After I published yesterday’s blog on “the last enemy to be destroyed is death,” which followed the reflection on the death of our former pastor Dr. John Stevens, I checked to see what I wrote this time last year. Guess what? December 12, 2022, was also about death! June commented something like, “Well those blogs will get people into the Christmas spirit!”

A good point… But it’s not Christmas yet, it’s Advent. And we would do well to remember that Jesus came into a world messed up by sin and death. A world that’s still messed up by sin and death, and so we wait still. But we wait in hope. Jesus has conquered death.

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. (Hebrews 2.14, 15, ESV)

The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3.8, ESV)

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Luke 1.76 – 79, ESV, Zechariah speaking of John the Baptist)