Christ’s Last-Day Church

Have you ever admired a strong, stable Christian, marveled at his or her devotion, patience, and faith, and longed for a similar spiritual experience? God gave his special message for our day in Revelation 14 because it can produce just such an experience.

As discussed in guide 25, Revelation 12:17 identifies last-day Christians as “those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.” Revelation 14:12 describes this same group as “saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus.” Let’s summarize the characteristics of last-day Christians.

1. They “hold to the testimony of Jesus.” Even when Satan vents His anger against them, they “remain faithful to Jesus.” Before our Saviour ascended to heaven, He promised the gift of the Holy Spirit. He also promised to live continually in the hearts of Christians through faith. Our Saviour wants His light, love, and power to shine out to the world in a special way through God’s last-day church. Their faith is not of their own making, it’s a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8). They see Christ more and more clearly in His true character and by grace . . . through faith they become living monuments to the power of an indwelling Christ.

2. They “Keep . . . the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12, KJV), also translated “remain faithful to Jesus” (NIV). The King James Version renders it as they “keep . . . the faith of Jesus.” Last-day Christians need to trust God as Jesus trusted His Father. The faith that Jesus had, the faith that He taught, the faith that He lived, must now fill their hearts. Believers in the last days not only have the truth, they “keep” the truth—they follow it. To them religion is life, belief is correlated with practice, and faith is coupled with obedience. Each one lives out “the faith of Jesus” in his or her life. Christ takes possession of their lives and they live in obedience to the Word of God. Theirs is an experience of obedient living through faith. They have discovered the truth that 18th-century author Samuel Johnson observed: “He who hopes to find peace by trusting God must obey Him.”