“Our responsibilities are exactly proportional to our light, opportunities, and privileges.” 1 “We are not living in the age in which our fathers lived. God gave them treasures of wisdom, which, through the manifestation of His Spirit, and through the testimony and example of His children from generation to generation, have come down along the lines to our time. We have all the light which they had, and additional light is continually shining, and will shine more and more unto the perfect day. This generation is responsible, not only for all the light that God has imparted to past generations through His Spirit and word, but for the more abundant light now shining. We cannot be accepted and honored of God in rendering the same service and doing the same works that our fathers did. In order to be blessed of God as they were blessed, we must be faithful in improving the increased light, as they were faithful in improving the light that God gave them.” 2
We are living in the time of atonement, the time of the sealing and the time of the Latter Rain. We live in a time of great spiritual light and of great spiritual responsibility. We live in a time that has—by the mercy of God—been extended. But the extension will be limited; it cannot go on forever. The point of termination will soon be reached: “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still” (Revelation 22:11). This is soon to be pronounced. Will we be ready?
In Revelation 12:17, the prophet John describes the dragon’s battle with the woman and her descendants. He uses the expression “the remnant of her seed” “which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”. The New International Version renders them as “those that obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.” They are the “remaining ones” or the “remnant” whom the word of God portrays as a small group of people who through calamities, persecution, and apostasy remain faithful and loyal to God. This faithful remnant God has used in the past and will use again to declare His glory throughout the world. They will be His loyal witnesses in the last days before Christ’s second coming. “Today the remnant people of God are to glorify His name by proclaiming the last message of warning, the last invitation to the marriage supper of the Lamb. The only way in which they can fulfil God’s expectations is by being representatives of the truth for this time.” 3
According to the Spirit of Prophecy, the remnant has the responsibility of proclaiming— just before Christ’s return— “the last warning message, the last invitation.” This message (Rev. 14:6–12) contains a description of the remnant; they are “they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12).
Genuine faith in Jesus commits the remnant to follow Christ’s example. “He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked” (1 John 2:6). Since Jesus kept His Father’s commandments, they too will obey God’s commandments (see John 15:10).
“The remnant that purify their souls by obeying the truth gather strength from the trying process, exhibiting the beauty of holiness amid the surrounding apostasy. All these, He says, ‘I have graven . . . upon the palms of my hands’ (Isaiah 49:16). They are held in everlasting, imperishable remembrance. We want faith now, living faith. We want to have a living testimony that shall cut to the heart of the sinner. There is too much sermonizing and too little ministering. We want the holy unction. We need the spirit and fervor of the truth. Many of the ministers are half paralyzed by their own defects of character. They need the converting power of God.
“That which God required of Adam before his fall was perfect obedience to His law. God requires now what He required of Adam, perfect obedience, righteousness without a flaw, without shortcoming in His sight. God help us to render to Him all His law requires. We cannot do this without that faith that brings Christ’s righteousness into daily practice.” 4
The remnant will have the faith of Jesus. Their faith is similar to that which Christ had. They reflect Jesus’ unmistakable confidence in God. They believe in Jesus the Son of God, who is the Saviour of the world and their personal Saviour. Their faith encompasses all the truths of the Bible, those which Christ himself believed and taught.
The remnant will proclaim the everlasting Gospel of salvation by faith in Christ. They will warn the people that Christ’s coming is imminent and that they need to prepare to meet Him.
“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.” 5
The members of the remnant church will first recognize that in themselves “dwelleth no good thing,” and that without Christ they can do nothing. Before he can be used in Christ’s great plan described in Matthew 24:14—that “this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world”—every member needs to accept the counsel of the True Witness found in Revelation 3:18. Let us review, in reverse order, the three parts of this counsel: “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.”
Jesus represents the eyesalve as a remedy that will enable spiritual eyesight to be developed. The Lord promises us perfect eyesight if we will allow Him to apply His vital eyesalve upon us. He wants us to see His will, His way, His grace, His forgiveness, His acceptance, His righteousness, His example, His victory—and exactly how to obtain His goals through faith in Him. The Holy Spirit is the source of the heavenly eyesalve that Jesus offers. He will show us how to gain the needed faith so vital at every step of salvation.
To cover our nakedness, Christ begins by putting on us God’s beautiful white raiment, His righteousness. With the white raiment on and our nakedness gone, we can rest in the promise of full acceptance and have the joy of knowing that we are now part of God’s remnant. “If you give yourself to Him, and accept Him as your Saviour, then, sinful as your life may have been, for His sake you are accounted righteous. Christ’s character stands in place of your character, and you are accepted before God just as if you had not sinned.” 6
Jesus now counsels us to buy of Him “Gold tried in the fire” that we may be “rich.” We need to be reminded that the Holy Spirit has opened our eyes, and has clothed us with white raiment—the beautiful and perfect righteousness of Christ.
It is a well-known fact that to purge a precious metal from its dross, it must go through a refining process in a fiery furnace. Likewise, God uses trials to purify us. Rightly understood, the trials become like fire to try and purify the gold of faith in us. God purifies our faith in a fire of daily life experience. The justified person finds his love for Christ enabling him to have a character more and more like Christ’s, and also giving him power to live a Christlike life.
What is the last message of warning that the remnant people of God are to proclaim?
The first angel of Revelation 14 symbolizes God’s remnant carrying the everlasting gospel to the world. This gospel is the same good news of God’s infinite love that the prophets and the apostles proclaimed. The message calls the world to repentance, to fear or reverence God, and to give glory and honor to Him.
The call to repent is urgent since the “hour of his judgment is come.” The message calls upon all to worship the Creator.
“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. 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.’ ” 7
The second angel’s message brings out the universal apostasy of Babylon and her coercive powers. “She made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” The wine of Babylon represents her false teachings. She will pressure the powers of state to enforce universally her false teachings and decrees. “Fornication” represents the illicit relationship between Babylon and the nations. John sees the inhabitants of the earth “drunk” with the false teachings of Babylon, who falls because she rejects the first angel’s message.
“Babylon is said to be ‘the mother of harlots.’ By her daughters must be symbolized churches that cling to her doctrines and traditions, and follow her example of sacrificing the truth and the approval of God, in order to form an unlawful alliance with the world. The message of Revelation 14, announcing the fall of Babylon must apply to religious bodies that were once pure and have become corrupt. . . .
“Many of the Protestant churches are following Rome’s example of iniquitous connection with ‘the kings of the earth’—the state churches, by their relation to secular governments; and other denominations, by seeking the favor of the world. And the term ‘Babylon’—confusion—may be appropriately applied to these bodies, all professing to derive their doctrines from the Bible, yet divided into almost innumerable sects, with widely conflicting creeds and theories.” 8
The third angel’s message proclaims the most solemn and fearful message in the Bible. It reveals that those who submit to human authority in Earth’s final crisis will worship the beast and his image rather than God. It directs the world’s attention to the consequences of refusing to accept the everlasting gospel and God’s message of true worship. Everyone will have to choose whom to worship.
“To present these [saving] truths [of the gospel] is the work of the third angel’s message. The Lord designs that the presentation of this message shall be the highest, greatest work carried on in our world at this time.” 9
God has His children in all the churches and, through His remnant, He is calling them out of apostasy to prepare them for Christ’s return. In the light of His soon coming and the need to prepare to meet Him, Christ calls them to “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4).
“The angel who unites in the proclamation of the third angel’s message is to lighten the whole earth with his glory. A work of world-wide extent and unwonted power is here foretold.” 10
The Lord, who has called us to proclaim the final message of preparation for His coming can and will provide His people with wisdom and strength to fulfil His mission at this time. Our challenge is to allow the Lord to use us in a constructive way to turn our individual problems and difficulties from stumbling-blocks into stepping-stones, leading us heavenward.
The apostle Paul, along with the other early missionaries, used Christ’s methods in the proclamation of the precious message of salvation. The early Christians were Christians by example first. In contrast to the typical lifestyle of the day, they gave to the poor, helped the sick, and cared for the widows and orphans. They were so successful in sharing their faith that historians estimate that half of the city dwellers of the Roman Empire were converted to Christianity.
We are to do likewise—to look to Christ to see how He made contacts. He travelled from town to town with His disciples. There was little, if any, community support. His ministry was with the people. He healed them, He taught them, and spent time with them. He provided opportunities for spiritual healing. Christ employed a personalized approach. Often He dealt on a person-to-person basis, rarely holding large public meetings. His methods were simple and practical. He sought people, spoke to them at their level and met them where they were. He refused no one. He used the meager resources at hand.
To us individually the Lord says, “Go ye.” Will we respond, or are we satisfied to be in a “lukewarm” state, pursuing the interests of this temporal life? Let us heed the appeal of the servant of the Lord:
“A working church is a living church. Church members, let the light shine forth. Let your voices be heard in humble prayer, in witness against the intemperance, the folly, and the amusements of this world, and in the proclamation of the truth for this time. Your voice, your influence, your time—all these are gifts from God, and are to be used in winning souls to Christ. Visit your neighbors, and show an interest in the salvation of their souls. Arouse every spiritual energy to action. Tell those whom you visit that the end of all things is at hand. The Lord Jesus Christ will open the door of their hearts, and will make lasting impressions upon their minds.
“Strive to arouse men and women from their spiritual insensibility. Tell them how you found Jesus, and how blessed you have been since you gained an experience in His service. Tell them what blessing comes to you as you sit at the feet of Jesus and learn precious lessons from His word. Tell them of the gladness and joy that are found in the Christian life. Your warm, fervent words will convince them that you have found the pearl of great price. Let your cheerful, encouraging words show that you have certainly found the higher education. This is genuine missionary work, and as it is done, many will awake as from a dream.
“Listen to the voice of Jesus as it comes sounding down along the line to our time, addressing the professed Christian who stands idle in the marketplace: ‘Why stand ye here all the day idle?. . . ‘Go ye also into the vineyard.’ Work while it is day; for the night cometh, in which no man can work.” 11