The Great Controversy The Great Controversy | Page 583
Chap. 36 - The Impending Conflict
From the very beginning of the great controversy in heaven it has
been Satan’s purpose to overthrow the law of God. It was to accomplish
this that he entered upon his rebellion against the Creator, and though
he was cast out of heaven he has continued the same warfare upon the
earth. To deceive men, and thus lead them to transgress God’s law, is the
object which he has steadfastly pursued. Whether this be accomplished
by casting aside the law altogether, or by rejecting one of its precepts,
the result will be ultimately the same. He that offends “in one point,”
manifests contempt for the whole law; his influence and example are on
the side of transgression; he becomes “guilty of all.” James 2:10.
In seeking to cast contempt upon the divine statutes, Satan has
perverted the doctrines of the Bible, and errors have thus become
incorporated into the faith of thousands who profess to believe the
Scriptures. The last great conflict between truth and error is but the final
struggle of the long-standing controversy concerning the law of God.
Upon this battle we are now entering—a battle between the laws of men
and the precepts of Jehovah, between the religion of the Bible and the
religion of fable and tradition.
The agencies which will unite against truth and righteousness in this
contest are now actively at work. God’s holy word, which has been
handed down to us at such a cost of
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