“And on that cross Christ freed himself from the power of the spiritual rulers and authorities; he made a public spectacle of them by leading them as captives in his victory procession.” Colossians 2:15 – GNT
Do you believe that Jesus finished the work at Calvary or did He only deliver a small blow to the enemy?
What you believe about this will affect how you see yourself as a believer and how you live in this world where it appears at times that evil is winning. Everyone becomes a victim and we are all left powerless to do anything about it. What a dangerous belief system. If I receive this lie I am diminishing in my life the absolute power made available to me through the cross.
Even in Christian circles the victim mentality has paralyzed many. The notion of being someone who is victorious seems only attainable in the sweet by and by. What an absolute lie!
It is true that we are all going to be targeted by the enemy. God’s Word is clear in letting us know that He will try to kill, steal, and destroy anything and everything good in our lives. But does it stop there?
In the natural, if you were to inform me that someone was going to try and rob me, I would be vigilant in ensuring that I placed a higher level of security around me and my possessions. If someone was coming to rob me, he would be coming illegally and I would use the full force of the law made available to me in order to catch him and expose him. I would not be going down a victim of his destruction. I would gladly watch as the authorities carried him away. Yet in our lives as believers we surrender as if there is nothing we can do about it.
We need to be reminded that because of Calvary these enemy forces have been defeated. Even though disarmed and defeated they will do anything and everything they can to break the law and steal truth from our hearts. Just because someone breaks the law and attempts to steal does not mean that they have the right to do so.
Paul says, Jesus made an open show of the enemy. The word for open in the original language denotes boldness and confidence. Paul is saying that when Jesus finished dealing with the devil it was no quiet affair. He boldly, and loudly exposed this enemy and walked him through the streets bound in chains, disgraced, stripped and completely humiliated. It was a show of all shows.
Jesus triumphed over them implies the idea of an emperor arriving home from a grand victory in the enemy’s territory. He took the enemy apart piece by piece and left them with nothing in hand to retaliate. Jesus wasn’t a little bit victorious. He was totally and completely triumphant.
Satan is not a force we are trying to defeat, he is already defeated. These demonic forces are legally stripped of their authority. They are defeated. It is important for us to understand that we are not incapable weaklings trying to cope with the devil’s assaults. We aren’t just scraping by. Our lives are secure. We have legal authority to keep the enemy under our feet through Christ.
If you approach warfare as a victim, you will likely spend your life being one. Yet, the truth will remain that you had everything you needed to overcome and be victorious. No matter what comes at you or how much the enemy hates you, you never have to go down defeated.
You are not a victim.
Sadly, many like playing the victim. They don’t have to act upon what will produce change. Being victorious means I have to fight when that enemy illegally attempts to enter. The question is not your status or authority but your choice to resist and believe in a God who truly made a way.
Today I am grateful that I am not a victim. Victory has called my name.
Comments(3)
Pat McRae says:
March 2, 2015 at 11:44 amI am in awe today of how God orchestras things for our good and our growth :). Normally I would look at this verse and say ‘yes at Calvary Jesus won the victory!’ But the minute the challenge would come this verse would be lost in the dust of me heading for my Daddy’s protective wings, hoping He would take of the situation for me. Why? Because until yesterday I never realized how big my God really is! Do we really know our enemy is disarmed? That he only stands before us holding fiery darts? No booms, no missiles, only little fiery darts! Now I know a dart hurts if it hits skin, but only for a moment, it can not wound bad enough to kill. So what happens to that little dart when it hits our armour that we wear ALL the time? Well number 1 if we keep our armour shining the devil can’t even see us because we are one huge ball of light with our Daddy shining off us, so he throws and misses. And 2 if our armour is a little rusty the dart hits and bounces off, landing on the floor, where we take our shoes of peace and good news and stomp it out. 🙂
Yesterday during praise and worship I had an amazing experience in God’s presence. I have always seen God as a really large man, not fat but muscular, tall, and me about the size of about a two year old. But yesterday I saw this humungous throne, it was so big it did not fit in the sanctuary and when I looked up I saw God’s knees at the ceiling line. He was just sitting there listening to our sweet sacrifice of praise. I was like this little piece of dust at His big toe. His love for me was so tangible I wept. He reached down, picked that little piece of dust, me, up and said, “Hi!” I still weep as I think about His love for me. The Almighty God, Creator of heaven and earth, the One who disarmed principalities and stripped authorities of their power, sees me, and takes the time to say “Hi!” Well last night and this morning at early morning prayer, the enemy came back for round two. In round one he deceived me and disrupted the work of God, that He was doing, during services. But God exposed this enemy, disarmed him and stripped him of any authority he thinks he might have. Now the darkness sits unable to speak, unable to disrupt. But I would not of seen this before yesterday. When the enemy entered for round two I would of worried, “Oh no, he is back!” if God had not shown me yesterday that He is Great, Big and Powerful. So today as I warred in the spirit I had a new image. 🙂 All authority has been to me, to trample on snakes and scorpions and ALL the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). I am now the great, big, powerful one, who has in Jesus Name the authority. That darkness can no longer deceive, it can no longer have a voice in our mist, it has no power, no authority. It has been lead captive through the streets of the spiritual realm captive, in shame.
I thank God today for His love that casts out all fear. I thank God that insecurity has fled because my security is now found in Jesus and not self or others. I am thankful that now I better know the God I serve, in a new and fresh way. He is not small and weak but mighty and He lives in me. I think God just blew the box I had Him in to pieces! 🙂
I am thankful that God takes me one step at a time into expanding my understanding of Who He is and what I have as He lives in me, because I think I would blow up if He did more then one step at a time. 🙂
So today when you look at your situation, see it as a speck of dust I front of a great, big, powerful God. He wipes the dust away, but picks His own up to say, “Hi!”
Sue Holmes says:
March 2, 2015 at 11:30 pm“And on that cross Christ freed Himself from the power of the spiritual rulers and authorities; He made a public spectacle of them by leading them as captives in His victory procession.” Colossians 2:15 – GNT
For the Pharisees the cross was the pinnacle of the persecution against Christ. For Christ, that same cross was the pivot point that turned persecution into victory. The nails that held the physical body unleashed a force too powerful for nails to hold or earth to conceal. I see a picture of the conquering Hero returning from battle. His prisoners of war bound in chains are staggering behind Him with heads held low.
This should invigorate any of us who were among the ones redeemed in this battle. Through the far reaching claws of original sin we were the hostages of satan. When Adam & Eve gave themselves over to the suggestions of the enemy & committed the orginal sin his power cascaded down through generations until it hit up against the cross of Christ. God was so zealous to have His creation made whole, pure & returned to Him that He allowed His only Son, 1/3 of the Godhead, to bind Himself in the chains of humanity, become the most vulnerable of humanity – a baby, suffer ridcule & humilation, be beaten within inches of His temporal human life and then be left to die like a common criminal. I’m not a parent but I cannot imagination the love that would allow a Father to let Hs Son do this. I can’t imagine a Son willing to do this for a creation that had already rejected Him & would ridicule & spit upon His sacrifice.
But, as one of the ones bound by the chains of the original betrayal, I am glad that I have a rescuer. I am grateful for One who loved me this much.
Yet, if I truly grasped what this meant shouldn’t I be ‘over-the-top’ exhilarated with joy? I have been set free! I no longer face an eternity keeping company in the hell fire of satan’s disciples! This is the kind of news that I should be shouting from the roof tops … or at least from whatever platform God provides for me.
Not only have my chains fallen off BUT, according to the Apostle Paul, “we are more than conquerors and gain a surpassing victory through Him Who loved us.” The Apostle John reminds us, “for everyone born of God overcomes the world” and “Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” This tells me that the victory dance that Christ did as He paraded those captives before His Father & all of the spiritual world to see is my dance as well. There are no victims among the ones Christ set free. The cross turned the victims into victors.
So, in a 24 hr period that included more upsets than I have time to mention, I can say that I am more than a conquerer & because of my big Brother who fought the battle for me I am victorious.
I am grateful for the victory won by Christ on the cross. I am grateful for the picture that Pastor Freda painted in the blog of our enemy being paraded defeated & broken. And I am grateful that this victory & the authority over our defeated enemy is now ours as well. I am grateful for the local body of Christ that I am honoured to be a part of … honoured to be walking this path of victory with. And today as I deflect the enemy’s darts I am grateful for the words God spoke out last evening through the voice of one of His cherished daughters, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. … God is in control!”
Jim Holmes says:
March 2, 2015 at 11:40 pmNow, our passage of interest today is ” And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”[ (Col. 2:15)
This is a topic with dire consequences for those outside of Christ, and a public spectacle for all to see. This is an awesome passage. Let me define Circumcision as the removal of the foreskin … a cutting off of the flesh … . A quick read of the prior passages in chapter 2 tell us that Jesus is the head over every power and authority and that all the fullness of the Deity lives in Christ in bodily form. We understand also that captivity occurs through deception that hangs on both tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world. When Jesus was on earth a war raged between the world powers and authorities and every power and authority in Christ. How did Jesus defeat the world or disarm the onslaught against the fullness of the Deity? It was through circumcision! Jesus (his flesh) was cut off from the earth. You are body, soul, and spirit. Like Jesus, you too need to be circumcised. How is this so? In him we are also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self was cut off (circumcised by Christ). Your flesh died on the cross, buried with him. The powers and authorities of this world have no power over you. You have escaped them by the cross. They (the world is) all are dumbfounded because they are left helpless to do anything when it comes to you and so look foolish….a public spectacle to all .
Praise God for the mysteries that have been once hidden, are revealed in Christ Jesus.