before the thousand.
Belshazzar, whilst he tasted the wine, commanded to bring
the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar
had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem, that the king
and his princes, his wives and his concubines might drink therein. He said, go down there and get
those holy vessels that the Jews used to worship their God. Go bring them in here and let's
get drunk and mock their God. Then they brought the golden
vessels that were taken out of the temple to the house of God,
which was at Jerusalem. And the king and his princes,
his wives and his concubines drank in them, they drank wine.
and praise the gods of gold and of silver, of brass, of iron,
of wood, and of stone. In the same hour came forth fingers
of a man's hand and wrote over against the candlestick upon
the plaster of the wall of the king's palace. And the king saw
the part of the hand that wrote. The king just saw a hand writing
on the wall. This is exactly where you get
that expression, that's the hand writing on the wall. The king
saw a hand writing on the wall. Then the king's countenance was
changed. He sobered up real quick. His
thoughts troubled him. so that the joints of his loins
were loosed. He messed his pants. And his
knees smote one against the other. Look at verse 30. And that night
was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And slaying him, God sent Darius. How great, how terrifying, are
the alarms of a screaming guilty conscience when suddenly faced
with meeting God in judgment. This drunken king in his revelry,
in his great boasted bravery, this drunken king sees God writing
on the wall and says, you're gonna die right now. And he just
couldn't take it, he couldn't take it. I've seen men dying, conscious
of their dying, who didn't know God. And the screaming guilty
conscience is tormented. Yet how broken our hearts ought
to be at the thought of sinners perishing under the wrath of
God. Oh, God forgive me. of that hardness of my heart
that doesn't force me to weep every time I think about one
of you going to hell right now. It's no wonder God used such
men as George Whitefield. He'd stand in the pulpit and
preach for folks and suddenly just quit preaching and sobbed
like a baby. He said, I'll weep for you who
cannot weep for yourselves. Isaiah saw the judgment of God
upon these people and he said, it was like the judgment of God
on me. I can relate to it a little bit.
I've had to preach the funerals of some who were very dear to
me. knowing that they are forever
in the pit of the damned. Would to God I could have the
same sense of trembling for every sinner to whom I preach. That's
just how we ought to go about this business. This is something
like what Paul expresses in Romans 9. I say the truth in Christ,
I lie not. My conscience also bearing me
witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual
sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that I myself
were a curse from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according
to the flesh. Turn to Matthew chapter 23, Matthew
23. Let me show you an even clearer
expression. So we believe in God's sovereignty,
we believe in predestination, we believe in election, we believe
in reprobation. I think I faithfully preached
those things to you. But don't, oh God, don't allow
us to form a calculated system of theology that makes our hearts
hard toward immortal souls. Hear our Savior, Matthew 23,
verse 37. Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem. He's
going up to Calvary, about to be crucified at Jerusalem, about
to be crucified by the very Jews who now hear him speak. Thou
that killest the prophets and stonest them which are sin unto
thee. This has been your reputation ever since God brought you up
out of Egypt. killing prophets, stoning faithful
men one after the other. The Savior says, how oft would
I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathered
her chickens under her wings, and ye would not. Oh, how willing, how anxious,
how happy the Christ of God is to save sinners such as you and
me. How willing, how anxious, how
happy the Christ of God is to save sinners who fully deserve
his wrath. And you would not. Therefore
the judgment falls. Behold, your house is left unto
you desolate. But the faithful prophet is still
paid. Now, back in Isaiah 21, verses
six, seven, and eight. Here the prophet speaks of God's
watchman set upon the walls of Zion. For thus hath the Lord
said unto me, go set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses
and a chariot of camels. And he hearkened diligently with
much heed. and decried a lion. He saw a
chariot of asses and a chariot of camels, then a lion. What
a difference, a lion. My Lord, I stand continually
upon the watchtower in the daytime and I am set in my ward whole
nights. Faithful gospel preachers are
God's watchmen. Faithful men, God's servants,
God's watchmen. Each one is set in his place
by the hand of God in his providence upon the walls of Zion. Each one set in his place by
the hand of God, by the purpose of God, by the providence of
God, by the spirit of God, each one, each one. I had absolutely
no question when first I came here that this is where God had
put me and I have no question today. And I have no interest
in going anywhere else, none at all. I'm fully prepared, I'm
fully convinced that God graciously, wisely, providentially prepares
his watchman to minister in the place where he would put him,
where he would serve him, and prepares the people to whom he
must preach the gospel. God's watchmen are set by God
in God's appointed place upon the walls of Zion, there to watch
over the souls of men. The faithful watchman never leaves
his watchtower. By day and by night, he labors
in the word, in the doctrine, in prayer, in concern, in heaviness,
watching over immortal souls as one that must give account. Turn to Ezekiel chapter three. Ezekiel chapter three. Verse 15. Then I came to the captivity
of Tel Aviv that dwelt by the river of Kibar, and I sat where
they sat and remained there astonished among them seven days. I sat where they sat and remained
astonished among them for a week, I sat there in their place, astonished,
astonished. In the time of the fullness of
a man's life, set forth by seven, I sat there where they sat, astonished. No preacher will ever serve the
souls of men who doesn't sit where they sit. who doesn't put himself where
those men and women are to whom he preaches as one of them. And it came to pass at the end
of seven days that the word of the Lord came unto me saying,
son of man, I have made thee a watchman under the house of
Israel. Therefore hear the word at my
mouth and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked,
thou shalt surely die, and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest
to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life. The same
wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but you'll die with him. His
blood will I require at thy hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked and
turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall
die in his iniquity. but thou hast delivered thy soul. Back to Isaiah 21. God's faithful watchman faithfully
declares only what he sees. He faithfully declares only what
he sees. Not what he digs out of the books
of men by deep study and research. Not what he's listened to somebody
else say. Not what somebody else has experienced.
But only that which he sees by his own experience of grace and
by the teaching of God. Let him declare what he seeth,
verse six. And look at what Isaiah saw.
He saw the chariots of the approaching armies of the Medes and Persians
sent by God to destroy the Babylonians for the deliverance of Israel.
But he saw more than that. He saw a lion, a lion. There's a lion involved in this
thing. That lion is the lion of the
tribe of Judah, our Lord Jesus Christ coming to save his people. Weep not, behold the lion of
the tribe of Judah hath prevailed. He always has and he always will. The lion of the tribe of Judah
always prevails. All right, now look at verses
nine and 10. Here Isaiah declares the certainty
of Babylon's fall and the destruction of all idolatry. And behold,
here cometh the chariot of men with a couple of horsemen. And
he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, and all
the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
O my threshing floor, or O my threshing in the corner of my
floor, that which I have heard of the Lord of hosts, the God
of Israel, have I declared unto you. The Lord God here assures
his prophet that at his appointed time, at his appointed time in
predestination, at the time he has ordained and decreed, he
would send his son, the Lord Jesus, to redeem and save his
people. Just as at God's appointed time,
at exactly 70 years in, after Israel was taken into captivity,
I'll destroy Babylon. 70 years, 70 years, not a day
longer, not a day less, 70 years, and I'll destroy Babylon. He
says, at my appointed time, I'm going to send him who is the
lion of the tribe of Judah, and I'll deliver my people, and he
will destroy Babylon. not this ancient city, but Babylon
as she is represented throughout the book of God being the great
whore, all false religion. That's Isaiah's message in our
text. That's the burden of Babylon.
The Lord God assured his prophet and he assures his people by
his prophet that Babylon was cursed and would be destroyed. Now I know, and you should know,
but you can see it for yourself in Revelation chapter 14, that
this prophecy refers to much more than just the physical historic
place of Babylon. It refers to much more than that.
I know that because these very same words are found again here
in Revelation chapter 14. Revelation chapter 14 and verse
8. Well, that's Romans 14, I won't
find it there. Revelation chapter 14, verse 8. And there followed another angel,
saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, the great city, because
she hath made all the nations to drink of the wine of the wrath
of her fornication. Babylon is fallen, is fallen. The very same words repeated
twice to declare the certainty of it. But here spoken of as
relating to that same great horror that's described in Proverbs
chapter seven, who with her flattering lips and deceitful ways deceives
the souls of men. In Revelation chapter 17, 18
and 19, The fall and destruction of Babylon
are recorded for us by the Word of God. Recorded for us in the
revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. This word in Isaiah 21
is the assurance to God's church that our Lord Jesus gives to
His church in Matthew 16. The gates of hell shall never
prevail against His church. Babylon must and shall fall. Babylon must and shall fall. Pastor Don, who is Babylon? Babylon is all thoughts religion,
all man-centered religion, all free will works religion, no
matter what name she wears. I know folks in the past have
thought that Pope is Antichrist, and I'm asked that question sometime.
Sometime ago, I was in Ireland, and papacy's pretty dominant
over there. I was sitting outside smoking
my pipe, and a fellow's walked up, had obviously been in a fight
that night, had a big shiner, and he was pretty well looped,
and I kept talking to him. I told my other preachers over
there, he's, what do you think about the Pope? I said, he's
Antichrist. I thought I better see if I can't
get a little bit of calmness in this fella. I said, but that's
the same thing I think about most Protestants as well. Antichrist. All free will works religion
is Antichrist, all of it. Doesn't matter if we're talking
about Islam, Judaism, papacy, Protestant theology, Protestant
churches, Presbyterian, Baptist, Mormon, Catholic, it doesn't
matter. All free will works religion is Antichrist. And this is the
wine of Babylon's fornication by which she intoxicates the
nations of the world. Free will works religion. free will, works with any religion
that makes salvation to be ultimately determined by and dependent upon
a man is Babylon. That's what it is. That's what
it is. Any religion that ultimately
makes salvation to be determined by and dependent upon man His
works, His sacrifices, His deeds, His choice, His will, His righteousness,
any religion that makes salvation to be determined by and depended
upon you is Antichrist. It's called Babylon. There are
just two religions in this world when all said and done. They're
both represented by a woman. There is a woman in Revelation
chapter 12 who is the Church of Christ. preserved by the very
church that opposes her, by the hand of God. So that though Satan
breathes out fire against her, the earth opens up and protects
the woman. Every king, every power, every
ruler, ordained of God for just that purpose. Even those who
persecute. And another woman, described
in Revelation 17, 18 and 19, Babylon, the great whore. Rich, mighty, influential, worldwide
acceptance. Everybody accepts this. Everybody
knows this is right. The whole world can't be wrong,
can they? And you write? What pride, what arrogance you
have. Well, I must confess, I have
far, far, far more pride and arrogance than I ever want any
human being to know. But it's got nothing to do with
this. God is true, and every man's a liar. All religions may
be summed up in these two, free grace and free will. That's all. Salvation by God
or salvation by man? Well, we don't believe that,
we believe in salvation by God. Salvation by God's great, but
I gotta do my part. That's what I said, salvation
by man. We don't believe man saves himself, but a man's got
to do his part. That's what I said, salvation
by man. But a man's got his choice. That's
what I'm talking about, salvation by you. It's called antichrist. It's damning. It's the wine of
Babylon's fornication by which the world is intoxicated and
it will carry you to hell. God has one word for his people. You can read it throughout the
book of God. If you want the references, I'll
give you a bunch of them. He says one thing. He never says,
stay in Babylon and help her. He never says, well, they let
me teach Sunday school down here, so I stay here. You know what
I say to folks that tell me that? I say, you're not teaching anything
or they wouldn't let you. You're not teaching anything or they
wouldn't let you. Well, I've got family there. You're gonna
go to hell with your family? What do you do? Well, we pray
for them. We got our brethren there. No,
no, no. God only says, come out of her,
my people. come out of her. You come out
of Babylon by identifying yourself with Christ, his gospel, his
church, his kingdom, confessing him and him alone as our salvation,
our wisdom, our righteousness, our sanctification, our redemption. It is our business to proclaim
salvation by Jesus Christ the Lord through all the world. constantly with the batarang
of the gospel, beating the gates of hell, beating the walls of
Babylon, not with physical force, not with political force, not
with philosophical force, with the bold, frank, plain declaration
of Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Oh, God, give us grace. God,
give us grace. to declare his message in this
generation with every fiber of our beings. That men may hear and believe
on Jesus Christ our Redeemer for the glory of him who loved
us and gave himself for us. Amen.