As every American patriot knows, an event took place at Harper’s Ferry, WV, in 1859, which helped launch the Civil War. An abolitionist named John Brown led eighteen armed men into the little town at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers. They not only carried rifles, but they also had weapons to share with others whom they hoped would join them. They captured the American military arsenal there, killing three people in the process and held it until United States troops under Robert E. Lee overran them. Brown and fifteen of his men eventually died, and so did several others who joined them, but who were not a part of the original attackers. Two years later the North and the South went to war. During that conflict about three quarters of a million soldiers died. But in addition to them, more than 50,000 civilians were also killed. You might say they were cut down in the crossfire between the two opposing armies. As far as Harper’s Ferry was concerned, both sides took and retook the community several times. The arsenal and the weapons factory were burned, and the critical bridge over the rivers was blown up. In the process Harper’s Ferry was decimated. It was “destroyed” to use a word found in our scripture.
What would you think about someone who said that all I that just told you were lies? What if someone said that part of American history is a fiction, fabricated for some reason or other? There would have to be something wrong with such a person. Because hundreds of history books record the details of John Brown’s raid and the events at Harper’s Ferry. The place has been deemed a National Historic Site, and historic markers are all over the area. The event has several pages on Wikipedia, so it must be true. Ken Burns and PBS say it is true and have shared lots of pictures to prove it. So what should we do with the person who says it never happened? Maybe we should question his sanity or at the very least we should question is motives for the denial.
I John 3:8 speaks of another military event; a far more cataclysmic event. It is not a simple battle, but an ongoing war between forces more powerful than those at Harper’s Ferry. Someone may deny the reality of this war, just as they might deny the Civil War, but they would be wrong. I could spend half an hour giving you more detail on Harper’s Ferry, but it is far more important that I share the details of the battle briefly described in this verse. “The DEVIL sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the SON OF GOD was manifested, that he might DESTROY the works of the DEVIL.”
Let’s begin with the two warring parties.
They are the devil and God, or more specifically Satan and the Son of God. Now, I know there are people who deny this conflict, because the deny the existence of God and the devil. But I assure you that just as God exists so does His enemy, the devil. Yes, there are atheists in the world, so we aren’t surprised to find people who also deny the reality of devil. But those people are in error on both counts. Throughout the world traditions abound of the warfare between good and evil; between various gods and various devils. They are only traditions, but they appear to have a common source, coming from early in human history. Those traditions aren’t really important, because they are traditions. But what the infallible Word of God has to say is extremely important.
Throughout its pages, the Bible speaks of this spiritual conflict – good and evil; God and Satan. No Bible writer ever tries to prove the existence of either God or the devil. They are both assumed. The evidence of their presence and work are all around us, and even within us. But again, I’m not referring to traditions, but to actual evil in this world. Our scripture gives us John’s first mention of the devil, and he merely says, “He that committeth sin is of the devil.” Period. It is as though John expects thinking people to know that the devil governs this sinful world.
This devil: this rebellious antagonist against God; has several names in the Bible. He is called “Lucifer,” “Beelzebub,” “Abaddon” and “Apollyon;” he is known sometimes as “Belial.” All these names have particular meanings, but we don’t need to get into them this morning. But I have already referred to one more name, which is far more common than any of these. The devil is also known as “Satan,” which means essentially, “the adversary.”
Satan has been trying to usurp Jehovah’s authority since approximately the first day of man’s creation. “Yea, hath God said, thou shalt not eat every tree of the garden?” He attacked Job early in human history. The Book of Chronicles tells us that Satan provoked King David to sin. Satan put the plot to betray the Lord Jesus into Judas’ heart. The Bible speaks of several others whom the devil directly led astray. And Matthew tells us the “devil” even tempted the Lord Jesus, while Mark says the tempter was “Satan.” I found it interesting that John writes of “the devil” eleven times in his four Bible books. But he refers to “Satan” only once. It is as though he refuses to give him the slightest hint of any dignity. It is as though he refuses to use his name; he describes Satan merely as “the devil.”
From where did this devil come? How did he originate? He came innocently enough from the hand of the Creator, like everything and everybody else. But he refused to keep his first estate, leaving it very quickly by choosing sin over righteousness. There are scriptures for these things, but for the sake of time, I’ll leave you to study them out. As John says, “the devil sinneth from the beginning.” No one knows precisely the exact nature of his first sin. It might have been pride at his exquisite beauty, or it could have been envy of Jehovah’s authority. It might have been both those with a little rejection of the truth mixed in; rebellion. There, by the way, are three very common sins among the children of men: envy, pride and rebellion.
So one of the combatants in the spiritual war described in I John 3:8 is the devil. And across from him there stands an overwhelming army in the person of the Son of God. The devil has many names and titles, but the Lord Jesus Christ has many more. Some of them reflect His humanity, beginning with “Jesus of Nazareth” and “the Son of man.” Some of them relate to His glorious work, like “Redeemer” and “Christ, the Saviour.” Others are poetic: “Rose of Sharon,” and “Lion of the Tribe of Judah.” And others are deeper, more glorious, eternal and heavenly. And again I won’t go into those names and titles, as I point to the one John uses: “the Son of God.”
Just as this is the first time John speaks of the devil in this letter, this is the first time he says, “the Son of God.” But as you would expect from a Christian and especially an apostle, he has pointed often to the Son already. He spoke of fellowship with “God the father and with his son Jesus Christ.” There he almost said it. He also called the Son “the word of life.” In chapter 1 he referred to “the blood of Jesus Christ the Son.” In chapter 2 he called Jesus Christ “the righteous.” There are at least half a dozen other references to Christ, the Son and the Holy One in this letter. But in our verse is the first reference specifically to “THE Son of God.”
It is important to notice that “the Son of God was MANIFESTED.” He was made to appear. Jesus did not BECOME the Son of God because He was born through the virgin Mary. He did not become a Son of God because He was better at glorifying Jehovah than most people. He wasn’t chosen to become the Son of God from among others. He has always been the Son. A quintillion years before the existence of time, He was the Son of God. Jehovah/Elohim exists in three persons and always has.
At the birth of Jesus, the eternal Son of God was manifested, that is, He made His appearance. At Bethlehem, when Joseph and Mary were in town for the taxation, the Son of God became incarnate. He took upon himself human form after an eternity without form or substance. As God said 700 years before His birth through the Prophet Isaiah, “behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall cal his name Immanuel,” which Matthew explains, means: “God with us.” Jehovah was for a time with us on earth in the person we call “Jesus of Nazareth.” And at Jesus’ baptism, when He was about to really go into battle with the devil, God the Father spoke from heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”
Why did the eternal Son of God become incarnate; why did He become a man? Several scriptures answer that question. But here in our text, John says, “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.”
Before considering what John says, let’s refresh our minds about some of the other Biblical statements. John 3:17: “God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.” Matthew 18:11: “The Son of man is come to save that which was lost.” Matthew 20:28: “The Son of man (the Son of God’s term to describe His incarnation)… The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Luke 19:10: “The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” John 10:10: “I am come that (sinners) might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” I Timothy 3:15: “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…”
In contrast to all these scriptures, John gives us another reason for the Son of God’s manifestation: “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” Getting myself into trouble with a many Bible commentators, I’m going to say that this is something different and in addition to all those other statements. “The WORKS of the devil” are not people; unbelievers and sinners. They are deeds; they actions performed by the devil. The serpent’s temptation of Eve could be considered one of the “works of the devil.” And so was inciting the people to build the tower of Babel. In the same way, “to destroy” is not the same thing as the Saviour’s work to “save” or “deliver sinners.”
With his corruption of our first parents, Satan began to weave God’s creation into a tapestry of evil. He immediately distorted man’s perception of God, creating religions of humanism and self satisfaction. Immediately he made sin and rebellion against God acceptable. Thus, we see Eve’s first born son killing his brother without remorse. In the ensuing early generations of man, we see the development of evil cities and societies. We see some men overcoming other men through conquest, then constructing kingdoms and empires in an effort to throw off the authority of God. Why would anyone want to do that if the idea wasn’t being inflamed by the new wicked god of this world? With each successive generation, the devil has been orchestrating more and more rebellion and wickedness. He is called “the prince of this world.” He has created a labyrinth of sin;, an interwoven network of societal infamy. I won’t say that our generation is more wicked than those of the days of Noah, but our generation does have more sin with which to kill itself. For example, Fentanyl has been a problem in the United States only since 2013 – barely a dozen years. But look at the havoc it is creating today, sending thousands to hell year after year. Satan smiles, claps his hands, and works to come up with more wicked devices.
But into the world which Satan has manipulated for four thousand years, the Son of God made His entrance. “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” The Greek word translated “destroy” doesn’t mean “exterminate,” “evaporate” or “eliminate.” It means “to break apart” or “dissolve.” Two thirds of the time, that word is translated is as “loose.” “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might (break or loosen) the works of the devil.” When Christ entered humanity, through His preaching, His example, His miracles and His evangelism, He began to weaken Satan’s hold on the world. Even without the cross, the presence of the Son of God began the unraveling of Satan’s web. That isn’t to say that the devil is not the god of this world, but he’s running wounded and scared.
Let’s remember the context of the verse: “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.” “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world,” because they belong to Satan, the antichrist. “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth (God’s) law,” but you, as God’s children, don’t have to give in to the devil’s temptations. “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might strike a blow at Satan’s web of wickedness,” giving those whom He has redeemed, a greater margin for victory. Should we enjoy and sin with those things which Christ came to destroy? As I have said in other messages, you and I, as children of God, cannot be compelled to sin. Not only do we have new hearts… and not only are we indwelt by the Holy Spirit with His power and protection… But with Christ’s incarnation and His three decades of victories over Satan, the devil’s dominion isn’t as strong and cohesive as it once was. Christ has broken, dissolved and loosened the satanic hand on the world, as far as the saints are concerned.
Now let me take you back to Harper’s Ferry and the War between the States.
Without getting into the details, the Civil War was fought over principles and ideals. Those principles: slavery, or state’s rights if you prefer, economics, western expansion – whatever… Those principles dragged hundreds of thousands of people into the line of fire. The people of Virginia didn’t initially hate the people of Connecticut per se, but they tried to kill each other. When John Brown crept into Harper’s Ferry, he urged local residents to join him, and several of them died. Those particular locals made a bad choice, and they suffered the consequences.
Similarly, there has been a vast war been going on between Jehovah and Satan from the beginning of time. Adam and Eve, like several West Virginians, deliberately chose to take sides with the devil, and they died. Cain, their son, didn’t need to kill Abel, but he did, and then he died. The children of Adam and Eve have been dying ever since, because Adam’s sin flows in our veins. And as such they are “of the devil.” But for those who are “of God” – “children of God,” to obey and follow Satan’s temptations is not necessary. Because Christ is “destroying the works of Satan.” “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.”
I think this is what John is telling us in this verse. But before I close, let’s go back to all those other verses which speak of another of Christ’s purposes. And to those I’ll add one more from the immediate context of I John 3, verse 5: You Christians “know that (the Son of God) Jesus was manifested to take away our sins…” Not only was Christ manifested to destroy the works of the devil, He was manifested to take away our sins.
And how did He do that? I Peter 1:21: “Christ also suffered for us.” The infinite Son of God agonized in death ON OUR BEHALF. I Peter 1:22: He “who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. Who when he was reviled reviled not again; when he suffered he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously. Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness by whose stripe ye were healed.” How did Christ take away our sins? He deliberately chose to go to Calvary and to be ignominiously nailed to a cross to die. But He did so in the place of… as the substitute for… those He intended to free from sin. Suffering indescribable agony, but before the cross could do its intended work, Christ willingly gave His earthly life back to God the Father as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of other people. In His death He took away the penalty deserved by the millions of people He was determined to save. “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” And “for this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might take away our sins.”
For me personally, the early part of my life was spent as an ally of the wicked one; an open sinner. He crept into my community and my family, and I chose to follow his evil leadership and rebellion. For years, I was characterized by childish, foolish sin; it was an obvious part of my character. But then by the grace of God I was arrested and brought to my knees under Holy Spirit conviction. I was given a broken heart and a heart full of faith enough to trust what Christ did on the cross to save me. I put my faith in the death of the Son of God, proving that I was one of those children of God of whom John spoke earlier in this letter.
That is my testimony. Now, what about you? Are you prepared to die with John Brown, Cain and Judas, spending eternity in Hell with Satan? Or will you humble yourself in God’s sight and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to save you? Christ came to crush the power of the Devil, but more important for us, He came to give his life a ransom for many. Will you join those “many” this morning?