"Come Out of Her, My People"

Revelation 18:4

It is widely understood that the “Great Whore” in Revelation is referring to the Roman Catholic church. It has also been commonly recognized for centuries that the "seven mountains" she is said to sit upon is an obvious reference to the seven hills of Rome. On her forehead is written: “MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH”

But what we often overlook is the fact that the scarlet harlot has spawned countless spiritual harlots over the centuries – both within Roman Catholicism and without. They are pseudo-Christian cults, false spiritual movements, in the ranks of denominationalism and much of churchanity. Like mother like daughter, her children often become protestantized, religiously refined and contemporized. Though many have become estranged from her they still carry on the “sins of the mother”.

Her ascendancy in Christendom started with the rise of the “Nicolaitans” who stressed the separation of the clergy from the laity. This quickly morphed into a system of super-elders, eventually culminating in the Roman Papacy. ¹

We have come to a place in the church age when His call to “Come Out of Her” has reached its pinnacle of relevance and meaning. God is making it loud and clear through His “still small voice” that He wants us to come out of her and from all of her harlot daughters. He is telling all of those with ears to hear that he wants us to come out of all of the false teachings, false movements, false fads, false hype, dead denominationalism, manmade traditions, and churchanity.

Hasn’t historic churchianity followed in the footsteps of Rome? Have we substituted celebrity pastors and big‑name preachers for cardinals and Popes? Have we replaced the Catholic priesthood with a professional caste of professional ministers and church staff? Have we replaced the magnificent cathedrals with our mega‑churches, denominational systems and sensational spiritual movements? Have we substituted a mediatorial priesthood and a mediatorial building for an authentic personal relationship with Christ?

In place of ecclesiastical liturgies, religious ritualism, gaudy pomp & pageantry, and the religious trappings of incense, votive candles, colorful robes, golden utensils, gilded statues, stained glass windows, choral music and solemn chants haven’t we have substituted mega buildings, aesthetically pleasing auditoriums, user friendly services, our own canned liturgies and church rituals, decorative stage designs, professional lighting, plasma screens, state-of-the-art sound systems, colorful banners, stimulating entertainment, laser lights, smoke machines, cappuccino bars, health clubs, inflatable dinosaurs for the kiddies and an endless array of exciting activities to keep the people coming? Have we substituted fabricated hype, fleshly emotionalism, rockin’ worship services and a self-appointed caste of wannabe apostles, self-appointed prophets, preachers, religious celebrities, “it’s all about us” worship, and so much more for the true glory and presence of God?

Do not be deceived, much of what passes as Christianity today, whether you find it in a cathedral or the neighborhood church shows itself to be one of the harlot daughters. If the truth be known, many who have come out of the "Great Whore" have ended up creating their own version of "Harlot Inc.". They may sincerely believe that they have come out of her but if they are only partially out, they are still in. This too is what God is calling His people out of.

This too is what God is calling His people out of.

“Why?” – “Lest you share in her sins and receive of her plagues.” Her plagues are those of spiritual adultery, falsehood, deceitfulness, lies, spiritual corruption, self-will, self-indulgence, spiritual foolishness, sensational hype, false signs & wonders and the plague of false teachers. If you want to frolic in the religious cesspool of her sins and plagues then stay. Have your fill of the spiritual locust, frogs, flies, boils, pestilence, famine, blindness and leprosy.

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1. When Emperor Constantine officially proclaimed Christianity as the official state religion in 312 A.D with “The Edict of Milan”, the church rapidly accelerated down the path of apostasy and spiritual corruption. Multitudes of religious rituals and pagan practices were soon incorporated into the mainstream of the church. Many were largely borrowed from the Jewish temple rituals, the synagogue system and pagan temple practices. These included a wide array of church sacraments, religious talismans and paraphernalia, religious practices, pagan rituals, superstitious beliefs, liturgies, incantations and outright idolatry.

Numerous heretical practices would soon follow even up to the middle of the 20th Century when such teachings as “Mortal & Venial Sins”, “The Immaculate Conception of Mary”, “The Ascension of Mary to Heaven” and “The Infallibility of The Pope” were adopted.

► In 431 A.D., the ‘Counsel of Ephesus’ proclaimed the worship of Mary as the mother of God.

► In A.D. 380 under the stimulus of Bishops Theodosius and Gratian the recognition of only one, authorized state approved church was sanctioned and legalized making all other forms of Christian gatherings and expressions of Christian assembly a criminal activity. It was, for all intents and purposes, the final “nail in the coffin” for the simple house church.

►In 440 A.D. Leo the Great pronounced himself Bishop of Rome and in 445 A.D. Cesar Valentinian confirmed his position as the spiritual leader of the whole Western Empire.

►Around 500 A.D. the priesthood started to observe a common dress code. With Justinian (527-65) the church became truly a state-ordained church: all priests became public servants (similar to government workers or civil servants. Mine).

►As early as 607, after the fall of the Roman Empire, Boniface III was the first bishop to adopt the title ‘Pope’ in the Roman Catholic Church. Previously this title, ‘Pontifex Maximus’, meaning ‘big bridge-builder’ had been used by Roman Emperors to describe themselves as high priests and Gods of the Roman Empire. Some further steps down into spiritual darkness were:

►709 - Kissing the Popes feet was introduced

►786 - Worship of images and relics develops.

►850 - The first use of holy water

►995 - Canonization of dead saints

►998 - Fasting on Fridays and before Lent introduced

►1079 - Celibacy of the priesthood introduced.

►1090 - Prayer beads adopted from several pagan religious systems.

►1184 - The Inquisition, the policing of the faith, begins and millions of Jews and witches (and later, during the Reformation, Protestant believers) will die at the hands of the church of Rome. It is officially established by Pope Innocent IV in 1252.

►1190 - The sale of indulgences - the relief from punishment of sins in exchange for money

►1215 - Transubstantiation of the wafer and wine declared: these elements supernaturally change into the body and blood of Jesus at the incantation of the priest.

►1229 - Bible declared to be too holy for ordinary people to read and was forbidden to laymen.

►1414 - Communion cup forbidden to the people.

►1439 - The doctrine of ‘Purgatory’ decreed.

►1545 - The traditional teachings of the Roman Catholic Church granted equal authority with the Bible at the “Council of Trent.”