Is Satan the Big Winner in History?
March 20, 2024Hebrews 10:12-13, “But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.”
Does God’s Word teach that Satan will be victorious over God’s people throughout history until Christ’s return?
Does the Bible teach that the healing power of the Holy Spirit only affects the soul and body and not families, schools, businesses, governments, medicine, the arts and media, and every area of life?
Does Christ offer a comprehensive salvation that is, in the words of Isaac Watts, “far as the curse is found,” or a very limited salvation - saving a soul from Hell and taking them to Heaven, while the earth falls apart from the ravages of Adam’s fall?
Is the Holy Spirit’s accompaniment of gospel proclamation so limited that He is unable to bring millions upon millions of people to Christ?
If we answer “yes” to all the above questions, wouldn’t our defeat by Satan’s forces in history make Jesus and the gospel a loser in history and Satan the winner?
And according to vast numbers of Christians, especially in America, the Church loses in history and Satan’s lie is more powerful than the gospel’s truth.
A classic example of this belief comes from the highly impactful and influential pastor, Dr. John MacArthur in a sermon he preached from the pulpit of Grace Community Church in January 2021. He stated:
“Oh, guess what? We don’t win down here, we lose. You ready for that? Oh, you were a post-millennialist, you thought we were just going to go waltzing into the kingdom if you took over the world? No, we lose here – get it. It killed Jesus. It killed all the apostles… No, we don’t win down here. You ready for that? Just to clear the air, I love this clarity. We don’t win. We lose on this battlefield, but we win on the big one, the eternal one.
“We don’t win the battle here, you can’t, can’t fight. Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world,’ John 18. ‘If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would’ – what? – ‘fight.’ We’re not fighting this world, we get it.
“‘Blessed are those who are persecuted.’ No, we don’t win here. In fact, it gets worse, doesn’t it? Evil men get worse and worse. It’s not going to get better, it’s going to get continually worse. So we’re not going to win.
“You think we lost an election? No. No. We don’t win anything in this world. We’re not trying to gain this. Is there anything in this world we’re trying to gain? ‘For to me to live again is’ – what? – ‘Christ’.”
What if we applied MacArthur’s interpretation of eschatology to every other area of life? What kind of children would you expect to rear if you told them that they were born losers in every area of life; that only in heaven would they be winners? What kind of athlete would you expect if he was told that he was a loser, and only in the next life could he expect to be a winner? So, no wonder we have so many Christians that are so “heavenly minded that they are of no earthly good” because Satan is the winner – at least until Jesus becomes the King and returns to kick Satan and all his followers off the earth and into hell and make his Church a winner by the force of God and not by faith in the gospel of God!
The two verses of our text in Hebrews 10 are very straightforward and do not require seminary professors proficient in Greek to interpret for us amateurs. They assert that the Christ or Messiah, has offered himself as a need-never-to-be-repeated, substitutionary sacrifice for the sins of his people. The Father in heaven has ratified the success of Christ’s mediatorial mission by saying, “sit at my right hand until all your enemies be made a footstool for your feet.” Being made a footstool means that they will be thoroughly and completely subdued. The same idea is expressed in 1Cors.15:25, by saying that all his enemies will be put under his feet. The language arose from the custom of conquerors in putting their feet on the necks of their enemies, as a symbol of subjection. (see Joshua 10:24).
Jesus is seated and won’t get up until his foot soldiers, the redeemed of the Lord, make all his enemies his foot stool.
What kind of success should we expect to see in terms of the ever-enlarging kingdom of God where Jesus makes every enemy the footstool of His feet prior to His return, raising us from the dead, and bringing the end of history to bear? The Bible tells us that the success that we are going to see is all encompassing, just as broad as the scope of sin. If Jesus came into this world to deal with the problem of sin, then we should believe that His kingdom deals with sin in all its manifestations. Jesus did not come into the world simply to save our souls for all eternity. Praise God He did that - this is where it all begins to be sure. Nevertheless, Jesus also wants to defeat Satan and the effects of sin in every area of life. Has Satan been active in politics? Has he been active in economic affairs? Has he been active in the arts and sciences, in industry, in family life, in sexual matters? On and on we go. Has sin not infiltrated all the nooks and crannies of life?
Jesus comes to make His blessings flow as far as the curse is found. As far as the curse of sin has affected this world the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is going to reverse that. Therefore, Jesus is going to reverse the curse in politics, He is going to reverse the curse when it comes to our sexual affairs, our family affairs, our financial affairs, our artistic affairs, our industrial affairs. It makes no difference. If sin has touched it, Jesus is going to deal with it 1 Timothy 4:8 tells us: "for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”
The Great Commission assignment given to every available believer is truly great, for it speaks of “all authority” (Matt. 28:18) to disciple “all nations” (Matt. 28:19), with a view to our teaching them “all things” (Matt. 28:20a). It also holds out the certain hope that Jesus will be with us “all the days” (Matt. 28:20b) to see that it is done.
“The kingdoms of the world are becoming and will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever” (Rev. 11:15). The Messiah’s reign has been established on earth (Matt. 12:28; 28:18). He need only ask the Father, and the nations will be given to Him for His inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for His possession (Ps. 2:8). With that end in mind Christ commissioned the Church to make all the nations His obedient disciples (Matt. 28:19-20). Having bound Satan so that He is restrained from deceiving the nations (Rev. 20:2-30, Christ is now ruining and razing Satan’s house (Matt. 12:29). This is why the gates of Hell shall not prevail against the onslaught of Christ’s Church (Matt. 16-18). Crowned with glory and honor (Heb. 2:9), Christ has been enthroned at God’s right hand “henceforth expecting his enemies to be made the footstool of His feet” (Heb. 10:13).
The Bible message about Christ’s kingdom declares that: “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from henceforth and forever. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this” (Isa. 9:7). God’s kingdom will grow from a stone to be a mountain that fills the earth, and “the dream is certain” (Dan. 2:35, 44-45). The confidence of the prophets was that all nations would flow into the Church to be nurtured by God’s Word, live by His just standards and learn peace (Isa. 2:2-4; Micah 4:1-3). “In His days shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace until the moon be no more. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth … And His enemies shall lick the dust … All nations shall serve Him” (Ps. 72:7-11). “All the ends of the earth shall turn unto Jehovah” (Ps. 22:27), and then shall “the earth be full of the knowledge of Jehovah as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:9).
How will this be accomplished? The New Testament clearly points us to the enabling presence of Christ with the Church, the preaching of the gospel (Matt. 28:18-20), and the powerful work of the Holy Spirit (e.g., Acts 2:32-41). With such resources the kingdom of Christ will be characterized by surprising growth (Matt. 13:31-33). Christ will draw all men to Himself (John 12:32) and “lead justice unto victory” (Matt. 12:20). The preaching of the gospel – the sword from Christ’s mouth – will utterly conquer the nations (Rev. 19:11-16). The fullness of the Gentiles will be brought in, provoking even the Jews – all Israel – to be received again and saved, signifying veritable “life from the dead” for the world (Rom. 11:11-15, 25-26). We should conclude, then, that Christ has set before His believing and persevering church “a door opened which none can shut” – consequently, that even the most antagonistic opponents will bow down, and Christ’s church will enjoy with Him authority over the nations (Rev. 3:7-9; 2:25-27; 20:4). That is not just a hollow hope, but the promise of God.
I know, I know, it doesn’t look like the Church is winning now. The world seems to be tottering on the brink of WWIII, the economy is on the ropes, America seems to be breaking up and headed for tyrannical rule, etc... But the seated, reigning King Jesus has declared, “…I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!” Jesus is stressing a course of action on the offense, not on the defensive. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb” (Psalm 37:1-2).
So fearful, fretting, Christians, it’s time to:
Standup, standup, for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross;
Lift high His royal banner, it must not suffer loss!”
From victory unto victory, His army shall He lead;
‘Til every foe is vanquished and Christ is Lord indeed!
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