Nougat 21

God’s promises begin during the conversation with Adam, Eve, and the serpent. Today’s Holy Nougat invites us to hear the promise anew.

“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”” ‭‭Genesis‬ ‭3:15‬ ‭NRSV‬‬

Amidst talk of punishment and passing the buck; God nestled one of the earliest promises for humanity. The promise of the Savior. It’s not framed in fancy language, nor is it a profound announce-ment. Rather, right there after sharing the consequences of sin; God offered all humanity The Way out.

Firstly, God approved the severing of ties between the ‘serpent’ and humanity. This can be taken literally or spiritually. I focus on spiritual. One could even argue that God wasn’t so much approving the fact of separation, as it is that God was stating the obvious. The enemy of our souls had already demonstrated the tenuous state of affairs, and it was not in our favor. Eve was lured (some would even say groomed) into sin by the devil. God simply established the devil as public enemy number one. – And before you argue that the devil doesn’t have offspring, remember that the un-holy spirits are under Satan’s jurisdiction and some humans would yield to the devil’s ploys. Hence the striking of the heel reminds us of the somewhat crippling blows set for us by the enemy.

But God didn’t leave it there. For leaving it there would mean that the battle was lost beforehand. The assurance was that a human would deal the deadly blow to the devil’s plans. And, that human is Jesus! For in taking on humanity, succumbing to the ignoble death on the cross, Jesus absorbed the curse of hanging. Ironically, even at His death, souls were liberated, as some graves opened as a sign, and the bruising process began.

It is said in some circles that when the heavens darkened and Jesus said ‘it is finished’, the devil and his minions began celebrating. Then suddenly, they all sensed an uncomfortable unwelcome presence! It was Jesus, taking away the keys of Death and the grave. End of that party!

However, although we know the final outcome, the end is not yet. And so, the skirmishes continue. Since Jesus has already proven the promise true, we rest assured that this final bit WILL also come to pass.

We give thanks to God, that in Jesus Christ we have Victory over sin.

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May all we seek be found in Christ