R.C. Sproul

So I don't want to minimize in any way the fact that the New Testament does have a very strong victory motif wherein Christ conquers the demonic forces, the forces of Satan that threaten us.

And we see that antithesis and that titanic struggle that goes on from the very beginning moments of Jesus' ministry where the Spirit leads him into the wilderness to be tempted of Satan.

And even when he withstands that temptation, we read almost as a postscript at the end that Satan departed from him for a season.

that he went into retreat, but that retreat of Satan was not a permanent retreat.

It was what we would call strategic withdrawal so that he could find a better place to launch another assault against Christ.

But the conflict goes through the ministry of Jesus.

And the Bible says that in his death, Christ conquers Satan.

So what I'm saying is this, that yes, there is clearly that element of the struggle between Christ and principalities and powers of satanic style.

But that does not mean that the ransom of which Christ speaks is paid to Satan.

Think of it for a moment.

If Christ paid a ransom to Satan to deliver you from Satan's clutches, who would the victor be?

Yes, what every kidnapper wants is not permanent possession of the child.

He wants what the child can get from him through extortion and through the exploitation of establishing a premium ransom.

And if he can get the distraught parents to pay the ransom, he wins.

If the ransom is paid to Satan, Satan laughs all the way to the bank.

And there is no Christus victor.

It must be Satanus victor.

But when the Bible speaks of ransom, the ransom is paid here not to a criminal, but to the one who is owed the price for redemption, the one who is the offended party, the injured party in the whole process of sin.

And who is that?

It's the Father.