The Third Angel’s Message: A Call to Choose

“Choose today who you will serve.”

Good afternoon, everyone! What a beautiful day we’ve had together—wonderful fellowship, delicious food (a special thank you to whoever prepared that amazing meal with the chopped “meat” in sweet hot sauce!), and now we gather for the final message in our series on the three angels’ messages.

Last night we discussed preparing for persecution. This morning we covered the first angel’s message (God revealed as Creator and Redeemer) and the second angel’s message (Satan exposed as deceiver and murderer). Now we come to the third angel’s message from Revelation 14:9-12.

Before we dive in, let me share a quick encouragement: if you’re ever asked to speak somewhere on a topic you know nothing about, count it as a blessing! The joy isn’t primarily in the preaching itself—it’s in the voyage of discovery, the spiritual growth that happens as you study. When you sit at your kitchen table with your Bible and laptop, you never quite know where the sermon will end up. God sometimes takes you down unexpected paths.

The Heart of the Message: A Choice

The third angel’s message can be summarized in one word: choice. Do we choose for God or for Satan? We don’t hear these messages for intellectual stimulation alone. God wants us to choose life, not death.

Let’s read the passage together:

“Then another angel, a third, followed them, crying with a loud voice, ‘Those who worship the beast and its image and receive a mark on their foreheads or on their hands, they will also drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured unmixed into the cup of his anger, and they will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image and for anyone who receives the mark of its name.’ Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and hold fast to the faith of Jesus.” (Revelation 14:9-12)

Historical Fulfillment

These messages found their fulfillment in history:

The first angel’s message came through the Millerite movement (1840-1844), announcing Christ’s coming
The second angel’s message was fulfilled after summer 1844 when mainline Protestant denominations rejected and expelled those faithful to the call
The third angel’s message emerged in the late 1840s as the early Adventist pioneers grasped the significance of the Sabbath and the sanctuary—understanding that God’s law remains valid until the end of time

As Ellen White wrote in The Great Controversy, those who accepted the light about Christ’s heavenly ministry and the perpetuity of God’s law found these truths presented in Revelation 14. This threefold warning prepares earth’s inhabitants for the Lord’s second coming.

The Warning Itself

The third angel’s message is given with a loud voice—proclaimed in opposition to all world powers united in imposing the mark of the beast. This isn’t theoretical. When this message goes forth, it will face:

Economic coercion (no buying or selling)
Social exclusion and cancel culture
Loss of professional licenses, jobs, mortgages, and homes
Ultimately, the death penalty

Preaching this message will require raw courage. But here’s something important: courage is not a fruit of the Spirit. The first fruit of the Spirit is love.

Think about it this way: If your house is on fire at 6:00 AM and your three-year-old daughter is inside, you’ll run in to save her—not because you’re courageous, but because you love her. Bystanders see courage; you see love in action.

John 3:16 doesn’t say, “God wanted to demonstrate His courage.” It says, “God so loved the world.” When we’re motivated by love for the lost, we’ll do things that look courageous from the outside. On the inside, we’re simply compelled by love.

Ask God not for courage, but for love for your neighbor. That love will naturally translate into courageous action.

Understanding the Players

To understand the warning, we need to identify the players:

The beast (Revelation 13) represents the papacy, through which Satan disseminates false doctrines
The image of the beast is established by the second beast (the land beast of Revelation 13)—the United States combining with fallen Protestantism to command false worship of the first beast

The first angel’s message invites true worship of God as Creator, emphasizing the Sabbath of the fourth commandment as the visible expression of loyalty to God. The second beast commands false worship, rejecting the fourth commandment in favor of Sunday worship—the very change the papacy claimed authority to make.

Two Kinds of Wine, Two Kinds of Wrath

Here’s a crucial distinction:

The wine of Babylon’s wrath (Revelation 14:8) = false doctrines inspired by Satan, promoted by Rome, enforced by the United States—a deep-seated hatred of Christ and His saints
The wine of God’s wrath (Revelation 14:10) = the seven last plagues poured out in judgment on those who promote, enforce, or receive the mark

The Greek word for “wrath” (orge) appears in both passages. Those who willingly accept Satanically inspired false doctrines will, in turn, receive God’s judgment.

What Does “Poured Unmixed” Mean?

In ancient times, wine was either:

Diluted with water (lessening the impact)
Mixed with herbs and spices (supercharging it like a cocktail)

But God’s judgment is poured out unmixed—neither watered down with mercy nor supercharged with vengeance. It’s proportionate justice. The punishment fits the crime.

When Christ returns, He promises to give to every person according to their works. Adolf Hitler will receive greater punishment than the average person. God’s justice is pure, undiluted—neither too much nor too little.

Fire and Sulfur: Understanding Final Destruction

The text mentions torment with fire and sulfur. I once received a small glass jar containing sulfur balls from Sodom and Gomorrah from a gentleman whose brother was an Adventist archaeologist. He warned me not to smell them. Naturally, I did—and my head nearly exploded! It was like smelling salts on steroids.

What made these sulfur balls unique? Normally, sulfur occurs naturally at only 50% purity. The sulfur balls from Sodom and Gomorrah are 90%+ pure—they don’t occur naturally anywhere else on earth. They were designed to burn at incredibly high temperatures.

But here’s the crucial question: Is this an everlasting life of torment or everlasting destruction?

Look at how Scripture describes similar judgments:

Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24): Completely destroyed
Edom (Isaiah 34:8-10): “Its smoke shall go up forever… from generation to generation it shall lie waste”

Do we see smoke rising from Jordan today? No. These texts describe complete, absolute destruction—not ongoing torment. The fire destroys completely, and the smoke of that destruction ascends as a permanent testimony that God has dealt with evil finally and forever.

Revelation calls this the second death—not the second way of living. It’s the end of existence for Satan, his demons, the persecuting powers, and all whose names aren’t in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

And honestly? If you’ve ministered to someone with cancer, if you’ve witnessed suffering and death and depression and divorce, you should feel righteous indignation toward the evil one who brought these things to earth. There’s coming a day when cancer, drugs, depression, and every tearing-down force will be gone forever. Burn, baby burn—let evil be eradicated completely!

The Choice Before Us

The second beast of Revelation 13 uses fear to coerce: “Receive the mark or lose your career, your income, possibly your life.”

God responds with an even stronger message: “Receive the mark and lose eternal life.”

The choice is stark:

A nice house in Atlanta for a few short years
Eternal life in God’s kingdom forever

To me, that’s a no-brainer. No disrespect to Atlanta—it seems like a lovely city—but give me eternal life every time.

The Character of the Saints

How are the faithful described? Three key passages paint the picture:

Revelation 12:17 – Those who keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus
Revelation 13:10 – A call for the endurance and faith of the saints
Revelation 14:12 – Those who keep the commandments of God and hold fast to the faith of Jesus

In every chapter, in every era, through every attack, God always has a faithful generation. You can’t get rid of them. Go to communist China, the former Soviet Union, Ceaușescu’s Romania—despite the worst efforts of earthly governments, the Christian faith survives. It’s the power of God for salvation.

Endurance Through Suffering

Romans 5:3-5 explains the progression:

Suffering produces endurance
Endurance produces character
Character produces hope
Hope doesn’t disappoint

You know how you can tell when silver is 100% pure? You can see your reflection in it. Sometimes God puts us through the furnace seven times so that when He looks at us, He sees His own reflection.

Nobody makes New Year’s resolutions asking for job loss, bankruptcy, or cancer. But the times we grow most spiritually aren’t when we’re losing weight or making money—they’re when we’re walking through the valley of the shadow of death. It’s in hard moments that we experience the Shepherd’s rod and staff comforting us.

The last five years taught many of us that this world isn’t our home. Our jobs, licenses, mortgages, and toys can be snatched away in an instant. We’re not building roots here—we’re building roots in God’s kingdom.

Two Characteristics That Carry Us Through

Those who survive the final crisis have two characteristics—and they have nothing to do with education, ethnicity, nationality, or wealth:

1. They Keep the Commandments of God

The Greek uses a present participle—the ones who are keeping. This isn’t about Sabbath-only obedience. It’s a habitual way of life when nobody’s watching, when it’s just you and your thoughts.

Are you envying in your mind? Lusting? Coveting? Lying to yourself? Disrespecting parents? The commandments shape our entire existence.

Can you say, like Paul, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ”? When people see your life, do they see the character of Jesus—His compassion, His obedience, His submission to the Father?

2. They Have the Faith of Jesus

What is the faith of Jesus? As Ellen White explains, it’s Jesus becoming our sin-bearer that He might become our sin-pardoning Savior. He was treated as we deserve so we might receive His righteousness.

It’s faith in Christ’s ability to save us amply, fully, and entirely.

I used to fly on terrifying airlines in the former Soviet Union—planes so bad we joked the theme song was “Nearer My God to Thee.” Drunk pilots, malfunctioning landing gear, cabin depressurization… But my little boy would sleep peacefully in his car seat beside me. He wasn’t worried. Why? He was with his daddy.

When you know you’re with your Father, you can smile at the storm.

Two Ways to Live

We have two options:

Stand before God in our own merits, asking for grace to make up for our shortfall. This leads to spiritual struggle and lack of assurance because we’re continually aware of our sinfulness.
Receive Christ’s righteousness by faith, standing before God in His merits. His perfect obedience counts as our own. As we daily look to Him in faith, believing His promises, partnering with Him in sanctification, He writes His law on our hearts through the Holy Spirit.

The choice is yours today. You can look in the mirror and be discouraged every morning, or you can look to Jesus, claim His promises, and watch Him do a wonderful work in your life.

Final Appeal

The first angel’s message: God revealed as Creator and Redeemer.
The second angel’s message: Satan exposed as deceiver, liar, and murderer.
The third angel’s message: Choose who you will serve.

Start living that choice today. Bow in repentance and confession before our loving Father. Look up in praise to the One who loved us, died for us, and is coming again for us. Step out in faith and shine for Jesus in earth’s darkest hour.

Those who receive the mark of the beast have their father’s (Satan’s) character in their foreheads. Those who receive the seal of God have their Father’s name—His character—in their foreheads. We’re either wheat or tares. You have to choose.

As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

My prayer is that when Jesus comes, He’ll find every one of us with our names in the Lamb’s Book of Life—keeping the commandments of God and holding fast to the faith of Jesus. And there’s absolutely nothing this world can do about it, because we’re secure in the Rock.

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”

We serve the Good Shepherd. He’s coming for His own. His sheep hear His voice and follow Him. May we be found in that glorious group when He appears.