The Three Angels’ Messages

“The wine of the wrath of her fornication”

Babylon’s wine consists of its poisonous false doctrines—The great sin charged against Babylon is, that she “made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” This cup of intoxication which she presents to the world, represents the false doctrines which she has accepted as the result of her unlawful connection with the great ones of the earth. Friendship with the world corrupts her faith, and in her turn she exerts a corrupting influence upon the world by teaching doctrines which are opposed to the plainest statements of the word of God. 3AM 69.3

Prominent among these false doctrines is that of the temporal millennium—a thousand years of spiritual peace and prosperity, in which the world is to be converted, before the coming of Christ. This siren song has lulled thousands of souls to sleep over the abyss of eternal ruin. 3AM 70.1

The doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul has opened the way for the artful working of Satan through modern Spiritualism; and besides the Romish errors, purgatory, prayers for the dead, invocation of saints, etc., which have sprung from this source, it has led many Protestants to deny the resurrection and the judgment, and has given rise to the revolting heresy of eternal torment, and the dangerous delusion of Universalism. 3AM 70.2

And even more dangerous and more widely held than these are the assumptions that the law of God was abolished at the cross, and that the first day of the week is now a holy day, instead of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment.—The Spirit of Prophecy 4:234, 235 (1884) 3AM 70.3

Kings, presidents, and religious teachers stirred with anger—The fallen denominational churches are Babylon. Babylon has been fostering poisonous doctrines, the wine of error. This wine of error is made up of false doctrines, such as the natural immortality of the soul, the eternal torment of the wicked, the denial of the pre-existence of Christ prior to His birth in Bethlehem, [and] the advocating and exalting of the first day of the week above God’s holy, sanctified day. These and kindred errors are presented to the world by the various churches, and thus the Scriptures are fulfilled that say, “For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” [Revelation 18:3.] It is a wrath which is created by false doctrines, and when kings and presidents drink this wine of the wrath of her fornication, they are stirred with anger against all who will not come into harmony with these false and satanic heresies that exalt the false sabbath, and lead men to trample under foot God’s memorial.—Letter 57, 1893 (March 22) (Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 61, 62) 3AM 70.4

The wine of Babylon is the exalting of the false and spurious sabbath above the Sabbath which the Lord Jehovah hath blessed and sanctified for the use of man, also the immortality of the soul. These kindred heresies, and the rejection of the truth, convert the church into Babylon. Kings, merchants, rulers, and religious teachers are all in corrupt harmony.—Letter 16, 1893 (June 11) (Selected Messages 2:68) 3AM 71.1

The Seventh-day Adventist Church is not Babylon—The Lord has not given you a message to call the Seventh-day Adventist church Babylon, and to call the people of God to come out of her. All the reasons you may present cannot have weight with me on this subject, because the Lord has given me decided light that is opposed to such a message.... 3AM 71.2

The whole chapter [Revelation 18] shows that Babylon that has fallen is the churches who will not receive the message of warning the Lord has given in the first, second, and third angels’ messages. They refused the truth and accepted a lie. They refused the messages of truth. See 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12. The message in the 18th [chapter] of Revelation is plain and clearly defined. (Verse 3): “For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.” Any one who reads this chapter need not be deceived. 3AM 71.3

How Satan would exult to have a message go broadcast that the only people whom God has made the repositories of His law are the ones to whom this message applies.... 3AM 72.1

Again I say, the Lord hath not spoken by any messenger who calls the only church in the world that keeps the commandments of God, Babylon. True, there is chaff with the wheat; but first gather the chaff and bind it into bundles to burn it, but gather the wheat into the garner. I know that the Lord loves His church. It is not to be disorganized or broken up into independent atoms. There is not the least consistency in this. There is not the least evidence that such a thing will be. Those who shall heed this false message and try to leaven others will be deceived and prepared to receive advanced delusions, and they will come to nought.—Letter 16, 1893 (June 11) (Selected Messages 2:63, 68, 69) 3AM 72.2

A misuse of the testimonies—Those who have proclaimed the Seventh-day Adventist Church as Babylon, have made use of the testimonies in giving their position a seeming support; but why is it that they did not present that which for years has been the burden of my message—the unity of the church? Why did they not quote the words of the angel, “Press together, Press together, Press together”? Why did they not repeat the admonition and state the principle, that “in union there is strength, in division there is weakness”? It is such messages as these men have borne, that divide the church, and put us to shame before the enemies of truth, and in such messages is plainly revealed the specious working of the great deceiver, who would hinder the church from attaining unto perfection in unity. These teachers follow the sparks of their own kindling, move according to their own independent judgment, and cumber the truth with false notions and theories. They refuse the counsel of their brethren, and press on in their own way, until they become just what Satan would desire to have them—unbalanced in mind.... 3AM 72.3

My brother [Stanton], I learn that you are taking the position that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is Babylon, and that all that would be saved must come out of her. You are not the only man whom the enemy has deceived in this matter. For the last forty years, one man after another has arisen, claiming that the Lord has sent him with the same message; but let me tell you, as I have told them, that this message you are proclaiming, is one of the satanic delusions designed to create confusion among the churches. My brother, you are certainly off the track. The second angel’s message was to go to Babylon [the churches] proclaiming her downfall, and calling the people to come out of her. This same message is to be proclaimed the second time. [Revelation 18:1-5 quoted.] 3AM 73.1

My brother, if you are teaching that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is Babylon, you are wrong. God has not given you any such message to bear. Satan will use every mind to which he can attain access, inspiring men to originate false theories, or go off on some wrong tangent, that he may create a false excitement, and thus divert souls from the true issue for this time. I presume that some may be deceived by your message, because they are full of curiosity and desire for some new thing. 3AM 73.2

It makes me feel sad indeed that you should be deceived in any way by the suggestions of the enemy; for I know the theory that you are advocating is not truth. In advancing the ideas you do, you will do great injury to yourself and to others. Do not seek to misinterpret, and twist, and pervert, the testimonies to substantiate any such message of error. Many have passed over this ground, and have done great harm. As others have started up full of zeal to proclaim this message, again and again, I have been shown that it was not truth.... 3AM 73.3

God has a church upon the earth, who are His chosen people, who keep His commandments. He is leading, not stray offshoots, not one here and one there, but a people. The truth is a sanctifying power; but the church militant is not the church triumphant. There are tares among the wheat. “Wilt thou then that we [go and] gather them up?” was the question of the servant; but the master answered, “Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.” The gospel net draws not only good fish, but bad ones as well, and the Lord only knows who are his. 3AM 74.1

It is our individual duty to walk humbly with God. We are not to seek any strange, new message. We are not to think that the chosen ones of God who are trying to walk in the light, compose Babylon. The fallen denominational churches are Babylon.—The Review and Herald, September 12, 1893 (Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 56, 58-61) 3AM 74.2