The "Devil"
By dying, Jesus "destroyed him that hath the power of death,
that is, the devil" (Heb 2:14). It's easy to see how Jesus' death could destroy
the power of sin in his own body (Rom 8:3), but we cannot see how any
supernatural devil could have been destroyed in this way. Therefore such a devil
is not part of Christadelphian belief. We do not share the belief of Catholics
and modern Baptists and "Jehovah's Witnesses", nor that of many other churches,
that a "fallen angel" controls the fate of sinners. Of the origin of such a
being we find no trace in Scripture (for the much-quoted Isa 14 and Eze 28
plainly have nothing to do with the case). Because the world-wide presence of
human sin is more than sufficient to explain all the many Scriptural images,
Christadelphians look upon the "devil" (the word literally means "liar" or
"enemy") as a fitting representation of the many aspects of the wrongness of
human hearts. The Bible "devil" -- in contrast to the mythological "devil" -- is
inside man, not outside him. This was the "devil" which Jesus conquered totally
in and for himself. This was also the "devil" which he conquered for us but only
in prospect, and only insofar as we exercise faith ourselves to take advantage
of the benefit. [See Lesson, Devil, who
is.]
