Victorious

When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.

–Colossians 2:15

What has God’s amazing grace done for you? By God’s grace, you are spiritually alive. You have been forgiven of all your sins. You are debt-free. And you are also victorious. Colossians 2:15 says, “When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.” Who are the “rulers and authorities”? That is a reference to Satan and his demonic forces. Paul said God disarmed Satan and his forces and “made a public display of them.”

In Paul’s time, when a Roman general was successful in conquering a city and acquiring more land for the Roman Empire, he was honored with a parade and ceremony called a triumph. Those who had been defeated were led through the streets of Rome along with all the spoils of victory. Then the general himself paraded to the praises of the Roman citizens.

The Roman historian Plutarch described a triumph honoring General Aemilius Paulus after he conquered King Perseus of Macedonia: “The first [day] barely sufficed for the exhibition of the captured statues, paintings, and colossal figures, which were carried on two hundred and fifty chariots. On the second, the finest and richest of the Macedonian arms were borne along in many [wagons].” On the third day “walked Perseus himself, clad in a dark robe and wearing the high boots of his country, but the magnitude of his evils made him resemble one who is utterly dumbfounded and bewildered.”

Finally, “mounted on a chariot of magnificent adornment, came Aemilius himself, a man worthy to be looked upon even without such marks of power, wearing a purple robe interwoven with gold, and holding forth in his right hand a spray of laurel. The whole army also carried sprays of laurel, following the chariot of their general . . . and singing . . . paeans of victory and hymns in praise of the achievements of Aemilius, who was gazed upon and admired by all.”

That is what awaits us because of what Christ has done for us. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He defeated Satan and all his forces. Now we’re waiting for the parade to begin when Jesus Christ returns. On that day, everyone in heaven and on earth and under the earth is going to see Satan publicly humiliated, and we will march in that parade with our General who has liberated us and spend eternity singing praises to Him. That’s what Christ has done for us. Why would we ever think we could add to what He has done? It’s all by grace.

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Today’s devotion is adapted from “Amazing Grace” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2012.

Plutarch, Aemilius Paulus, in Plutarch’s Lives, trans. Bernadotte Perrin (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1918), ch. 32–34, Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0007.tlg019.perseus-eng1:32.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.