The Divine Seat of Jesus

In the much-maligned movie Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace, there is a scene where the handmaiden for the Queen of the planet of Naboo suddenly reveals herself as the real Queen. Turns out, the person you thought was the “Queen” was actually a handmaiden wearing the royal garb in order to protect her Sovereign in case of an assassination attempt. But when the woman you thought was just a “handmaiden” starts ordering the army leaders around and they obey, you know who actually belongs in the seat of the Queen.

Likewise, Christians believe Jesus revealed Himself to not just be a carpenter, miracle worker, or gifted preacher, but actually God Himself. But what evidence is there that He actually occupies the “seat” of the Divine King?

Enter the Throne Room

As we conclude our email/blog series The Divine HANDS of Jesus, we come to the S, which stands for “Seat.” Because God is Spirit (John 4:24), He does not sit in a literal, physical seat. Rather, His seat (throne) refers to His authority as the Sovereign over all things. And we see Jesus do certain things, say certain things, and be described in certain ways that show He does indeed sit in the throne of God.

Seated at the Right Hand

While Jesus-followers are said to one day be “seated in the heavenly places,” (Ephesians 2:6) Jesus is said to sit “at the right hand of the Father” (Ephesians 1:20, Colossians 3:1, Hebrews 8:1).

To be “seated at the right hand” of a king was a place of highest honor, for that seat carried equal authority to the king, which is why it was usually reserved for the queen or prince who would assume authority if the king was gone or incapacitated. Not only is Jesus described as sitting on such a throne, He even claimed that seat as His own (Mark 14:62)!

Equal with God

While Jesus honored God the Father (John 5:30), He not only claimed equality with the Father (John 10:30), but even the Pharisee leaders recognized Jesus’ bold claim (John 10:31-33), which is why they tried to stone Him and eventually crucified Him for such “blasphemy.”

Exalted Above All

Just as a king’s seat is metaphorically “above all things” within the kingdom, Jesus is described as being “above all things” (John 3:31, Philippians 2:9-10, Hebrews 1:3-4) just as God is described as being above all things (1 Chronicles 16:25-27, Psalm 97:9, 113:4). He even claimed to have all authority (Matthew 28:18)!

The HAND

As we conclude this post and the entire series, I want you to realize that the divine Honors, Attributes, Names, and Deeds Jesus received, carries, and performed are His because He sits in the seat which belongs only to God.

So may the HANDS of Jesus give you confidence that He is God!