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Reason #16: Jesus Rose From The Dead To Destroy The Work Of The Evil One

When Jesus rose from the dead he was going directly against and undoing the work of sin, death and the Evil One.

The Evil One, or "Satan" (literally, "the accuser" or "the Accusing One") was to kill and destroy. We hear Jesus say this in John chapter 10:

 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10).

Jesus is contrasting his work with the work of the "thief" (the Evil One). Jesus is about life and life to the full. By way of contrast the theif is only about "stealing, killing and destroying." 

Whenever we witness death we are witnessing in the work of the Evil One. Whenever we witness life and especially resurrected life we are witnessing the work of God through Christ.

And this is the reason Jesus came into the world--in his birth, ministry, suffering, death and resusrection. He cam to bring life by destroying the work of the Evil One. This is what 1 John tells us:

“The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8).

Jesus destroys the devil's work by reserving the devil's work.

Jesus destroys the devil's work by undoing the devil's work.

Jesus moves the Story of humanity into a new direction--not death because of our sin but life is our gift--"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23).

Let's thank God for devil-destroying and life-giving ministry of His Son!