Disarmed And Defeated

In 1 Chronicles 11:23, Benaiah battled against a huge Egyptian.  By "huge", I mean he was 7 1/2 feet tall.  During the battle, Benaiah grabbed the Egptain's massive spear from his hands and killed him with it.  That's pretty impressive!  He disarmed his enemy.  Then he defeated him.

Someone has actually used Legos to illustrate what this may have looked like.  I thought this was pretty cool.  So here goes.

This is Benaiah attacking the Egyptain...

And this is Benaiah killing the Egyptain with his own spear...

As I read this story, it makes me think of what Jesus does to Satan.

[1]  With His cross, Jesus has disarmed Chief Enemy Number One.

In Colossians 2:15, we read where "having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."  Of course this "them" has to do with Satan and demons.  Then, in Hebrews 2:14 we read "by His death, He might break the power of him who holds the power of death - - that is, the devil."  I like that!  At Calvary, Jesus broke the power Satan once had.

Satan used to have the weapon of guilt.  He could harass people by reminding them of their sin and failures.  But because of the cross, our sins are forgiven and wiped away.  Guilt and shame over our past no longer have power over our lives.  So that weapon can no longer be used against us.

Satan used to have the weapon of eternal torment.  He could keep people in the pit of Hell with him for all of eternity in an agonizing state.  But because of the cross and the forgiveness of sins, we do not have to pay for our sins in Hell.  We can instead enjoy the eternal pleasures of Paradise.  So that weapon can no longer be used against us.

Disarmed.  That's what Satan is, thanks to Jesus!  The Enemy no longer has a weapon to use against us.

Sure, Satan can irritate us.  But that's about it.  He has been weakened by the cross of Jesus.

[2]  But wait!  It gets better.  One day, the Enemy will be ultimately defeated.

The day will come when Satan will be eternally thrown into his eternal destination of suffering with no chance of ever escaping.  Revelation 20:10 is where John writes about a vision he had concerning this future event.  He explains, "And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown.  They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever."  

Isn't that great to know?!  Just as Benaiah disarmed and defeated the Egyptain, Jesus also disarms and defeats Satan.  Having a connection with Jesus allows us reap the benefits of this awesome victory!!  We get to enjoy the eternal results of this tremendous win.

We don't have to fear our greatest Enemy.  I'm glad of that.  Because Jesus wins, so do we!