There are some images on the outside wall of our church/school building, facing the highway. These images might not mean much to the general public but they are very familiar to Seventh-Day Adventists. There is an image of the earth. To the left there are three angels flying toward it. To the right it says, “Rev. 14:6-12”.
Adventists know exactly what those images mean. Or do we? We are unanimous in associating these images with the church but there is great variety in the individual associations with these images. For some, they are a positive symbol of purpose for the church. They give prophetic identity and a clear vision for ministry. They inspire passion to cooperate with God in communicating specific messages that our world needs to hear as we approach the soon return of Christ. For others, these images have earned a negative association. Those three angels have been played as the trump card to crush outreach ideas or to be critical of ministry styles. The “3 angels’ messages” has become a code word for “ministry the way I think it should be done”. For others, they are worn out symbols that do nothing for them. Some have made too much of these images, adding messages that those angels never meant to say. Others have made too little of these images, not recognizing the important messages that are there.
It’s time to go back to the fundamentals. Fundamental Belief #13, The Remnant and Its Mission, highlights the significance of those familiar images by summarizing, from Revelation 14, what the remnant is and what it does. This study will consider four truths about the remnant that we should associate with those images on the side of our building.
THE REMNANT REFERS TO THOSE BELIEVERS WHO REMAIN IN GOD’S LOVE WHILE MANY OTHERS TURN AWAY.
“…in the last days, a time of widespread apostasy, a remnant has been called out…”. Fundamental Belief #13
Dictionary.com defines remnant as “a remaining, usually small part.”
In John 15 Jesus calls us to remain in his love (v.9) and he tells us that this remaining is the vital connection for all spiritual life (vv. 1-5). Humans don’t have a good track record for remaining. The historical pattern is that we turn away from God’s love and he graciously preserves a remnant.
People turned away in Old Testament times and God preserved a remnant of people who remained in his love.
Isaiah 11:11 In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.
Jeremiah 23:3 Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply.
People turned away in the Middle Ages and God preserved a remnant of people who remained in his love.
Revelation 12:15-17 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth.Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.
People are turning away today and God is preserving a remnant of people who remain in his love.
The second angel declares this failure to remain in God’s love through the fall of false religion.
Revelation 14:8 “Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passionof her sexual immorality.”
Scripture has told us that there would be a major rebellion before the second coming.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessnessis revealed, the son of destruction 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.
The key to navigating this rebellion is the same as it has always been, remain in God’s love.
Matthew 24: 12-13 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Here are some strategies that the devil is using to keep us from remaining.
- Deception
Matthew 24:4-5 And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.
- Persecution
Matthew 24:9-10 Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. 10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.
- Religious Conspiracies:
2 Timothy 4:3-4 For the time is coming when people will not endure soundteaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
1 Timothy 4:1-3 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, 2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, 3 who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
When we see those angels, we should feel a call to remain in God’s love.
THE REMNANT IS DISTINCTLY INCLUSIVE.
We pick this up in the first verse.
Revelation 14:6 Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people.
The angels come to those who dwell on earth, not those of a specific continent, country, gender, or denomination.
This inclusive language is echoed in Fundamental Belief #13.
- “The universal church is composed of all who truly believe in Christ.”
- “Every believer is called to have a personal part in this worldwide witness.”
This inclusivity is simply the heart of God. God loves the world (John 3:6). He wants all to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). He died for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2).
This is not universalism but a universal invitation. Universalism says that all will be saved. The universal invitation calls all to remain in God’s love but doesn’t force it.
“Distinctly inclusive” is a clashing term that acknowledges two potential pitfalls in our understanding of the remnant.
Pitfall #1- The exclusive misunderstanding that “we” are the only group God is working among.
This pitfall can be expressed in elitism, superiority, and pride. This is dangerous. We know that pride goes before the fall (Proverbs 16:18) and we are counseled, “let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.” (1 Corinthians 10:12).
This pitfall is exposed when we think that our group is the only group that will be saved or that we have a monopoly on truth. It is simply wrong.
God has people in many different places. When Isaiah speaks of the remnant in Isaiah 11:11 he tells where they come from and it is surprising, “the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.” These are not the places you would expect to find people remaining in God’s love. It doesn’t mention Jerusalem.
Notice that Fundamental Belief #13 does not identify any denomination but only the characteristics of those who remain in God’s love.
Pitfall #2- The inclusive misunderstanding that God is not working among us in any distinctly significant way.
While pitfall #1 says, “We are more special”, pitfall #2 says, “We are not special.”
God has a special calling upon the Seventh-day Adventist Church. If we back away from our distinctiveness too far we risk that we will lose sight of that calling. We are not set apart from everyone as elite, but we are set apart from everyone, to display the character of God in a way that no other movement is doing.
There is a study done regularly through Southern Adventist University called the Adventist Connection Study.[i] One part of the study asks participant to rate their level of agreement with statements of Seventh-day Adventist beliefs. The statement that consistently gets the lowest agreement is, “The Seventh-day Adventist Church is God’s last-day church with a message to prepare the world for the Second Coming of Christ.” In 2018, 40% of participants strongly agreed with that statement. We have seen some ugly remnant claims and we are hesitant to agree with those statements.
Ted Wilson shared his response when someone asked him what the greatest challenge is in the church. There are a lot of challenges that he could have shared. He said that the greatest challenge is getting Seventh-Day Adventists to believe that we have a special calling from God.
There is a work our church is doing that nobody else is. There is a message our church is preaching that nobody else is preaching. There have been evidences of the Holy Spirit upon this movement from the beginning. We are not the only ones God is working with, but God does have a special call upon our church.
God has used this church to bless the world through a health message and global health care system. Schools around the world are changing the lives of young people. We have the best news in the world! What people need is a revelation of the character of God. The clearest picture of God’s character is seen in the Seventh-day Adventist’s interpretation of scripture.
The remnant is distinctly inclusive. Don’t fall into the pit of remnant exclusivity and pride. Don’t fall into the pit of discarding the special call of God upon our church.
When we see those angels, we should feel a call to live out our distinct calling with the inclusive love of God.
THE REMNANT IS IDENTIFIED AS THOSE WHO KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD AND HAVE THE FAITH OF JESUS.
Revelation 14:12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus.
These are the great twin characteristics of remaining in God’s love.
Keeping God’s commandments and loving God are inseparably linked. Keeping commandments is always the fruit of love, never the source of salvation.
John 14:15 If you love me, keep my commandments.
John 15:9-10 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
In Matthew 24 there was a reason given for why the love of many would grow cold. Do you remember what it is? It is due to the increase of lawlessness (v.12). There is a link between the law and love.
Love is the fulfillment of the law (Romans 13:10).
The two greatest commandments, on which all others hang, are love (Matthew 22:34-40; Galatians 5:14).
The second identifying mark is keeping the faith of Jesus.
There are a variety of ways this could be understood. Revelation 12:17 lists the same characteristics of the remnant, only this verse says, they “hold to the testimony of Jesus”. So, we have “testimony of Jesus” and “faith of Jesus”. Each of these could be understood in two different ways, leaving us with four possible interpretations.
- Having faith in Jesus.
- Having the faith that Jesus had.
- Having a testimony about Jesus.
- Having the testimony Jesus gave.
They are all slightly different, but I’ll take all of them. The one thing they have in common is that they are all about Jesus. This is a group that follows the lamb wherever he goes (Revelation 14:4)
The law of God is to be magnified; its claims must be presented in their true, sacred character, that the people may be brought to decide for or against the truth. Yet the work will be cut short in righteousness. The message of Christ’s righteousness is to sound from one end of the earth to the other to prepare the way of the Lord. This is the glory of God, which closes the work of the third angel. —Testimony Vol. 6 p.19
The truths of the third angel’s message have been presented by some as a dry theory; but in this message is to be presented Christ the Living One. He is to be revealed as the first and the last, as the I AM, the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright and morning Star. Through this message the character of God in Christ is to be manifested to the world. —Testimony Vol. 6 p.20
Several have written to me, inquiring if the message of justification by faith is the third angel’s message, and I have answered, ‘It is the third angel’s message in verity.’ ” —Review and Herald, April 1, 1890.
Revelation 14:12 is the perfect gospel balance of righteousness by faith and a grace that transforms us to walk in God’s love. It is all grace. Grace that pardons and grace that empowers.
When we see those angels, we should feel a call to experience the everlasting gospel in a way that we won’t ever let it go.
THE REMNANT HAS A MESSAGE FOR THE WORLD
Fundamental Belief #13 identifies three key aspects of this message, “This remnant announces the arrival of the judgment hour, proclaims salvation through Christ, and heralds the approach of His second advent.”
The remnant has a message about judgement.
Revelation 14:7 He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come.”
Right now, Jesus is ministering as our high priest in the Most Holy Place. He is a God of mercy and justice. We see in the third angels’ message that his judgments are decisive and final. We have time now to choose Christ.
The remnant has a message about salvation through Christ.
Revelation 14:6 Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth
Now is the time to be clear about the gospel. We have made it fuzzy in the past. It is all about Jesus. The everlasting gospel is our message.
The remnant has a message about the second coming of Jesus.
Revelation 12:14-16 I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, “Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” 16 So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.
When we see those angels, we should remember that we have a message about Jesus as our savior, judge and soon coming king!
I typed the word “remnant” into the search bar on YouTube. All the thumbnail pictures were of a lady with huge hair. I learned that she was Gwen Shamblin, the leader of the Remnant Fellowship Church. Gwen and six other church leaders were tragically killed in a plane crash in May. Stories emerged about Remnant Fellowship after the crash. The significant wealth of the church was being hidden in personal land trusts. There were stories of the church encouraging child abuse and eating disorders. Remnant Fellowship was exposed as something very questionable.
Our goal is not to be known as “the remnant church” but to have the characteristics of the remnant. It is not about clinging to a title but about clinging to God’s love!
[i] https://knowledge.e.southern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=acs