Jesus is the Father’s servant-son who has come in the power of the Spirit to reclaim us for the kingdom of God.  In him the power of God’s reign assaults the whole realm of evil in order to set us free for God.  And yet he comes among us as the Lord who serves in meekness and lowliness.  As the lowly servant, he invades the realm of darkness and overcomes by humbly submitting to the violence of the violent.  He storms his way in meekness into the very centre of evil in order to liberate us from the powers of darkness.

The climax of Jesus’ triumph over the dark powers that rule over us is the cross.  There the holy servant-son becomes sin to do away with sin.  He surrenders to the powers and authorities in order to disarm them, making a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. By his death, he broke the power of him who holds the power of death–that is, the devil.  And so death itself could not stand against him, for the servant-son dies to bring about the death of death.

That is the great triumph of the one who is now risen as Lord over all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.  And in his name, we now give joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.  For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.