The First Angel of Revelation 14

First Angel’s Message

February 1 – 7, 2026

Key Text

“Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people … .” Revelation 14:6

Study Help: The Great Controversy, 355–374; The Story of Redemption, 356–363

Introduction

“A great religious awakening under the proclamation of Christ’s soon coming is foretold in the prophecy of the first angel’s message of Revelation 14.” The Great Controversy, 355

Sunday

1 FAITHFUL REMNANT

1.a. What shows that there were faithful souls even in the time of Sardis (1798–1833)? Revelation 3:4. What qualified them to carry on the work of God?

Note: “ ‘Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.’ Because of their faith, this honor is bestowed on them. In this life they did not boast nor lift up their souls unto vanity. With intensity of desire, with a pure, holy faith, they grasped the promise of eternal riches. Their one desire was to be like Christ. Ever they kept the standard of righteousness uplifted. To them is given an eternal weight of glory, because on the earth they walked with God, keeping themselves unspotted from the world, revealing to their fellow beings the righteousness of Christ.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 960

“Let each church member feel that he himself must be right with God, that he must be sanctified through the truth. Then he can represent Christian character to others and can set an example of unselfishness. If each will do this, the church will increase in spirituality and in favor with God.” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, 481

1.b. “As forerunners of the threefold message, how were the faithful from Sardis comforted during the time of Philadelphia (1833–1844)? Revelation 3:8, 10. If faithful, how can we be likewise comforted?

Note: “Faith is the spiritual hand that touches infinity.

“The simple prayers indited by the Holy Spirit will ascend through the gates ajar, the open door which Christ has declared: I have opened, and no man can shut. These prayers, mingled with the incense of the perfection of Christ, will ascend as fragrance to the Father, and answers will come.” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 6, 467

“Jesus says: ‘Behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it.’ Revelation 3:8. Light is shining from that door, and it is our privilege to receive it if we will. Let us direct our eyes within that open door and try to receive all that Christ is willing to bestow.

“Each one will have a close struggle to overcome sin in his own heart. This is at times a very painful and discouraging work; because, as we see the deformities in our character, we keep looking at them, when we should look to Jesus and put on the robe of His righteousness. Everyone who enters the pearly gates of the city of God will enter there as a conqueror, and his greatest conquest will have been the conquest of self.” Ibid., Vol. 9, 182, 183

Monday

2 THE PRESENT TRUTH

2.a. Explain the reason for the sending of the three angels’ messages. Revelation 14:6–13

Note: “To prepare a people to stand in the day of God, a great work of reform was to be accomplished. God saw that many of His professed people were not building for eternity, and in His mercy, He was about to send a message of warning to arouse them from their stupor and lead them to make ready for the coming of the Lord.

“This warning is brought to view in Revelation 14. Here is a threefold message represented as proclaimed by heavenly beings and immediately followed by the coming of the Son of man to reap ‘the harvest of the earth.’ ” The Great Controversy, 311

2.b. What does God call the specific message given to each generation? 2 Peter 1:12

Note: “As we have followed down the chain of prophecy, revealed truth for our time has been clearly seen and explained. We are accountable for the privileges that we enjoy and for the light that shines upon our pathway. Those who lived in past generations were accountable for the light which was permitted to shine upon them. Their minds were exercised in regard to different points of Scripture which tested them. But they did not understand the truths which we do. They were not responsible for the light which they did not have. They had the Bible, as we have; but the time for the unfolding of special truth in relation to the closing scenes of this earth’s history is during the last generations that shall live upon the earth.

“Special truths have been adapted to the conditions of the generations as they have existed. The present truth, which is a test to the people of this generation, was not a test to the people of generations far back.” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 2, 692, 693

Tuesday

3 MORE LIGHT WAS TO COME

3.a. In proclaiming the soon coming of Christ, what message did the early Adventists help to sound? Revelation 14:7

Note: “Like John, the forerunner of Jesus, those who preached this solemn message felt compelled to lay the ax at the root of the tree and call upon men to bring forth fruits meet for repentance. Their testimony was calculated to arouse and powerfully affect the churches and manifest their real character. And as the solemn warning to flee from the wrath to come was sounded, many who were united with the churches received the healing message; they saw their backslidings, and with bitter tears of repentance and deep agony of soul, humbled themselves before God. And as the Spirit of God rested upon them, they helped to sound the cry, ‘Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.’ ” Early Writings, 233

“Miller and his associates preached the message based on Daniel 8:14 and Revelation 14:7, and failed to see that there were still other messages brought to view in Revelation 14, which were also to be given before the advent of the Lord.” The Great Controversy, 353

3.b. When Christ did not appear as expected in 1844, what occupied the minds of the faithful few? Proverbs 4:18; Habakkuk 2:1

Note: “After the great disappointment there were few who set themselves to seek the Word with all their heart. But some souls would not settle down in discouragement and deny that the Lord had led them. To these the truth was opened point by point and entwined with their most hallowed recollections and sympathies. The searchers after truth felt that the identification of Christ with their nature and interest was complete. Truth was made to shine forth, beautiful in its simplicity, dignified with a power and invested with an assurance unknown before the disappointment.” Selected Messages, Book 2, 109, 110

Wednesday

4 THE DISAPPOINTMENT EXPLAINED

4.a. What did the disciples of Christ still expect after the resurrection? Luke 24:21; Acts 1:6, 7. What did the early Adventists learn after their disappointment? Revelation 10:8–11

Note: “As the disciples were mistaken in regard to the kingdom to be set up at the end of the seventy weeks, so Adventists were mistaken in regard to the event to take place at the expiration of the 2300 days. In both cases there was an acceptance of, or rather an adherence to, popular errors that blinded the mind to the truth. Both classes fulfilled the will of God in delivering the message which He desired to be given, and both, through their own misapprehension of their message, suffered disappointment.” The Great Controversy, 353

4.b. How was the connection between Daniel 8:14 and Revelation 14:7 finally understood by some of the successors of William Miller after the disappointment of October 1844? Hebrews 8:1, 2

Note: “Those who followed in the advancing light of the prophetic word saw that instead of coming to the earth at the termination of the 2300 days in 1844, Christ then entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, into the presence of God, to perform the closing work of atonement, preparatory to His coming.” The Story of Redemption, 378

Thursday

5 A WORK OF JUDGMENT

5.a. Describe the investigative judgment which began in 1844. Daniel 7:9–14, 22, 26. How does this event affect us? Acts 3:19

Note: “ ‘And, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away.’ Daniel 7:13, 14. The coming of Christ here described is not His second coming to the earth. He comes to the Ancient of Days in heaven to receive dominion and glory and a kingdom, which will be given Him at the close of His work as a mediator. It is this coming, and not His second advent to the earth, that was foretold in prophecy to take place at the termination of the 2300 days in 1844. Attended by heavenly angels, our great High Priest enters the holy of holies and there appears in the presence of God to engage in the last acts of His ministration in behalf of man—to perform the work of investigative judgment and to make an atonement for all who are shown to be entitled to its benefits.” The Great Controversy, 479, 480

“At the time appointed for the judgment—the close of the 2300 days in 1844—began the work of investigation and blotting out of sins. All who have ever taken upon themselves the name of Christ must pass its searching scrutiny. Both the living and the dead are to be judged ‘out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.’ ” Ibid., 486

5.b. What event will take place when the work of the investigative judgment is completed? Revelation 14:14–16. Compare Matthew 13:39.

Note: “The second coming of the Son of man is to be the wonderful theme kept before the people. … We are pilgrims and strangers who are waiting, hoping, and praying for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. If we believe this and bring it into our practical life, what vigorous action would this faith and hope inspire; what fervent love one for another; what careful holy living for the glory of God; and in our respect for the recompense of the reward, what distinct lines of demarcation would be evidenced between us and the world.” Evangelism, 220

Friday

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

What can we learn from the remnant of Sardis?
What are we to understand by the term “present truth”?
What characteristics were shown by those who proclaimed the first angel’s message?
Name one common error committed by the early disciples, the early Adventists, and perhaps by many today.
How should the first angel’s message affect our daily lives?