“Those who have held the beginning of their confidence firm unto the end will be wide-awake during the time that the third angel’s message is proclaimed with great power. During the loud cry, the church, aided by the providential interpositions of her exalted Lord, will diffuse the knowledge of salvation so abundantly that light will be communicated to every city and town. The earth will be filled with the knowledge of salvation. So abundantly will the renewing Spirit of God have crowned with success the intensely active agencies, that the light of present truth will be seen flashing everywhere.”5

This outpouring is what we are all waiting for and what we should be praying for and preparing for - yet there are some who will not be prepared to receive it.

“There is to be in the churches a wonderful manifestation of the power of God, but it will not move upon those who have not humbled themselves before the Lord, and opened the door of their heart by confession and repentance.”6

“When men who handle sacred things will humble themselves under the mighty hand of God, the Lord will lift them up. He will make them men of discernment - men rich in the grace of His Spirit. Their strong, selfish traits of character, their stubbornness, will be seen in the light shining from the Light of the world. ‘I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent’ (Revelation 2:5). If you seek the Lord with all your heart, He will be found of you.”7

From these words we can see that it is only those who are humble and teachable that will receive the power to give the loud cry.

“God meant that the watchmen should arise and with united voices send forth a decided message, giving the trumpet a certain sound, that the people might all spring to their post of duty and act their part in the great work. Then the strong, clear light of that other angel who comes down from heaven having great power, would have filled the earth with his glory. We are years behind.”8

“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit” (Joel 2:28, 29).

These verses advocate that it is the common people who will be filled with the Spirit of God. We are also told that the children will accomplish a great work during this outpouring:

“In the closing scenes of this earth’s history many . . . children and youth will astonish people by their witness to the truth, which will be borne in simplicity, yet with spirit and power. They have been taught the fear of the Lord, and their hearts have been softened by a careful and prayerful study of the Bible. In the near future many children will be endued with the Spirit of God and will do a work in proclaiming the truth to the world that at that time cannot well be done by the older members of the church.”9

The loud cry of the third angel, which is the final work of that other angel of Revelation 18, is also understood to be the outpouring of the latter rain. When shown in vision the way by which the final message swells into a loud cry, the servant of the Lord wrote what an angel had told her: “‘It is the latter rain, the refreshing from the presence of the Lord, the loud cry of the third angel.’”10

“Several have written to me, inquiring if the message of justification by faith is the third angel’s message, and I have answered, ‘It is the third angel’s message in verity.’ The prophet declares, ‘And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory’ (Revelation 18:1).”11 What else is contained in the fullness of the third angel’s message?

“When the third angel’s message is received in its fullness, health reform will be given its place in the councils of the conference, in the work of the church, in the home, at the table, and in all the household arrangements. Then the right arm will serve and protect the body.”12

“Many do not realize what they must be in order to live in the sight of the Lord without a high priest in the sanctuary through the time of trouble. Those who receive the seal of the living God and are protected in the time of trouble must reflect the image of Jesus fully.

“I saw that many were neglecting the preparation so needful and were looking to the time of ‘refreshing’ and the ‘latter rain’ to fit them to stand in the day of the Lord and to live in His sight. Oh, how many I saw in the time of trouble without a shelter! They had neglected the needful preparation; therefore they could not receive the refreshing that all must have to fit them to live in the sight of a holy God. Those who refuse to be hewed by the prophets and fail to purify their souls in obeying the whole truth, and who are willing to believe that their condition is far better than it really is, will come up to the time of the falling of the plagues, and then see that they needed to be hewed and squared for the building. But there will be no time then to do it and no Mediator to plead their cause before the Father. Before this time the awfully solemn declaration has gone forth, ‘He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still’ (Revelation 22:11). I saw that none could share the ‘refreshing’ unless they obtain the victory over every besetment, over pride, selfishness, love of the world, and over every wrong word and action. We should, therefore, be drawing nearer and nearer to the Lord and be earnestly seeking that preparation necessary to enable us to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. Let all remember that God is holy and that none but holy beings can ever dwell in His presence.”13

“God has light for His people, and all who will accept it will see the sinfulness of remaining in a lukewarm condition; they will heed the counsel of the True Witness when He says, ‘Be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

I would like to emphasize the word “any”; “if any man hear my voice”; the invitation belongs to “whosoever will.” “And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:12).

You do not have to be a special, chosen one to receive the latter rain and give the loud cry, yet there is a special condition.

“Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain” (Zechariah 10:1). “He will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain” (Joel 2:23).

“But God Himself must command the rain to fall. Therefore we should not be remiss in supplication. We are not to trust to the ordinary working of providence. We must pray that God will unseal the fountain of the water of life. And we must ourselves receive of the living water. Let us, with contrite hearts, pray most earnestly that now, in the time of the latter rain, the showers of grace may fall upon us. At every meeting we attend, our prayers should ascend that at this very time, God will impart warmth and moisture to our souls. As we seek God for the Holy Spirit, it will work in us meekness, humbleness of mind, a conscious dependence upon God for the perfecting latter rain. If we pray for the blessing in faith, we shall receive it as God has promised.”15

“The Lord has been pleased to give His people the third angel’s message as a testing message to bear to the world. John beholds a people distinct and separate from the world, who refuse to worship the beast or his image, who bear God’s sign, keeping holy His Sabbath - the seventh-day to be kept holy as a memorial of the living God, the Creator of heaven and earth. Of them the apostle writes, ‘Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus’ (Revelation 14:12).”16

Everything connected with the third angel’s message is a test. Those who neglect the light on dress reform, for example, and follow the indecent ways of the world, will fail in the test.

God condemns any inappropriate, ourward appearance today as He condemned the immodest worldly fashions of over 100 years ago.

“God designed the reform dress as a barrier to prevent the hearts of our sisters from becoming alienated from Him by following the fashions of the world. . . . God has been testing His people.”17

“The great outpouring of the Spirit of God, which lightens the whole earth with His glory, will not come until we have an enlightened people, that know by experience what it means to be laborers together with God. When we have entire, wholehearted consecration to the service of Christ, God will recognize the fact by an outpouring of His Spirit without measure; but this will not be while the largest portion of the church are not laborers together with God. God cannot pour out His Spirit when selfishness and self-indulgence are so manifest; when a spirit prevails that, if put into words, would express that answer of Cain - ‘Am I my brother’s keeper’ (Genesis 4:9)?”18

We are in great need to pull together in our church and pray for this outpouring; pray about it, talk about it, sing about it, live it. If we humble our heart, seriously confess and repent of our ways that are not Christlike, we will be filled. If we truly believed this message we would be preparing our children to give the loud cry; and best of all, Christ’s coming would take place much sooner. Our life would be revealing the faith that we have in all of the reforms that God demands. Dress reform, health reform, education reform, the laws of God, Christ’s righteousness, a contrite heart, brotherly love, and other such subjects would be our serious study and definite goal if we had in view the outpouring of the latter rain to give the loud cry (of Revelation 18).

“You must remember that this angel represents the people that have this message to give to the world. Are you among that people? Do you really believe that this work in which we are engaged is truly the third angel’s message? If so, then you understand that we have a mighty work to do, and that we ought to be about it. We must sanctify ourselves by a strict obedience to the truth, placing ourselves in right relation to God and His work.”19