How Does the Death of Christ Defeat the Power of the Devil in Death?
Now the question: How does the death of Christ defeat the power of the devil in death. And to see that, let’s compare the flow of thought in verses 14-15 with verse 17. I’m passing over verse 16, not because it’s unimportant but because there isn’t time. In a word, it highlights again that our great salvation (2:3) is great in large measure because it shows God’s willingness to deal with humans and not just focus on angels. Verse 17 says now that since Christ is aiming to deliver humans (children of Abraham) and not angels, “Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.” Now what stands out immediately when you compare this verse with the flow of thought in verses 14 and 15 is that both of them speak of Christ having to become like us. Verse 17 says, “He had to be made like His brethren in all things.” Verse 14 says, “Since then the chil
