Daily Devotional

-December 24, 2020 – Christmas Eve

Good morning, happy Thursday, happy Christmas Eve,

-Jesus Came To Destroy The Works Of The Devil-

“He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”

(1 John 3:8-9).

The Devil was not always the devil. He was Lucifer, the most beautiful angel who occupied the highest place among the angels, but he fell due to his pride, and was cast out of heaven. One third of the angels joined him and became demons. Ever since he has opposed God, the other angels, and all the people of God.

The devil first appeared on the earth as the serpent, tempting Eve to sin. In pronouncing judgment on him, the Lord said, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all the cattle, and more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:14-15).

From this time forward, the devil has spread his evil and wickedness. He works to keep people from receiving Christ and does his utmost to destroy the church, which he can never do. Jesus came to break us from the hold he had on us by dying for our sins on the cross. Jesus dealt the devil a mortal blow on the cross, thus He bruised or crushed his head. Even though he is a defeated foe, he fights on. He knows his ultimate fate is the lake of fire and his time is short.

In speaking of Satan, Jesus said in Mark 3:27, “No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.” Luke wrote, “When a strong man fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace. But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils” (Luke 11:21-22).

Jesus is far stronger than the devil and He is the One who bound him, plundered his house, took away all his armor, and divided his spoils. Jesus thus destroyed the works of the devil. He can no longer control us nor can he harm us. We remember even back in the book of Job, Satan had to get God’s permission to strike him.

Paul wrote of the ultimate victory we will have over the enemy of our souls in Romans 16:20, “And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly.” Until then, we must put on the whole armor of God to stand against the schemes of the devil and be protected from his fiery darts. We are on God’s side, the winning side. The devil is the biggest loser.

Let us thank God that He sent His beloved Son Jesus Christ to die for us on the cross and destroy the works of the devil. We can’t wait to see him crushed under our feet and in the lake of fire forever.

Have a blessed day as you consider the victory we have in Jesus. Stay safe and healthy. Merry Christmas.

Dean