The third angel’s message given in Revelation chapter 14, represents one of the most serious warnings ever given to mortals, for it states that if any person were to accept the mark of the beast for any reason, that individual’s probation will be immediately closed forever, with no possibility whatsoever of that person ever being saved. In other words, to accept the mark in one’s right hand or in the forehead, would be essentially to sign on to a death sentence, from which not even Christ could rescue us. This is the reason why it is given in such stern language, so that all the inhabitants of the earth may understand what is at stake, and also the eternal consequences of the decisions then made, pertaining to the issue. It is therefore necessary for this message not to be watered down or made pretty and appealing, lest we lessen its force, and thereby cause the inhabitants of earth to regard it lightly. Let’s read:
Revelation 14:9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.
Now it is true that the main issue at stake here is worship and by accepting the mark, individuals will be giving their allegiance to the prince of this world, whilst those who receive the seal of God’s approbation, and who refuse the mark, will thereby signal their commitment to serve The Living God alone. In this decision there is no such thing as straddling the fence, by which we hold onto Christ with one hand, whilst we cling to the world and our economic freedoms with the other. There are only two camps that can be developed in the last great final conflict, and it’s those who keep the commandments of God and have the faith and testimony of Jesus Christ; and those, who by accepting the mark of the beast in their
Right hand or forehead, will deliberately choose the only other option on the table, that of serving satan. This is the reason why in the previous chapter, only two groups are focused on, for there will not be any neutral ground when it comes time to decide on this momentous issue. Let’s read:
Revelation 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.
Revelation 13:4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast”….
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the
means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a
man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.
Now, it is true that because the final conflict centers on worship, it follows logically that the issues at stake must pertain to the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, for the spurious Sabbath that is held as a sacred legacy by most Christians, stands in direct opposition to that of the Bible, and since most evangelicals and protestants have no problem with the other nine, the issue of worship will be determined by the most controverted and forgotten one, of the laws contained in the Decalogue. As it stands, there are millions of sincere Christians across the globe, who really do not know that the seventh day Sabbath is still valid, and that it is the only day held sacred by The God of the universe.
Sunday sacredness has been handed down from generation to generation as a sacred legacy, and many have followed in its train, without investigating its origins or whether there is any scriptural basis for keeping it. But the time has now fully come for the spurious day to be unmasked, and that’s why God is now making an urgent appeal to the citizens of earth, to be very careful what we do, and who we worship, lest we be found putting darkness for light, and light for darkness, thus following blindly where only tradition leads the way. To set the record straight, God has never instituted any change in the day of worship sanctified at creation, and there is no scripture which teaches us of another day. The decision to hold an ordinary day (Sunday) as being sacred is a child of the Roman papacy, and has behind it none other authority than that of mortal man.
God did not institute the Sabbath at Creation, to get rid of it at the cross, only to reinstitute it again in the earth made new, for this is directly contrary to His manner of working, in which consistency and unchangeableness, are visible, active attributes of His character. Furthermore, God has singled out the Sabbath commandment, as the one we should be especially careful not to violate or disregard, for it contains both His name and office, and also the territory which He governs. Let’s read:
Exodus 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 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.
Isaiah 58:12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the
old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.
13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:
14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
Isaiah 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain.
23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord.
However, as stated before, the purpose of the study is not mainly to determine from the scriptures which day is the correct day of worship, but rather to bring the issue of the mark of the beast to the home-front on a much more personal level. Currently, there are thousands of Sabbath-keepers who have great intellectual knowledge pertaining to the warning given in Revelation, and there are many others who can probably rattle off from the top of their heads, all of the pertinent, historical data, in regard to Sunday worship, yet in heart and practice many of us may be actively preparing ourselves to receive the very same mark, we have warned others of. This very sad scenario was alluded to by the prophet Jeremiah, as he wrote with solemn pathos of the last days of earth’s history. Then again, the very same issue was raised by Christ, as with prophetic vision, He saw many Christians in earth’s final hours, clinging to tradition instead of the Holy Scriptures, hanging on for dear life to a hope that was built in castles made of sand. Let’s read:
Jeremiah 8:19 Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people because of them that dwell in a far country
20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
21 For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt”.. “astonishment hath taken hold on me.
Luke 13:23 Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them,
24 Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.
25 When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are:
26 Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets.
27 But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.
28 There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.
29 And they shall come from the east, and from the west,
and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.
30 And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.
Thus it is, that God will have us to understand that, even though the mark of the beast centers around the issue of worship, on a personal level it will be the culmination of a series of little and large decisions that were previously made, in what some may consider the simple things of life, which then ballooned into that one final decision, to forever part ways with Christ. Whenever truth and duty conflict, and there is a decision to be made one way or the other, then the fundamental issue of “Cost” rises to the surface, and the choice is made whether to move forward with truth and duty, or whether to forbear. Thus the issue of the mark of the beast is not merely an issue of Sunday or Sabbath observance, but rather a deliberate choice to bear, or not to bear the cost of truth.
Therefore, it is very easy for us to know whether we are preparing ourselves to receive the mark of the beast, or whether we are preparing to stand firm for the truth, for our decisions all have to do with our willingness to bear the cost of living by every word of God, or conversely, buckling under pressure when the heat of the furnace is turned up several notches. When all of our economic privileges are on the line, together with all the creature comforts we can’t seem to do without, then the question will be, are we willing to bear the cost of remaining true to God, when friends and family forsake us.
A Christian who habitually makes excuses for dipping into his or her tithes and offerings whenever Malachi Chapter 3, and their mortgage note collide, is thereby preparing him or herself to receive the mark of the beast when it does come around, for if we are not willing to fore-go our rent or mortgage in order to be faithful, then we will not be willing to forego our economic privileges when the beast threatens to take them away, if we do not relinquish Sabbath worship. This is essentially what took place with the rich young ruler, who was faced with the decision of relinquishing his earthly possessions, in favor of the immortal inheritance. On the one hand, he ardently desired to be a Christian, and to partake of the joys of service, while on the other hand were his mega millions, which afforded him the luxuries of this life.
To his wondering mind arose the question of whether a balance could be struck between the two, for if he could embrace Christ and mammon at the same time, then he could have the best of two worlds, or so he thought. But God has specifically stated that one must be surrendered in favor of the other, meaning that our priorities must give truth and righteousness the leeway at all times, in order that God may have the first place in our hearts. And it was this solemn choice that was being pondered by the rich young ruler, when he decided the sacrifice was too great, and so he went away sorrowful, because he had great possessions. Thus, if this young man was living in the last days of earth’s history, he would have indeed taken the mark of the beast, albeit with great sorrow and remorse, but he would have taken it. Let’s read:
Matthew 19:15 And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.
16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
17 And he said unto him”…. if thou wilt enter into life,
keep the commandments.
18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
The following is an excerpt taken from the book Desire of Ages, as the servant of The Lord treats upon the same incident. Let’s read:
(Desire of Ages pp. 520)
Christ’s words were verily to the ruler the invitation, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve.” Joshua 24:15. His exalted position and his possessions were exerting a subtle influence for evil upon his character. If cherished, they would supplant God in his affections. To keep back little or much from God was to retain that which would lessen his moral strength and efficiency; for if the things of this world are cherished, however uncertain and unworthy they may be, they will become all-absorbing.
The ruler was quick to discern all that Christ’s words involved, and he became sad. He was a member of the honored council of the Jews, and Satan was tempting him with flattering prospects of the future. He wanted the heavenly treasure, but he wanted also the temporal advantages his riches would bring him. He was sorry that such conditions existed; he desired eternal life, but he was not willing to make the sacrifice. The cost of eternal life seemed too great, and he went away sorrowful; “for he had great possessions.” He refused the offer of eternal life, and went away, and ever after the world was to receive his worship.
The same scenario of worship was again played out on the stage of action when the multitudes in Christ day were found to be following Him because of the “Loaves and fishes” He provided for them from time to time. The term “Loaves and fishes” must not be restricted to literal food, for they also include the “loaves” of health and wealth, and also the “fishes” of material blessings and all earthly possessions, mixed together in a deadly potion of spiritual Cool aid, that is laced with false doctrines and empty promises, which are then sold to the multitudes via motivational speeches, as being the true gospel. This was the prospect and the desire most prominent in the minds of many of Christ’s disciples, when The Lord decided to bring the whole issue to a head. Let’s read:
John 6:5 When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him,
9 There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
14 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world.
15 When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.
25 And when they had found him on the other side of the sea, they said unto him, Rabbi, when camest thou hither?
26 Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles,
but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.
27 Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.
(Desire of Ages pp. 392) By the public rebuke of their unbelief these disciples were still further alienated from Jesus. They were greatly displeased, and wishing to wound the Saviour and gratify the malice of the Pharisees, they turned their backs upon Him, and left Him with disdain. They had made their choice,—had taken the form without the spirit, the husk without the kernel. Their decision was never afterward reversed; for they walked no more with Jesus.
Praise and flattery would be pleasing to their ears; but the truth is unwelcome; they cannot hear it. When the crowds follow, and the multitudes are fed, and the shouts of triumph are heard, their voices are loud in praise; but when the searching of God’s Spirit reveals their sin, and bids them leave it, they turn their backs upon the truth, and walk no more with Jesus.
As those disaffected disciples turned away from Christ, a different spirit took control of them. They could see nothing attractive in Him whom they had once found so interesting.
What is worthy of note, is that the point of no return as chosen by these false disciples, ends with John 6:66. Now, whether this is a mere coincidence, or whether it was deliberately orchestrated by The Holy Ghost when the scriptures were being translated, is anyone's guess, but it does remind us of that dire warning as given by the third angel of Revelation 14, which delineates the fate of all those who choose mammon over God. By the simple decisions that are made every day, we too are setting ourselves up to either receive the seal of God's approval, or conversely, the mark of the beast, for whenever the gospel calls for sacrifice of any kind on our part, there the issue of the mark of the beast is present in miniature form, and the choices we then make will shape the larger decisions in the very near future.
If we are only willing to serve God when there is no cost involved, then we are preparing ourselves to receive the mark of the beast, whether we keep the Sabbath or not, for as stated before, the mark will impact every person on the planet in a very personal manner. It is therefore very important, that as we live from day to day, that our choices be in harmony with the principles of Christ’s righteousness, even when sacrifice, self-denial, or other costs are involved, for the pathway to heaven was paved in self-denial, and thus all who will be found in Christ, must cultivate this principle, both in theory and in practice. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which encapsulates the very essence of discipleship, and it is the will of God that all who take the name of Christ, be thus exercised, in theory and in practice. Let’s read:
Matthew 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
God bless!