• last month
Transcript
00:003. He came to destroy the works of the devil.
00:04Christmas Destruction
00:06The phrase doesn't exactly give you all those warm holiday feelings inside.
00:11You'd probably rather think about other things related to Christ's coming,
00:14things like pageants, presents, or peace on earth.
00:19That's understandable. However, until we realize that there's something in the world,
00:24and in us, that needs to be destroyed, we will miss the meaning of why Jesus came.
00:30So how is Christmas about destruction?
00:33Here's how the Apostle John put it in 1 John 3 verse 8.
00:38The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
00:42John wrote those words about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
00:47In a context where false teachers were saying that someone could believe in Christ while not
00:51seeking to live like Christ. In response, John says that right beliefs should produce right actions.
00:58Yet, the presence and power of sin often prevents us from living like Christ.
01:04Elsewhere in this letter John reminds us of
01:07Sin's scope, it affects everyone, without exception.
01:12Sin's character, it is lawless and defiant in the face of God.
01:17Sin's origin, it began with the devil himself.
01:20These truths about sin help explain why Christ's coming was necessary for our salvation.
01:26Sin is the devil's work, and Jesus came to destroy it by becoming an atoning sacrifice
01:31for our sins on the cross.
01:33Jesus is uniquely qualified to atone for our sins because He is righteous and pure and sinless.
01:40We will spend all of eternity praising Christ for destroying the works of the devil.
01:45His death on the cross has fully paid for our sins and reconciled us to God.