Week of Monday, January 1 – January 7
Cosmic Conflict – Man as Defender
The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” - Genesis 3:14-15 ESV
We are at war. This cosmic conflict with Satan and his forces began when he slithered into the Garden of Eden and began slandering God and seducing Eve and Adam. Instead of stepping up as a Defender by rebuffing Satan’s lies, Adam went along with Eve and sinned, together with Eve. In addition to judging the sinful couple, God cursed the serpent, declaring: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring” (v. 15). That invisible but very real war still rages today, and it is a life and death fight. Yet while Adam and Eve were deceived by Satan, God declared that our ultimate Defender and Champion was on the way.
In verse 15, the Hebrew literally tells us that this Champion will come from the “seed” of the woman. This statement was a head-scratcher for the old Rabbis because elsewhere the Bible speaks of the seed of the man. The seed for procreation is in the man, and the egg for fertilization is in the woman. There are more than 100 references to the seed of the man in the Bible, but this is the only place in the Old Testament that speaks of the “seed” of the woman. What does it mean?
It means here, on the front steps of the Bible, God was already pointing to the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. Isaiah 7:14 makes it plain: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
God tells us how He is going to win this war with the serpent who brought sin and death into His creation: He is going to send His only Son, who took off that robe of glory and put on that robe of flesh and became one of us. He is the seed of the woman. Why was that necessary? We need a sinless substitute. Since every other human being is a sinner by nature and by choice, God the Son had to be Holy Spirit conceived and virgin born. Consequently, only Jesus is that perfect, sinless substitute, born of a virgin, the seed of the woman.
There’s more. God declared that the serpent will “bruise” the heel of this Coming One. What does this mean? That looks forward to sacrificial death of Christ on the cross. In fact, later in chapter 3, when God spilled the blood of animals in order to cover Adam and Eve’s nakedness with their skins, it was also a picture of Christ’s sacrificial death. But back to the serpent. Where does a snake strike? At your feet, right? In a sense, Satan, that old serpent, fastened his fangs on the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. Isaiah 53:5 (NKJV) declares, “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities.” So, the “bruising” of Jesus was first prophesied here at the dawn of creation, and it was fulfilled at the cross of Calvary.
Men, Calvary was a battlefield upon which the Prince of Glory and the Prince of Darkness met in mortal combat. This epic battle raged for six hours on that blood-soaked hill. Hanging in the balance was the soul of every person in this world, past, present, and future—yours and mine included. When Jesus cried out: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me,” the demons rejoiced as that old serpent bruised the heel of Jesus. Yet, there is still more here in verse 15: “He [Jesus, the seed of the woman] shall bruise your head!” The Hebrew literally means “crush.” When Jesus, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, roared from that cross: “It is finished,” it was no whimper of defeat; it was a shout of victory! For on that battlefield, Jesus defeated that old serpent! Hebrews 2:14 declares that He came as a sinless human being to offer His life that “through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.” Then, three days later, He broke the chains of death against the stone walls of that tomb, crushed the head of Satan, and conquered death and the grave!
All the way back in the garden of Eden, we find the battle between us and the devil, the promise of a virgin-born Messiah, then the prediction of His bruising when He died on that cross, and then the crushing victory that He won when He arose from that tomb, a victory that will be finally realized when Christ comes again in power and great glory! Here, in one verse, we find the whole gospel message from incarnation, to crucifixion, to resurrection, to coronation! And the Bible says in Rom. 16:20, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” If you live for Jesus, one day, you’ll taste victory in this cosmic conflict. Make sure your family and friends join you!
- In their first battle, Jesus defeated Satan with the Word of God. Are you reading and meditating on God’s Word? Start the new year right by spending time daily with God in His Word. Text the word “Bible” to 67742 to get started.
- Are you training your family to recognize the temptations of Satan and resist him with God’s Word? Visit frc.org/Bible to get your family engaged in a daily reading of the Bible.
- Ask God to help you become the Defender He wants you to be and experience victory over the devil.
Cosmic Conflict – Man as Defender
The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” - Genesis 3:14-15 ESV
We are at war. This cosmic conflict with Satan and his forces began when he slithered into the Garden of Eden and began slandering God and seducing Eve and Adam. Instead of stepping up as a Defender by rebuffing Satan’s lies, Adam went along with Eve and sinned, together with Eve. In addition to judging the sinful couple, God cursed the serpent, declaring: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring” (v. 15). That invisible but very real war still rages today, and it is a life and death fight. Yet while Adam and Eve were deceived by Satan, God declared that our ultimate Defender and Champion was on the way.
In verse 15, the Hebrew literally tells us that this Champion will come from the “seed” of the woman. This statement was a head-scratcher for the old Rabbis because elsewhere the Bible speaks of the seed of the man. The seed for procreation is in the man, and the egg for fertilization is in the woman. There are more than 100 references to the seed of the man in the Bible, but this is the only place in the Old Testament that speaks of the “seed” of the woman. What does it mean?
It means here, on the front steps of the Bible, God was already pointing to the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. Isaiah 7:14 makes it plain: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
God tells us how He is going to win this war with the serpent who brought sin and death into His creation: He is going to send His only Son, who took off that robe of glory and put on that robe of flesh and became one of us. He is the seed of the woman. Why was that necessary? We need a sinless substitute. Since every other human being is a sinner by nature and by choice, God the Son had to be Holy Spirit conceived and virgin born. Consequently, only Jesus is that perfect, sinless substitute, born of a virgin, the seed of the woman.
There’s more. God declared that the serpent will “bruise” the heel of this Coming One. What does this mean? That looks forward to sacrificial death of Christ on the cross. In fact, later in chapter 3, when God spilled the blood of animals in order to cover Adam and Eve’s nakedness with their skins, it was also a picture of Christ’s sacrificial death. But back to the serpent. Where does a snake strike? At your feet, right? In a sense, Satan, that old serpent, fastened his fangs on the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. Isaiah 53:5 (NKJV) declares, “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities.” So, the “bruising” of Jesus was first prophesied here at the dawn of creation, and it was fulfilled at the cross of Calvary.
Men, Calvary was a battlefield upon which the Prince of Glory and the Prince of Darkness met in mortal combat. This epic battle raged for six hours on that blood-soaked hill. Hanging in the balance was the soul of every person in this world, past, present, and future—yours and mine included. When Jesus cried out: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me,” the demons rejoiced as that old serpent bruised the heel of Jesus. Yet, there is still more here in verse 15: “He [Jesus, the seed of the woman] shall bruise your head!” The Hebrew literally means “crush.” When Jesus, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, roared from that cross: “It is finished,” it was no whimper of defeat; it was a shout of victory! For on that battlefield, Jesus defeated that old serpent! Hebrews 2:14 declares that He came as a sinless human being to offer His life that “through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.” Then, three days later, He broke the chains of death against the stone walls of that tomb, crushed the head of Satan, and conquered death and the grave!
All the way back in the garden of Eden, we find the battle between us and the devil, the promise of a virgin-born Messiah, then the prediction of His bruising when He died on that cross, and then the crushing victory that He won when He arose from that tomb, a victory that will be finally realized when Christ comes again in power and great glory! Here, in one verse, we find the whole gospel message from incarnation, to crucifixion, to resurrection, to coronation! And the Bible says in Rom. 16:20, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” If you live for Jesus, one day, you’ll taste victory in this cosmic conflict. Make sure your family and friends join you!
- In their first battle, Jesus defeated Satan with the Word of God. Are you reading and meditating on God’s Word? Start the new year right by spending time daily with God in His Word. Text the word “Bible” to 67742 to get started.
- Are you training your family to recognize the temptations of Satan and resist him with God’s Word? Visit frc.org/Bible to get your family engaged in a daily reading of the Bible.
- Ask God to help you become the Defender He wants you to be and experience victory over the devil.