Dr MJ du Plessis Reformed Church Bellville Date: 31 October 2004 (evening)

Before the service: Sing Psalm 110:1, 2

Our help is in the Name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.
Beloved, grace and peace be to you from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, through the mighty working of God the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Psalm of praise 89:1, 10

Prayer

Psalm 73:9, 10

Scripture reading: Psalm 110 en Revelation 11:15-19.
Scripture text: Revelations 11:15; Catechism Lord’s Day 19

Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever. (Revelation 11:15 ESV)

The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool.” The Lord sends forth from Zion your mighty sceptre. Rule in the midst of your foes! (Psalm 110:1, 2 ESV)

There is only one Head of the Church – Jesus Christ the Lord. All those of us who believe, expect Him to return, and we believe that when He comes He will take us to Him.

Let’s look at two issues that affect the church:

1. Jesus, King of the church
2. The benefit of Jesus’ kingship

1. Jesus, King of the church

David foresaw prophetically the expected Priest King of Israel ruling in Zion.

He especially saw how the Messiah is taken up with God in his sovereignty and glory.
He saw how the Messiah is seated at the right hand of God and partakes in ruling the world.
And he also saw how, when the Messiah accesses the throne, world history takes a final turn. He rules over all his enemies.

In the meantime Psalm 110 has been fulfilled.

Jesus Christ was born and during his life on earth He taught the people that He was the promised Messiah is.
He also said that He and the Father are one and that He was going to destroy all his enemies.

The Lord not only foretells and promises – He also acts.

Therefore, after He conquered death, He leaves this world and goes to the throne of God the Father. The disciples witnessed it. Mark describes it as follows (Mark 16:19 ESV):

So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.

Luke also describes this event and then refers to what David said in Psalm 110. It is therefore quite clear that Psalm 110 foretells the ascension of the Lord Jesus:

After Psalm 110 was written, we find five passages referring to these words in Psalm 110. They all clearly say that it refers to the Lord Jesus Christ:
Matthew 22:44:

‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I put thy enemies under thy feet’? (Matthew 22:44 ESV)

Mark 12:36:

David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, declared, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I put thy enemies under thy feet.’ (Mark 12:36 ESV)

Luke 20:41-44:

But he said to them, “How can the say that the Christ is David’s son? For David himself says in the Book of Psalms, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I make thy enemies a stool for thy feet.’ David thus calls him Lord; so how is he his son?” (Luke 20:41-44 ESV)

Acts 2:34:

For David did not ascend into the heavens; but he himself says, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I make thy enemies a stool for thy feet.’ (Acts 2:34 ESV)

Hebrews 1:13:

But to what angel has he ever said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I make thy enemies a stool for thy feet’? (Hebrews 1:13 ESV)

Apart from the references by the evangelists there are more passages in the Bible referring to the kingship of Jesus in the hereafter. An example of this is what happened to Stephen – the first martyr in the history of the church.

When he was dying, by the grace of God, he could see what was happening in heaven.
It says that he could see the glory of God and also Jesus Christ on the right hand of God.
Paul saw exactly the same on his way to Damascus when he was snatched into heaven.
John, on the island Patmos, also saw Jesus as the King of heaven and earth.

Jesus ascended to heaven to reveal his godly power and in order that the church would know that He would and could protect/keep them with this almighty power. Their salvation is based on this solid foundation – the ascension of Jesus Christ.

Now you could perhaps say that specifically describing and confessing these were (or are) unnecessary, because we all know very well that Jesus is God. No, it’s not so simple.

We need to know about the prophecy as well as its fulfilment, because without proof of the Lord’s ascension and without testimony that He is at the right hand of God, our faith could perhaps weaken.
Then people, who already oppose the belief that the Lord Jesus is God, could easily expound heresies.

It is therefore clear to us that the Lord reveals his counsel to us by describing all these in order to strengthen our faith and to ensure us that Jesus Christ protects us and rules over us.

2. The benefit of Jesus’ kingship

The ascension of Jesus and the fact that He took his place at the right hand of God the Father attest to Jesus’ glorification. Therefore we should carefully look at the meaning of right hand in the Scriptures. There are several things associated with right hand.

Showing respect. Since the early biblical times the highest respect a dignitary could show another person was to let him sit at his right hand.

We find an example of this in 1 Kings 2:19 where Bathsheba went to speak to King Solomon on behalf of Adonijah. The king ordered that a throne be brought for his mother and she sat at his right hand. This was not the normal procedure when a person went to speak to the king, and that is why this event is described as an exception.
We find another example of this link between right hand and respect in the New Testament where Salome asked Jesus to let her two sons sit next to him in the hereafter – one at his right and the other at his left.

The right hand is of course also a sign of love.

In Matthew 25:33 the Lord Jesus says that on Judgment Day He will gather the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. The sheep at his right are the chosen who will enter eternal life, while the goats are those who will go to hell.

The right hand also depicts care and maintenance.

Psalm 16:11 tells in a touching way that we receive fullness of joy and pleasures from the Lord and that we receive these from his right hand!

In the Scriptures the right hand also symbolises power, because most people are right-handed – the right hand therefore stronger than the left hand.

This is why the right hand in the Bible also resembles God’s power.
This is comforting for the faithful because they know that this strong hand protects them. On the other hand it is threatening to unbelievers, because the same right hand will cast them into hell.

Therefore Jesus Christ has all this power. On the day of his trial He told the high council that the time was soon coming when He would be sitting at God’s right hand in the place of power, and that they would see Him coming back on the clouds of heaven (Mark 14:62; Luke 22:69; Acts 7:56).

Please note that this matter is not described in exactly the same way in the various Bible passages.

In other passages it says that He sits at the right hand of God.
Sometimes it says that Christ is at the right hand of God, e.g. Romans 8:34.
And elsewhere, e.g. Acts 7:56, that Jesus stands at the right hand of God.

In every instance it has a different meaning.

When Jesus sits at the right hand of God, it means that He is Jesus the Judge.

Every time his judicial power is depicted like this, because when a king sits on his throne he sits in judgement upon a case. In the following two verses we learn about the prophecies in the Old Testament describing Jesus as the Judge who will pass judgement on Judgement Day. Consider Proverbs 20:8 that says:

A king who sits on the throne of judgment winnows all evil with his eyes. (Proverbs 20:8 ESV)

or Isaiah 16:5:

Then a throne will be established in steadfast love and on it will sit in faithfulness in the tent of David one who judges and seeks justice and is swift to do righteousness. (Isaiah 16:5 ESV)

Now look at the meaning of Jesus who sat down at the right hand of God. It made Him equal to God, because He shares the honour and authority of the Father.

The meaning of Jesus being at the right hand of God the Father Almighty is that He, as one Person of the Holy Trinity, rules over the church and the world. In Greek the word Almighty means the natural power or authority or competency to do work and complete it.

We find examples of this in the following passages:

Who is to condemn? Is it Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us? (Romans 8:34 ESV)

(Jesus Christ) . . . who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him. (1 Peter 3:22 ESV)

The fact that Jesus stands at the right hand of God signifies his glorification and his power to rule. He is at the head of all government. He is standing so that He can reign over all evil. His enemies are a stool for his feet. He is indeed so powerful that He can protect his church against the devil’s worst trials and attacks.

We find an example of this in the description of Stephen’s death:

Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth against him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:54-56 ESV)

We can therefore be at peace, because:

We have a Divine King who keeps us and plans our lives.
This Priest King will again appear on the clouds of heaven in the same way He ascended from this earth to heaven.
When He comes again He will separate the righteous from the unrighteous and we shall go to Him.
Then He will let us enter the new heaven and new earth while He will remove evil forever.

This is the greatest comfort one can offer anybody.

You all know the spirit of the world, and the morale of the people living in this world. Everything is distorted and sick.
But the day will come bringing all this to an end. The curse of the fall will be abrogated/repealed/cancelled when the glorified Christ appears on the clouds of heaven.
Therefore we should never stop believing that Jesus ascended to heaven and that He sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.

This part of our creed is the power of or faith for the future. The power of God Himself, because it reveals his grace to us. It also reveals his love to us until the time when He will gather us – his flock – at his right hand forever.

Let’s read together Catechism Lord’s Day 19.

50. Q. Why is it added, And sits at the right hand of God?
A. Christ ascended into heaven to manifest Himself there as Head of His Church,[1] through whom the Father governs all things.[2]

[1] Eph. 1:20-23; Col. 1:18. [2] Matt. 28:18; John 5:22, 23.

51. Q. How does the glory of Christ, our Head, benefit us?
A. First, by His Holy Spirit He pours out heavenly gifts upon us, His members.[1] Second, by His power He defends and preserves us against all enemies.[2]

[1] Acts 2:33; Eph. 4:7-12. [2] Ps. 2:9; 110:1, 2; John 10:27-30; Rev. 19:11-16.

52. Q. What comfort is it to you that Christ will come to judge the living and the dead?
A. In all my sorrow and persecution I lift up my head and eagerly await as judge from heaven the very same person who before has submitted Himself to the judgment of God for my sake, and has removed all the curse from me.[1] He will cast all His and my enemies into everlasting condemnation, but He will take me and all His chosen ones to Himself into heavenly joy and glory.[2]

[1] Luke 21:28; Rom. 8:22-25; Phil. 3:20,21; Tit. 2:13, 14. [2] Matt. 25:31-46; I Thess. 4:16, 17;
II Thess. 1:6-10.

Amen.

Closing prayer

Scripture hymn 12-2:2, 3 (27:2, 3)

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Amen.

Dr MJ du Plessis
Reformed Church Bellville
Date: 31 October 2004 (evening)