It was on this day, in 1934, that German President, Paul von Hindenburg, passed away, thus allowing Adolf Hitler to attain complete and absolute power as the unquestioned head of state. It would only be a few short years before the entire world was engulfed in a World War.
Looking back at history and the rise of Hitler and Nazism with its awful consequences, one can’t help but question, “Why didn’t somebody do something to stop it?” Hitler advertised his hatred for the Jews and others, as well as his approach to rebuilding Germany, in the book Mein Kampf. It seems that someone should have taken him at his word. To be fair, there were those isolated cases where people spoke out against Hitler but they were most definitely in the minority. It seems that no one really wanted to step in and do what needed to be done, causing me to wonder if the rise of Hitler and World War II was inevitable.
Over the last several years, key events and political movements have contributed to the erosion of our liberties here in America and I suspect abroad, as well. It feels as if what we hold so dear is slowly slipping through our fingers and no one has the will or power to stop it. Most everyone realizes that there is a problem, but no one seems prepared to do what needs to be done in order to remedy our situation. So once again, it seems as if certain outcomes are inevitable — as if it was meant to be.
Whether or not patterns from the early 20th century are about to repeat, we can’t say for sure but if it does, as believers, we need to keep something in mind. Because we are at war with the enemy, he is going to do everything he can to destroy us. Yet, even when it looks like the Adversary is being allowed to do whatever he wants, somehow and in some way, all his efforts will end up serving God’s plan and purposes. In the very beginning of time, the Creator spoke to the serpent and said:
“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed: He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15)
In the beginning, the Creator determined that the Righteous Seed — ultimately fulfilled in the Messiah but also including the Body of Messiah — were to put their heel on the head of the Adversary. However, the Adversary was determined to reverse that decision, and has tried incessantly to place his heel on the head of God’s people. We see this struggle taking shape in the stories of Cain and Abel and Esau and Jacob, and especially in the description of the latter’s birth. Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Daniel 2) hints that this war of the heel will continue until the very end. According to Daniel, the image Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream had two feet that represented the last earthly kingdom before the Messiah returned. That kingdom was one that went about trying to stamp out (with the heel) God’s people.
Contributing to this scenario is the spiritual condition of God’s people. If we, who are called to be salt and light, do not fulfill that purpose, we will find ourselves on the receiving end of the Adversary’s attacks. Messiah said that if the salt loses its savor then it is good for nothing. It is tossed into the street and trampled underfoot, or we might say, under heel. If we’re not doing what we’re supposed to do, then we might be placed under the heel of the Adversary.
We know that the Adversary wants to destroy God’s people and would if given the opportunity. However, we also know that our heavenly Father doesn’t allow the Adversary to destroy His people. He might allow a Pharaoh to rise up and provoke His people to turn back to Him. He might allow a Nebuchadnezzar to come against His people and be used as a rod of correction, even destroying those things that they allowed to become more important to them than He. But the goodness of His heart, not to mention His promise to Abraham, will not allow for His people to be destroyed. His intention is that the Adversity will provoke His people to repentance, which then allows for restoration.
When we are of the mind to return to Him and walk as we should, the Messiah said we have the authority to trample on scorpions and upon serpents (Luke 10:19). If we are to trample upon them, it is is implied we will bruise their head with our heel, alluding to the prophecy of Genesis 3:15. If we are walking in obedience, we have the authority to put our heel on the head of the Adversary. We can overcome the world because He has overcome the world.
As we observe the disturbing developments all around us and wonder why it is happening, we might consider that some things are occurring because the salt has lost its savor. If that is so, remember, it is not God’s intention that we are to be destroyed, but that we are to be provoked to turn away from our wicked ways. We must turn back to Him, in repentance and with a contrite heart. When we do, we have the promise that, because Yeshua has destroyed the works of the devil, we may — following in His footsteps — trample our enemy underfoot.
Shalom.
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