Colossians 3.1c-Jesus Christ Sits at the Right Hand of the Father
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday April 17, 2016
Colossians: Colossians 3:1c-Jesus Christ Sits at the Right Hand of the Father
Lesson # 68
Colossians 3:1 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. (NASB95)
Colossians 3:1 Therefore, if, and let us assume that it is true for the sake of argument that each and every one of you have been raised up with Christ and we agree that this is true. Then, continue to make it your habit of diligently seeking after the things above, where Christ is, as an eternal spiritual truth existing in a state of being seated at God’s right hand. (My translation)
In Colossians 3:1, with the first class conditional statement, Paul is seeking to persuade the Colossians to continue remaining faithful to the gospel and continue rejecting the teaching of the Judaizers as well as to live the Christian way of life.
He does this by reaffirming something both he and the Colossians were both convinced of, namely that they were identified with Christ in His resurrection.
So based upon the fact that they were identified with Christ in His resurrection, Paul wants the Colossians to continue to making it their habit of diligently seeking after the things above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
What Paul is commanding the Colossians to do is to continue making it their habit of diligently, earnestly, and tenaciously seeking after Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and present session at the right hand of the Father.
This would involve appropriating by faith this identification with Christ.
“The things above” is a reference to the spiritual values and holy standards which characterize God and His people and which standards are met by the believer when they appropriate by faith their identification with Christ.
It is also related to the spiritual blessings associated with the believer’s union and identification with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session.
Thus, Paul is exhorting the Colossians to make every effort to experience their sanctification which would be the result of appropriating by faith their identification with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
This would fulfill a two-fold purpose: (1) To experience the spiritual blessings associated with this union and identification resulting in the glorification of the Father and spiritual growth. (2) To experience and manifest God’s holy standards and values in the Christian’s life.
So he is teaching the Colossians that they must live their lives on earth consistent with whom God made each of them to be.
In other words, they must live their lives on earth in a manner which is consistent with their union and identification with Christ.
Now, Paul’s reference to Christ being seated at the right hand of the Father in Colossians 3:1 is a reference to the session of Jesus Christ.
In the Old Testament the expression “to sit at the right hand” of someone suggests a sharing of royal authority and power.
Psalm 110:1 The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” (NASB95)
In this passage, the Messiah, i.e. Christ is invited to sit at the Father’s right hand.
Therefore, it was a place of honor.
The writers of the New Testament taught that the Father rewarded Jesus Christ in His impeccable human nature to sit at His right hand as a result of His obedience to His will in going to the cross to provide salvation for sinners through His spiritual and physical deaths.
This is called in theology, Christ’s “session.”
The “session” of Christ pertains to the glorification of our Lord’s humanity at the right hand of God the Father.
God the Father rewarded the resurrected impeccable human nature of Jesus Christ for His voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross by bestowing upon Him the sovereign rulership over all creation and every creature.
So God the Father promoted the incarnate Son of God to the highest ranking position of power and authority in the cosmos.
Jesus of Nazareth has been promoted by God the Father to sovereign ruler of all creation in His human nature, as a result of receiving the title of kurios, “Lord” as victor in the angelic conflict over Satan and the kingdom of darkness (Philippians 2:5-11).
There are many passages which refer to the session of Christ at the right hand of the Father (Daniel 7:13-14; Matthew 22:41-46; 26:64; 28:18; Mark 12:36; 14;62; Luke 20:42; 22:69; Acts 2:25, 33-34; 5:31; 7:55-56; Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:27; Ephesians 1:15-23; 2:6; Colossians 3:1-4; 1 Timothy 6:15; Hebrews 1:1-3; 2:8; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; 1 Peter 3:22; Revelation 3:21; 4:2; 17:14; 19:16).
The resurrection, ascension, triumphal procession and session points to the fact that Jesus Christ has been promoted by God the Father as sovereign ruler over the following: (1) Creation (Matt. 28:18; Eph. 1:22; Col. 1:15-17; 2:10; 1 Pet. 3:22). (2) Angels (Col. 1:15-17; Heb. 1:2). (3) Church (1 Tim. 6:15; Rev. 17:14; 19:16). (4) Israel (Matt. 1:1; 20:30; Mark 10:47-48; Luke 1:32; 2 Tim. 2:8; Rev. 3:7; 5:5; 22:16).
The session of Christ points to: (1) His deity (Matt. 26:64) (2) His kingship (Rev. 4:2) (3) His fulfillment of Messianic prophecies (Psa. 110:1; cf. Matt. 22:44) (4) His ascension into heaven (Acts 2:34) (5) His eternal rewards (Rev. 3:21) (6) The power made available to every Church Age believer (Eph. 1:20) (7) Our position in Christ (Eph. 2:6) (8) His intercessory ministry (Rom. 8:34) (9) His power to save and forgive sin (Acts 5:31) (10) His hypostatic union (Heb. 1:3) (11) His royal priesthood (Heb. 8:1) (12) The efficacy of His work on the Cross (Heb. 10:12) (13) Occupation with Christ (Heb. 12:2) (14) His trip to Hades (Eph. 4:9). (15) His victory over Satan in the angelic conflict (Heb. 1:13; 2:8).
Jesus Christ presently sits at the right hand of the Father as the believer’s advocate with the Father and Great High Priest.
Therefore, the session of Christ is directly related to His Great High Priesthood.
This intercessory ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ as the defense attorney for church age believers at the right hand of the Father is directly related to the Lord Jesus Christ’s present session and Great High Priesthood (Psalm 110; Heb. 2:17; 8:1).
His responsibility as our Great High Priest is two-fold: (1) Intercessory prayer for the believer (2) Defend the believer against the attacks of Satan.
1 John 2:1 My little children, I am providing information in writing at this particular time concerning these things for the benefit of all of you in order that all of you might not enter into committing an act of sin. Now, if anyone does enter into committing an act of sin, then we possess as an Advocate with the Father, Jesus who is the righteous Christ. (Author’s translation)
“Advocate” is the noun parakletos, which refers to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is the defense attorney for all believers by interceding for them when Satan accuses them before the Supreme Court of heaven when they sin.
In this passage, the word describes the Lord Jesus Christ as the believer’s advocate and defense attorney to defend and intercede for the believer before the Father when Satan accuses the believer.
Luke 22:31-32 records our Lord stating that He had interceded on behalf of the apostle Peter when Satan asked for permission to sift Peter like wheat.
A comparison of Scripture with Scripture further substantiates this interpretation.
Revelation 12:10, Job 1 and Zechariah 3:1-2 teach that Satan accuses believer day and night before the Supreme Court of Heaven.
The Greek New Testament terms Satanas, “Satan” and diabolos, “devil” are legal terms since the former means “adversary,” while the latter means “slanderer, false accuser.”
Therefore, the believer needs an advocate or defense attorney to defend him against the charges of Satan.
The session of Christ is also related to the believer’s position in Christ.
The believer can experience deliverance from and victory over indwelling sin, Satan and his cosmic system by appropriating by faith the teaching of the Word of God that they have been crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ (Romans 6:11-23; 8:1-17; Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 2:1-10; Colossians 3:5-17).
They will permanently experience this identification with Christ at the rapture of the church (Romans 8:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; Ephesians 4:30; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57).
So the believer is identified with Christ as He is currently seated in heaven.
The believer is now positionally higher than angels (Heb. 1 and 2).