The Great Controversy The Great Controversy | Page 244

Under the rule of the Roman Church the people were sunken in
poverty and ground down by oppression. They were destitute of the
Scriptures; and having a religion of mere signs and ceremonies, which
conveyed no light to the mind, they were returning to the superstitious
beliefs and pagan practices of their heathen ancestors. The nation was
divided into contending factions, whose perpetual strife increased the
misery of all. The king determined upon a reformation in the state and
the church, and he welcomed these able assistants in the battle against
Rome.
In the presence of the monarch and the leading men of Sweden,
Olaf Petri with great ability defended the doctrines of the reformed faith
against the Romish champions. He declared that the teachings of the
Fathers are to be received only when in accordance with the Scriptures;
that the essential doctrines of the faith are presented in the Bible in a
clear and simple manner, so that all men may understand them. Christ
said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His that sent Me” (John 7:16); and
Paul declared that should he preach any other gospel than that which he
had received, he would be accursed (Galatians 1:8). “How, then,” said
the Reformer, “shall others presume to enact dogmas at their pleasure,
and impose them as things necessary to salvation?”—Wylie, b. 10, ch.
4. He showed that the decrees of the church are of no authority when in
opposition to the commands of God, and maintained the great Protestant
principle that “the Bible and the Bible only” is the rule of faith and
practice.
This contest, though conducted upon a stage comparatively obscure,
serves to show us “the sort of men that formed the rank and file of
the army of the Reformers. They were not illiterate, sectarian, noisy
controversialists—far from it; they were men who had studied the word
of God, and knew well how to wield the weapons with which the armory
of the Bible supplied them. In respect of erudition they were ahead of
their age. When we confine our attention to such brilliant centers as
Wittenberg and Zurich, and to such illustrious

243