He won!
- Who? Jesus.
- What? He conquered death, sin, and Satan.
- When? Two thousand years ago.
- Where? On the cross.
- How? By dying…and then living again.
- Why? So He could share that victory with us!
“O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.“
1 Corinthians 15:55-57
That is the essence of the Gospel: The news that a victory has already been won, and that we have a chance to share in it. Let’s look a little closer at that victory.
Victory over Death
How did Jesus win a victory over Death? He didn’t stay dead!
The historical evidence for the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus is compelling. All four Gospels give thorough accounts. Beyond the direct stories of that first morning at the tomb, there is other evidence as well.
The church exists. Compared to other religions, Christianity is uniquely focussed on Christ Himself. It is not based on simply following His philosophies; it depends on Him personally. With the kind of horrible, culturally-shameful death He died on the cross, His small group of disciples should have instantly fallen apart. In fact, they did…at first.
The disciples changed. From fleeing the arrest in Gethsemane, to lurking around the edges of the trial courtyard, to hiding in a locked room, the disciples went to…
We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had put to death by hanging Him on a cross. He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.
Acts 5:29-32, spoken to the same religious leaders who had Jesus crucified, in answer to a command to stop speaking in Jesus’ name
The tomb is empty. Why the new attitude from the disciples? First, because the tomb was found empty, with discarded grave clothes still inside. All the power of both the Jewish religious leaders and the Roman officials combined was not able to come up with a body.
They saw Jesus in person. Even the empty tomb’s hope would have faded if everything had stopped there. If Jesus or His body were simply never seen again, what then? But He was seen…first by Mary Magdalene, then by the two men on the road to Emmaus, then by the disciples in their locked room (twice!). These were followed by other encounters that are explicitly described, like cooking breakfast on the seashore and giving the Great Commission before His ascension. Paul says that at least 500 people saw Jesus alive after the crucifixion, before adding his own testimony as well (1 Corinthians 15:3-8).
Victory over Sin
How did Jesus win a victory over Sin? He paid all the penalty so that the debt is no longer hanging over me as I deserve.
Human sin results in a wide, bottomless chasm separating us from God. There is nothing we can do to erase that sin, to make up (atone) for it, or to bridge that gap in any way. But our connection to God — which has been broken — is literally our lifeblood. Without Him, we have no hope of meaning in this life or in eternity. Sin is on a sure path to destroy us, except…
Jesus bridges that chasm with His own body. On that cross, He absorbed all the wrath that sin deserves and paid all the debt that sin accrues. When He said “It is finished”, He was declaring that His mission was successfully completed. Everything needed to cover the consequences of sin has been done; nothing remains to allow it to separate God from the people He loves (except themselves, if they refuse to accept His offer).
Paul addresses this in a couple of prominent passages of his letter to the church of Rome. Romans 6 says that we can share in Christ’s death (via baptism) and so we can die to sin, no longer being enslaved by it 1. Then, in Romans 7:14-24, he bemoans the feeling of sin-slavery, being unable to obey the law as he wants to. But that is followed in Romans 7:25 thru 8:17 with joy that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” and that we can be led by the Spirit with no more obligation to our sinful natures.
Victory over Satan
How did Jesus win a victory over Satan? He foiled Satan’s plan.
Satan’s fondest dream is to push God off His throne and take over the rule of the universe. A step in that plan was to appropriate the people God made for Himself. By keeping us away from God, Satan causes us to unwittingly end up worshipping him instead. We may not realize that, may not actually say “I am a Satan worshipper.” But turning away from God is, by default, turning toward Satan. He is the master of all other “rulers … powers … world forces of this darkness … spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).
To Satan, a next-best option would be to so ruin God’s creation that He gives up and destroys us. Keeping God from being able to enjoy His people would not be as good as wresting our worship away from Him, but it would do.
Satan’s isn’t going to get his wish. Instead, God is redeeming His broken people, and will end up with something even better than the original creation. While creation shows God’s power and majesty, redemption — salvaging instead of replacing — demonstrates them even more clearly. Jesus has rescued His “sheep” (John 10:27-30) and will keep them safely with Him always. And, He will oversee Satan’s one-way trip to the lake of fire for eternity! (Revelation 20:10)
Victory, Shared With Us
Jesus’ victory would be magnificent in any case. But what takes it over the top is that He didn’t win for Himself; He won for us. Because He lives, I can live. Because sin has no hold on Him, it has no hold on me. Because Satan didn’t defeat Him, he can’t defeat me, either.
All I have to do to win is allow Jesus to share His triumph with me. I may be a weak little wimp (actually, I know that I am). But the Grand Champion loves me, and His prize is mine also!
The classic hymn “Victory in Jesus” is a triumphant celebration of this victory. Enjoy!
