Part 1:The World’s Greatest Hero – Christ Crucified

Preached at Gateway 17th February 2013
Colossians 2.6-15
Battlefield - Victory

Focus verse – ‘And having disarmed the powers and authorities, [Christ] made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross’, v15.

 Main theme: Jesus conquered so you can have the victory over evil.

Introduction

The death of Jesus is the most famous death in history.  You’re going to discover in this new preaching series why Jesus is ‘The World’s Greatest Hero’ because God’s Word reveals just who Jesus is, why he died, and what his death accomplished for you.  We’re going to do this by looking at different images and metaphors that that Bible, the Word of God, presents.  The Bible is not monochrome. There are many vivid ways to explain this one message of the death of Jesus and his resurrection. 

The truth is this, you will never understand Jesus Christ, until you understand Jesus Christ Crucified.  Not Jesus Christ Superstar – but Jesus Christ Crucified.

Our focus verse today from the Bible is – ‘And having disarmed the powers and authorities, [Christ] made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross’, Colossians 2.15.  Consider this...Jesus conquered, so that you can have the victory over evil.

Here’s the Big Picture

The risen Jesus said this to his followers, before he returned into heaven, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me’ (Matthew 28.18).  In this declaration Jesus claims he is supreme, he is ruler.  He stands above all other rulers of this world, the good, the bad and the ugly...he excels and surpasses all powers and authorities.

If Jesus is this amazing figure – whom nobody can match, how do you know he is without parallel?  If he is King of kings and Lord of lords...how do you know?  You need to know, before you decide to follow him.

In order to know, I want you to travel back in time to a battlefield.  It’s called Calvary, otherwise known as the place of the Skull (Luke 23.33).  It’s possibly a hillside, that’s shaped in the form of a skull, where some crucifixions are taking place.  According to the historical records three crucifixions are taking place, three people have been nailed to their cross to die.  Crucifixion was a Roman invention which was barbaric.

Upon the cross in the middle of the three, was Jesus.  The world’s greatest hero – Christ crucified.  What is happening?  It’s challenging to truly comprehend.  We need an illustration.  One of the best is portrayed in ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’...where Aslan willingly goes to the place of sacrifice in order to break the spell, the deep magic.  The wicked Queen of Narnia and her evil forces are unleashed against and upon Aslan.  But what they don’t realise is that the victim became, in sacrificing his life, the victor.  That’s a snapshot of Jesus, ’the Lion of the tribe of Judah...[who] has triumphed’ (Revelation 5.5); willingly going to the battlefield of Calvary, where he knows he is going to be slaughtered...yet he knows it’s there the curse will be broken and the power of Satan will be crushed.  Here’s what the prophet Isaiah foresaw centuries before, ‘He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent’ (Isaiah 53.7).

Yes, Jesus on the battlefield had been rejected by everyone, even his own deserted him, as he died that lonely death with the forces of evil raging against him, and experiencing abandonment by his own heavenly Father.  What was actually happening, contrary to appearances that looked like evil overcoming goodness, was in fact goodness overcoming evil.  Yes, the brutal power of Rome overcame this one solitary figure, but was really happening was that Jesus was crushing Satan, as prophesied at the beginning of the Bible’s history (see Genesis 3.15 ref. to Satan disguised as a serpent, whose head is crushed).  The famous preacher, John Stott, once said, “The victim was the victor, and the cross is still the throne from which [Christ] rules the world” (Stott, The Cross of Christ, p228).

It’s a dramatic cosmic drama that unfolded in the life of Jesus culminating at the cross.  It was by his sacrifice on the battlefield of Calvary that Jesus defeated sin, death and Satan.  That’s the big picture.  Let’s zoom in.

Here’s some of the detail

God created all the world good, but, mysteriously to us, Satan was allowed to tempt Adam and Eve, the figure-heads of the human race.  They choose to listen and obey Satan’s voice instead of God’s voice and consequently the world and humankind has been plagued by evil and wickedness.  Therefore, you too are caught up in this.  For those of you who are fans of the Star Wars movies, you’ll know about the huge space station called the Death Star, which has powerful beam that pulls in enemy ships.  There’s nothing you can do about.  Once you’re in the drag of the beam, there’s no escape.  It’s like that with sin, you are caught in the beam of Satan.  But you are also, at the same time, responsible for your own selfish actions.  You have still personally broken God’s laws – just consider the 10 Commandments, or the greatest 2 that Jesus spoke about concerning loving God and loving your neighbour.  This broken law is what is against us, referred to in Colossians as ‘the written code, with all its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us’, Colossians 2.14.  The idea of the ‘written code’ in the Apostle Paul’s day was that of a document which was hand-written that certified you were in debt.  Indeed, it could well have been a signed confession of being in debt, a debt that was too big for you to repay.  The Apostle Paul applies this to God’s law.  You have broken it, therefore you can never fix it.  It stands against you.

We’ve just been accepted by a Bank to acquire a Mortgage for the first time, Mary Sue and myself.  I know we’ll have a massive debt that will take us over 20 years to pay off.  Thankfully it’s manageable.  But still it’s a written document that stands against me, until the debt is paid.  But the debt of sin, you breaking God’s laws, cannot be paid off by you – not now, not ever.  That is Colossians 2.14.

But at the battlefield, on the cross, Jesus took this certificate, the written code – metaphorically speaking – and he nailed it.  ‘He took it away, nailing it to the cross’, Colossians 2.14.  When a person was crucified, about them was a sign nailed stating the crime of the person.  What’s the Apostle Paul is declaring here is that your certificate, your crime of breaking God’s laws – the unpayable debt, the impossible I.O.U. - is nailed to Jesus’ cross.  In essence, you should be nailed, but Jesus stands in your place.  He pays your debt, he cancels the ‘written code, with its regulations’.  It’s wiped out.  In fact, he has destroyed it – nailing it to his cross of crucifixion.  That is why you can be forgiven for breaking God’s law, but what about Satan and his forces?  Are they still in power, can they still drag you back under their evil hold and power?  No.  Not only has Jesus, at the battlefield, destroyed your ‘written code’, he has conquered the evil powers by his death, his sacrifice on the cross.  No wonder the cross is used as the symbol of the Christian faith.

There was a story a few years ago, recorded in The Times Newspaper, about a mother, Patricia Gearing, who was informed by her local authority to remove a simple cross that marked the grave of her daughter who had died of Battens disease.  This was in Mablethorpe, with the local authority stating, ‘Crosses are discouraged, as excessive use of the supreme Christian symbol is undesirable’.  Instead, the family was given permission to erect a headstone featuring Micky Mouse (The Times 6th Sept 1998),

Let’s never diminish the power of the cross.  Look at Col.2.15, in this one verse we have two graphic images or metaphors to illustrate the victory of the cross...

Here’s the focus - The Victorious Crucified Christ

1) ‘Disarmed the powers and authorities’

Christ Crucified has ‘disarmed the powers and authorities’, he has destroyed the drag beam of Satan.  If you lived in Colosse during the 1^st century, you would have lived amongst farmers of crops and sheep, and dyers of wool.  They were very superstitious, believing strongly in having to ward off evil spirits and appease supernatural forces that either brought prosperity or misfortune to their fragile agricultural world.  Imagine their surprise upon hearing the good news of Jesus as it’s described here, this letter originally written to a new church at Colosse.  These evil forces were moving in close, as Christ reached the peak of the battle.  It looked like it was all over, Satan and his demonic beings had triumphed.  But he ‘disarmed’ them.  ‘Disarmed’ or ‘stripped’ is the word used for stripping the weapons from a defeated enemy and his armour too.  What this means is this, as the evil forces began to cling to Jesus, he ‘discarded’ them, as if like disgusting, foul clothing, God in Christ stripped them from himself.  God in Christ ‘disarmed’ them of their evil power.  The Crucified Christ broke their power once and for all. 

2) A public spectacle

The second image is this, ‘he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross’, Colossians 2.15.  What the Apostle Paul has in mind here is that of a Roman general who has won a famous victory and is marching with his victorious army through the streets of Rome.  Behind him are the foes, held captive, conquered and defeated, paraded around as the powerless powers. Think of the Light Dragoons and the Yorkshire Regiment when they paraded though Barnsley town centre in recent years with their tanks and armoured vehicles, with thousands turning out to cheer them on.  It’s a kind of victory parade, at least a homecoming celebration.  This is the picture of Jesus, victorious ‘triumphing over them by the cross’, Colossians 2.15.  This was victory and Jesus leads the procession of captives.  But do get confused, because usually you will think of political forces and military powers that conquer enemies, but God does it through utter weakness, the Crucified Christ.  ‘God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong’ (1 Corinthians 1.27). 

So the battlefield of Calvary is a cosmic battle where the powers of darkness surrounded Christ on the cross and attacked him.  If this is unseen, a battle in the spiritual realm, how was it a ‘public spectacle’?  Remember, this victory was prophesied many times, and then began to take hold during the public ministry of Jesus, and was decisively won at the cross.  But how was it a public spectacle?  Jesus rose from the dead.  The resurrection confirmed and declared the victory, the conquest.  The apostle Peter said in the first ever message preached, “It was impossible for death to keep its hold on him” (Acts 2.24).  Furthermore, this triumph is extended to the church down through the ages and across the world today.  So this local church called Gateway has an explosive message, preaching ‘Christ Crucified’ and calling people to turn from wrong and turn to Jesus Christ, to believe in him.  So when somebody becomes a Christian, a true believer, they turn from ‘darkness to light’ (Acts 26.18), from ‘the power of Satan to God’ (Acts 26.18), and from ‘idols to serve the living and true God’ (1 Thessalonians 1.9).  Every time a person crosses over from unbelief to faith in Christ, the supreme power of Christ is demonstrated because Satan, who up to that point has a hold on the individual life, has to let go.

The resurrection confirms what the death of Jesus achieved.  The resurrection assures you that in Jesus you can have victory.  No wonder, the Apostle Paul who presents death in the image of a scorpion whose sting has been drawn, shouts defiantly like a military conqueror, “Where, O death, is your victory?  Where, O death, is your sting?”  Silence.  So the Apostle Paul shouts again in triumph, not mockery, “Thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15.55-57).

Conclusion

What about you?  Do you sometimes feel oppressed as if evil is clinging to you?  Do you realise that your lifestyle, your ways, your desires – if lived without Jesus Christ in charge – positions you on the losing side?  What about death, Satan’s final charge?  Do you fear death and what happens afterwards?  You need not fear death.  ‘The last enemy to be destroyed is death’ (1 Corinthians 15.26).  ‘Our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel’ (2 Timothy 1.10).  The cross announces that the blood of Jesus has power to ward off evil destruction.  If you read about the original Passover meal in Exodus, the angel of death passed over every household that had the blood of a sacrificed lamb daubed on its doorframe.  What the Israelites experienced, you too can experience.  You too need to be covered by the blood, the blood of Jesus Christ – ‘the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world’ (John 1.29).  In other words, you need to put your faith in Christ alone.  Go to the battlefield of Calvary, where the battle has already been won – at the cross of Jesus.  Lay down your weapons of pride and selfishness and the rest, and put your trust in the triumphant Christ Crucified. 

Gateway church, you need to pick up the atmosphere of the New Testament, which is one of joyful confidence.  There is no way, any Christian or local church should be defeatist.  Christians in New Testament times spoke about victory.  See Romans 8.37, ‘No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us’.

Why is ‘Christ Crucified’ the world’s greatest hero?  Because he is Christ the Conqueror, who ‘disarmed the powers and authorities’.  God has come into your world to rescue you, to give you the victory over evil.  You don’t need a telescope or a microscope or a horoscope to reach him, it’s Christ Crucified.  In him, God comes to your aid and gives you all you need.  Have you experienced the victory of Christ Crucified in your life?

‘And having disarmed the powers and authorities, [Christ] made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross’

Prayer of faith:

Lord Jesus, I have done a lot of things wrong in my life.  I am sorry for going my own way instead of your way.  I am sorry for the life I have led without you.  Thank you for dying on the cross to forgive my sin and give me the victory over sin, death and Satan.  Please come and take first place in my life and make me the person you want me to be, filling my life with your victorious power and sacrificial love.  Amen.