You disarmed principalities and powers and made a public spectacle of them. (Col. 2:15)
UsingEnglish.com translates the idiom “I’ve got your number” as follows: “You have made a mistake and I am going to call you on it. You are in trouble (a threat).” While the cross looked like the greatest moment of defeat for Jesus of Nazareth, it was in reality his greatest moment of triumph. It was his way of saying to every demonic power, every satanic presence, every evil entity . . . “I’ve got your number!”
Paul tells us that he disarmed powers and principalities. Now if you have an alarm system in your house, you understand what it means to disarm something. When an intruder enters the house, if the system is armed, a signal is sent and a power is summoned that is greater than the power of the intruder. But when you come home, the first thing you do is disarm the system by entering the code. If anyone were to gain access to the code to your alarm, they’d have your number!
Jesus knew Satan’s number, and he used it to disarm him. The cross is the power that silences Satan, shuts him down and shuts him up. Satan made a grievous and eternal error when he rebelled against the Ancient of Days, and by his cross and resurrection, Jesus called him on it!
The cross is also Satan’s greatest threat. For while the cross sealed Satan’s eternal destiny, it did not spell the immediate cessation of his work. Satan is still in the business of destroying people. Scripture warns us that he prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. That is his purpose, his Raison d’être. The cross is the ultimate threat to Satan’s destructive campaign, for by the cross we may overcome him and live in true and abiding victory.
Jesus had Satan’s number, and he has given that number to us. Let me break it down for you and make it easy to remember. Whenever you get attacked by the devil, just remember these numbers: 2,000, 33, 6, 3. What does this mean? 2,000 years ago, when Jesus was 33 years old, he hung on a cross for 6 hours before breathing his last and being laid in a tomb. But on the 3rd day he arose again from the dead and now sits at the right hand of God the Father.
Attacked by Satan? Please! Satan, we’ve got your number! The blood of Jesus is against you! We are more than conquerors!
