Daniel & Revelation

The First Angel’s Message (Rev. 14:6, 7)

1. Who does the first angel symbolize? (Who gives the first angel’s message?)

   Answer: The angel that gives the first message in Revelation 14:6, 7, is symbolic of William Miller and his followers who began proclaiming the message in 1844. However it also is pointing forward to when, during the last days, we as the Seventh Day Adventist church will re-proclaim the message.

<“A great religious awakening under the proclamation of Christ’s soon coming is foretold in the prophecy of the first angel’s message of Revelation 14. An angel is seen flying “in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.” “With a loud voice” he proclaims the message:”Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Verses 6, 7. {GC 355.1}To William Miller and his colaborers it was given to preach the warning in America… The writings of Miller and his associates were carried to distant lands. Wherever missionaries had penetrated in all the world, were sent the glad tidings of Christ’s speedy return. Far and wide spread the message of the everlasting gospel: “Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.”  {GC 368.1}These three angels represent the people who accept the light of God’s messages, and go forth as His agents to sound the warning throughout the length and breadth of the earth. Christ declared to His followers, “Ye are the light of the world.” To every soul that accepts Jesus, the cross of Calvary speaks: “Behold the worth of the soul. ‘Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.’” Nothing is to be permitted to hinder this work. It is the all-important work for this time, and it is to be far-reaching as eternity.  {ST, January 25, 1910 par. 5}

2. When was the first angel’s message given?

     Answer: The first angel’s message was actually first revealed to Daniel by God, but he was told that it was not to be given until the last days. In 1844 the first angel’s message was finally proclaimed as Christ began His work in the sanctuary as our intercessor.

 < “But that part of his prophecy which related to the last days, Daniel was bidden to close up and seal “to the time of the end.” Not till we reach this time could a message concerning the judgment be proclaimed, based on the fulfillment of these prophecies. {GC 355.3}The announcement, “The hour of His judgment is come,” points to the closing work of Christ’s ministration for the salvation of men. It heralds a truth which must be proclaimed until the Saviour’s intercession shall cease and He shall return to the earth to take His people to Himself. The work of judgment which began in 1844 must continue until the cases of all are decided, both of the living and the dead; hence it will extend to the close of human probation.”  {GC 435.2}

3. Where did the prophecy of the first angel’s message have its most direct fulfillment?

 Answer: It’s most direct fulfillment was when it was proclaimed in 1843 and 1844 by William Miller and his followers. It was part of the opening scenes of the Advent Movement.

<”…In their initial proclamation that sounding of the first angel’s message with its declaration that “the hour of God’s judgment is come” is linked with the proclamation of the expected advent of Christ in the 1830’s and early 1840’s.{EW 304.1}To William Miller and his colaborers it was given to preach the warning in America. This country became the center of the great advent movement. It was here that the prophecy of the first angel’s message had its most direct fulfillment.  The writings of Miller and his associates were carried to distant lands. Wherever missionaries had penetrated in all the world, were sent the glad tidings of Christ’s speedy return. Far and wide spread the message of the everlasting gospel: “Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.”  {GC 368.1}

4. Why was the first angel’s message given?

Answer: The first angel’s message was given to proclaim the opening of the judgment. Erroneous doctrines, false teachings, and pagan ceremonies had slowly slipped into the church. The first angel’s message is given as a warning for the churches to depart from their evil ways, and a call for the true remnant church to live their lives for God.

 <”The first angel’s message of Revelation 14, announcing the hour of God’s judgment and calling upon men to fear and worship Him, was designed to separate the professed people of God from the corrupting influences of the world and to arouse them to see their true condition of worldliness and backsliding. In this message, God has sent to the church a warning…” {GC 379.1}The fourteenth chapter of Revelation outlines the work that is to be done by the people of God just before the second advent of our Saviour. Three messages are there represented, which must go to all the inhabitants of the world.  {ST, January 25, 1910 par. 1}In Revelation 14, men are called upon to worship the Creator; and the prophecy brings to view a class that, as the result of the threefold message, are keeping the commandments of God. One of these commandments points directly to God as the Creator. The fourth precept declares: “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: . . . for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:10, 11. Concerning the Sabbath, the Lord says, further, that it is “a sign, . . . that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.” Ezekiel 20:20. And the reason given is: “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.” Exodus 31:17.  {GC 437.1}

5. How is the first angel’s message announcing “The hour of His judgment is come” a part of the gospel?

Answer: Putting it bluntly, the gospel is essentially the sanctuary. Each part of the sanctuary – each room, each piece of furniture – are all symbolic of the events of Christ’s life and work. The first angel’s message is announcing the opening of the judgment at the end of the 2300 day prophecy (in Daniel 8).  This means that in the sanctuary, Christ has moved from the Holy place to the Most Holy place to begin His work as our intercessor. The investigative judgment has begun.

 < It is declared to be a part of the “everlasting gospel;” and it announces the opening of the judgment. The message of salvation has been preached in all ages; but this message is a part of the gospel which could be proclaimed only in the last days, for only then would it be true that the hour of judgment had come. {GC 355.3}The announcement, “The hour of His judgment is come,” points to the closing work of Christ’s ministration for the salvation of men. {GC 435.2} Light from the sanctuary illumined the past, present, and future. {GC 423.1) Important truths concerning the atonement are taught by the typical service. On the Day of Atonement the high priest, having taken an offering from the congregation, went into the most holy place h the blood of this offering, and sprinkled it upon the mercy seat, directly over the law, to make satisfaction for its claims. Then, in his character of mediator, he took the sins upon himself and bore them from the sanctuary. Placing his hands upon the head of the scapegoat, he confessed over him all these sins, thus in figure transferring them from himself to the goat. The goat then bore them away, and they were regarded as forever separated from the people. Such was the service performed “unto the example and shadow of heavenly things.” And what was done in type in the ministration of the earthly sanctuary is done in reality in the ministration of the heavenly sanctuary. After His ascension our Saviour began His work as our high priest. Says Paul: “Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” Hebrews 9:24 (GC 421)

 6. What were the consequences to the churches when they rejected the first angel’s message?

 Answer: If the churches had accepted the first angel’s message they would have had the same spirit of God and love for each other in their churches as did the apostles of old. God would’ve looked down upon them as perfect and undefiled, ready to stand in His presence. But, because they rejected the first angel’s message – the call to worship God and God alone – the Lord rejected them.

 < But God who reads the hearts of all, has brought to the test that love for Jesus which they professed to feel. All heaven watched with the deepest interest the reception of the first angel’s message. But many who professed to love Jesus, and who shed tears as they read the story of the cross, derided the good news of His coming. Instead of receiving the message with gladness, they declared it to be a delusion. They hated those who loved His appearing and shut them out of the churches. {EW 260.1}    When the churches spurned the counsel of God by rejecting the Advent message, the Lord rejected them. The first angel was followed by a second, proclaiming, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” [REV. 14:8] This message was understood by Adventists to be an announcement of the moral fall of the churches in consequence of their rejection of the first message. {4SP 232.1} In this message, God has sent to the church a warning, which, had it been accepted, would have corrected the evils that were shutting them away from Him. Had they received the message from heaven, humbling their hearts before the Lord and seeking in sincerity a preparation to stand in His presence, the Spirit and power of God would have been manifested among them. The church would again have reached that blessed state of unity, faith, and love which existed in apostolic days, when the believers “were of one heart and of one soul,” and “spake the word of God with boldness,” when “the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” Acts 4:32, 31; 2:47. {GC 379.1}

7. How does the first angel’s message influence the second angel’s message?

Answer: The second angel’s message would not have been given if the first angel’s message had been accepted. The second angel’s message was cried out in grief and morning of the church’s rejection of the first angel’s message – “…Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” (Rev.14: 8)

 <When the churches spurned the counsel of God by rejecting the Advent message, the Lord rejected them. The first angel was followed by a second, proclaiming, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” [REV. 14:8] This message was understood by Adventists to be an announcement of the moral fall of the churches in consequence of their rejection of the first message. The proclamation, “Babylon is fallen,” was given in the summer of 1844, and as the result, about fifty thousand withdrew from these churches.  {4SP 232.1}

8. How is the first angel’s message still relevant today?

 Answer: Although the prophecy of the first angel’s message was fulfilled in 1844, it is still relevant today. As the close of probation and outpouring of the plagues are fast approaching, we need to be fervently re-proclaiming the first angel’s message to those who are ignorant in our generation today!

 <The announcement, “The hour of His judgment is come,” points to the closing work of Christ’s ministration for the salvation of men. It heralds a truth which must be proclaimed until the Saviour’s intercession shall cease and He shall return to the earth to take His people to Himself. The work of judgment which began in 1844 must continue until the cases of all are decided, both of the living and the dead; hence it will extend to the close of human probation.  {GC 435.2}While the investigative judgment is going forward in heaven, while the sins of penitent believers are being removed from the sanctuary, there is to be a special work of purification, of putting away of sin, among God’s people upon earth. This work is more clearly presented in the messages of Revelation 14.  {GC 425.1}That men may be prepared to stand in the judgment, the message commands them to “fear God, and give glory to Him,” “and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” The result of an acceptance of these messages is given in the word: “Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”  In order to be prepared for the judgment, it is necessary that men should keep the law of God. That law will be the standard of character in the judgment. {GC 435.2} all three of the messages are still to be proclaimed. It is just as essential now as ever before that they shall be repeated to those who are seeking for the truth. {CW 26.2}

9. What is the “action step” for the first angel’s message?

 Answer: The “action step” of the first angel’s message contains two parts:      1. We are to warn those around us to get ready for the Marriage. When Christ finishes his work as mediatior in the judgment (which is taking place now), He will return to meet His bride (us as His church). This will be accomplished by following the great commision (Matt. 28:19,20)  2. We need to be getting ready for the marriage ourselves. We need to be sure we are right with God and are truely serving Him and Him alone.  

 <Christ and Him crucified, is the message God would have His servants sound through the length and breadth of the world. The law and the gospel will then be presented as a perfect whole. – The Review and Herald, Sept. 29, 1896.  {7ABC 458.5}The whole world needs to be instructed in the oracles of God, to understand the object of the atonement, the at-one-ment, with God. The object of this atonement was that the divine law and government might be maintained.  Manuscript 163, 1897.  {7ABC 471.4}Hanging upon the cross Christ was the gospel. . . . This is our message, our argument, our doctrine, our warning to the impenitent, our encouragement for the sorrowing, the hope for every believer. If we can awaken an interest in men’s minds that will cause them to fix their eyes on Christ, we may step aside, and ask them only to continue to fix their eyes upon the Lamb of God.– Manuscript 49, 1898.  {7ABC 458.2}These three angels represent the people who accept the light of God’s messages, and go forth as His agents to sound the warning throughout the length and breadth of the earth. {ST, January 25, 1910 par. 5} {ST, January 25, 1910 par. 1}The keeping of the Sabbath is a sign of loyalty to the true God, “Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” It follows that the message which commands men to worship God and keep His commandments will especially call upon them to keep the fourth commandment.  {GC 437.2}Dear brethren, the Lord is coming. Lift up your thoughts and heads and rejoice. Oh, we would think that those who hear the joyful news, who claim to love Jesus, would be filled with joy unutterable and full of glory. This is the good, the joyful news which should electrify every soul, which should be repeated in our homes and told to those whom we meet on the street – what more joyful news can be communicated! Caviling and contention with believers and unbelievers is not the work God has given us to do.  {2SM 381}  

10. How does the first angel’s message, as it was perceived during the advent movement of 1840-1844, fit together with the actual content of the first angel’s message?

Answer: You have probably heard of The Great Disappointment that took place in 1844 when the expected 2^nd coming of Christ did not happen. The earliest Adventists (then known as Millerites) had mistaken a prophecy about the cleansing of the sanctuary given in Daniel 8. Their interpretation was that the cleansing of the sanctuary was symbolic of the 2nd coming of Christ. However the cleansing of the sanctuary referred to when Christ entered the Holy of Holies in the Heavenly sanctuary and began His intercessory work at the opening of the judgment.

<The subject of the sanctuary was the key which unlocked the mystery of the disappointment of 1844. (GC 423.1) Both the prophecy of Daniel 8:14, “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed,” and the first angel’s message, “Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come,” pointed to Christ’s ministration in the most holy place, to the investigative judgment, and not to the coming of Christ for the redemption of His people and the destruction of the wicked. The mistake had not been in the reckoning of the prophetic periods, but in the event to take place at the end of the 2300 days. (GC 424.2). Christ had come, not to the earth, as they expected, but, as foreshadowed in the type, to the most holy place of the temple of God in heaven. (GC 424.2) They were not looking for Him there. They expected Him to come to earth, “in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel.” 2 Thessalonians 1:8. (GC 424.3) But the people were not yet ready to meet their Lord. There was still a work of preparation to be accomplished for them. Light was to be given, directing their minds to the temple of God in heaven; and as they should by faith follow their High Priest in His ministration there, new duties would be revealed. Another message of warning and instruction was to be given to the church. (GC 424.4) Those who are living upon the earth when the intercession of Christ shall cease in the sanctuary above are to stand in the sight of a holy God without a mediator. Their robes must be spotless, their characters must be purified from sin by the blood of sprinkling….While the investigative judgment is going forward in heaven, while the sins of penitent believers are being removed from the sanctuary, there is to be a special work of purification, of putting away of sin, among God’s people upon earth. This work is more clearly presented in the messages of Revelation 14. (GC 425.1)   In the summer and autumn of 1844 the proclamation, “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh,” was given. The two classes represented by the wise and foolish virgins were then developed–one class who looked with joy to the Lord’s appearing, and who had been diligently preparing to meet Him; another class that, influenced by fear and acting from impulse, had been satisfied with a theory of the truth, but were destitute of the grace of God. (GC 426.2) In the parable it was those that had oil in their vessels with their lamps that went in to the marriage. Those who, with a knowledge of the truth from the Scriptures, had also the Spirit and grace of God, and who, in the night of their bitter trial, had patiently waited, searching the Bible for clearer light–these saw the truth concerning the sanctuary in heaven and the Saviour’s change in ministration, and by faith they followed Him in His work in the sanctuary above. And all who through the testimony of the Scriptures accept the same truths, following Christ by faith as He enters in before God to perform the last work of mediation, and at its close to receive His kingdom–all these are represented as going in to the marriage. (GC 427.2) When the work of investigation shall be ended, when the cases of those who in all ages have professed to be followers of Christ have been examined and decided, then, and not till then, probation will close, and the door of mercy will be shut. Thus in the one short sentence, “They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut,” we are carried down through the Saviour’s final ministration, to the time when the great work for man’s salvation shall be completed. (428.2) But Christ still intercedes in man’s behalf, and light will be given to those who seek it. Though this was not at first understood by Adventists, it was afterward made plain as the Scriptures which define their true position began to open before them. (GC 431.2) Another class firmly held that the Lord had led them in their past experience; and as they waited and watched and prayed to know the will of God they saw that their great High Priest had entered upon another work of ministration, and, following Him by faith, they were led to see also the closing work of the church. They had a clearer understanding of the first and second angels’ messages, and were prepared to receive and give to the world the solemn warning of the third angel of Revelation 14. (GC 431.3)