Sometimes when we see great evil in the world we feel that we must “fight fire with fire” and use the same tactics as the enemy; we start to believe that if we are “powerful” enough, we can take down Satan. However, if we approach our own daily battles through this lens we will be overpowered and the Evil One will use our quest for power to his advantage.
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Satan loves power and so he is going to use our desire for power against us. But there is one thing he hates and it alone can overturn his power: it is humble weakness. That may sound strange, but it is entirely biblical and entirely true.
Calvary
The most supreme example of apparent weakness that overcame evil was the crucifixion of Christ upon the cross. There we have the King of Kings stripped naked on the wood of the cross in supreme agony. His hands and feet are nailed down, leaving Him entirely vulnerable. His captors can do anything they want to Him and He can do nothing to protect Himself.
Yet, this act of “weakness” was in fact a deed of extraordinary love and self-sacrifice. The power of love that it contained broke the bonds of death and opened up the gates of Heaven. Christ’s example of shedding His blood would provide the supreme example for us of what the Christian life is all about. Numerous men and women throughout all of history would be inspired to follow in His footsteps and as a result, evil empires were destroyed and corrupt political systems were demolished. Weakness would go on to save the day for the rest of history.
Even at the end of time, the “last battle between good and evil is a battle between two mythical beasts: Arnion, the meek little Lamb, and Therion, the terrible dragon beast. And the Lamb overcomes the Beast by a secret weapon: His own blood” (Peter Kreeft, The Philosophy of Tolkien, 184-185).
The “weakness” of Calvary is in fact strength. The Evil One, on the other hand, is truly weak even though many people seek him to give them power in this world.
Evil’s Weakness
Peter Kreeft puts this truth most eloquently, “The weakness of evil is that it cannot conquer weakness. No matter how much power evil has, it is always defeated by the free, loving renunciation of power. It can be defeated in Middle-earth as it was on Calvary: by martyrdom” (emphasis added Kreeft, 184).
Satan despises weakness as he thrives on the quest for earthly power. The more we strive to be “strong” and “influential” in the world, the more Satan works on us and gains inroads. Just think of Mother Teresa. She worked with the poorest of the poor and in the eyes of the world was this short, weak, and frail elderly woman. According to the world, she was weak. However, in truth she was one of the strongest women to have ever lived and was a thorn in the side of Satan. He could never conquer her and the good work she did.
The Illusion of Power
We must be extra vigilant in this modern age when it comes to power. The quest to be powerful has taken on new forms, most especially in the realm of technology. We think we can control everything at the touch of a button. Satan thrives at this constant need for power and only adds fuel to it. The more we think we are powerful by using technology, the less powerful we become.
As Peter Kreeft puts it,
We tremble before a nationwide electrical blackout or a global computer virus. Only hillbillies and Boy Scouts would survive a nuclear war. In our drive for power we have deceived ourselves into thinking that we have become more powerful when all the time we have been becoming less. We are miserable little Nietzsches dreaming we are supermen. For in gaining the world we have lost our selves. (Kreeft, 188).
Or as J.R.R. Tolkien puts it,
You can’t fight the Enemy with his own Ring without turning into an Enemy; but unfortunately Gandalf’s wisdom seems long ago to have passed with him into the True West (Letters, no 81, p. 84.).
Let us not seek earthly power, but heavenly power. The only pathway to Heaven is the one where we humble ourselves and become weak. For in our “weakness” we are strong.