“to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God” (Acts 26:18, NKJV)
There is perhaps not another Scripture that so aptly describes the scope of what exactly had happened at the cross in terms of Satan’s loss of power, as Col. 2:14-15, here in the Amplified translation: “Having cancelled and blotted out and wiped away the handwriting of the note (bond) with its legal decrees and demands which was in force and stood against us (hostile to us). This [note with its regulations, decrees, and demands] He set aside and cleared completely out of our way by nailing it to [His] cross. [God] disarmed the principalities and powers that were ranged against us and made a bold display and public example of them, in triumphing over them in Him and in it [the cross].”
The Message paraphrases these verses in similarly evocative terms: “Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ’s Cross. He stripped all the spiritual tyrants in the universe of their sham authority at the Cross and marched them naked through the streets.”
And then we get to the period after the cross, and one finds a completely different scenario on a spiritual level, but it seems as if not much has changed. Satan is still the “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4; 1 John 5:19)! Have a look at the following dramatic examples where Satan works in both believers and unbelievers:
- “But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?’” (Acts 5:3)
- “Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, ‘These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.’ And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, ‘I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.’ And he came out that very hour.” (Acts 16:16-18).
In the rest of the New Testament the working of Evil is also clear:
- 2 Thess. 2:9 states that “the coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders”;
- 2 Cor. 2:10-11 – “lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices”.
- 2 Tim 2:25 speaks of “snare of the devil” and about “having been taken captive by him to do his will”.
- Eph 6:12 speaks of “principalities”, “powers”, “the rulers of the darkness of this age”, “spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places”.
But Paul’s mandate in Acts 26:18, above, is also the mandate of all believers. Selah.
- Selah: Do you understand your mandate?
- Read: 1
- Examine the OT-typology: 1:14 (Tip: Ps. 110:3)
For a deeper understanding: Read Dutch Sheets’ magnificent book Interces
