The Message of the Third Angel (Part 2)
Revelation 14:12
12 Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. (Rev 14:12 KJV)
The Grand Finale
This is the grand finale of the three angels’ messages. So far, we have been presented with Christ’s side in the first angel’s message and Satan’s side in the second angel’s message. The third angel’s message contains the word ‘if’ because it brings the recipient to a point of decision. The final destiny of those who choose Satan’s side has been presented already, but now we are presented with those who choose Christ’s side. The third angel presents them in two ways:
- The patience of the saints
- Those who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus
The Patience of the Saints
Patience is derived from a Latin word that means suffering. This is why those who use the services of a hospital are called patients. The saints are the holy people, people that have been sanctified/made holy by God – in other words: those who choose Jesus Christ. The patience, i.e. the character of God’s people, is the main focus here. The fact that they reflect the character of Christ, particularly in regard to how He endured trials, sets His followers apart. How did they get there? How do we get there? Paul answers:
“We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 3:18
In other words, spend quality time looking at Jesus in scripture and you’ll end up looking like Jesus in character.
The Commandments of God and the Faith of Jesus
The commandments of God listed in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 are a transcript of the character of God. They can be summarised in two phrases: love for God and love for fellow humans (Luke 6: 26-28). Actually, we can also use just one word, love, because “God is love” (1 John 4:8).
The faith of Jesus is the faithfulness of Jesus.[1] It’s the story that you can read about in the gospels when Christ lived in complete faithfulness to His Father while on earth (John 15:10). It’s a story that you can experience in your life when you allow Christ to live out His faithfulness to God in you, so you can say with Paul:
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
When you allow Christ to live in you by faith, you can consistently obey all the commandments of God, not letting your love grow cold even under the most severe persecution but enduring in love to the end. That is precisely what the group of people presented in Revelation 14:12 have done.
Have you decided that you want to be part of this group? Would you like more information on how to do that? Take advantage of this short, clear guide to help you achieve your goal: Steps to Christ – Discover Truth.
Dive deeper… Focus on Prophecy
[1] The Koine Greek translated as faith in Revelation 14:12 (Strong’s #4102) is defined as both faith and faithfulness. The context determines its usage. Likewise, in English, faith can also be defined as faithfulness (Webster’s Dictionary 1828).
This article was written by Omari Norman and edited by Diane Lewis.
