“…having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them…” ~ Colossians 2:13b-15

Everyone loves a baby, and so it is no wonder the secular world has fallen in love with Christmas.  It’s a time for giving and being with family, when cozy traditions are made, and lights are all around us.

Yes, our world loves Christmas, but they seldom love the Savior who initiated it. They want the glitz and the warmth, but they don’t want the cross He was destined for.  I think a lot of people are like Ricky Bobby, choosing to think of an “8 pound baby Jesus” rather than the victorious, risen Messiah.

But the cross was the reason for the manger, and so you cannot separate the two.  Paul makes it clear in the verses above that the cross was the reason for Jesus’ first advent, His coming.  And so we must ask ourselves: why did He come, this Babe of Bethlehem?

Paul supplies the answer readily: He came to forgive and cancel out our debt.  He came to triumph over our enemies…

Triumph in the Minds of the Ancients

When we think of “triumph,” generally the first visual conjured up is a sporting victory.  This would not have been the case in Roman times (although they did love sports).  Instead, the Romans in Jesus’ day would have thought of an imperial triumphus, or triumph.[1]

The Roman triumphus was a “spectacular victory celebration parade” for a victorious general (by Jesus’ day, it was reserved solely for the emperor).  There would be speeches, and the general/emperor would honor certain soldiers who fought valiantly.   Then there would be a parade with depictions of the battles won.  At the end, there would be banquet for the nobility of Rome, and a feast for the populace, too.[2]

But, for our purposes today, the most important aspect of the triumphus would have been the captives.  The victorious emperor-general would have taken captives of the conquered nation, and killed them in a display of Rome’s might and power[3]

How This Applies to Us

It is almost certain Paul was thinking of this triumphus when he wrote the verses above.[4]  We know there are still enemies afoot, enemies that need conquering, and so it’s easy to slip into the trap of thinking Paul is speaking of a heavenly triumph.  However, this is not the case.

There will be a heavenly triumphus much like this, at Jesus’ second advent; but Paul uses the past-tense here.  The triumphus he’s speaking of has already happened.  This is because Jesus’ first advent – the one we just celebrated – also had a triumph.

A triumph at the tomb.

The purpose of Jesus’ first advent was to forgive our transgressions and cancel our debt by nailing it to the cross.  This is how Jesus “disarmed” the “rulers and authorities.”  He destroyed their power by dying a perfect death on a cross.

But it wasn’t until He rose again on the third day that He “made a public display of them.” By rising again, he broke the power of sin, death, and hell.  He made a mockery of their power, for they could not destroy him.

Like a Roman emperor, he destroyed their power at the cross and made a public display of them by rising again.

Clearly, our enemy is still at work in the world.  We feel the effects of sin and death, and we only need to look at the headlines to know Hell still has power.

What, then, did Jesus triumph over?

Sin, Death, and Hell.

And yet we still feel these powers.  How can this be?

The Disarming

There are two keys that can help us unlock this truth. The first key lies in the beginning of the phrase: He disarmed them.

Sin is still something we struggle with; but by leading a perfect life, Jesus “disarmed” sin for us, and by dying for us He “made a public display” of it.  Yes, the sting of death is still  keenly felt; but by dying and rising again, Jesus “disarmed” and “made a public display” of death.  Hell is still a brutal power in the world, but the victory at the cross weakened its power to hold us captive.

For Sin, Death, and Hell, Jesus’ death and resurrection gave us a way out. They were “disarmed” and “made a public display” of.

The second key is this: they have not yet been slain.

We are still in the middle of this triumphus. They are still on “public display.”

I understand the irony of that sentence.  I refuse to read headlines because of the depravity and violence in the world.  How are Sin, Death, and Hell on public display, to be made a mockery of?

Only at the Cross.  It’s the only place to overcome and mock such things.  I have faith that somehow these things were triumphed over, and that are in the process of being humiliated by the Grace of Christ.

And I know this because they will not end until Jesus’ second advent.  The Babe of Bethlehem disarmed and publicly displayed our enemies in His first triumphus.  In the second, the Victorious King of Kings will destroy these enemies once and for all time…

 

Sources

 

[1] https://www.britannica.com/topic/triumph-ancient-Roman-honour

[2] https://www.ancient.eu/Roman_Triumph/

[3] https://www.britannica.com/topic/triumph-ancient-Roman-honour

[4] https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-Col/Col-2.cfm?a=1109015


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