Look inside this book.Where the Bush is Burning: A Daily Devotional by [Thomas Tice]

Tag: I John 3
For This Purpose

For This Purpose

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He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 

I John 3:8 

Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 

 John 12:31 

Why did Christ come into the world? There are many reasons we can cite. One of the salient reasons was that He might destroy the works of the devil. How is that so? If we go back to the original appearance of the devil in the garb of the serpent in Genesis 3, we observe his work. There, he began by casting doubts upon what God had said and purposefully lured Eve toward her destruction by disobeying God’s command. Adam followed suit. Thus began the decline and destruction of humanity. Satan’s intention was to destroy God’s Creation. This was, and continues to be, his work. So much of what we see throughout history demonstrates his dedication to this destruction. Humanity, in the fallen condition in which we naturally exist, is a willing partner to these activities. Thus, lust, greed, hatred, envy, murder, theft, cruelty, and oppression are rampant. Christ came to destroy those things and the effects of them. To that purpose He dedicated Himself in life and in death. He intends and will accomplish a thorough-going destruction of those works. When He was about to go to the cross, He said as much, ‘now the ruler of the world is cast out.’ 

Our Victorious, Living Christ, 
we rejoice that You will defeat all of Your enemies. 
We praise You that You will   
destroy the work of the devil. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
Death And Hades

Death And Hades

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He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 

I John 3:8 

Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 

Revelation 20:14 

How thoroughly does Christ destroy the works of the devil?  The second part of our text gives us an indication of His success. The context is the Last Judgment. This is the logical follow-on from some of our recent contemplations. Christ said that when He returns He will sit upon the throne of His glory, divide humanity into two groups, and render judgment. The passage from which our text derives describes the same event. At the end of that Last Judgment, ‘Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire,’ as John describes his vision. Previously, John described the casting of the devil unto the lake of fire. What we see is that Christ so thoroughly succeeds in destroying the works of the devil that all vestiges of his work arrive at the same destination he does. Where he goes, death goes, as well as the grave, for which there would be no need apart from death. Christ succeeds altogether. His purpose in coming into the world was to destroy the works of the devil. All the rest of the Scripture proves He has succeeded, is succeeding, and shall succeed. 

Our victorious God and Savior, 
we rejoice in Your Glorious purpose. 
We praise You that You will
complete all You intend. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
The Bitter End

The Bitter End

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He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 

I John 3:8 

The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.  

Revelation 20:10 

If Christ was manifested to destroy the works of the devil, what shall be the end of the devil himself?  The second part of our text articulates it clearly. He who has spent his career promoting the misery of others will become miserable, ‘tormented day, and night forever and ever.’ There is a grave misconception abroad that Satan will rule in hell. Our text describes something quite different. Here we read, not that he will rule, but that he will suffer the consequences of the evil he has perpetrated. God is just. In our proclamation of the gospel we emphasize the love of God and the sacrifice of Christ. In addition to that, in order to embrace a whole God and a whole Christ, we must also declare His righteousness which we see in His justice. Christ came to destroy the works of the devil. In succeeding at that endeavor, He ultimately brings the devil himself to receive the just consequence of his evildoing. The loving Savior is also the righteous Judge. This brings Satan and his minions to an eternally bitter end.  

Our King, God, and Savior, 
we rejoice that You do judgment and justice. 
We praise You that You will  
recompense evil. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
The Sting Of Death

The Sting Of Death

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He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 

I John 3:8 

The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

I Corinthians 15:56-57 

How has Christ succeeded in destroying the works of the devil? One of the most outstanding results of the devil’s work is death. Until sin entered into the world there was  no death. Sin came by the transgression of our first parents. Death followed as a consequence. When Christ died on the cross, He died as the representative Man, offering Himself as the substitutionary sacrifice for those condemned to die. The chapter from which the second portion of our text derives is the Resurrection chapter. Paul is explaining the fact of the resurrection as well as the ramifications of it. The facts are, there is a resurrection of the dead; Christ has risen from the dead, and as the result, He had defeated death. Death is the consequence of the work of the devil. Therefore, by defeating death, Christ is destroying his work. The resurrection from the dead of all of the redeemed of all ages will be one of the final proofs of Christ’s success. We believe these things. We understand from the Scripture that the day is coming when death and the grave will be cast into the lake of fire as proof that Christ has entirely succeeded in destroying the works of the devil.  

Our Gracious Savior and our God, 
we rejoice in Your victory over death. 
We praise You that the day is coming, 
when You will destroy death entirely.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
To Reconcile All Things

To Reconcile All Things

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He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 

I John 3:8 

For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.  

Colossians 1:19-20 

How successful will Christ be in fulfilling His purpose to destroy the works of the devil? He will be extremely successful. If we look at some of the verses that precede the portion of our text from Colossians, we see indications of this success. Paul remarks that God the Father has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. He goes on to say, ‘He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.’ After a glorious description of Christ, He prefaces our text with, ‘that in all things He may have the preeminence.’ Christ must have first place. The ramifications of this are massive in relation to His overall purpose to destroy the works of the devil. Satan sought to destroy humanity, God’s highest creation. Christ came to redeem that humanity. He will succeed to the extent that at the Throne there will be, ‘a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples and tongues.’ There is a strong case for there being more saved than lost. In addition, there is a description of the redemption of the whole of creation, sorely affected by the curse of the devil’s work. Christ will be wildly successful in accomplishing His purpose. We are the beneficiaries of His success.  

Our Victorious, Living Christ, 
we rejoice that You will succeed in every way. 
We praise You that we have the privilege  
of seeing Your plan unfold.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

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