Till I Make Thine Enemies Thy Footstool (Luke 20:43)

"Till I make thine enemies thy footstool." — Luke 20:43 (KJV)

At first glance, that sounds harsh. Enemies placed under the feet of Jesus like something to rest His feet on. It sounds like the end of the story for anyone who ever opposed Him.

But look closer at Luke 20, and you will find there is a second way to end up under those feet.

The Stone in the Same Chapter

Earlier in the same chapter, Jesus talks about a stone:

"What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner? Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder." — Luke 20:17–18 (KJV)

Jesus Himself is that stone. The builders rejected Him, but God made Him the head of the corner. And everyone has an encounter with that stone. The only difference is how that encounter happens.

Same Stone, Two Outcomes

There are only two options:

You Fall on the StoneAnd you are broken.
The Stone Falls on YouAnd you are ground to powder.

Same stone. Two totally different outcomes.

Being broken hurts. But a broken man can be healed. Being ground to powder is final. There is nothing left to put back together.

Paul Fell on the Stone

Think about Paul. Before he was the apostle Paul, he was Saul of Tarsus, and he hated Christians. He hunted them down. He was an enemy of Jesus in every sense.

"And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest." — Acts 9:1 (KJV)

Then came the Damascus road. A light from heaven shone around him, and:

"And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" — Acts 9:4 (KJV)

Paul literally hit the ground. He fell on the stone. And he got broken, not crushed.

Paul later described himself this way:

"Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy." — 1 Timothy 1:13 (KJV)

The same man who was an enemy of Christ became one of His greatest servants.

Broken Enemies Become Worshippers

Here is the difference:

Broken EnemiesBecome worshippers.
Crushed EnemiesStay enemies forever.

This is the good news of the gospel. Every one of us started out on the wrong side.

"For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life." — Romans 5:10 (KJV)

God does not despise the man who comes to Him broken:

"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." — Psalm 51:17 (KJV)

Every enemy of Christ will end up under His feet. Some will be there as worshippers who fell before Him and were broken. Others will be there because the stone fell on them.