[29-9] Abide in the things that you have learned and have been convinced of (2 Timothy 3:12–17)

Is the Christianity established by the Reformers a group completely separated from the Catholic religion?

         To state the conclusion, the Christianity formed by the Reformers, that is, Protestantism, failed to establish a system of faith completely separated from Catholicism. 
Rather, while inheriting many elements as they were from within the doctrinal framework and ritual structure of Catholicism and remaining a partial reform, it failed to restore even the fundamental truth of the gospel of water and the Spirit to which the Bible testifies.

         The 16th-century Reformers such as Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli did not attempt a severance from Catholicism from the beginning. 
They started with the intention of reforming the corruption and unbiblical elements within Catholicism, such as the absolute authority of the Pope and the sale of indulgences. 
Luther, too, did not completely deny the authority of the Papacy in the beginning, but rather sought to restore true faith through the purification of the church. Therefore, the essence of the Reformation was a movement closer to ‘purification’ rather than ‘separation.’

         As a result, even after the Reformation, the major doctrinal framework of Catholicism was maintained as is in Protestantism as well. 
The doctrine of the Trinity was inherited as is from what was established at the Council of Nicaea, and the canonical system of the Bible also used the list of the Old and New Testaments established by Catholicism as is. 
Furthermore, in the concept of sacraments, two of the seven Catholic sacraments, namely Baptism and the Eucharist, were kept as signs of salvation, and the theological linguistic system also used concepts from Catholic theology as they were, such as ‘essence,’ ‘person,’ ‘sanctification,’ and ‘atonement.’ 
Although the form and institutions changed, its roots were still within the theological tradition of Catholicism.

         However, a more fundamental problem remained in the understanding of the essence of faith, that is, the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
This is because the core of the gospel to which the Bible testifies is the gospel of the water and the Spirit, which consists of the baptism of Jesus Christ, the blood of the cross, and the resurrection.
However, even after the Reformation, Protestantism still emphasizes only the blood of the cross as the basis of salvation, and has not sufficiently accepted the gospel word of truth that Jesus went to the cross after having the sins of the world transferred to Him by being baptized by John the Baptist.
As a result, although Protestantism was outwardly separated from Catholicism, it came to continue a faith structure that, doctrinally, could not escape from the framework of the Nicene Creed.

To what extent are the Protestants of today, the successors of the Reformers, separated from Catholicism?

         It can be said that today’s Protestants, that is, the Protestant churches, are organizationally separated from Catholicism but are still partially connected doctrinally. 
This is because, although they became independent in formal institutions and organizations after the Reformation, they have inherited a significant portion of the Catholic tradition within their theological roots and doctrinal structure.

         First, from an institutional perspective, Protestantism completely broke away from the authority of the Pope and the governing system of the Roman Curia. 
Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, and others did not recognize the Pope as the head of the church, and declared that only Jesus Christ is the head of the church. 
As a result, the Catholic hierarchical structure of Pope–Cardinal–Bishop–Priest was no longer maintained within Protestantism. 
Therefore, from an institutional standpoint, Protestantism exists as an independent church system completely separated from Catholicism.

         However, in terms of worship and rituals, the separation remained partial. 
The form of Protestant worship and sacramental rites, namely the structure of baptism and the Eucharist, are still based on the liturgical forms of the Catholic tradition. 
Of course, Protestantism distinguishes itself from the ‘Transubstantiation’ asserted by Catholicism by interpreting the meaning of the Eucharist as a ‘symbolic memorial.’ 
However, the flow of worship, the form of hymns, and the liturgical calendar (church year) have been inherited almost entirely from the traditions developed in medieval Catholicism. 
Therefore, it can be said that while there were external changes, the basic framework of worship still bears the traces of Catholicism.

         On the doctrinal side as well, Protestantism was only partially separated. 
The dogmatic theology of Protestantism, systematized by Luther and Calvin, inherited a significant part of the structure of Catholic theology that developed from the Scholastic tradition of Aquinas. 
Concepts such as the Trinity, original sin, the Incarnation, the doctrine of redemption, and heaven and hell are all on a continuum with the Catholic doctrines established at the Councils of Nicaea and Chalcedon. 
Therefore, although formally separated, it can be said to be a faith system built on the same creed in terms of content. 
In fact, most Protestant churches today use the Nicene Creed or the Apostles’ Creed as their confessions of faith without alteration.

         In the essence of the gospel as well, Protestantism is in a state of incomplete separation.
The Reformers cried out, “by faith alone (Sola Fide),” “by grace alone (Sola Gratia),” and “by Scripture alone (Sola Scriptura),” but they did not fully restore the complete truth of the gospel to which the Bible testifies, namely, the gospel of the water and the Spirit, which consists of the baptism of Jesus, His blood, and the Spirit.
They maintained the ‘cross-centered salvation’ structure established by Catholicism, while overlooking the first step of the gospel, in which Jesus took on the sins of the world by receiving baptism.
As a result, the theological foundation of Protestantism remained a half-structure that had only partially reformed Catholic doctrine.

What are the limitations of Protestant doctrine from the perspective of “the gospel of the water and the Spirit”?

         This issue is directly connected to the root of our fundamental faith: the question of “Where does the essence of the gospel begin?” The word in 1 John 5:6-8 is recorded as, “This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one—ASV.”
This verse shows the complete structure of the gospel: that Jesus took on the sins of the world through His baptism (water), paid the price for those sins on the cross (blood), and gave us new life by resurrecting through the Holy Spirit.
In other words, the gospel of the water and the Spirit, composed of the four stages of ‘transference of sin → atonement → being made righteous → indwelling of the Holy Spirit,’ is the complete framework of salvation that the Bible testifies to.

         However, the doctrinal system of modern Protestantism has not fully recovered this entire structure of the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Protestantism, by emphasizing only half of the gospel of the water and the Spirit—that is, “the blood of the cross”—as the center of salvation, has missed the meaning of Jesus’ baptism, which is the beginning and core of the gospel.
Because of this, the Protestant gospel has been left with an incomplete structure, and its limitations are revealed in several aspects.

         First, Protestant theology has reduced the meaning of the “water,” that is, Jesus’ baptism, to a symbolic act.
The event of Jesus being baptized by John in the Jordan River was not a simple expression of humility, but the beginning of His ministry of salvation, in which He took upon His own body all the sins of mankind.
Just as the priest in the Old Testament transferred sins by laying his hands on the head of the sacrificial offering, John the Baptist, as the last priest of the age of the Law, fulfilled the ministry of passing the sins of mankind to Jesus.
However, Protestant theologians such as Luther, Calvin, and Wesley saw this event merely as a ‘sign of the forgiveness of sins’ and did not understand it as the actual event of the transference of sin.
As a result, the Protestant gospel has become a theology that has lost the key link of redemption: the question of “When and how were sins passed to Jesus?”

         Second, the meaning of the “blood,” that is, Jesus’s cross, has been interpreted incompletely. The blood of Jesus is the blood that removes sin, but it is the blood of atonement that He shed after having already taken upon Himself the sins through His baptism.
However, Protestantism interprets this order in reverse, teaching that “all sins were transferred at the cross.” This is an error that reverses the order of redemption and is a theological disconnection that deletes the first step of the gospel: “Why was Jesus baptized?”
Consequently, the Protestant gospel has remained an incomplete gospel that has only the ‘result of atonement’ but not the ‘beginning of atonement.’

         Third, the understanding of the indwelling of the “Spirit” is also unclear. The Bible clearly states that the Holy Spirit is God’s evidence given to those who have received the remission of sins.
The words Jesus spoke to His disciples after His resurrection, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them” (John 20:22-23), show that the Holy Spirit comes upon those in whom actual remission of sins has taken place.
However, Protestantism teaches that one receives the Holy Spirit by a confession of faith alone and fails to specifically present the process of actual sin remission, that is, the continuity of the transference of sin through baptism and the atonement through the cross.
Because of this, the concept of the indwelling of the Spirit has often been replaced by emotional and psychological experiences of faith.

         Fourth, the Protestant faith structure has severed the Trinitarian unity of the gospel presented in the Bible.
The Bible presents a complete structure of salvation where the water (baptism), the blood (cross), and the Spirit (resurrection) are connected as one, but Protestantism mainly emphasizes only two elements: the blood and the Spirit.
A gospel structure that omits baptism cannot explain the process of the actual transference and removal of sin and, consequently, has degenerated into a doctrine that replaces the remission of sins with the abstract concept of ‘faith.’

On the “Journey of Redemption that Began at Jesus’s Baptism”

         The “journey of redemption that began at Jesus’s baptism” is the center of the gospel and a journey that shows the complete order of salvation that God established to save humanity from sin. 
This journey is not simply the event of Jesus receiving baptism, but the flow of redemptive history that reveals step-by-step how the righteousness of God was fulfilled and transferred to humanity.

         First, Jesus’s baptism, which began at the Jordan River, was the first gateway of redemption.
“Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?’ But Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he allowed Him. When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased’” (Matthew 3:13–17).
Jesus’s baptism was the decisive moment when the sins of humanity were transferred to Jesus.
John the Baptist, as the last priest of the age of the Law, completed the work of the Old Testament priests—who transferred sins by laying their hands on the sacrifice—by administering baptism to Jesus.
In the Old Testament sacrifices, the laying on of hands signified the transference of sin, and in the New Testament, baptism inherited that role.
Therefore, the Jordan River was not merely a river of water, but the place where all the sins of humanity were passed over to Jesus and the first stage where redemption began.
Thus, the meaning of the baptism is summarized by the words, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

         Second, the death on the cross on the hill of Calvary is the completion of redemption.
“So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit” (John 19:30).
That Jesus shed His blood and died on the cross was His bearing the price of mankind’s sins, which had already been imputed to Him at the Jordan River, and His receiving the punishment.
By dying for our sins, Jesus, who was without sin, completely satisfied the requirement of the law, which is, “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).
Therefore, the cross was not a mere symbol of sacrifice, but the place where the punishment for sin, transferred through baptism, was executed, and the place where the justice of God was fulfilled.
“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5).

         Third, the burial in the tomb is the confirmation of redemption.
By His death, Jesus completely bore the wages of sin, and by being buried in the tomb, He accomplished the spiritual event of our old self—that is, the self that was a sinner—being buried together with Him.
The Apostle Paul testified, “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?” (Romans 6:3).
Baptism is not a mere religious ritual, but a sign of faith that unites with the death of Jesus.
Therefore, the tomb is the place where the old self, which was a slave to sin, is buried together, and as it is said, “buried with Him in baptism” (Colossians 2:12), it is the place where the process of redemption is accomplished, wherein our old nature is terminated by death.

         Fourth, the resurrection is the completion of life, an event in which the imputation of righteousness was accomplished through the work of the Holy Spirit.
That Jesus was resurrected from the dead is the evidence that God acknowledged the righteousness of the Son, and at the same time, it was the beginning of the ministry of the Holy Spirit, which gives us new life.
As it is said in the word, “if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you” (Romans 8:11), the resurrection is not a mere restoration of life, but the completion of the declaration that He “was raised because of our justification” (Romans 4:25).
That is, the resurrection is the climax of God’s righteousness, where the one who has received remission of sins is justified, and it is the lifeline of the gospel, enabling one to enjoy new life through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

         Fifth, the intercessory ministry of Jesus after His ascension to heaven is the confirmation of eternal redemption and the completion of His high priestly ministry.
As it is said in the word, “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:12), Jesus, after His resurrection, entered the heavenly sanctuary and accomplished eternal redemption at once with His own blood.
He is the eternal High Priest who, even now, intercedes for us before God.
“but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself” (Hebrews 9:26).
This word shows that the redemption that began at the Jordan River was completely confirmed at the heavenly throne.

Where is contemporary Christianity heading now?

         “Where is contemporary Christianity heading now?”
This question is not merely asking about the direction of the church, but is a fundamental inquiry asking about the current state of the gospel’s essence.
Today, Christianity is losing its spiritual center amidst external growth and technological advancement, and as it moves further away from the core truths of the gospel, the church is walking a path of becoming religious and faith becoming secularized.

         First, the church of today is moving away from the center of the gospel and is turning into a formalistic religion.
Most churches speak of the cross of Jesus, but they do not know the beginning of the gospel, where Jesus was baptized by John and took on the sins of the world.
Baptism is still regarded as a mere symbol or a traditional ritual, and worship services have turned into praise and emotion-centered events.
Even the assurance of salvation often depends not on the truth of the Word, but on emotional experiences or moral changes.
However, the Bible says, “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).
A church that lacks the gospel of the water and the Spirit degenerates into a religious group that has lost the order of salvation established by Jesus, and this is the most fundamental crisis the church faces today.

         Second, the gospel has become secularized, shifting from being God-centered to human-centered.
Many modern sermons are delivered centered on messages of success, blessing, self-development, and positivity, rather than on the kingdom of God and the truth of salvation.
The church is changing from a place that saves souls into a space for pursuing self-satisfaction, and a trend that emphasizes human happiness over God’s righteousness has taken root.
Jesus is reduced to a ‘helper for me,’ and the cross is being consumed like a symbol of prosperity rather than a symbol of suffering.
However, the Lord said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24).
The modern church has lost these words and is degenerating into a faith that seeks ‘my own glory.’

         Third, the absoluteness of truth has been lost due to the mixing of doctrines.
Today’s Christianity, in the name of love and tolerance, is heading towards doctrinal syncretism by embracing various religions and ideologies.
Claims such as “There is truth in all religions” or “God will ultimately save everyone” are being taken for granted, even from theological pulpits.
As a result, the unique redemptive work of Jesus Christ is being relativized, and the gospel of the baptism and the cross is treated as one among many optional doctrines.
However, the Bible clearly says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
These words are an uncompromising, absolute truth, yet the church of today, concerned with the world’s opinion, is fading into a faith that is ashamed of this truth.

         Fourth, today’s Christianity is historically returning to the religious system that was formed after the Council of Nicaea.
This includes: denomination-centered institutionalization, a faith centered on catechisms instead of the apostolic gospel, and a structure that places theological commentaries above the Bible.
Although it bears the name of Protestantism on the outside, in essence it is returning to a Catholic structure—that is, to the form of a faith that has become religious.
This is like the process of the system of ‘Babylon the Great, the harlot church,’ warned of in the Book of Revelation, being completed.
The words, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4), are precisely God’s calling to the church of this age.

         In conclusion, today’s Christianity is going the way of religion.
However, the path that God desires is the path of the gospel, the path of the restoration of truth.
Religion is man’s attempt to go to God, but the gospel is the path of grace by which God came down to man.
There is only one way for the church to live: to return to the gospel of Jesus’ baptism, the cross, and the Holy Spirit.
Only that path is the beginning of true restoration, and only the church that stands upon it will become the church of the kingdom of God, born again of water and the Spirit.

On the Spiritual Direction of 21st-Century Christianity and the Final Call for the Restoration of the Gospel

         This question does not simply ask about the future of the church, but demands a fundamental insight into where the spiritual direction of 21st-century Christianity is leaning, and what restoration God is calling for in this age.
Today’s Christianity outwardly appears to have expanded and grown worldwide, but inwardly, the essence of the gospel is gradually disappearing.
The visible size and influence of the church have grown, but the center of the gospel and spiritual truth are gradually fading.
This trend is manifesting as a characteristic of the age: “the peak of visible expansion and the period of decline of inner truth.”

         First, in examining the spiritual direction of 21st-century Christianity, we can identify four distinct signs.
First, the center of the gospel of the water and the Spirit has disappeared, and the church has turned into a formalistic religion.
Many churches still speak of the blood of Jesus’ cross, but they do not know of the preceding event of baptism at the Jordan River—that is, the gospel of the water and the Spirit of the transference of sins.
As a result, the church stands on a faith with an unclear basis for the remission of sins, and people are mistaking emotional repentance or temporary experiences for the gospel.
However, Jesus took upon Himself the sins of mankind at the Jordan River, paid the price for those sins on the cross, and through His resurrection, gave the life of righteousness.
Losing this complete gospel—that is, the gospel of the water and the Spirit—is the greatest spiritual crisis of the church today.

         Second, secularism and humanism are dominating the church.
God-centered faith is gradually shifting to be human-centered, and the topics of sermons have moved from salvation to success, from the cross to self-development, and from the righteousness of God to human happiness and prosperity.
The gospel is being consumed not as salvation from sin, but as a tool to make my life successful.
This is, in the end, a return to the faith of Babel—to the old nature of man seeking to exalt his own name.
The church has become not a place to exalt God, but a space for man to obtain self-satisfaction.

         Third, the absoluteness of truth is breaking down, and doctrinal mixing is intensifying.
Today’s Christianity is diluting the truth in the name of love and tolerance, and inclusivist theology, which says, “there is salvation in all religions” or “God ultimately forgives everyone,” is replacing the gospel.
However, Jesus clearly stated, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).
A church that has lost the truth of this absolute gospel, though it may receive the praise of the world, is becoming a religious institution that has lost the approval of God.

         Fourth, the church is becoming institutionalized, and the work of the Holy Spirit is disappearing.
Today’s church organizations are becoming increasingly larger and more complex, but within them, the life of the Holy Spirit and the power of the Word are weakening.
Many believers say they have “experienced the Holy Spirit,” but in many cases, that experience is built not on the gospel of truth, but on the waves of emotion.
Ultimately, today’s church, while maintaining the theological framework of the Nicene Creed, is solidifying into a religious system that holds onto institutions and traditions rather than truth.

         However, God is now calling for “the restoration of the gospel” in this age.
That restoration is not a new doctrine or theological movement, but a return to the first gospel—that is, the truth of Jesus’ baptism, cross, and resurrection.
The restoration of the gospel is a movement of restoration that stands again in the righteousness of God, beyond human religion.

         The starting point of the restoration is the Jordan River. The redemption of Jesus began at the Jordan River.
There, when John the Baptist laid his hands on Jesus’ head and baptized Him on behalf of the world, all the sins of mankind were transferred to Jesus (Matthew 3:15–17, John 1:29).
At that very moment, God opened the heavens and said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
This is the place where the righteousness of God began to be fulfilled, and it is the point of origin toward which the restoration of the gospel must be directed.

         The cross is the place of redemption, completed as the result of baptism.
That Jesus shed His blood and died on the cross was the event in which He was righteously judged for the sins of mankind that had already been transferred to Him at the Jordan River.
The cross is the completion of the penalty, accomplished after the transfer of sin, and when the order of baptism and the cross is restored, the structure of the gospel is fully connected.

         Also, the Holy Spirit comes upon the testimony of the water and the blood.
1 John 5:6–8 says, “This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one.”
The Holy Spirit is not the result of an emotional experience, but is God’s testimony that comes upon the truth of the redemption accomplished by Jesus through His baptism and cross.
Therefore, the restoration of the gospel must be accomplished through a gospel in which the threefold testimony of the water, the blood, and the Spirit is restored as one.

         The purpose of the restoration that God desires is not the external rebuilding of the church, but the rebuilding of the truth.
In the Lord’s words, “on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18), that rock is not the person of Peter, but the confession of faith in the gospel of Jesus’ baptism and cross.
The restoration of the truth is the restoration of the church, and the rebuilding of the gospel is the restoration of the kingdom of God.

         Finally, God is calling to the church of this age, “Return, to the first gospel.”
In Revelation 2:4–5, the Lord warned the church in Ephesus, saying, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works.”
These words are the final call given to the church of today. It is an invitation to return to the first love, that is, the gospel of Jesus bearing the sins of the world at the Jordan River.

         In conclusion, 21st-century Christianity now stands at the end of religion.
But God, through this age, is calling us to return to the beginning of the gospel.
The church must move away from the cross-centered half gospel that it holds today and be restored to the complete gospel where the baptism, the blood, and the Spirit are united as one.
It must depart from institutions and secularized structures and return to the church established in Spirit and truth; and it must move away from a faith that pursues human satisfaction and advance toward a faith that fulfills the righteousness of God.

Then, what losses must contemporary Christianity endure to return to the gospel of the water and the Spirit?

         If contemporary Christianity is to truly return to the “gospel of the water and the Spirit”—that is, the fundamental truth of the gospel where Jesus bore the sins of mankind through His baptism and paid the price for those sins on the cross—it is not enough to simply make a slight adjustment to the direction of its faith. 
That path is one where theological, institutional, social, human, and spiritual losses must be endured, and that very path of sacrifice is the path to the restoration of truth that God desires.

         First, it must endure theological loss.
Today’s Christian theology is built upon a doctrinal system established over approximately 1,700 years since the Nicene Creed. This structure is based on the traditional doctrine of atonement, which regards only the cross of Jesus as the basis for the remission of sins.

         However, the gospel of the water and the Spirit clearly states:
“Sins were transferred to Jesus through His baptism, and the cross is the place where the punishment for those sins was completed.”
To accept this truth, the existing doctrine of atonement, the understanding of the sacraments, the doctrine of justification, and the entire doctrinal system of seminaries must be reinterpreted. This means the theological collapse of existing doctrines, and for denominational leaders and theologians, it will come as a loss of authority and a loss of face. However, to restore the truth, one must endure the loss of tearing down human doctrines.

         Second, institutional loss follows.
The current church structure operates centered on denominations, credentials, and institutions.
However, the gospel of the water and the Spirit establishes a church centered on the born-again, that is, a community centered on those who believe the gospel.
When the gospel is restored, the standard of the church will not be seminary diplomas, certificates of ordination, or denominational affiliation, but rather, “Do you believe in that gospel of the water and the Spirit?” 
This signifies the collapse of denomination-centered power and the dismantling of the clergy-centered structure. The church may lose its institutional stability, but it will be reorganized into a true gospel community.
Therefore, to return to the gospel of the water and the Spirit, the sacrifice of laying down the church’s organizational stability and human-established authority is necessary.

         Third, social and economic loss follows. Contemporary Christianity has become a single giant religious industry.
Church buildings, offering systems, seminaries, publishing houses, broadcasting stations, and various church networks form a religious ecosystem and sustain the livelihoods of countless people.
However, the restoration of the gospel is a movement that reveals only the righteousness of God.
When that gospel is restored, the religious market that sold a false gospel will collapse, and the human-centered industry of faith will be dismantled.
The church will become unable to maintain the wealth and honor of the world, and only the righteousness of God will be exalted.
As it is said in the verse, “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32), this freedom is also a freedom to lose secular glory.
To return to the gospel of the water and the Spirit, one must lay down material abundance and choose the path of obtaining freedom only within the truth of God.

         Fourth, one must endure human loss.
Those who restore the truth have always been a minority, and the apostles of the early church, as well as the Reformers, had to endure the world’s criticism and isolation.
Likewise, those who preach the gospel of the water and the Spirit will be misunderstood as heretics, fanatics, and schismatics.
They may be expelled from their denominations, be cut off from their faith communities, be socially isolated, or experience difficulties with their livelihood.
However, this is the price of the narrow path that Jesus spoke of. “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13–14).
The path of following the truth is a path of suffering, but at the end of that path, there is life.

         Lastly, there is a spiritual loss and, at the same time, a glory.
Viewed by worldly standards, this path is a path of losing everything, but before God, it is a path of gaining everything.
Jesus said, “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:35).
The path of returning to the gospel of the water and the Spirit is a path of self-denial and a path of forsaking the world.
However, it is on that very path that the kingdom of God is re-established, and the glory of righteousness is revealed.

Escape from the Church of Babylon

         Revelation 18:4–8 are the words that proclaim God’s judgment upon ‘Great Babylon’ which will come in the last days—that is, the religious system that has departed from God and the secularized church. 
This passage is not a simple prophecy, but God’s final warning and call to restoration directed towards the church and believers of this present age. 
The voice from heaven resolutely cries out: “Come out of her, my people,” This is an urgent command directed to the people who, though they call on the name of God, are still remaining within a religious system that has already strayed from the truth.

         “And I heard another voice from heaven saying, ‘Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues’” (Revelation 18:4).
In this passage, the “another voice from heaven saying” signifies the direct warning of the Holy Spirit. It is a command that God Himself is speaking. 
The words, “Come out of her, my people,” presuppose that God’s people are already within that Babylonian system. 
Here, ‘Babylon’ does not merely symbolize a political empire of the world, but a religious system that uses the name of God but has lost the truth—in other words, today’s formalistic and secularized Christianity. 
God says, “If you remain within that system, you will partake together in its sins and plagues. Therefore, come out of it.” This is precisely the call to “return to the gospel of the water and the Spirit.”
It is a call to break away from the false gospel and the human-centered religious structure, and to return to the true gospel that was completed by Jesus’ baptism, the cross, and the Holy Spirit.

         “For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities” (Revelation 18:5).
This passage declares that, despite God’s long-suffering, her iniquity and wickedness have now reached their limit. 
The expression “have reached to heaven” means that their sins have been piled up before God to an extent that they can no longer be tolerated. 
God remembers the unrighteous deeds of those who, while calling themselves the church, abandoned the gospel accomplished through the baptism and blood of Jesus and taught a path of salvation made of human rituals and doctrines.
When doctrine instead of the gospel, and tradition instead of the truth, took God’s place, all of that distorted faith was recorded before God’s judgment.

         “Render to her just as she rendered to you, and repay her double according to her works; in the cup which she has mixed, mix double for her” (Revelation 18:6).
This passage is a declaration of justice that God will repay, according to their deeds, those who deceived people with the gospel of the Nicene Creed and pursued worldly greed. 
“Her mixed cup” signifies a mixed faith where truth and the secular, the gospel and human ideas, are mixed together. 
God brings a double judgment upon those who used His name to deceive people and kill souls.
James 3:1 warns, “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.” If one who teaches the truth distorts that truth, that sin becomes twice as heavy.

         “In the measure that she glorified herself and lived luxuriously, in the same measure give her torment and sorrow” (Revelation 18:7).
This word is a judgment against a religious system filled with pride and arrogance.
Babylon exalted herself, saying, “I sit as queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.”
The sight of many churches today glorifying themselves, boasting, “We are the orthodoxy,” “We are the largest denomination,” is the very fulfillment of this word.
However, God says, “As much as he exalted himself, repay him with torment and sorrow.”
This is a word that warns of the fall of secularized religion and the collapse of human-centered faith.

         “Therefore her plagues will come in one day—death and mourning and famine. And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judges her” (Revelation 18:8).
The expression “in one day” means that God’s judgment will come suddenly and decisively.
God’s judgment is not delayed, and when His time comes, it is accomplished in an instant.
“Death and mourning and famine” symbolize spiritual death, the loss of the opportunity for repentance, and the lack of God’s word.
It becomes a religion where the church remains but the gospel has disappeared, a religion with only its form left.
“She will be utterly burned with fire,” means God’s judgment by fire. 
This fire is not a physical fire, but the fire of truth, the fire of the Holy Spirit. That fire burns away all the false gospel, secular faith, human pride, and unrighteousness.
The word, “for strong is the Lord God,” declares that no denomination or religious system can escape God’s judgment.

         Ultimately, Revelation 18:4–8 is God’s warning to the church of today.
The word, “Come out of her,” is not simply a command for physical escape, but a spiritual invitation to break away from human-centered religious structures and formalistic faith and to return to the true gospel.
We must come out from the doctrinal system of the Nicene Creed, the denomination-centered traditional faith, and the cross-centered incomplete gospel that excludes the baptism of Jesus.
Only then can we become the people of God who return to the gospel of the Jordan River, restore the righteousness of the cross, and receive again the life of the Holy Spirit.

         Revelation 18 is God’s final voice that says, “Return to the gospel of water and the Spirit.”
God judges the religionized church, but He first calls out His people of truth.
The remnant must abandon the world’s pride and false doctrines and return to the path of the gospel where Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River and shed His blood on the cross.
Only that path is the true path of salvation that avoids the judgment of fire and abides in God’s righteousness and life.

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