THE GOD OF PEACE
“Everyone has heard about your obedience. So I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.
“Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.
“I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.
“Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings. Erastus, who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus, send you their greetings. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.” Romans 16:19-24.
“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” That doesn’t sound very peaceful, does it? It sounds rather ruthless but let’s look at the statement from God’s perspective.
Satan was first of all a traitor. He took what God gave him, beauty, perfection, power and the highest office in heaven and turned it against Him. Then he stole the allegiance of one third of God’s angelic creation. Then, not satisfied with that, he deceived Eve and turned Adam, and through him, the whole human race, against Him because he deceived them into believing that he was Lord. The whole of creation was corrupted because of him, became chaotic and the very image of God was distorted in man and the universe.
As if that were not enough, Satan turned God’s own people,Israel, against Him. They rejected Him and nailed Him to a cross, causing Him the most horrendous suffering any human being could ever endure. They mocked, insulted, humiliated and killed Him and then turned on His followers in the name of God! At the very time that Paul wrote this letter, the followers of Jesus were being persecuted by Jews and at the hands of the madman, Nero. Soon enough, Paul himself would be one of his victims.
And yet Paul could confidently write, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.”
What made him so confident? The resurrection! Satan had dished up the worst he could offer; Jesus took it on the chin and walked away, the victor. The enemy, vanquished by the Son of God, was counted out. Finished! Defeated! Overthrown! All that was left to do was the mopping up – collect the spoils of war – the sons and daughters of God who were waiting to be released from prison.
Satan is still around, though, waiting for his final judgment and going around with his lies, deceiving those who still believe he is in charge, masquerading as Lord when God has declared Jesus to be Lord and given Him the name above every other name.
However, for those who believe it, the truth is out. The devil has been unmasked, defeated and stripped of his weapons – the lies he has been propagating all over the world. Contrary to what he wants people to believe, he is not in charge. God is – and Jesus made that very clear to him in the wilderness.
“It is written…”How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!'” Isaiah 52:7.
There will only ever be true peace when Satan has been crushed and dispatched forever but, in the meantime, it’s our job to live out and proclaim God’s rule because it is our confidence that God reigns, despite our circumstances, that “crushes” Satan under our feet. As long as we have niggling doubt about who is in charge, the devil will continue to have a field day with us and the world will not be convinced that Jesus is Lord.
“Our God reigns!”
Acknowledgement
Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.