All The Way Part 2 Series

Introduction:

In today’s message we are continuing to take a look at the fullness of God’s amazing love for us. He created us to be in relationship with Him. And He has great plans for you, me, and all of us. Even that we, as the people of God, those of us who have turned to Him and put our faith in His Son Jesus Christ…

“…that we would be called children of God…” (1st John 3:1)

And the first part of our passage from last week confirms for us that the devil is our enemy: “…I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed;” (Genesis 3:15) He pursued Adam and Eve and coaxed them into sinning against God. The devil is the enemy of all people, even those who have not turned to God, they just don’t know it yet. And he is the enemy of God’s people throughout all of history, and we see this in the conflict that is always present in us between good and evil, temptation, between doing what is good and what is wrong. We also see this in the real and continual resistance from the forces of evil against the people of God in the external world we live in.

But God, in His grace, mercy, compassion, and love for people, saw to it that the devil is a defeated enemy. This brings us to the second part of our passage, Genesis 3:15, today. Please turn there in your Bibles and read with me…

Body:

I. (God provided a way for ultimate victory over our enemy the devil through the person and work of Jesus Christ) 3:15b. “He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.””

A. At this point in the garden…

1. I believe that Adam and Eve sensed God’s grace and a glimmer of hope.

2. I think the devil sensed something about his impending doom.

3. But I can imagine that only God knew the full impact of what He was handing down.

B. (The devil is a defeated enemy.)

1. In the context of what is being said in this passage, both times the word “bruise” is used here it means something different.

a. In the first case it means crush, or to deliver a fatal blow.

b. In the second case, it means something closer to bruise or bite.

c. The original reading sounds more like this: He will crush your head, And you will bruise his heal.

What’s happening here is this…

2. While God is issuing sentence to satan, in the garden, He is revealing His plan to redeem a fallen people.

a. A relationship battered and broken, a people duped into rebelling against their God, incarcerated in the bondage of sin and its results, mended, freed, and brought back into relationship with Him.

b. This victory will be the result of a struggle where someone who is an offspring of the woman will deliver a fatal blow that will defeat satan and his work.

3. This points directly to the person and work of Jesus Christ, who would strike the fatal blow to the head of satan.

a. This is the first time in God’s word that the person of Jesus Christ and the work that He would accomplish is mentioned.

(1) It was up to Jesus to destroy the works of the devil.

(2) In 1st John 3:8, the Bible says: “...The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.”

While Christ would deliver the fatal blow to satan’s head,

4. In the midst of the struggle, the devil would bruise His heal.

a. This points directly to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

b. And to the suffering that He would endure for us on the cross.

C. (Christ’s work on the cross defeated our enemy and gave us ultimate victory.)

1. The blow that Jesus was to administer to satan’s head was carried out on the cross.

a. This provided the ultimate defeat of satan, his work, and his followers.

b. This provided ultimate victory for the people of God, that’s us, over satan, and over our bondage to sin and its results, paid our debt, and made it possible for us to come back into relationship with God.

c. Take your Bibles and turn with me to the New Testament to the book of Colossians chapter two verses thirteen through fifteen (Colossians 2: 13-15.) This is going to explain to us how Christ’s work on the cross provided victory.

“13 When you (All of us…) were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh (Remember we are guilty of sin, and the wages of sin is death…),

He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions (Our sins were forgiven, and a way was made…),