Hanging from the cross, Jesus said, “It is finished” and then he died. Was this the end of the great controversy? Unfortunately, it was not. The great controversy began in heaven when Lucifer declared that God was not fair. Lucifer alleged that God's laws were impossible to keep. As a result, Lucifer was thrown from heaven and banished to earth, the only world that fell for Lucifer's deception.  

Once Jesus lived on earth without sin and died on the cross to pay the penalty of sin, salvation became available to everyone. This was the work that was finished. We are now left to choose who we will serve. We can choose to serve Satan or Jesus. By choosing Jesus, He enters our hearts and slowly changes us to be more like him. By choosing Satan, we are filled with doubt and contempt. Eventually, our hearts will be hardened and we will fail to discern our need for a Saviour.  

The final great controversy will be over God's law. Jesus' death on the cross demonstrated that the law was unchangeable. Sin demanded the penalty of death and it was paid by Jesus. Now Satan wants to deceive everyone into thinking that the law is not important. As a final insult to God, Satan is endeavoring to deceive all nations into thinking that keeping all of God's commandments is not important.  

We know that keeping the law does not give us eternal life. We can only receive eternal life through Jesus. We do know that God's law was meant to instill harmony throughout the universe and that we are happier when we obey. We are also told that the entire law is important. In fact, James 2:10 states, “whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in on point, he is guilty of all.”     

Satan's last deception is revealed in Daniel 7:25. This verse says, “He shall speak great words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand.” I believe that the last great deception is Satan's attempt to change the Sabbath day. The fourth commandment states that the seventh day is the Sabbath; however, Satan has been able to deceive most of the world into thinking that Jesus changed the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. Of course, we know that the law is unchangeable because it is perfect like Jesus. If it were changeable, Jesus would not have needed to suffer a humiliating death on the cross to save the human race.