No 39: To Free Us from the Fear of Death

Through Piper's book so far, it feels to me as if there has been an 'elephant in the room', whom Piper finally turns his attention to.  I am surprised he has taken so long.  That elephant is Satan - that mysterious power in spiritual realms whose name, a Hebrew one, means 'accuser'.

We are introduced to him right at the beginning of the Bible: when God creates Adam and Eve, Satan is already there (Genesis 3:1-15).  The Garden of Eden was not quite the carefree paradise it is usually depicted - there was an evil influence which our first parents had to face.  When they listened to Satan's version of reality rather than God's, they placed themselves under his influence.  We are composite miracles of creation, flesh and spirit interfused, creating our own descendants out of our own bodies: how this influence endures forever down the generations is now much clearer to our understanding, through our recent science of DNA.

As with Adam and Eve, Satan acted swiftly on the news of Jesus' birth: firstly by trying to kill Him by getting Herod to order the slaughter of all young boys in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:16), and secondly by testing Him in the desert the moment after the Father confirmed His Son's mission (Matthew 3:16-4:11).

Jesus makes it clear what His prime objective is, when He cooly picks apart the accusation that He was acting for Satan: "How can Satan drive out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.  In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house.  I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them" (Mark 3:23-28).  Jesus was going to overpower Satan and dispossess him of all his power and influence over mankind.  When His 72 disciples returned astonished at their power over demons, Jesus said:  "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you."  St John simply writes: "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work" (1 John 3:8).

Contrary to what Piper says, the devil has no power to damn.  God is the One and Only Judge of all mankind.  Amongst the Trinity, this work will be done by the Son:  "The Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father" (John 5:22-23).

Jesus came to settle a score with the devil, not with God.  God's intentions have always been loving towards us, and His single purpose from the beginning has been to save us from the power of Satan, whom Jesus called "the prince of this world" (e.g. John 12:31).  God has always known that we cannot do this ourselves; nor would there be any victory for God simply to swat Satan into oblivion, as He always could.  A Man had to win the victory, reversing the defeat of another man, long ago.