Scripture
19But everyone knows that you are obedient to the Lord. This makes me very happy. I want you to be wise in doing right and to stay innocent of any wrong. 20The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Romans 16:19-20
Observation
Paul ends his theological treatise to The Church with a powerful reminder on the authority we’ve been given through Jesus Christ. When he said this they didn’t know how much they were going to need this. That’s how prophecy works. It was only a few years later after the writing of this letter that Roman Emperor Nero would blame the Christians for the Great Fire and start burning them alive at the stake and using them for sport in the coliseums. When they felt like they were being crushed they would remind reach other that their obedience was crushing Satan underneath their feet. This was also a call back to the prophecy that God had spoken over Satan, Adam and Eve in the wake of their sin back in the Garden of Eden. “14Then the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild. You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live. 15And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Gen. 3:14-15). God’s plan of redemption was set in motion at the moment sin entered into the world. He told us plainly that there would always be a battle between Satan and His people. Notice where Satan is located in this prophecy? Under the heel. He will strike us, but we will crush him through what Jesus accomplished on the Cross and through our daily obedience. Paul continues this theme of authority through Christ using the metaphor of feet in Ephesians 1, “18I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” (Ephesians 1:18-23) Notice, again, Christ is the head and we are Christ’s Body and the enemy is underneath our feet. So why does it feel like we are the ones getting trampled?
Application
I always feel like I have two left feet when it comes to walking in the authority Jesus gave me. When I come up against sickness, temptation, stressful situations, distractions, depression, confusion I feel like I’m often tripping over my own feet instead of crushing the enemy. That’s not pretty because I’m size 13 feet. Don’t even bother asking if I can dance. Although, I grew up in church in the 80’s when scriptures like these were put into songs and we would be encouraged to do the “Holy Hop”. We would be told to stomp the floor like we were squashing a cockroach. This may have been a fun way to exercise and memorize verses but I failed to catch the point even as I was enacting the verses. The way we crush Satan underneath our feet every day throughout the day is simple obedience. We aren’t the head. Jesus is. The head tells the feet, even two left feet, what to do in any and every situation we face. I said it was simple obedience, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to obey. Why are Christians constantly living as victims rather than victorious if Jesus has already won the battle? Because Jesus will never force us to obey Him. He will show us the right way and give us the strength to obey but ultimately it comes to a choice of the will. Will I or won’t I obey my Savior? This will determine if I will be crushed or I’ll be the one doing the crushing today.
Prayer
Lord, thank You for this powerful reminder this morning! I saw it clearer this morning than ever before. Thank you for redeeming these two left feet. I set me heart to obey You today and to crush the enemy where I wake, work and worship. There’s a peace when I follow the God of peace who teaches me to crush Satan everywhere I go.
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