Not Afraid to Die / Destroying the Devil

May 15

Read: Hebrews 2:10-18

Not Afraid to Die / Destroying the Devil

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” (v.14,15)

Jesus frees us from being life-long slaves to the fear of dying. Another way to put this is that, apart from Christ, every human is enslaved to being afraid of death. It is the weapon that the Devil has over us. Do you see that in the verse? The Devil uses death and the fear of dying as the tool to control, manipulate, and destroy humanity. Fear as a tool to control and enslave is a classic / ear-mark / stereotypical trait of the Devil. Full stop. This is part of the reason why the scriptures tell us:

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” (1 John 4:18)

Whenever fear and manipulation are used to enslave humanity, it is from the Devil. You need not question it’s origins. God does not use fear to manipulate and enslave. It is not his character. Jesus is not seeking to enslave, he has come to set the children of God FREE!

When Jesus died and rose again, he conquered death. He did this to “destroy the one who has the power of death”. You see, there are at least 2 goals mentioned here in Hebrews that Jesus had in his death and resurrection: destroy the Devil and deliver us from life-long slavery. (v.14,15) The question then arises: did Jesus accomplish his goals?

The destruction of the Devil is a stated goal of Jesus’ death on the cross. Since the Devil has not yet been “destroyed” does that mean Jesus left something undone? What if our being set free from being life-long slaves is actually a part of how Jesus is indeed “destroying the Devil”? What if God is working through his “freed-by-the-death-of-Jesus-Children” to do the destroying of the works of the Devil as well as the Devil himself? I think this is the case. These 2 goals are linked to one another… wrapped together. I have said it before, but I don’t think the enemy knew that putting Jesus to death was actually going to mean his own destruction! I don’t think the Devil knew that killing Jesus would lead to his resurrection and the indwelling Spirit of God coming to the children of God! I bet the Devil and his cohorts were surprised that Jesus was even able to be killed, and they were even MORE floored when they saw him walk out of the grave. What a twist! Through the death of Christ life would come to humanity, the presence of God would be in his people, and God would work through his image-bearing humans to thwart and destroy the works of the Devil himself.

The people of God being are set FREE from fear …free from the fear of death… free from being life-long slaves… free from this weapon of the Devil. Jesus is called the “firstfruits” from the grave. (1 Cor. 15:20) He is the first “harvest” to pass through death and come out the other side. He is the example of what is coming for all those who are “in Christ”. He has conquered death for himself and in doing so demonstrates that he is able to do it for us… and he will at the second coming and resurrection! (cf. 1 Cor. 15) We need not live in fear. Living in fear is the Devils territory… not Christ. As humanity apart from Christ scrambles to fight against death we can see the ways that they are slaves to the fear of dying. Think about the extent to which people will go in an effort to stay alive forever… to avoid death. We all long for immortality. Jesus is the only one who holds eternal life. The irony is that Jesus gives the gift of eternal life for FREE! If you have not experienced this freedom in Christ - ask him for it today. Read this passage in prayer and speak truthfully to God. Tell God that you are his and yet not experiencing what his Son has made available, and then listen to what he speaks back to you. The Lord will bring peace… not fear and enslavement. Tell Jesus if you are doubting his work was effective at freeing you… and ask him to transform you from the inside out. Take your thoughts / fears “captive” and bring them to Christ… hand them over to him… watch what he does. (cf. 2 Cor. 10:5) It is time for the people of God to be set free from being slaves. It is time we come out from under the fear and press back against the Devil and his work on this world. God is using his people to destroy the enemy…this is after all what Jesus came to do! Love you guys. - JDP