Monday: The Three Angels’ Messages and Mission
Daily Lesson for Monday 25th of December 2023
The book of Revelation gives us a powerful and graphic representation of the great controversy theme, perhaps most dramatically depicted in Revelation 12:12: “ ‘Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time’ ” (NKJV). It’s hard to imagine how anyone can understand anything in Scripture apart from the great controversy motif, which will climax in the last days.
Read Revelation 14:1-20:6-12. What is depicted here, and what have these verses to do with our mission and message?
Central to mission, God’s mission, is the message, God’s message: the gospel. The message, in a real sense, is the mission. The world needs to be warned about what is coming upon it, and every person will be forced to make a choice, a choice either for life or for death.
“ ‘He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters’ ” (Luke 11:23, NKJV).
What is Jesus saying here that deals so directly with our mission?
The three angels’ messages of Revelation 14:1-20 form the core, the heart, of what we as Seventh-day Adventists have been called to proclaim to the world. Central to it, foundational to it, are two themes: “the everlasting gospel” (Revelation 14:6, NKJV) and the worship of the Creator. These two themes appear in this depiction of the saints: “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12, NKJV). No matter what else we do—all the good that we do in helping people—we must never lose sight of our special calling and mission, which is to proclaim to a lost world the hope found in the “everlasting gospel,” as well as to warn the world of what will one day come upon it.
“ ‘He who is not with Me is against Me’ ” (Luke 11:23, NKJV). How do you understand what Jesus is saying to us here? Why should these words cause us to examine where our hearts really are?
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In computer communication, packets of information are sent from the transmitter to the receiver. As each packet arrives its contents are compared against a "checksum", also sent with the packet to see if its contents are consistent. If the contents are consistent an acknowledge signal is returned to the transmitter. If they are not then a negative acknowledge signal is sent. This allows the transmitter to send a replacement package. The success of this system of communication requires that both the sender and receiver understand the ACK/NACK protocol. The communication does not work if the receiver has a different protocol or is offline.
We Seventh-day Adventists know a lot about the Three Angels' Messages. It is part of our DNA and for quite a while we even had symbolic representations of the three angels on our churches and letterheads. Many of us learned Rev 14:6-12 as part of our Missionary Volunteer Society program (You would probably have to be old like me to remember that era). The big problem we face is that the message is being transmitted but the receivers are using a different protocol. We are not getting back any ACK/NACK signals.
I submit that if we want to make the three angels' messages heard we need to think a lot more about the way our intended audience receives messages. There is nothing wrong with the messages but if we are transmitting in analog and our receivers are in digital, there is no way for the message to get through.
Well said, Maurice. The million dollar question is, How do we "digitize" the everlasting gospel?
Somehow, we need the boil it down to the elements that really matter. Using the term "sacrificial Lamb" might be counterproductive if the listener has never sacrificed an animal, for example. The term "high Priest" might also be totally irrelevant. Elements that really matter, especially in post-modern cultures, include self-actualization (def. "the realization or fulfillment of one's talents and potentialities, especially considered as a drive or need present in everyone"); purpose in life; the value of absolute truth; etc.
If we embrace these concepts and pray to God for guidance, and submit to His cleansing, we just might find ourselves connecting productively with people who would otherwise have been impossible to reach.
The conversion experience of Paul in the Bible is in a way extreme, not what most of us have. The testimony of Walter Veith is in a way heart-rending. I don't think such a dramatic experience is for just anyone. Just let us share the meaning God has in our lives, with sensitivity. Let us be personable and genuine. We are presenting Jesus, not as a thief of a person's comforts or popularity, but as the greatest guarantee of a fulfilled life. "... I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10.
Growing up as a 7th day Adventist the focus which I was taught in the 3 angels message and worship had to do with the 7th day sabbath. This after all was the sign of creation and Jesus rested on the 7th day in the tomb when He died to save us. However, as evolution has been accepted as science, sexual immorality has become more prevalent and accepted, and spiritualism has grown - I have found that more concepts from creation have been lost than just the 7th day. The entire concept of God has been distorted and lost.
Isaiah spoke against the practice of Spiritualism centuries before its resurgence in the 1940s in New York (Isaiah 8:19)
Peter identified the problem of forgetting the Creator God centuries before Darwin printed his origin of species in 1859 (2 Peter 3:5).
Paul spoke to the loss of understanding of a Creator God that led to sexual perversion and homosexuality (Romans 1:26). This was years before the lobby to fight for equal rights and decriminalize homosexuality which from what I can tell started around 1897 in Germany.
It is interesting that all three of these concepts have been born / reborn and gained ground within my grandparents, parents, and my lifetime (church of Laodicea). Yet these have in the past been defeated and shown to be lies in other generations. The Babylon of paganism and spiritualism was defeated by Jesus Christ and the christian martyrs of the early church of Smyrna (Rev 2:8). Satan had to change tactics and infiltrate the church so that by the time of the church of Pergamos (Rev 2:13) Anitpas or the faithful martyrs that opposed the papal system “anti - papa” were being martyred. By the time of Thyratira Jezebel was teaching in the church (Rev 2:20). In the church of Philadelphia the Papacy was defeated and true worship of God reinstated (Rev 3:2-9).
Babylon has fallen 2 times first pagan/ spiritualism fell and second in the form of false Christianity which was paganism dressed as Christianity.
How sad and “sour” it is that we have such a “sweet” gospel that has been forgotten and must be preached again (Revelation 10:9). We first have to eat or rediscover it so we can share it with others. Sabbath is a sign of creation and salvation but is not the gospel. We have an everlasting gospel to preach. May we not be confused about Whom it is we preach and worship. We are poor, blind, naked and may find that Jesus is on the outside knocking and asking for us to open up to Him (Revelation 3:17 & 20).
Babylon will fall again one final time… and all 3 times it will be defeated by Jesus.
Maurice, again your comment for today resonates with me. In western developed countries we are increasingly losing the young people from our churches. I have sat on high level church executive committees and have brought this issue up repeatedly, but the trend continues. I am not making this up, please visit our churches and you will see for yourself. God help us!
Church talk and regular bibical phrases read and sound good on paper, but are they producing results that are meaningful?
Revelation Chapter 18 is even clearer than 14:6-10 ( with a Fourth Angel ) about what "The Hour of Judgement" is and what "Our message as Seventh Day Adventists" should also therefore be: That "Spiritual Babylon" has fallen and that "The Seven Last Plagues" are about to fall upon it, and that only by focusing our "Faith" as our only hope of escaping those plagues by trusting God's power to save us by "The Spilled Blood of His Son Jesus," and trusting Him with every single "Promise" in His Word "The Bible" as we go through those "Terrible Last Plagues" like the three Hebrews went through the "Fiery Furnace" without a single burn on their body.
Amen praise God.
How can I tie today's lesson with Christmas?
The Love of God is always rescuing us from the Wrath of God. God's love is for us. God's wrath is against sin, not against people. He lovingly created people and called His creation "very good". And God never changes His mind. Christmas is all about showing us this in the most dramatic way....wrapping Himself up into the most non-threatening, tiny form of a human baby, needing help, needing protecting, needing nurturing. Could the Father have sent Jesus to the world as a self-sufficient all-powerful being not needing anything? Absolutely. But God shows right away that though He can override any situation and needs us not, He chooses to include all kinds of humans in every aspect of His rescue mission, even a teenage girl and her fiance... an old man and old woman in the Temple....some poor shepherds (caretakers).... 3 scholars from their houses of learning and thick books ....
The Angels' message....
Peace on Earth, God's Good Will to All Men...Glory to God in the Highest! <3
Amen to this. Revelation has 38 total "Angels" to it and not just 3 in Revelation 14. So let us truly study what each and every single messages to each of the 38 angels mean because "Revelation" is about "The Past, Present, and the future" but especially about "The Here and now" and also "Present Truth." And while our youth seem to be gravitating to "The World," They will all return when "The Sunday Law" and the "Death Decree" becomes a matter of "Reality" to "The Here and Now."