A Church History Replay
History shows that whenever religious institutions become too entangled with political power, faithful believers who demand a return to the plain authority of God’s Word are treated as threats.
Today, I believe mainstream Christianity in America is entering a shaking much like the 16th-century Radical Reformation and the 17th-century Covenanter Resistance, but worse than either of those.
What we see in the making heralds the rise of the prophetic “Babylonian Harlot” religious system—an unfaithful, interfaith, outwardly Christ-confessing church in step with global political power (Rev. 17).
In these rapidly changing times, a distinct remnant of true followers of Christ will soon find itself standing in the shoes of historical dissenters: resisting today’s apostate church that will align with a coming world government.
We already see this predictable pattern alignment playing out around the globe. State-aligned churches—like the Russian Orthodox Church under state influence, or registered churches in strict regimes like China—routinely form alliances with authorities. To protect their status, survival, and legal standing, these institutions align with state ideology and surrender their independence. According to end-time Bible prophecy, the pressure that will come against true Christ followers on such a large scale will be worse than any other time in history (Rev. 6:9-11; 13:5-10).
Even now, modern Christianity has increasingly compromised truth in order to prop up our failing constitutional political system. The quest to “save America” is a noble cause, but not at the extreme compromises many Christians are willing to overlook.
When America’s financial system and constitutional order collapse (probably about the same time), a new order will inevitably rise in the name of safety and stability. When that pressure mounts, I have no doubt that mainstream religious systems will once again assimilate with the new political order simply to preserve their status, wealth, and public approval. The true remnant will be first ostracized, before finally being forced into hiding.
The Anabaptist and Covenanters
During the 16th and 17th centuries, dissenters like the Anabaptists and Covenanters faced severe persecution from both Roman Catholic and Protestant state authorities. Under laws like the Edict of Speyer (1529), thousands were executed by fire, sword, or drowning. They were vilified as dangerous “fanatics” and “heretics” because they refused to permit state churches or civil rulers to override the scriptures.
Notice the following that show pressure imposed by the ruling religious order and the state itself on Bible-believing dissenters:
- Believer’s Baptism: Anabaptists rejected infant baptism, arguing from passages like Acts 2:38 that baptism requires personal faith, thereby threatening the state-managed civic order.
- Separation of Church and State: Citing John 18:36 (“My kingdom is not of this world”), they rejected government-enforced religion, military violence, and compulsory civic oaths.
- Holy, Gathered Communities: Dissenters prioritized local congregational leadership, church discipline, and personal holiness over top-down ecclesiastical hierarchies.
- Compulsory Religious Conformity: Dissenters refused to attend state-mandated church services or submit to government-appointed clergy, rejecting the authority of civil rulers to dictate their worship or conscience.
- Ecclesiastical Hierarchy & Oaths: Groups like the Covenanters rejected the episcopal hierarchy of the state church and refused to take civic oaths that compromised Christ’s sole headship over the Church.
- Sacramental & Traditional Rituals: They rejected unbiblical, state-enforced religious rituals and traditions, holding that humanly devised religious ceremonies held no authority over true believers.
- Willingness to Suffer Persecution as a Mark of the True Church: Both Anabaptists and Covenanters viewed state persecution not as a sign of defeat, but as a validation that they were the true, faithful bride of Christ standing against an oppressive, coercive system.
Understand that a true faithful remnant will inherently face opposition and exile when an outwardly “Christian” or interfaith system couples with secular political power.
Threats from the coming inter-faith Harlot religious system that aligns with the coming political state will not be the same as those threats of the past, but will include new pressures, possibly having to give ascent to Islam.
The Present-Day Shaking
As in centuries past, those who pursue direct obedience to biblical truth will be dismissed as divisive or dangerous. Yet the true Church cannot confuse institutional or even societal survival with faithfulness to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The coming divide will ultimately boil down to a single question: Will we yield to human demands to preserve our places in society—demands that force us to forsake the truth—or will we stand firm under the exclusive Lordship of Jesus Christ and risk suffering for His name’s sake?
