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Let’s pray before beginning this lesson:
Father,
After studying the message of the first two angels, and understanding their great importance, we strongly desire to know the message of the third angel too.
Please show us the impact of Your last warning to mankind, so that we may better prepare ourselves for the imminent return of Your Son, Jesus Christ.
In His name we pray.
Amen.
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Revelation 14:6,7
And I saw another angel fly in the middle of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice,
«Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.»
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The first angel’s message, the first part of God’s last warning, sends out a powerful wake-up call to all the inhabitants of the earth, inviting them to return to God.
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Revelation 14:8
And there followed another angel, saying,
«Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.»
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But, in His infinite wisdom, God knows that the message of the first angel won’t be sufficient to break the false sense of security deluding the conscience of so many people.
So He sends a second angel, with a more aggressive message: «Babylon is fallen, is fallen!»
Finally, to reinforce these first two messages, a third and last angel follows them...
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This message is clearly more aggressive than the first two messages:
«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, 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.
And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”» (Revelation 14:9-11)
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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 (...).»
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The message of the third angel begins with a warning which confirms that the triple message of Revelation chapter 14 is well and truly intended for those who live in the last hours of this world’s history.
Indeed, this message warns us against some things which will arise shortly before the return of Jesus, and which we studied in our lessons.
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Revelation 14:9
If any man worship the beast (...).
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Revelation 13:3,8
His deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. (...)
And all that dwell on the earth shall worship him.
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First, the message of the third angel warns us not to worship the beast, symbolizing the Papacy.
In fact, since the end of World War II, the Papacy has gained much prestige throughout the world.
And soon, all the inhabitants of the earth will follow it and worship it.
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Revelation 14:9
If any man worship the beast and his image (...).
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Revelation 13:15
(...) that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
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Next, the third angel warns us not to worship «the image of the beast», that is, a religio-political system in the image of the papal system.
This system will soon be set up by the government of the United States (symbolized by the beast rising from the earth) infiltrated by the Christian Religious Right Wing.
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Revelation 14:9
If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand (...).
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Revelation 13:16
And [the beast coming up out of the earth] causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
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Finally, the third angel warns us against the mark of the beast, which will soon be put on all the inhabitants of the earth.
In our lesson «The Mark of the Beast», we discovered the nature of this mark...
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Exodus 13:9
It shall be for a sign to you on your hand, and for a memorial between your eyes, that the Lord’s law may be in your mouth.
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Revelation 13:16
And [the beast coming up out of the earth] causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
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In that lesson, we first studied that God puts His law, as a seal, on the hands and foreheads of His servants.
The mark of the beast, also placed on the hand and forehead, is thus opposed to the law of God.
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Exodus 31:13,17
Truly My Sabbaths you shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that you may know that I am the Lord that does sanctify you. (...)
It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever.
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We have also seen that the seal of God is placed in the heart of the Ten Commandments: it is the fourth commandment, requiring the observance of the seventh day, the Sabbath, as the day of rest.
In fact, God gave the Sabbath to His people as a distinctive sign, a sign «that you may know that I am the Lord that does sanctify you», «a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever».
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Revelation 14:9,10,12
If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation. (...)
Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
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God’s final warning confirms that it is by keeping all His commandments, including the fourth one about the Sabbath, that we will avoid receiving the mark of the beast.
In opposition to the Sabbath, which is the seal of God, the mark of the beast is therefore the observance of Sunday as the day of rest.
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Revelation 13:16,17
And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark.
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We live in the last days. Each one of us must, therefore, choose between God’s commandment and men’s tradition:
- between the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, the mark of God’s authority,
- and Sunday, the mark of the beast’s authority.
Let’s keep in mind that the Papacy willingly recognizes that the institution of Sunday as the day of rest is the mark of its authority...
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The Papacy recognizes that Sunday is the mark of its authority:
«We have in the authoritative voice of the Church the voice of Christ Himself. The Church is above the Bible; and this transference of Sabbath observance from Saturday to Sunday is proof positive of that fact. Deny the authority of the Church and you have no adequate or reasonable explanation or justification for the substitution of Sunday for Saturday in the Third - Protestant Fourth - Commandment of God.»
(The Catholic Record, vol. XLV, September 1, 1923.)
«Of course the Catholic Church claims that the change [from Sabbath to Sunday] was her act (...). And the act is a mark of her ecclesiastical power and authority in religious matters.»
(Reply of Chancelor C.F. Thomas to a letter dated October 28, 1894, and addressed to Cardinal Gibbons.)
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Revelation 13:12
And [the beast coming up out of the earth] all the power of the first beast before him, and causes the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
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The religio-political alliance between the Papacy and the United States will very soon lead to the Sunday law, and this is precisely how the United States will cause «the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast», the Papacy.
All those refusing to receive the mark of the beast, this false day of rest, will go through very difficult times.
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Revelation 14:9,10
If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation.
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On the other hand, all those who choose to follow Babylon’s apostate system and «drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication» (Revelation 14:8), will also have to «drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation».
And how will God present the cup of His indignation to the unrepentant nations?
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Revelation 15:1
And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.
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Revelation 16:1,17
And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, «Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God on the earth.» (...)
And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, «It is done!»
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The wrath of God will be poured out through the seven last plagues.
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Revelation 14:9,10
If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation.
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Revelation 16:2
And the first [angel] went, and poured out his vial on the earth.
And there fell a noisome and grievous sore on the men which had the mark of the beast, and on them which worshipped his image.
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This parallel shows that the message of the third angel announces the seven plagues.
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Revelation 20:7-9; 21:1
And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations. (...)
And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city.
And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. (...)
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
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Finally, after the Millennium, all the unrepentant will come back to life to receive their verdict of guilt, and will then be destroyed forever.
After that, God will create new heavens and a new earth for His people.
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Revelation 14:10,11
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.
And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.
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However, when reading the end of the third angel’s message, many people have concluded that those who drink the cup of God’s wrath won’t be destroyed, but will rather suffer forever in hell.
Is it true?
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Jeremiah 51:56,57
The spoiler is come on her, even on Babylon, and her mighty men are taken, every one of their bows is broken.
For the Lord God of recompenses shall surely requite.
«And I will make drunk her princes, and her wise men, her captains, and her rulers, and her mighty men: and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake,» said the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
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The prophecy clearly indicates that those whom God «will make drunk» with the wine of His wrath will «sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake».
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Whoever drinks of the wine of God’s wrath will be destroyed forever:
«And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at your hand to drink, then shall you say to them, “Thus said the Lord of hosts; You shall certainly drink!” (...) And the slain of the Lord shall be at that Day from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung on the ground.» (Jeremiah 25:28,33)
«For thus said the Lord; “Behold, they whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunken; and are you he that shall altogether go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you shall surely drink of it. For I have sworn by Myself,” said the Lord, “that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all the cities thereof shall be perpetual wastes.”» (Jeremiah 49:12,13)
«For as you have drunk on My holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yes, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been.» (Obadiah verse 16)
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Psalm 92:7
When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever.
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Revelation 14:11
And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever.
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In our lesson «The Last Judgment», we have seen that the Bible confirms many times that the final fate of the wicked will be complete destruction.
Now, would the message of the third angel, by saying that «the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever», refute the rest of the Scriptures?
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Revelation 14:11
And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever.
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Revelation 20:10
And [they] shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
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The Greek words «eis aionas aionon» (translated as «for ever and ever») do not mean that the wicked will suffer eternally.
They simply indicate that their punishment will be carried out without interruption, until their destruction is complete.
The continuation of the third angel’s message confirms this...
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Revelation 14:11
And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever.
And they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.
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By specifying that the wicked «have no rest day nor night», the message of the third angel emphasizes the continuous nature of the punishment, which will come to an end only when the unrepentant are completely destroyed.
Let’s look at the following passages, which clearly demonstrate this point.
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Isaiah 34:6,9,10
For the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea. (...) And the land thereof shall become burning pitch.
It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever.
From generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.
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Jeremiah 49:13
Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all the cities thereof shall be perpetual wastes.
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Let’s note that the illustration of the smoke ascending «for ever» simply indicates a complete destruction, since the cities are «perpetual wastes».
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Revelation 14:10,11
And he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.
And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever.
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Genesis 19:24,28
Then the Lord rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven. (...)
And [Abraham] looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, see, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace.
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By calling to mind the punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah, the third angel’s message confirms that the final fate of the wicked will be destruction.
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Genesis 19:24,25
Then the Lord rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.
And He overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew on the ground.
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Jude verse 7
Sodom and Gomorrah (...) are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.
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The «eternal fire» destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Yet, this fire went out a long time ago!
The Bible also says that «Sodom and Gomorrah are set forth for an example», but for whom?
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2 Peter 2:6
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes [God] condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample to those that after should live ungodly.
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Proverbs 26:20
Where no wood is, there the fire goes out.
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The punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah indicates the nature of the punishment of the wicked at the end of time: a complete destruction.
They will perish in a fire which will go out only after having completed its work of total destruction.
And after that, there will be only ashes left.
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Malachi 4:1,3
«For, behold, the Day comes, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yes, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble.
And the Day that comes shall burn them up,» said the Lord of hosts, «that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. (...)
And you shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the Day that I shall do this.»
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The Word of God is straightforward: the final fate of the wicked will be total destruction.
This teaching, firmly defended by the Scriptures, proves to be in perfect harmony with God’s justice.
Let’s look at this.
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Revelation 22:12
And, behold, I come quickly.
And My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
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Revelation 20:13
And death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them.
And they were judged every man according to their works.
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In fact, God will judge the unrepentant according to their works.
In His perfect justice, how could a loving and righteous God condemn them to everlasting torment, while their rebellion lasted only a lifetime?
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Revelation 20:14,15
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
And whoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
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Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death.
But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
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«The wages of sin is death», not eternal life in the fire of hell.
The book of Revelation itself confirms this plain fact, indicating that the lake of fire is synonymous with «the second death».
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Revelation 14:11,13
And they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. (...)
«Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from now on! Yes,» said the Spirit, «that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.»
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After describing the fate of the wicked, who «have no rest day nor night», God presents His faithful ones who «rest from their labors», thus showing a striking contrast between these two groups of people.
But God’s rest is not given only to the faithful believers now deceased...
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Exodus 20:8,10,11
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. (...) In it you shall not do any work. (...)
For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day.
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Hebrews 4:9,10 [NRSV]
So then, a Sabbath rest still remains for the people of God; for those who enter God’s rest also cease from their labors as God did from His.
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Right here and now, each one of us can taste the sweet blessing of God’s rest by keeping His day of rest, the Sabbath.
Furthermore, this same Sabbath day will be at the very heart of the last days’ controversy.
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Revelation 13:17
(...) that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark.
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So let’s remember the message of the third angel, warning us not to accept the mark of the beast.
At present, nobody has yet received the mark of the beast.
However, following an alliance between the Papacy and the United States led by the Christian Religious Right Wing, Sundaykeeping will soon become mandatory for everybody.
The mark of the beast will then be placed on all those who, for fear of reprisals, will reject the Sabbath day to observe Sunday.
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Romans 5:9
Much more then, being now justified by [Christ’s] blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
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1 Thessalonians 5:9
For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.
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In spite of the difficult times which are coming, God invites us to trust Him completely, to accept the salvation He offers us in Jesus Christ, and to obey Him until the end, «for God has not appointed us to wrath».
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Let’s pray together:
Almighty Lord,
Although nobody has yet received the mark of the beast, we can already see the danger appearing on the horizon.
Soon, the observance of Sunday will be imposed on everybody, and those refusing to keep it will experience difficult times.
Please help us to prepare ourselves for that day, and, from now on, to keep Your holy day of rest, the seventh-day Sabbath.
And please grant us Your grace, support, and the power of Your Spirit, so that we may remain faithful to You in all circumstances, and so that our names may not be blotted out from Your Book of Life.
In the precious name of Jesus Christ we pray.
Amen.
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