And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us ... that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us ... that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days." (Luke 1:67-69a, 71,74-75)

Did you know you have enemies? Oh, I'm not talking about ordinary human enemies, though those certainly exist. I'm talking about supernatural enemies—the devil and his angels. I'm talking about any creature that sets itself against God. Those are your enemies whether you like it or not, because you trust in Jesus and belong to Him—and therefore you will be a target for their hatred.

Zechariah talks about this hatred openly. He says that God is sending Jesus "that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us ... to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear."

Clearly, we ordinary human beings aren't up to dealing with ordinary angels, let alone Satan. Nor can we deal with death, "the last enemy to be destroyed" (1 Corinthians 15:26a). The good news is that we don't have to. Jesus Himself has come into this world to deal with those enemies and to save us forever. Because we are in His hands, we don't have to be afraid. We can relax and "serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days."

THE PRAYER: Lord, save me from my enemies and help me to trust in You. Amen.

Reflection Questions:

* Did you have enemies as a child?

* How do you stay safe from enemies?

* How has Jesus dealt with the things that threaten you?

Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Today's Bible Readings: Psalms 81-83    Revelation 8

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