Ellen G. White The Role of the Bible in the Church

1
Ellen G. Whiteon the Role of the Bible in the
Church In The Great Controversy By E. Edward
Zinke
2
Definitions

• The Church used variously
• Israel
• Jews at time of Christ
• Roman church
• Protestant churches
• People of God
• True church at the end of time
• The Bible
• Truth
• Word of God
• Law of God
• Authority of heaven
• Oracles of God

3
Themes of The Great Controversy

• The magnificence of the character of God and the
  important role of his law in governing the
  universe.
• Satan's purpose to distort our understanding of
  God's character by bringing doubt upon His Word
  and by taking Gods authority upon himself.
• Satan's success in involving human kind in
  rebellion against God.
• God's plan of salvation revealed in the Bible.

4

• The important role God's people (the church)
  have had and will have in the proclamation of
  God's message of salvation to the world.
• The foundational role of the Bible in revealing
  the true nature of God, in resolving the issue of
  sin, in preserving the integrity and mission of
  the church, and in revealing Gods purpose in the
  future.

5
Purpose of the Bible

• Before the entrance of sin, humans enjoyed open
  communication with their creator. Sin disrupted
  this direct communication between God and
  humanity. Thus God has given the Bible as a
  means of restoring His communication with
  mankind. GC v
• He gave His word to men as a revelation of
  Himself. Every new truth discerned is a fresh
  disclosure of the character of its Author. The
  study of the Scriptures is the means divinely
  ordained to bring men into closer connection with
  their Creator and to give them a clearer
  knowledge of His will. It is the medium of
  communication between God and man. It is the
  means by which God communicates His will and His
  intentions for the future. GC 69
• Satans desire is to disrupt our relationship
  with God. He does so by disrupting the influence
  of the Bible upon us by destroying its authority
  in our lives.

6
The authority of the Bible in History

• The Bible was given primacy, but was not accepted
  as the foundational authority in the Church of
  the early and middle ages
• The formula was the Bible and
• Tradition
• Reason
• Philosophy
• Pope
• Church Councils
• The Natural World
• It was the task of the theologian to synthesize
  the two worlds even in his understanding of God.

7
The Reformation and the Authority of the Bible

• The Reformation
• --the Bible alone
• --Verses the Bible and _____________________,
  etc
• For the Reformation, God spoke through many other
  avenues
• -- Nature
• -- The Church
• -- The Holy Spirit
• -- Etc
• But the Bible alone was the authority for
  listening to and understanding Gods voice
  elsewhere. It was the task of the theologian to
  understand God and the world from the standpoint
  of scripture

8
Ellen White and Biblical Authority

• Ellen White emphasized and re-emphasized the sole
  foundational authority of the Bible
• All human teaching is to be subordinated to the
  oracles of God. GC 204
• Christ pointed to the Scriptures as of
  unquestionable authority, and we should do the
  same. COL 39, 40
• The Bible, and the Bible alone, is to be our
  creed, and sole bond of union. I SM 416

9
Ellen White specifically mentions the
foundational authority of the Bible in many and
varied areas

• Basis of religion
• Basis of faith
• Test of inspiration (including her own)
• Test for the operation of the Holy Spirit
• Guide to life
• Rule of conscience
• Standard of character

10

• Foundational authority in the sciences
• Test of experience
• Foundation of knowledge and truth
• Only basis of happiness
• Foundation of true education
• Basis of knowledge of God and Christ
• Foundation for an understanding of history
• Key to philosophy
• Foundation of true psychology
• Foundation to true philosophy
• Basis of national prosperity
• etc.

11
The Reformation Restored the Sole Foundational
Authority of the Bible

• Vaudois Church Rejected the supremacy of the
  pope and held the Bible as the only supreme,
  infallible authority. GC p 36
• Wycliffe Instead of the church speaking
  through the pope, he declared the only true
  authority to be the voice of God speaking through
  His word. GC 93
• John Huss and Jerome God speaking in the
  Bible, and not the church speaking through the
  priesthood, is the one infallible guide. GC p
  102

12
Luther

• Fearlessly did Luther defend the gospel from the
  attacks which came from every quarter. The word
  of God proved itself a weapon mighty in every
  conflict. With that word he warred against the
  usurped authority of the pope, and the
  rationalistic philosophy of the schoolmen, while
  he stood firm as a rock against the fanaticism
  that sought to ally itself with the Reformation.
  

13
Each of these opposing elements was in its own
way setting aside the Holy Scriptures and
exalting human wisdom as the source of religious
truth and knowledge. Rationalism idolizes reason
and makes this the criterion for religion.
Romanism, claiming for her sovereign pontiff an
inspiration descended in unbroken line from the
apostles, and unchangeable through all time,
gives ample opportunity for every species of
extravagance and corruption to be concealed under
the sanctity of the apostolic commission. The
inspiration claimed by Munzer and his associates
proceeded from no higher source than the vagaries
of the imagination, and its influence was
subversive of all authority, human or divine.
True Christianity receives the word of God as the
great treasure house of inspired truth and the
test of all inspiration. GC p 193
14
Protestant Princes of Spires

• The Protest laid down the principle that all
  human teaching should be subordinate to the
  oracles of God. GC p 203
• "There is no sure doctrine but such as is
  conformable to the word of God. . . . The Lord
  forbids the teaching of any other doctrine. GC
  p 203

15
Zwingli

• Zwingli - "When . . . I began to give myself
  wholly up to the Holy Scriptures, philosophy and
  theology (scholastic) would always keep
  suggesting quarrels to me. At last I came to
  this, that I thought, Thou must let all that
  lie, and learn the meaning of God purely out of
  His own simple word. GC 174

16
Other Reformers

• Oecolampadius
• Haller
• John Calvin
• Tyndale
• Baxter
• Wesley

17
William Miller and The Early Advent Believers

• Ellen White notes that Miller founded his message
  on the Bible alone. GC 323-327
• The early advent believers stood by faith alone
  in Gods Word. GC 408

18
Gods People at the End of Time

• None but those who have fortified the mind with
  the truths of the Bible will stand through the
  last great conflict. To every soul will come the
  searching test Shall I obey God rather than men?
  The decisive hour is even now at hand. Are our
  feet planted on the rock of God's immutable word?
  GC p 594

19

• God will have a people upon the earth to
  maintain the Bible, and the Bible only, as the
  standard of all doctrines and the basis of all
  reforms. The opinions of learned men, the
  deductions of science, the creeds or decisions of
  ecclesiastical councils, as numerous and
  discordant as are the churches which they
  represent, the voice of the majority--not one nor
  all of these should be regarded as evidence for
  or against any point of religious faith. Before
  accepting any doctrine or precept, we should
  demand a plain "Thus saith the Lord" in its
  support. GC p 595

20
Salvation and the Bible

• When salvation is placed in something other than
  the Word of God (such as the church), then
  salvation is by that same authority rather than
  by faith.
• The burden of salvation by works is lifted by the
  teaching of scripture. GC 83

21
The Bible and Interpretation

• The method employed by the church in the middle
  ages placed the interpretation of the Bible under
  the control of the church, church councils, the
  pope, the clergy, theologians, tradition, and
  philosophy. The teaching of scripture was
  considered obscure thus requiring principles
  external to the Bible in order to understand its
  message.

22
The reformation emphasis on the sole foundational
authority of the Bible brought with it a
re-introduction of the old method employed by
the church in earlier and purer times. GC p
176 The Bible is its own interpreter under the
Holy Spirit its interpretation is not to be
forced by an individual, a church, a culture, a
philosophy, a history, or anything else.
23
THE MEANING OF THE BIBLE IS NOT OBSCURE. IT DOES
NOT NEED SOME SPECIAL INTERPRETATION. IT SHOULD
BE UNDERESTOOD LITERALLY UNLESS A TYPE OF SYMBOL
IS USED. IT SHOULD BE STUDIED IN ITS IMMEDIATE
CONTEXT AND WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE BIBLE AS A
WHOLE.
24
ATTITUDE OF INTERPRETER

• We should not engage in the study of the Bible
  with that self-reliance with which so many enter
  the domains of science, but with a prayerful
  dependence upon God and a sincere desire to learn
  His will. We must come with a humble and
  teachable spirit to obtain knowledge from the
  great I AM. Otherwise, evil angels will so blind
  our minds and harden our hearts that we shall not
  be impressed by the truth. GC 599

25

• WE MUST COME TO THE BIBLE
• ACCEPTING BY FAITH THAT IT IS THE WORD OF GOD
• IN PRAYER
• WITH SINCERITY
• WITH HUMILITY RATHER THAN PRIDE
• IN DEPENDENCE UPON THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
  AND ATTENDING ANGELS
• WITH A DESIRE TO LOVE AND KNOW THE TRUTH
• WITH A DESIRE FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS
• WITH A WILLINGNESS TO DO GODS WILL

26

• Only those who have a personal connection with
  the source of wisdom are able to understand or
  explain scriptures. GC 455
• By beholding we become changed.
• The transforming power of the Word of God itself
  enables us to more fully understand Gods Word.

27
Satan's intent to nullify the influence of the
Bible

• Persecute those who follow Gods Word.
• Keep it from the people at the time of the
• reformation, Rome summoned all her authority
  to prevent its circulation. GC 388, 194
• Blind people to its true meaning by pride and
  unbelief. GC 24
• Cause people to neglect the study of scripture so
  that they continue to accept false
  interpretations and doctrine. GC 298
• Enthrall them in pomp and ceremony of worship so
  that they feel no need to study the Word of God.
  GC 289

28

• Capture attention with fanciful interpretations.
  GC 520
• Lead people to look to bishops, pastors, and
  professors of theology as their guides instead
  searching the scriptures for themselves. GC 598
• Substitute tradition for the Word of God.
  Tradition and misinterpretation have obscured
  the teaching of the Bible concerning the
  character of God, the nature of His government,
  and the principles of His dealing with sin. GC
  492
• Reinterpret the Bible from the world view of
  philosophy, paganism, and idolatry. GC 58, 80
• Replace the scriptural foundation with natural
  and philosophical theology and rationalism. GC
  522
• Substitute changeable feelings and impressions
  for the Word of God. GC 186

29
Doubt, the most subtle subterfuge

• For our generation, doubt is probably the most
  insidious temptation nullifying the Bible as the
  Word of God. For many, methodological doubt
  provides the only possible foundation for
  knowledge. That which withstands the criteria of
  human doubt provides the rock solid foundation
  for all other knowledge. God and His Word are
  subjected to the final authority of human reason
  and experience. Such a method makes humankind
  the foundational authority. Scripture is thus no
  longer the authority, it is subject to whatever
  authority gives it justification. Doubt requires
  an epistemology other than the Word of God.

30

• War in heaven began when Satan doubted the
  goodness of God and the justice of His law.
• Satan misrepresented the words and acts of the
  Creator, questioning His justice and doubting His
  plainest statements. GC 496, 497
• Satan separated Adam and Eve from God by causing
  them to doubt Gods Word about the Tree of
  Knowledge of Good and Evil. They called Gods
  Word into question by following Satans lead. GC
  531, 532
• Contrast what God has said verses any other
  authority.

31

• And this is the object which Satan seeks to
  accomplish. There is nothing that he desires more
  than to destroy confidence in God and in His
  word. Satan stands at the head of the great army
  of doubters, and he works to the utmost of his
  power to beguile souls into his ranks. It is
  becoming fashionable to doubt. There is a large
  class by whom the word of God is looked upon with
  distrust for the same reason as was its
  Author--because it reproves and condemns sin.
  Those who are unwilling to obey its requirements
  endeavor to overthrow its authority. GC 526

32

• Distrust of God is the natural outgrowth of the
  unrenewed heart
• Unbelief strengthens as it is encouraged
• If men permit themselves to question and cavil,
  they will find their doubts constantly becoming
  more confirmed. GC 527
• All whose faith is not firmly established upon
  the word of God will be deceived and overcome.
  GC 561

33
Satans Success in destroying the influence of
Gods Word

• Satans purpose is to conceal, distort or cast
  doubt upon the Word of God so as to separate us
  from Christ.
• The Great Controversy began in heaven when Satan
  questioned the character of God and brought His
  Word in doubt. Doubt sin.

34

• The people of Israel fell because they did not
  follow Gods Word.
• The Jews at the time of Christ rejected Him
  because they misinterpreted the Old Testament and
  placed their traditions in its place.
• The Church at Rome hid the Bible and put in its
  placed the pope, church councils, philosophy, and
  traditions.
• Contemporary Protestant and Catholic Churches are
  substituting human reason, philosophy and
  traditions for the Word of God.

35
Church Doctrine, Does it Matter?

• We live in an age of doctrineless Christianity.
  It is felt that doctrine is of little importance
  so long as one is committed to morality, or has a
  love relationship with Christ. Satan uses false
  doctrine to distort our understanding of God and
  our responsibility to live in harmony with His
  law. By accepting false doctrine, Satans
  purpose to distort or break our connection with
  God is achieved.

36

• At one time, heresy was recognized for what it
  is idolatry. But now in this postmodern age in
  which we are not sure if anything is for sure,
  heresy has become a politically incorrect term.
  We are not even sure if there is such a thing as
  heresy or whether it matters if there is for
  truth is seen to be subjective to each
  individual.
• Thus the church is sometimes reluctant to take
  action against false doctrine. GC 371, 595

37
It Matters

• It behooves us to be on our guard as to what
  doctrines we receive. GC 524, 525
• There is an alarming indifference to the
  doctrines which are the pillars of the Christian
  faith. GC 46
• The truth and the glory of God are inseparable
  it is impossible for us, with the Bible within
  our reach, to honor God by erroneous opinions.
  Many claim that it matters not what one believes,
  if his life is only right. But the life is molded
  by the faith. If light and truth is within our
  reach, and we neglect to improve the privilege of
  hearing and seeing it, we virtually reject it we
  are choosing darkness rather than light. GC 597

38

• The great deceiver has many agents ready to
  present any and every kind of error to ensnare
  souls--heresies prepared to suit the varied
  tastes and capacities of those whom he would
  ruin. It is his plan to bring into the church
  insincere, unregenerate elements that will
  encourage doubt and unbelief, and hinder all who
  desire to see the work of God advance and to
  advance with it. Many who have no real faith in
  God or in His word assent to some principles of
  truth and pass as Christians, and thus they are
  enabled to introduce their errors as Scriptural
  doctrines. GC 520

39
All who neglect the word of God to study
convenience and policy, that they may not be at
variance with the world, will be left to receive
damnable heresy for religious truth. Every
conceivable form of error will be accepted by
those who willfully reject the truth. GC
523 The position that it is of no consequence
what men believe is one of Satan's most
successful deceptions. He knows that the truth,
received in the love of it, sanctifies the soul
of the receiver therefore he is constantly
seeking to substitute false theories, fables, and
another gospel. GC 520 By perverting the
teaching of scripture Satan misrepresents and
obscures the character of God. GC 538, 492
40
The Doctrinal Slippery Slope

• It is impossible to estimate the evil results of
  removing one of the landmarks fixed by the word
  of God. Few who venture to do this stop with the
  rejection of a single truth. The majority
  continue to set aside one after another of the
  principles of truth, until they become actual
  infidels. GC 525

41
Many have come to deny doctrines which are the
very pillars of the Christian faith. The great
facts of creation as presented by the inspired
writers, the fall of man, the atonement, and the
perpetuity of the law of God, are practically
rejected, either wholly or in part, by a large
share of the professedly Christian world.
Thousands who pride themselves upon their wisdom
and independence regard it as an evidence of
weakness to place implicit confidence in the
Bible they think it a proof of superior talent
and learning to cavil at the Scriptures and to
spiritualize and explain away their most
important truths. Many ministers are teaching
their people, and many professors and teachers
are instructing their students, that the law of
God has been changed or abrogated and those who
regard its requirements as still valid, to be
literally obeyed, are thought to be deserving
only of ridicule or contempt. GC 582
42
Results of Heresy Illustrated

• Some claim Satan has no existence as a personal
  being Scripture merely uses the term to
  represent evil thoughts and desires. GC 524
• So long as we are ignorant of Satans existence
  He has an almost inconceivable advantage. GC
  516

43
Natural Immortality of the Soul

• The only one who promised Adam life in
  disobedience was the great deceiver. And the
  declaration of the serpent to Eve in Eden--"Ye
  shall not surely die"--was the first sermon ever
  preached upon the immortality of the soul. Yet
  this declaration, resting solely upon the
  authority of Satan, is echoed from the pulpits of
  Christendom and is received by the majority of
  mankind as readily as it was received by our
  first parents. The divine sentence, "The soul
  that sinneth, it shall die" (Ezekiel 1820), is
  made to mean The soul that sinneth, it shall not
  die, but live eternally. We cannot but wonder at
  the strange infatuation which renders men so
  credulous concerning the words of Satan and so
  unbelieving in regard to the words of God. GC
  533

44
Even before the establishment of the papacy the
teachings of heathen philosophers had received
attention and exerted an influence in the church.
Many who professed conversion still clung to the
tenets of their pagan philosophy, and not only
continued its study themselves, but urged it upon
others as a means of extending their influence
among the heathen. Serious errors were thus
introduced into the Christian faith. Prominent
among these was the belief in man's natural
immortality and his consciousness in death. This
doctrine laid the foundation upon which Rome
established the invocation of saints and the
adoration of the Virgin Mary. From this sprang
also the heresy of eternal torment for the
finally impenitent, which was early incorporated
into the papal faith. GC 58
45
Now that Satan can no longer keep the world
under his control by withholding the Scriptures,
he resorts to other means to accomplish the same
object. To destroy faith in the Bible serves his
purpose as well as to destroy the Bible itself. .
. Now, as in former ages, he has worked through
the church to further his designs. The religious
organizations of the day have refused to listen
to unpopular truths plainly brought to view in
the Scriptures, and in combating them they have
adopted interpretations and taken positions which
have sown broadcast the seeds of skepticism.
Clinging to the papal error of natural
immortality and man's consciousness in death,
they have rejected the only defense against the
delusions of spiritualism. The doctrine of
eternal torment has led many to disbelieve the
Bible... The teachings of religious leaders have
opened the door to infidelity, to spiritualism,
and to contempt for God's holy law and upon
these leaders rests a fearful responsibility for
the iniquity that exists in the Christian world."
GC 586
46
Natural Immortality of the Soul Brings
Misconceptions about God and His Universe

• According to the popular belief, the redeemed in
  heaven are acquainted with all that takes place
  on the earth and especially with the lives of the
  friends whom they have left behind. But how could
  it be a source of happiness to the dead to know
  the troubles of the living, to witness the sins
  committed by their own loved ones, and to see
  them enduring all the sorrows, disappointments,
  and anguish of life? How much of heaven's bliss
  would be enjoyed by those who were hovering over
  their friends on earth? And how utterly revolting
  is the belief that as soon as the breath leaves
  the body the soul of the impenitent is consigned
  to the flames of hell! To what depths of anguish
  must those be plunged who see their friends
  passing to the grave unprepared, to enter upon an
  eternity of woe and sin! Many have been driven to
  insanity by this harrowing thought. GC 545

47
Immortality of the Soul Opens Us to Spiritualism

• If we conceive of our dead as immortal and
  therefore as really conscious, then we are open
  to spiritualism to communication from them.
• Their communication is accepted in the place of
  the Word of God.
• Satan represents loved ones who led a sinful life
  as coming back to tell us that they are in
  heaven, and that the law of God has been done
  away.

48

• The apostles, as personated by these lying
  spirits, are made to contradict what they wrote
  at the dictation of the Holy Spirit when on
  earth. They deny the divine origin of the Bible,
  and thus tear away the foundation of the
  Christian's hope and put out the light that
  reveals the way to heaven. Satan is making the
  world believe that the Bible is a mere fiction,
  or at least a book suited to the infancy of the
  race, but now to be lightly regarded, or cast
  aside as obsolete. And to take the place of the
  word of God he holds out spiritual
  manifestations. Here is a channel wholly under
  his control by this means he can make the world
  believe what he will. The Book that is to judge
  him and his followers he puts in the shade, just
  where he wants it the Saviour of the world he
  makes to be no more than a common man. GC 557

49
Natural Immortality Leads to the Doctrine of
Eternal Suffering in Hell

• It is beyond the power of the human mind to
  estimate the evil which has been wrought by the
  heresy of eternal torment. The religion of the
  Bible, full of love and goodness, and abounding
  in compassion, is darkened by superstition and
  clothed with terror. GC 536
• It gives a false conception of Gods love.
• People turn to agnosticism and atheism rather
  than to accept the God of eternally burning hell.
  Ibid.

50
Doctrine of Eternally Burning Hell Leads to
Universalism

• Those who accept the heresy of eternally burning
  hell and who also attempt to retain the idea that
  God is love turn to universal salvation to answer
  the problem it presents for Gods character. GC
  537, 540

51
Historical Criticism

• The warnings of the word of God regarding the
  perils surrounding the Christian church belong to
  us today. As in the days of the apostles men
  tried by tradition and philosophy to destroy
  faith in the Scriptures, so today, by the
  pleasing sentiments of higher criticism,
  evolution, spiritualism, theosophy, and
  pantheism, the enemy of righteousness is seeking
  to lead souls into forbidden paths. To many the
  Bible is as a lamp without oil, because they have
  turned their minds into channels of speculative
  belief that bring misunderstanding and confusion.
  The work of higher criticism, in dissecting,
  conjecturing, reconstructing, is destroying faith
  in the Bible as a divine revelation. It is
  robbing God's word of power to control, uplift,
  and inspire human lives. AA 474

52
The Authority of the Bible in the Church

• Paul warned even at the time of the early
  Christian church that there would be an apostasy
  in which some would think to set themselves up in
  the place of God.
• Many were educated to regard the Church of Rome
  as the divine, infallible authority, and to
  accept with unquestioning reverence the
  established teachings and customs of a thousand
  years. GC 93
• The very beginning of the great apostasy was in
  seeking to supplement the authority of God by
  that of the church. GC 289, 290

53
Instead, Protestantism sets the authority of the
word of God above the visible church. GC 293
God speaking in the Bible and not the church
speaking through the priesthood is the one
infallible guide. GC 142 The Bible rather than
the Church is to be accepted as the Word of God.
By virtue of the power of scripture under the
Holy Spirit, the Bible is its own assurance,
rather than that founded upon the church. GC 75
Rather than having implicit confidence in the
church, (GC 135) we are to have implicit
confidence in the Bible.
54
It was the work of the reformation to restore the
Bible to the people, and to re-establish its
authority in the church. GC 203 The church of
Christ does not shut out the testimony of Gods
Word. GC 102 If the Bible is the one infallible
guide, then it must be its own interpreter. GC
146 It is not subject to the interpretations of
the church. GC 114 It is impossible to estimate
the evil results of removing one of the landmarks
fixed by the Word of God. GC 525 The sin of
the worlds impenitence lies at the door of the
church. GC 389 No church can advance in
holiness unless its members are earnestly seeking
for truth as for hid treasure. GC 522
55
Church Unity and the Bible

• If God's professed people would receive the light
  as it shines upon them from His word, they would
  reach that unity for which Christ prayed, GC 379
• The religion of Christ will unite in close
  brotherhood all who accept its teachings. GC 46
• The Bible, and the Bible alone, is to be our
  creed, and sole bond of union.
• I SM 416

56
Compromise

• Now the church was in fearful peril. Prison,
  torture, fire, and sword were blessings in
  comparison with this. Some of the Christians
  stood firm, declaring that they could make no
  compromise. Others were in favor of yielding or
  modifying some features of their faith and
  uniting with those who had accepted a part of
  Christianity, urging that this might be the means
  of their full conversion. That was a time of deep
  anguish to the faithful followers of Christ.
  Under a cloak of pretended Christianity, Satan
  was insinuating himself into the church, to
  corrupt their faith and turn their minds from the
  word of truth. GC 42

57
Little by little, at first in stealth and
silence, and then more openly as it increased in
strength and gained control of the minds of men,
"the mystery of iniquity" carried forward its
deceptive and blasphemous work. Almost
imperceptibly the customs of heathenism found
their way into the Christian church. The spirit
of compromise and conformity was restrained for a
time by the fierce persecutions which the church
endured under paganism. But as persecution
ceased, and Christianity entered the courts and
palaces of kings, she laid aside the humble
simplicity of Christ and His apostles for the
pomp and pride of pagan priests and rulers and
in place of the requirements of God, she
substituted human theories and traditions. The
nominal conversion of Constantine, in the early
part of the fourth century, caused great
rejoicing and the world, cloaked with a form of
righteousness, walked into the church. Now the
work of corruption rapidly progressed. Paganism,
while appearing to be vanquished, became the
conqueror. Her spirit controlled the church. Her
doctrines, ceremonies, and superstitions were
incorporated into the faith and worship of the
professed followers of Christ.
58
This compromise between paganism and
Christianity resulted in the development of the
man of sin foretold in prophecy as opposing and
exalting himself above God. That gigantic system
of false religion is a masterpiece of Satan's
power--a monument of his efforts to seat himself
upon the throne to rule the earth according to
his will. GC 49-50 Conformity to worldly
customs converts the church to the world it
never converts the world to Christ. GC 509
59
Witness in Every Generation

• In every age there were witnesses for God--men
  who cherished faith in Christ as the only
  mediator between God and man, who held the Bible
  as the only rule of life, and who hallowed the
  true Sabbath. How much the world owes to these
  men, posterity will never know. GC 61
• The faith which for centuries was held and
  taught by the Waldensian Christians was in marked
  contrast to the false doctrines put forth from
  Rome. Their religious belief was founded upon the
  written word of God, the true system of
  Christianity. . . They contended for the faith of
  the apostolic church,--"the faith which was once
  delivered unto the saints." Jude 3. "The church
  in the wilderness," and not the proud hierarchy
  enthroned in the world's great capital, was the
  true church of Christ, the guardian of the
  treasures of truth which God has committed to His
  people to be given to the world. GC 64

60
The spirit of Christ is a missionary spirit. The
very first impulse of the renewed heart is to
bring others also to the Saviour. Such was the
spirit of the Vaudois Christians. They felt that
God required more of them than merely to preserve
the truth in its purity in their own churches
that a solemn responsibility rested upon them to
let their light shine forth to those who were in
darkness by the mighty power of God's word they
sought to break the bondage which Rome had
imposed. GC 70 The Reformation did not, as
many suppose, end with Luther. It is to be
continued to the close of this world's history.
Luther had a great work to do in reflecting to
others the light which God had permitted to shine
upon him yet he did not receive all the light
which was to be given to the world. From that
time to this, new light has been continually
shining upon the Scriptures, and new truths have
been constantly unfolding. GC 148