[1] He was born at Balestrand[2] in Sogn og Fjordane, Norway to Karoline Metella Suur and Harald Ulrik Sverdrup, a member of the Norwegian Parliament, whose brother Johan Sverdrup was Prime Minister of Norway between 1884 and 1889.
[2][4][5] Emphasizing the freedom of the local congregation, together with Sven Oftedal, he founded the Lutheran Free Church in 1897.
[3] Sverdrup was raised in the Norwegian State Church and educated in Lutheran theology.
He had become concerned with the role and influence of the hierarchy within the church as well as their understanding of the Bible.
His beliefs resulted in his participation in the formation of the Lutheran Free Church in 1897.