The devil, you say?

The first and second acts of history — Adam and Noah — foretell a third, revealed in a classic parable of “deus ex machina” called Jesus the Christ. The person of Jesus, however, is not just another story of struggle ending in death. He brings forgiveness, overwhelming the effects of sin. He faces evil and defeats it, rising out of death. 

Jesus leaves not just a blueprint for goodness, but a Kingdom rising among us and cresting toward his triumphant return. The choice for good now hovers within everyone’s reach, at every moment, since Jesus concludes by sending God’s indwelling guidance, Jesus’ own Spirit from the Father, protecting us and affirming that repentance wins every time. 

The true protagonist of history is not the devil, but is Jesus. Mary's son crushes his works. Any reflection on the devil, a classic antagonist as the ultimate oppressor, will ultimately shine light back upon the Son of God and the Son of Man. The devil does not win.

The devil deflects, but we see Jesus winning

(Part III on Sin/Forgiveness, Hell/Damnation, and the Devil)


http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/122418.cfm
2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8-12, 14, 16
Luke1:67-79


This third part of our series which began with sin & forgiveness, then followed alarmingly with hell and damnation, should now culminate with a likely distasteful reflection on the devil. “Oh dear,” you might say, why in the dickens would you do that? Especially during the Christmas season. I agree with that concern.

In the beginning of human life’s existence into creation the tumult of angelic rebellion waited in the wings for its entrance. Divine attributes built into the celestial DNA of angels were not culled out of the creatures when they went demonic. God allows his creation to be who they are. Consequently, when the sultan of slink slithered onto the scene of the voluptuous and free Garden, he timed his stage-left entry just as self-awareness began to surface in humanity. 

Still youthful, perhaps, creation had not yet learned the hierarchy of freedom’s choices — the glorious path of goodness which logically presumes the love of God as necessary for eternal life. Satan’s bite, preceded by a throaty hither, which sadly succeeded, sunk into holy innocence and rendered a lethal chomp. History’s curse, which had begun with God walking and talking among creation, as Genesis liked to render it, dropped a veil upon holy freedom and lifted the yet hidden recourse of shame from innocence destroyed. Shame, the terrible sequel to personally recognized guilt. 

And there you have the awful imagery. We naturally imagine the story of evil with the devil as the winning protagonist. And yet this story-telling of creation withering and dying under darkness will not work here.

The birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus — the succinct tale of the Gospel— turns the history of creation back onto its feet. The devil (playing the role of the snake) pivots the Garden life of creation with a loving God into a dark, deathly punishment by cleverly convincing earth’s first ancestors into doubting the veracity and goodness of God. Man and woman seem ill-equipped to compete with temptation and subterfuge brought to earth by a traitor of God. 

The first and second acts of history — Adam and Noah — foretell a third, revealed in a classic parable of “deus ex machina” called Jesus the Christ. The person of Jesus, however, is not just another story of struggle ending in death. He brings forgiveness, overwhelming the effects of sin. He faces evil and defeats it, rising out of death. Jesus leaves not just a blueprint for goodness, but a Kingdom rising among us and cresting toward his triumphant return. The choice for good now hovers within everyone’s reach, at every moment, since Jesus concludes by sending God’s indwelling guidance, Jesus’ own Spirit from the Father, protecting us and affirming that repentance wins every time. 

The true protagonist of history is not the devil, but is Jesus. Any reflection on the devil, a classic antagonist as the ultimate oppressor, will ultimately shine light back upon the Son of God and the Son of Man. Mary's son crushes his works. The devil does not win. 

Due to the length of this reflection and the subsequent/appropriate attention deflected from the devil back to Jesus we can shrink a lengthy and dark devilish diatribe, because we shift our attention to how the protagonist, Jesus, deals with the personification of evil, rather than ponder the devil himself.

We begin with Monday’s Christmas story in the lectionary readings for today where Zechariah hails his son, John the Baptist, as the one to point out the Christ, a servant from the house of David:

“You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace."

This is what Jesus then did, already prophesied in Samuel. Samual reveals to David that his progeny will return God to walk among creation:

“And when your time comes and you rest with your ancestors,
I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins,
and I will make his Kingdom firm.
I will be a father to him,
and he shall be a son to me.
Your house and your Kingdom shall endure forever before me;
your throne shall stand firm forever.'"

During Jesus’ life many encounters with Satan and demons are recorded. It is in Jesus’ response where we understand the point of forgiveness and the promise of eternal life, rather than worry about the torture of sin and shiver at the consequence of hell.

Jesus lived a life without sin. At his baptism performed by his cousin, Jesus was acclaimed by his Father through the presence of the Holy Spirit in John, as the lamb, the one to die from the consequence of sin, none which he committed. He would rise at his own hand and destroy death.

Jesus suffered the temptation of the devil in the most weakened state suffered by humans — forty days without food or water. He stands before our antagonist. 

Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written:
‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship
and him alone shall you serve.’”
Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him. 

Temptation continued throughout Jesus’ ministry, from his own family, from Peter, and from religious leaders. He taught them to testify to sin’s wrath and consequence rather than take the bait of temptation’s false relief.

So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. No one works in secret if he wants to be known publicly. If you do these things, manifest yourself to the world.” 

For his brothers did not believe in him. 

So Jesus said to them, “My time is not yet here, but the time is always right for you. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me, because I testify to it that its works are evil.”
John 7:3-7

Jesus revealed, said Paul, that to testify is the work of his believers. We are simply stand-ins to onslaughts meant for Jesus.

He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
1 Colossians 1:13-14

As for Satan, Jesus’ awaited return, designed in the plan of God, who waits for creation to be finished. He and all temptation will ultimately be bound forever.

The Devil who had led them astray was thrown into the pool of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Revelation 20:10

As we have explained so briefly in this three part series, the offering of free will to us exists in the assured presence of God, the creator and the authority — in all three persons of Father, Son and Spirit. The continual grace of his mercy either angers or enlivens us, but it envelops all of us. The frank and blunt consequence of ignoring as well as hating God results in the same thing — we command God to make for us a place where his presence does not exist. He will comply and administer after every grace has been willfully rejected. 

The irony of claiming there is no God culminates in our expecting God to make a place for us without him. His omnipresence can only be excised from us by God himself. 

If we follow Jesus, a treasured path but one of probable humiliation and despise, the temptations will eventually cease, the calumny will drop away, and the misery will be overwhelmed with joy.

All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,* and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
Matthew 11:27-30

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