by Pastor Douglas Brauner

Jesus Has Defeated Our Enemy

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“Lead me in the right path, O Lord, or my enemies will conquer me. Make your way plain for me to follow.”
Psalm 5:8 New Living Translation

I have struggled with psalms where the poet prays harshly against his enemies. When I read these psalms, I hear Jesus’ voice telling me to love and pray for (not against) my enemies. (Matthew 5:43-48)

I hear these tough psalms through the filter of how I’m built. Those of you who know me are probably not shocked when I say that I am a person who wants people to have good relationships with each other. Growing up, I often played the role of a peacemaker in my family and have continued to play that role in adulthood.

Even though I might feel that I have few enemies, Paul reminds me that I do have a foe. My true enemy doesn’t have flesh and blood. Satan and the host of hell are my daily enemies (Ephesians 6:12). And I am not alone in this battle. Satan wants nothing more than to separate all of us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Satan is the enemy of the cross and therefore our enemy.

Among all the voices that we hear telling us how to live and what to believe, there is one voice that points the way for us, the only way. Jesus is that voice. Our enemy, Satan, uses the multiple voices of the world to tempt us into leaving Jesus’ road for our lives.

Jesus’ voice doesn’t merely call us to a lifestyle, but to his person. He is the Way, not to mention the Truth and the Life. God has made plain for us the way to follow, and that way is Jesus. It is the way of the cross and the empty tomb where our enemy has been defeated.

With all the enemy’s chaos around us, may we hear the voice of Jesus as he leads us in his right path, the path to his loving arms.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado