Christ on a White Horse Strikes Sin with a Swordby davidwooten
2:15Colossians 2:15
And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
At the cross the powers of darkness seemed to triumph, but by His suffering and death Christ Himself triumphed over them and openly exposed their defeat in His resurrection as conqueror. As humanity's substitute and surety He met those powers alone and single-handed, and by taking the curse, laying down His life, rendering perfect obedience, breaking the fetters of the tomb and rising again, He destroyed them and the one who has the power of death and led captivity captive. In that death type met antitype, so the earthly sacrificial service that pointed to Him was ended and its ceremonies became valueless. That victory won for humanity breaks Satan's power over the race, restores the lost position, opens salvation, and makes believers free and strong against sin and temptation through living faith in His might. His death did not nail the Sabbath to the cross but upholds the unchanging claims of God's law, though Satan has persuaded many that with the ending of the sacrificial laws even the Ten Commandments ended.
Triumph Over Evil Powers
At the crucifixion the powers of darkness seemed to prevail and exulted as if victorious, but that death was itself victory, and coming forth a conqueror from the opened sepulcher Christ openly exposed their defeat. What appeared to be defeat was triumph over the powers of earth and hell who sought to destroy Him. His rising as conqueror made the overthrow public and complete.
He entered this triumph through a real and mysterious conflict with the powers of darkness, begun by willing humiliation in coming to this world. The infinite God consented to the humiliation of His only begotten Son, a wonderful and almost incredible condescension. In that coming He discomfited the powers of darkness and triumphed over them.
As humanity's substitute and surety, the Majesty of heaven, the Son of God, faced those powers alone and single-handedly and won the victory on humanity's behalf. He humbled Himself to cope with them in man's place, and the victory gained belongs to that substitutionary work. It was a victory for humanity, not for Himself alone.
By taking the curse, laying down His life in suffering, and rendering perfect obedience, He destroyed the principalities and powers and the one who holds the power of death. In that death He wrested from Satan his last weapon for gaining the kingdoms of the world. He broke the fetters of the tomb and rose to take again the life He had laid down, then ascended on high leading captivity captive and receiving gifts for men.
Through that suffering and death He accomplished His appointed work, restored humanity to the position lost through sin, broke Satan's hold over millions, opened salvation, and made people free from the power of evil through Him. His perfect obedience placed humanity on new ground in its conflict with Satan. His death secured His triumph and the promised inheritance of the nations and the ends of the earth, while darkness veiled His final agonies and hid the witnessing angelic host as He struggled for victory over a rebellious world.
The Saviour's conflict with the powers of darkness on the cross is the mystery that explains all other mysteries. In the light streaming from Calvary, mercy, tenderness and parental love are seen blending with holiness, justice and power, so that attributes that filled sinners with fear and awe appear beautiful and attractive. Beholding the majesty of His throne, high and lifted up, His character is seen in its gracious manifestations, and the meaning of the title our Father is comprehended as never before. It is seen that He who is infinite in wisdom could devise no other plan for salvation except the sacrifice of His Son. The compensation for that sacrifice is the joy of peopling the earth with ransomed beings, holy, happy and immortal, bringing joy to the redeemed and glory to God throughout eternity, with the Father satisfied with the price paid and Christ Himself satisfied as He beholds the fruit of His great sacrifice.
Through Him every power opposed to God will be defeated, and the cross of Calvary is the believer's only hope in the conflict between good and evil.
End of Ceremonial System
Christ's death abolished the ceremonial system and ended the earthly sacrificial service that pointed to Him. All the sacrificial offerings prefigured the death of the Son of God, and in that death type met antitype. With type meeting antitype, the divinely appointed ceremonies and sacrifices of the Jewish religion were rendered valueless and their force ended. By virtue of His death and resurrection He became minister of the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched and not man, serving now as High Priest in the true heavenly sanctuary.
The restrictions and ceremonies of the Jewish law are not made obligatory upon Gentiles accepting faith in Christ. Christianity was not to connect itself with Jewish laws and ceremonies. The national peculiarities that kept the Jews distinct would disappear among those who embraced the gospel.
Satan could not prevent Christ's death and resurrection, and sought instead to turn those events to his own advantage. His device was to persuade believers that the Jewish sacrificial laws had ended with Christ's death, and ultimately that even the Ten Commandments had ended. Yet the passage does not mean that Christ's death abolished the Sabbath or nailed it to the cross. His death was not what made the Sabbath void, but supports the unchanging claims of God's law, including the seventh-day Sabbath.
Victory Shared With Believers
Christ overcame the prince of darkness and broke his power over the human race, and that victory was won for humanity so that through His merits people may overcome evil themselves. His sacrifice on Calvary is the pledge of that victory, given especially to the young as assurance that the same Christ who conquered Satan in human nature helps them resist temptation. His humiliation in entering the mysterious conflict of coming to this world, and His triumph in it, make it possible for people to be raised to a place with Him on His throne.
That defeat of the powers of darkness is the ground of freedom from slavery to sin. No one can overcome by trusting in self, but only through living faith in His might, by which believers are made strong against sin and temptation. For every trusting, believing soul He stands against Satan and supplies sufficient grace, so that no temptation beyond what can be borne need cause despair. There need be no repeated confession without repentance and putting sin away, for His victory gives hope that His grace is sufficient.
This victory came through His willing humiliation in coming to this world to engage in a real conflict with the powers of darkness and discomfit them. As humanity's substitute and surety, the Majesty of heaven, the Son of God, the infinite God's only begotten Son, coped single-handed and alone with the powers of darkness and gained the victory on humanity's behalf, a wonderful and almost incredible condescension. Reverent contemplation of this humiliation and victory elevates, purifies, ennobles and softens the heart, and at the same time strengthens and invigorates the mind with new strength and vigor.
The verse is a treasure house of encouragement to the believer and one of the rich, full, abundant and assuring promises to be received, showing what Christ is to believers and what believers may be to Him as His helping hand. It shows the folly of turning from Christ to humanity for help, for when Jesus is appreciated and the salvation of God is seen power is given, but when the Saviour is treated indifferently and man is looked to for guidance power cannot be expected. Having defeated evil principalities and powers and exposed them openly, broken the fetters of the tomb and risen to take again the life He laid down, and ascended on high leading captivity captive and receiving gifts for men, He endured all this suffering so He could carry human burdens and griefs. He is therefore to be distinctly seen as all-sufficient, a present Saviour, helper and refuge in every time of need, calling believers to come out of darkness and doubt to stand in faith, looking to Jesus instead of self and wretchedness, talking and living faith, so that at every step they are triumphant and more than victorious through Him rather than exalting Satan by unbelief and robbing Christ of glory.
At the cross the powers of darkness seemed to triumph, but by His suffering and death Christ Himself triumphed over them and openly exposed their defeat in His resurrection as conqueror. As humanity's substitute and surety He met those powers alone and single-handed, and by taking the curse, laying down His life, rendering perfect obedience, breaking the fetters of the tomb and rising again, He destroyed them and the one who has the power of death and led captivity captive. In that death type met antitype, so the earthly sacrificial service that pointed to Him was ended and its ceremonies became valueless. That victory won for humanity breaks Satan's power over the race, restores the lost position, opens salvation, and makes believers free and strong against sin and temptation through living faith in His might. His death did not nail the Sabbath to the cross but upholds the unchanging claims of God's law, though Satan has persuaded many that with the ending of the sacrificial laws even the Ten Commandments ended.
Triumph Over Evil Powers
At the crucifixion the powers of darkness seemed to prevail and exulted as if victorious, but that death was itself victory, and coming forth a conqueror from the opened sepulcher Christ openly exposed their defeat. What appeared to be defeat was triumph over the powers of earth and hell who sought to destroy Him. His rising as conqueror made the overthrow public and complete.
He entered this triumph through a real and mysterious conflict with the powers of darkness, begun by willing humiliation in coming to this world. The infinite God consented to the humiliation of His only begotten Son, a wonderful and almost incredible condescension. In that coming He discomfited the powers of darkness and triumphed over them.
As humanity's substitute and surety, the Majesty of heaven, the Son of God, faced those powers alone and single-handedly and won the victory on humanity's behalf. He humbled Himself to cope with them in man's place, and the victory gained belongs to that substitutionary work. It was a victory for humanity, not for Himself alone.
By taking the curse, laying down His life in suffering, and rendering perfect obedience, He destroyed the principalities and powers and the one who holds the power of death. In that death He wrested from Satan his last weapon for gaining the kingdoms of the world. He broke the fetters of the tomb and rose to take again the life He had laid down, then ascended on high leading captivity captive and receiving gifts for men.
Through that suffering and death He accomplished His appointed work, restored humanity to the position lost through sin, broke Satan's hold over millions, opened salvation, and made people free from the power of evil through Him. His perfect obedience placed humanity on new ground in its conflict with Satan. His death secured His triumph and the promised inheritance of the nations and the ends of the earth, while darkness veiled His final agonies and hid the witnessing angelic host as He struggled for victory over a rebellious world.
The Saviour's conflict with the powers of darkness on the cross is the mystery that explains all other mysteries. In the light streaming from Calvary, mercy, tenderness and parental love are seen blending with holiness, justice and power, so that attributes that filled sinners with fear and awe appear beautiful and attractive. Beholding the majesty of His throne, high and lifted up, His character is seen in its gracious manifestations, and the meaning of the title our Father is comprehended as never before. It is seen that He who is infinite in wisdom could devise no other plan for salvation except the sacrifice of His Son. The compensation for that sacrifice is the joy of peopling the earth with ransomed beings, holy, happy and immortal, bringing joy to the redeemed and glory to God throughout eternity, with the Father satisfied with the price paid and Christ Himself satisfied as He beholds the fruit of His great sacrifice.
Through Him every power opposed to God will be defeated, and the cross of Calvary is the believer's only hope in the conflict between good and evil.
End of Ceremonial System
Christ's death abolished the ceremonial system and ended the earthly sacrificial service that pointed to Him. All the sacrificial offerings prefigured the death of the Son of God, and in that death type met antitype. With type meeting antitype, the divinely appointed ceremonies and sacrifices of the Jewish religion were rendered valueless and their force ended. By virtue of His death and resurrection He became minister of the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched and not man, serving now as High Priest in the true heavenly sanctuary.
The restrictions and ceremonies of the Jewish law are not made obligatory upon Gentiles accepting faith in Christ. Christianity was not to connect itself with Jewish laws and ceremonies. The national peculiarities that kept the Jews distinct would disappear among those who embraced the gospel.
Satan could not prevent Christ's death and resurrection, and sought instead to turn those events to his own advantage. His device was to persuade believers that the Jewish sacrificial laws had ended with Christ's death, and ultimately that even the Ten Commandments had ended. Yet the passage does not mean that Christ's death abolished the Sabbath or nailed it to the cross. His death was not what made the Sabbath void, but supports the unchanging claims of God's law, including the seventh-day Sabbath.
Victory Shared With Believers
Christ overcame the prince of darkness and broke his power over the human race, and that victory was won for humanity so that through His merits people may overcome evil themselves. His sacrifice on Calvary is the pledge of that victory, given especially to the young as assurance that the same Christ who conquered Satan in human nature helps them resist temptation. His humiliation in entering the mysterious conflict of coming to this world, and His triumph in it, make it possible for people to be raised to a place with Him on His throne.
That defeat of the powers of darkness is the ground of freedom from slavery to sin. No one can overcome by trusting in self, but only through living faith in His might, by which believers are made strong against sin and temptation. For every trusting, believing soul He stands against Satan and supplies sufficient grace, so that no temptation beyond what can be borne need cause despair. There need be no repeated confession without repentance and putting sin away, for His victory gives hope that His grace is sufficient.
This victory came through His willing humiliation in coming to this world to engage in a real conflict with the powers of darkness and discomfit them. As humanity's substitute and surety, the Majesty of heaven, the Son of God, the infinite God's only begotten Son, coped single-handed and alone with the powers of darkness and gained the victory on humanity's behalf, a wonderful and almost incredible condescension. Reverent contemplation of this humiliation and victory elevates, purifies, ennobles and softens the heart, and at the same time strengthens and invigorates the mind with new strength and vigor.
The verse is a treasure house of encouragement to the believer and one of the rich, full, abundant and assuring promises to be received, showing what Christ is to believers and what believers may be to Him as His helping hand. It shows the folly of turning from Christ to humanity for help, for when Jesus is appreciated and the salvation of God is seen power is given, but when the Saviour is treated indifferently and man is looked to for guidance power cannot be expected. Having defeated evil principalities and powers and exposed them openly, broken the fetters of the tomb and risen to take again the life He laid down, and ascended on high leading captivity captive and receiving gifts for men, He endured all this suffering so He could carry human burdens and griefs. He is therefore to be distinctly seen as all-sufficient, a present Saviour, helper and refuge in every time of need, calling believers to come out of darkness and doubt to stand in faith, looking to Jesus instead of self and wretchedness, talking and living faith, so that at every step they are triumphant and more than victorious through Him rather than exalting Satan by unbelief and robbing Christ of glory.