Gen 3:15 The Curse on Satan 6/1/2003

• A Roaring Lion (Gen 3:4-14, 1Pet 5:8, Isa 65:25)

#1. Enmity Between Thee and the Woman (Gen 3:15, Col 1:12-14, 21-22)

• Who Is This Woman? (Acts 1:14, Gen 2:24, Eph 5:31-32. Rom 9:6-8, Gal 3:29)

• Who Provoked the War? (Heb 1:14, Isa 14:12-15, 44:6-7. 46:9-11)

#2. Enmity Between Thy Seed and Her Seed (John 8:42-47. Matt 13:38)

• The Seed of the Woman: One Man (Gal 3:16, John 17:6.9.20,24)

#3. He Shall Bruise Thy Head (Rev 13:1-3, Rev 20:1-3)

#4. Thou Shalt Bruise His Heel <06119> (Gen 3:15, 25:26, 49:17. Jer 13:22)

• Thank God for the Cross

Please open your Bibles to Genesis chapter 3:4 (2X). I know that we have been here already last

week, but I cannot resist speaking one more time on Gen 3:15. It is such a marvelous verse, because here is the first Gospel declaration in a nutshell. The Sermon today is centered almost entirely on Gen 3:15, and the title of this sermon is: "The Curse on Satan" (2X). In this section I compare Satan

• To "A Roaring Lion" (Gen 3:4>14, 1 Pet 5:8, Isa 65:25). We read in Gen 3:4,

Genesis 3:4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die (2X):

That is what they say today: "We may believe in God by our own free will. God is a gentleman, and God has made us as a free moral agent. God will not cast us into Hell for our ignorance".

Genesis 3:5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and

ye shall be as gods (2X), knowing good and evil.

Is that not what we all want? We want to be as gods, deciding for ourselves if we want to believe

on Jesus or if we do not want to believe. Don't we have the right to choose between good and evil?

Genesis 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to

the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her (2X): and he did eat.

Genesis 3:7-8 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and

they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the

LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves

from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

Two weeks ago we saw that their eyes were now opened to sin. and they tried to cover up their

religious beliefs with fig leaves, pointing to a religion of man's own free will.

Genesis 3:9-10 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he

said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

Genesis 3:11-12 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree,

whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom

thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

Genesis 3:13-14 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the

woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the

serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of

the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shall thou eat all the days of thy life (2X).

Did God say this to the snake, or did God say this to the Devil who was hiding within that snake?

Undoubtedly God said this to the Devil, because a snake never eats dust. A snake is a carnivore. The

dust refers to people. We have already looked at that last week, where we saw in Isa 65:25 where

God described the conditions after Judgment Day that "Dust shall be the serpents meat". It's referring

to all the unsaved who are going to be under the tyranny of Satan in Hell. It seems strange that the

Devil would "eat" people, but this is an expression that God uses in the Bible to indicate that people

would come in the total possession of Satan. For example, God said in I Pet 5:8,

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about,

seeking whom he may devour (2X).

Does Satan "devour" people? The Greek word translated "devour", means "to swallow", or to eat.

When the Devil swallows a person, that person has come under total control of the Devil. He devours

people with worldliness, and with worldiv care. to destroy them spiritually. Then God says in verse 15,

#1. Enmity Between Thee and the Woman (Gen 3:15, Col 1:12-14. 21-22)

Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her

seed; He shall bruise thy head, and thou shall bruise His heel.

God did not speak this for the sake of the Devil, but for the benefit of man. God promised victory

over Satan. How was God going to do this? It was His action. Please turn in the NT to the Epistle to

the Colossians chapter 1:12 (2X). God declared a state of war between Satan and the woman. But

how can this state of war come about? Adam begat sons and daughters after his image, who are all

like Adam slaves of Satan. They are not rebelling against Satan. So, if God's prophecy of the woman

must come to pass, then not all the descendants of Adam and Eve were going to be slaves of Satan.

Some are going to be identified with "the woman", and who are not slaves, but enemies of Satan.

Colossians 1:12-14 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the

inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath

translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his

blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

We are to give thanks to the Father who has made us to share in the inheritance of the saints,

which is to inherit God Himself. Who have received this honor of coming into His presence, and to

receive such a great inheritance? All those whom the Father has delivered from the power of Satan,

who at one time were slaves of Satan, spiritually in darkness and on the way to Hell, the Father has

snatched out of the clutches of Satan and translated into the Kingdom of His dear Son. And why have

some received this honor and others are left in the power of darkness? It is because some have been

redeemed through the blood of Christ, which means they have been purchased through the suffering

and death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross, and have obtained the forgiveness of their sins. So,

when God looks at their souls, the blood of Christ has covered all their sins, and they are pure and

righteous in the sight of God. Therefore, when they have spiritually been translated into the Kingdom

of the Lord Jesus Christ, they are there to stay. "No one can snatch them out of the Father's hand".

Why have we been chosen to receive such a great honor, instead of burning forever in Hell? Did we

deserve that in any way? No! Not at all! Look down the page to verses 21 and 22,

Col 1:21-22 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet

now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable

and unreproveable in his sight.

You see, at one time we were alienated from God, enemies of God, and we committed wicked

works. We deserved to be treated as enemies of God. Yet now that Christ has paid the penalty for

our sins in our place, Christ presents us holy and unblameable and unreproveable in the sight of God.

• Therefore Who Is This Woman? (Acts 1:14, Gen 2:24, Eph 5:31-32, Rom 9:6-8, Gal 3:29)

Could this woman refer to the Virgin Mary? Absolutely not! In no way can Mary, the mother of

Jesus, match the description of this woman, who is continually at war with Satan, which means from

the time of Adam's sin in the Garden of Eden until the end of time. The last time we hear of Mary is in

Acts 1:14. The woman of Gen 3:15 is not a physical person, but she is the Bride of Christ who is

continually at war with Satan as long as the Body of Believers is on this earth. Let us derive that from

Scripture. Please turn about 10 pages to your left (->) to the Epistle to the Ephesians chapter 5:31

(2X), Perhaps you remember, when God brought the brand new woman to Adam, Adam said in:

Genesis 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife:

and they shall be one flesh.

These self same words were repeated in Eph 5:31, where God said,

Ephesians 5:31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his

wife, and they two shall be one flesh.

This should be a clue that these two passages are related. Adam was "the figure of Him that was

to come". Adam was a figure of Christ, and God brought the woman to Adam as a figure of the Father

giving the Body of Believers to Christ. This is confirmed by the next verse. Look at verse 32,

Ephesians 5:32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.

Here in Eph 5 the woman is the church, the eternal church to be specific, or the Body of Believers.

Then that must also be the picture of the woman in Gen 2 and 3. Adam was not deceived, but the

woman was deceived. That fits: Christ was not deceived, but WE came into the world as deceivers

and being deceived. There is hope for us, if you also keep in mind that the woman became

saved in Gen 3:21. The woman is also identified with Israel, the name for the Elect of God. It is not

widely known that the Bride of Christ is named Israel. Please turn about 65 pages to your left (->) to

the Epistle to the Romans chapter 9:6 (2X). God made a covenant with Abraham in Gen 12 through

Gen 22. Here in Rom 9 God specified precisely who the children of the covenant are. God says in:

Romans 9:6-8 Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel,

which are of Israel: Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but,

In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is: They which are the children of the flesh, these are

not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed

Only a small fraction of the nation of Israel are called the Israel of God. Only a small fraction of

the nation of Israel are truly children of God. Only a small fraction of the nation of Israel are truly

called children of Abraham. Only a small fraction of the nation of Israel are called children of the

promise. What promise is that? It is the promise of the covenant. It is the promise of salvation. God

says Gal 3:29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

That is why Jesus called Zacchaeus in Luke 19 a son of Abraham. That is why Jesus called the

woman whom He healed from a spirit of infirmity, in Luke 13, a daughter of Abraham. The Lord Jesus

did not call many of the Jews around Him children of Abraham. So we see that in the enmity between

Satan and the woman, she represents the body of truly saved individuals, for whom Christ died. God

declared the war in Gen 3:15. God said: "I will put enmity between thee and the woman". But:

• Who Provoked the War? (Heb 1:14, Isa 14:12-15, 44:6>7, 46:9-11)

Please turn to the prophecy of Isaiah chapter 14:12 (2X). We know who provoked the war? Lucifer

provoked the war by tempting the woman. Thereafter his name was changed to Satan. And why did he do it? It was all pride; dirty rotten pride. All angels, including Lucifer, were created to be ministering

spirits to those human beings who shall be heirs of salvation (Heb 1:14). But Lucifer designed the

perfect crime, or so he thought, by having Adam and Eve serve him instead of he serving them. That

is how he came up with the plan of tempting Eve to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and

Evil. God lifted up a tip of the veil in Isa 14, and God gives us a glimpse into the heart of Lucifer:

Isaiah 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, 0 Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down

to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

Isaiah 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above

the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

Isaiah 14:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

Isaiah 14:15 Yet thou shall be brought down to Hell, to the sides of the pit.

Yes, Lucifer provoked the war. Lucifer was no dummy. Lucifer did not deliberately condemn

himself to Hell. But when he saw the opportunity to commit the perfect crime, or so he thought, he

stepped into it. But God set the stage. Please turn to Isaiah chapter 44:6 (2X). God set the stage and

Lucifer stepped into it, and subsequently Eve and then Adam stepped into it. We read in Isa 44:6-7.

Isaiah 44:6 Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts: I am the

first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.

Isaiah 44:7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed

the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them show unto them.

And we also read in Isa 46:9-11,

Isaiah 46:9-10 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; / am God,

and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the

things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:

Isaiah 46:11 Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far

country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.

God declares the end from the beginning. The sin of Adam and Eve did not catch God by surprise

It was included in God's plan before He created the first speck of dust. Ultimately, the sin and misery

that Satan was drawing Adam and Eve into, by bringing them under the wrath of God, were to be

blown away by the promised Seed of the woman. And those who would receive from the Seed of the

woman the promised forgiveness of sins, would obtain a far greater blessedness than Adam and Eve

ever had before they sinned. Therefore by giving God all the credit and the honor, by acknowledging

that God is sovereign, we not only have a better understanding of what the Bible teaches, but we also

are giving God all the glory that He demands from us. We were created to give glory to Him, and

when we create imaginary gospels that give glory to man, we insult God. That is one reason why we

want to talk about Election and Predestination, because this gives all the credit to God and Him alone

#2. Enmity Between Thy Seed and Her Seed (John 8:42-47, Matt 13:38)

God said: "I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed".

That is an amazing statement. Who is the seed of Satan? Are the fallen angels, who are now called

demons, are they perhaps the seed of Satan? No! Nowhere in Scnpture are the fallen angels called

the seed of Satan. But throughout the Bible people are called the seed of Satan. Please turn to the

Gospel according to John chapter 8:42 (2X). In this passage the Jews claimed that Abraham was

their father, but Jesus said to them that if they were Abraham's children they would do the works of

Abraham. This is whom God calls children of Abraham. Then they said that God was their Father.

That is what people say today: "God created us, therefore God is our Father". But Jesus said in V.42,

John 8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth

and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.

John 8:43 Why do ye not understand my speech? Even because ye cannot hear my word.

John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer

from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he

speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

John 8:45 And because I fell you the truth, ye believe me not.

John 8:46-47 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ve not believe me?

He that is of God heareth God*s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

Here Jesus told them plainly: "Ye are of your father the devil". The fact that God created us is no

reason to assume that God is our heavenly Father. Therefore, if we cannot hear the Word of God

when it is preached, or if we cannot hear the Word of God when we read or study our Bible, or if we

cannot see the power of God in our everyday circumstances, then we may be still in the clutches of

Satan. In that case we should worry about our salvation. Let me bring up one other example. Please

turn about 155 pages to your left (->) to the Gospel according to Matthew chapter 13:38 (2X). Here in

Matt 13:24-43 the Lord Jesus told and explained the parable of "the wheat and the tares". Both the

wheat and the tares represent people. Christ is the Sower of the wheat, and the wheat represent the

Elect of God. Satan is the sower of the tares, and the tares represent the Reprobate. Then Jesus

explained the parable, and He said in verse 38,

Matthew 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares

are the children of the wicked one,

Right from birth there are those who belong to the Elect, or they belong to the Reprobate.

Although initially, when they are just young plants, both the Elect and the Reprobate look alike, until

the time that the Elect become Born Again and begin to bear fruit. Then the distinction between the

wheat and the tares is evident. The Reprobate have Satan as their father, because they do his will.

The Elect have God as their Father, because they do His will. But then we read that:

• The Seed of the Woman is One Man (Gal 3:16. John 17:6.9.20)

Please turn about 310 pages to your right (<-) to the Epistle to the Galatians chapter 3:16 (2X).

When God declared war on Satan in Gen 3:15, WHO was going to fight the battle against Satan and

against the seed of Satan? We have already seen who the seed of Satan is: all the Reprobate are the

seed of Satan. But WHO is the Seed of the woman? The last part of Gen 3:15 indicates that the Seed

of the woman refers to One Man. There are several passages in the Bible where this promise of the

Seed of the woman is further developed. But the verse that is most clear is Gal 3:16. There we read:

Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds,

as of many; but as of one, And to thy Seed, which is Christ.

All the spiritual blessings promised to Abraham, Isaac and Israel concerning their Seed were

promises to Christ and to all those who are in Christ. All the physical blessings were promises to the

physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Here in Gal 3:16 God says plainly that these

promises were referring to one person: "And to thy Seed. which is Christ". These promises are

passed on to all those who are in Christ, because "Christ is the Firstborn among many brethren".

Please turn about 135 pages to your left (->) to the Gospel of John. chapter 17:6 (2X). This is the

High Priestly prayer of the Lord Jesus, just before He went into the Garden of Gethsemane to begin

His sufferings for our sins. First Jesus prayed for His Disciples in John 17:6,

John 17:6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine

they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

These were some of the Elect whom the Father had given to Jesus, and Jesus had to pay for their

sins. But then the Lord revealed the exclusiveness of alt those who are His. Jesus said in verse 9.

John 17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they

are thine.

He prayed not for the world. There is no universal atonement. Then in verse 20 the Lord Jesus

also prayed for us. He said in John 17:20, Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall

believe on me through their word;

All those who are going to believe on Christ as their sin bearer are included from verse 20 through

verse 26 in John 17. This refers to all those who are in Christ. Let us now continue in Gen 3:15,

# 3 He Shall Bruise Thy Head (Rev 13:1-3. Rev 20:1-3)

Please turn in your Bibles to Revelation chapter 13:1 (2X). Do you know what happens to a man

who has gangrene in his foot? His foot is dead flesh. If his foot does not get amputated the gangrene

will eventually move up into his upper body, and this man will die. Now turn to the figure of the

serpent. If the serpent is bruised in his head, he will die. Here in Rev 13 God shows us a beast, which

is the same as the dragon God showed in the previous chapter, who obviously is Satan. We read in:

Revelation 13:1-3, And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea,

having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name

of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet

of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat,

and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly

wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

Can you see why all the world wondered after the beast? Can you see the miracle? One of the

heads of the beast was wounded to death. This one head was dying, but it was not amputated.

Instead it came back to life. What does all this mean in God's plan of salvation? It means that the

Lord Jesus Christ at the cross mortally wounded the head of Satan. From that time on Satan was a

defeated foe, and Satan could not do much to stop the spread of the Gospel throughout the world.

But God also promised that toward the time of the End. for a relatively short period of time, Satan

would be given back the power he once had. This is the time of final tribulation period, which is the

period of time spoken of here in Rev 13. That is why the head of Satan was healed from its mortal

wound. God did that, because God is preparing the world for Judgment Day. That is why "all the

world wondered after the beast". Actually not everyone in the world admires the beast. The beast will

never deceive the saints. God showed this picture again in Rev 20:1. Please turn to Rev 20:1 (2X).

We read in this chapter that Satan would be bound for a thousand years. Actually all the pictures in

Revelation are parables, so why would we take these thousand years as a literal thousand years?

Revelation 20:1-3 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit

and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the

Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit,

and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the

thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

Christ was that Messenger (translated "angel") who "came down from heaven, having the key of

the bottomless pit" At the cross Satan was bound, and the Gospel spread throughout the world. The

thousand years spoken of in this passage is a long period of time from the cross until the beginning of

the Final Tribulation Period (FTP). But at the beginning of the FTP the Devil "must be loosed a little

season". It means that the Devil will again be captured and put away for the second time.

#4. Thou (Satan) Shalt Bruise His Heel <06119> (Gen 3:15, 25:26. 49:17. Jer 13:22)

"He shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel" What could that possibly mean? We

know that it must have something to do with the cross, but we know that from hindsight What has the

heel to do with anything? It seems that God was referring to the serpent biting the heel of Christ. Is

that a possibility? That is not possible, because Christ did not bite off the head of Satan. The word

"bruise" is used two times. The same word "bruise" is used in both cases and the same tenses for

"bruise" are used in both cases. What applies to the one must also apply to the other. The only

difference is in the terms "head" and "heel". In the terms "head" and "heel" there is a distinction

between the superior and the inferior. But if the word "bruise" applies to a judgment of Satan, then the

exact same word must apply also to a judgment of Christ. Does the word "heel" bear this out?

God chooses His words very carefully. The word "heel" has Strong's Concordance number

<06119>. This word is a noun and it appears 13 times in the Bible. In all 13 cases the word <06119>

is pointing to Judgment: not some meager judgment by a human judge, but it refers to Judgment by

God. For example, please turn to Gen 25:26 (2X). In Gen 25:24-26 the birth of Esau and Jacob is

described. Esau was the firstborn. But when Jacob was born this is what God recorded in:

Genesis 25:26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel <06119>:

and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

The Hebrew tense indicates that Jacob was, during the entire birth, taking hold of Esau's heel as

an action in its unbroken continuity. Why the heel? Why not his ankle? Did Jacob know what he was

doing? God certainly knew what He was doing, and God chose Esau's heel. What does that mean?

God had said to Rebekah: "The elder shall serve the younger". What does that mean? In Rom 9 God

identified this to mean: "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated". Jacob belonged to the Elect of

God, but Esau was a Reprobate. Esau was never saved, and Esau will be judged on the Last Day.

Please turn now to Gen 49:17 (2X). In Gen 49 God described in parables what should occur in the

last days, which means the time between Pentecost and the End of time. In Gen 49:17 God said:

Genesis 49:17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels

<06119>. so that his rider shall fall backward.

That is not a nice role carved out for Dan. Dan shall be like a serpent in the road of a rider on a

horse to bite the horse heels. A horse is used for war. This is referring to someone engaged in

spiritual warfare. The result is that the rider of the horse shall fall backward. Falling over backwards is

a sign of coming under the Judgment of God. Today we have become quite familiar with the

phenomenon of falling over backwards. It has to do with the Charismatic gospel, which teaches that

God is today still speaking in dreams, or in visions, or in angel visitations, or in tongues. According to

Rev 22:18. people who believe that are still unsaved, and are on the way to Hell. I cannot say this

often enough. This is The false gospel that shall threaten the life of this church.

Time does not permit me to give more examples of these things. But in the case of word number

<06119> all 13 occurrences of this word are associated with the Judgment of God. Therefore the

expression "thou shall bruise His heel" indicates that Satan would be instrumental in bringing Christ

before the Judgment throne of God. This is indeed what happened in AD 33. Satan entered Judas

Iscariot, and through Judas and the high priests as the instruments of Satan the Lord Jesus Christ

was brought to the cross. But:

• Thank God For the Cross

What wicked men have done, working as instruments of Satan, aiming for the defeat of Christ, will

be judged for their wicked intent. But this too was in the plan of God. For all the Elect of God Satan is

a defeated foe. thanks to the cross of Christ. But for all the Reprobate Satan is alive and well, and is

still ruling over them as "the prince of this world". Thank God for the cross of Christ. This was the only

way anyone of us could be saved. Moreover, this was the only way God would receive all the glory for

saving anyone of us. "Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift".

Let me briefly summarize this sermon: God said in Gen 3:15. I will put enmity (I declare war)

between thee <- (one person: Satan) and the woman -> (many persons: Israel), and between thy

seed <r (many persons: the Reprobate) and her Seed -> (one person: Christ): He -> (Christ) shall

bruise thy head <- (Satan, dying you shall die), and thou <- (Satan) shalt bruise His heel ->(bring

Christ to the cross). Today people glibly elevate the cross, but many forget what the cross stands for.

The cross stands for enmity between God and Satan. It was a war declared in the Garden of Eden.

Christ shall fight on the side of God, but man fights on the side of Satan. Therefore all mankind is on

the way to Hell, together with Satan. But because God had mercy on some, Christ came to take their

place on the cross, enduring the wrath of God for all their sins. That is what the cross stands for.

Realizing this. we will sing with the saints of 150 years ago, the words of Hymn # 429,

1. In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o'er the wrecks of time; all the light of sacred story

gathers round its head sublime.

2. When the woes of life o'er-take me, hopes deceive and fears annoy, never shall the cross

forsake me. Lo! It glows with peace and joy.

3. When the sun of bliss is beaming light and love upon my way, from the cross the radiance,

streaming, adds more luster to the day.