September 19 2024 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Greetings, friends. Today, as we continue our journey through The Great Controversy, we will be reviewing one of the most serious chapters in the book, titled “The Final Warning.” Focusing on the prophecies found in Revelation, chapters 14 and 18, we will be considering God’s final warning that will be given to the world just before Jesus returns.
The Bible assures us that God “wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4, CSB). And that is what this “final warning” is all about.
In Revelation 14:6-12, we have become acquainted with the three angels and their very important messages, including the second angel, which says, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication” (Rev. 14:8, NKJV).
When we turn to Revelation 18, we find a fourth angel that amplifies this important message. John the Revelator describes it like this: “After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his glory. And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, ‘Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird” (Rev. 18:1,2, NKJV).
Following this powerful message, John hears another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities” (Rev. 18:4, NKJV).
Although their messages are very similar, the contrast between the second angel of Revelation 14, and this fourth angel of Revelation 18 is striking. While both angels proclaim that “Babylon is fallen,” the angel in Revelation 14 simply speaks his message, while the fourth angel of Revelation 18 “cries mightily with a loud voice.” This angel comes down from heaven with great authority, and the earth is “illuminated with his glory” (Rev. 18: 1, NKJV). Included in this fourth angel’s message is a heavenly plea for God’s people to come out of “Babylon.”
As we have seen earlier, Babylon means confusion and represents a confused and fallen system of worship which tramples on the law of God.
Commenting on this passage in Revelation 18, the inspired author of The Great Controversy writes, “This scripture points forward to a time when the announcement of the fall of Babylon, as made by the second angel of Revelation 14, is to be repeated, with the additional mention of the corruptions which have been entering the various organizations that constitute Babylon, since that message was first given, in the summer of 1844” (The Great Controversy, p. 603).
You might remember in an earlier chapter of The Great Controversy, we learned about the Great Advent Awakening when, based on the prophecies of Daniel, William Miller and many others looked for the Second Coming of Christ in 1844. Because of their belief in the soon coming of Christ, many were forced to leave their churches, which rejected the Advent message. While Miller had mistakenly identified “the cleansing of the sanctuary” in Daniel 8:14 as Christ’s second coming to cleanse the earth, his calculation of the 2,300-day or 2,300 year prophecy, because one day in prophecy represents one year. His calculation was right. The second angel’s message of Revelation 14 was correctly proclaimed and those who accepted Bible prophecy were willing to leave their churches rather than give up Bible truth.
We read in The Great Controversy that in Revelation 18 “a terrible condition of the religious world is here described. With every rejection of truth the minds of the people will become darker, [and] their hearts more stubborn, until they are entrenched” as infidels (The Great Controversy, p. 603).
Despite these terrible conditions, however, God still has true-hearted people in Babylon—those religious institutions that claim to follow Christ but reject His Word, including the Sabbath commandment found in Exodus 20:8-11. These precious people need to be warned of the coming judgments that will soon fall upon this apostate system, so God sends a strong message to “Come out of Babylon,” before it is too late.
“These announcements,” we are told, “uniting with the third angel’s message, constitute the final warning to be given to the inhabitants of the earth” (The Great Controversy, p. 604).
The third angel’s message, you might remember, is found in Revelation 14:9-12. It warns that those who worship the beast and his image and receive his mark will experience the wrath of God and will suffer terrible consequences.
Following this very strong warning, the passage then describes those who have heeded the third angels’ message and have not received the mark of the beast. Verse 12 says: “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (NKJV).
Friends, the world is on the edge of the last great battle between good and evil. Soon, the final warning will be given. In our next video, we will look more deeply at how this will take place and how the prophetic message of Revelation 18 will be fulfilled.
Until then, I once again encourage you to download your free copy of The Great Controversy, where you can learn more about the amazing events soon to take place. The book is available for free download at thegreatcontroversyproject.org [Insert: thegreatcontroversyproject.org].
Let’s pray together just now.
Father in Heaven, thank you for giving to us the marvelously powerful message of revelation 14 verses six through 12. The three angels messages proclaiming your creative power, proclaiming that people are to stay away from the confusion of Babylon, that people are to follow your commandments and worship on the seventh day Sabbath, as opposed to the false worship on Sunday. And that we then, by staying close to you, will be sealed by you as we keep the fourth commandment, and keep the Sabbath day holy. And those who will not adhere to your word and will worship on a false day, the first day of the week, they will receive the mark of the beast. Lord, we ask that you will keep us close to you. We ask that you will help us as we proclaim the fourth angel of revelation 18, helping people to come out of Babylon and confusion and come to the true worship of God. Guide us each one as we look to you in Jesus name we ask it. Amen.