Forward

We, today, are in the midst of a great conflict over the very fundamentals of Christian faith. The foundations that seemed firm to our forefathers appear to be crumbling, and many are bewildered regarding the vital issues of sin and righteousness, of life and death, and of the present and the hereafter.IC 2.1

This booklet carries the reader back to the entrance of sin into the universe, answering in a clear, convincing manner many of the questions that have puzzled the minds of men in all ages. The author, Ellen G. White, deals with the unseen forces of good and evil that are contending for the mastery of the soul, and with such a background throws a rare illumination upon the history of the church.IC 2.2

The chapters comprising this booklet have been selected from Mrs. White’s work, “The Great Controversy Between Christ and Satan,” first published in 1884, and revised and enlarged in 1888. The latter chapters of the book, written more than half a century ago, deal with social, political, and religious developments that were largely future at the time the book appeared, yet with so keen a spiritual foresight that, notwithstanding the epochal changes since that time, the book bears a direct message for the present.IC 2.3

To bring within a small compass some of the most vital passages in this truly remarkable book, eight of its forty-two chapters are issued in this form. In bringing these within the limits of this booklet, it has been necessary to shorten several of the chapters as has been clearly indicated. For the full text, together with the background as presented by the preceding chapters, the reader is pointed to the full volume.IC 2.4

That these pages may guide the reader in his search for truth, is the sincere wish of theIC 2.5

— PUBLISHERS.