William Shirer authored a book entitled The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. As a reporter, he attended the Nuremberg rally in 1934, soon after Hitler came to power. He wrote about the spectacular sights and sounds. The rally was an impressive display of Hitler’s control of the country and of Nazi military might. Hitler towered over the large group of soldiers in the stadium, holding the audience spellbound. The rally showed that Germany was a robust country and that the US should not underestimate Hitler. Anybody who has seen a video of these rallies can understand why Shirer felt the way he did.  

The power exhibited at Nuremberg would soon wreak havoc on the entire world. Hitler used his army to plunge the world into the costliest war in history. Millions of people died as a result.  

Eleven years later, in 1945, Shirer reported on the Nuremberg Trials. The Nazis had been defeated. Hitler and most of the leadership at the 1934 Nuremberg rally were dead. Those who remained were charged with the crimes they had committed. They would all be hanged or die by suicide. 

Shirer had a front-row seat to two very different events. In 1934, he saw the power of evil. He seemed to understand the destruction it would inflict on the world. In the same city, eleven years later, he saw that power brought low and defeated.  

In a way, every believer is like William Shirer. Currently, we see the power of evil. We have a front row seat. It is all around us. It seems unstoppable. Wars take the lives of millions. Innocent people are slaughtered. Injustice is everywhere, and it seems there is nothing that can be done. Gross immorality appears to rule the day. Even children are victims of sexual exploitation. It is as if we’re spectators at a Nuremberg rally of evil. 

The Nazis were the enemy of mankind. As Christians, we understand that the evil we see around us is caused by the enemies of Christ. 

But just as Shirer saw the defeat of the Nazis, we will see the defeat of Christ’s enemies. They look all-powerful now, but their Nuremberg Trial is coming. 

The author of Hebrews wrote to a group of believers who saw the power of Christ’s enemies. These enemies were persecuting them. Those in power had thrown them in prison and taken their property. These believers worried about losing even their lives. The enemies of the Lord were their enemies. 

But the author tells his readers that these enemies will be brought low. He quotes from the OT and says that one day these enemies will be placed under the feet of Christ (Ps 110:1; Heb 1:13). The videos of the defendants at the Nuremberg Trials are illustrations of what the author of Hebrews writes. 

I wonder what Shirer thought during his two visits to Nuremberg in 1934 and 1945. When he saw men like Hess and Goering in all their glory in 1934, then saw them in prison garb in 1945, could he believe his eyes? He was a reporter tasked with describing the changes he observed. 

What will it be like for us? When Christ returns and puts an end to evil, how will we feel? How will we describe what we see? 

I am sure Shirer was filled with joy in 1945. We will be as well. As eyewitnesses to these things, we will each be able to write a book in eternity: The Rise and Fall of the Enemies of the King