He sits now at the right hand of God the Father, where now He judges the quick and the dead . . .
So what has Jesus been doing for the past couple of thousand years? What is He doing now? In Acts 1: 9-11, it says:
“Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you say Him go into heaven.’ “
Jesus was taken up into heaven to take His rightful place at the right hand of the Father. (Matt. 26:64, Mark 16:19, Acts 7:55-56). Sitting at one’s right hand was a place of great honor in the days of Jesus. If one was invited to dine at an important person’s house and was allowed to sit at his right, it was a sign of great importance to all who attended.
So Jesus has been sitting at the right hand of God, the Father, for over two thousand years for one of the most awesome purposes that I can even imagine. All this time He has been sitting there and making intercession for us. Romans 8:34 says:
“Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.”
Romans 8:27 says “Now He who searches the heart also knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”
Hebrews 7:25 also says “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”
One thing that has always intrigued me about what Jesus has been doing is found in Acts, when Stephen was being stoned for his belief and preaching of Jesus. First of all every reference that I have found of Jesus being at God’s right hand have Him “sitting”. The above references are only a few. You can also look at Eph. 1:20, Col. 3:1, Heb. 1:3, 1:13, 8:1, 10:12 and 12:2 and finally 1 Pet. 3:22.
But in Acts 7: 51-60, Stephen has been making a case for the Lordship of Jesus and calls the people “stiff-necked and uncircumcised of heart and ears” for not believing themselves. The people were “cut to the heart”, but instead of repenting they began to plan in their hearts the death of this man of God.
In that instant, God opened the heavens up and Stephen saw a vision:
“But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus STANDING at the right hand of God, and said ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man STANDING at the right hand of God!”
Well, the people didn’t repent. They rushed upon him and killed him. But the thing that really impresses me is that Jesus, who always knows what’s about to happen and is praying for us; who KNEW that Stephen was about to die for a cause more noble than any death can be for a man. He STOOD UP for Stephen. He HONORED what was happening to Stephen out of His love for Him.
As far as “judging the quick and the dead” . . . I believe that this is a double-edged sword. “The quick and the dead”, in today’s language, would be written “the living and the dead”. One side of this sword would mean that Jesus judges those who die and go through judgement. Hebrews 9:27 says “And it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgement”. At the same time, He judges the “quick/living”. I believe that what this is saying is that He judges the actions of those who are still alive today through the work of the Holy Spirit. When we do something that isn’t right, hopefully we are “convicted” by the Holy Spirit to repent for our wrong and make things right with God and man. This side of the sword judges those who are either physically alive or dead.
The other side of this sword is that Jesus judges those who are spiritually alive or dead. Those who have been born again are no longer “dead”, but “alive” in Christ Jesus. They who have not received their salvation for whatever reason are spiritually dead unto God, and haven’t been translated from “death unto life”. Jesus has pronouced and pronounces the judgement that those who have been made alive in Christ will inherit the kingdom of God, and those who haven’t will inherit the judgment of the devil and his angels – as an act and choice of their own will.
Many would argue for one or the other of these arguments, but I believe in the validity of them both. Jesus loves us, and all He does – night and day – is sit beside the Father and pray for us. When we mess up, Jesus says to the Father, “My blood covers that, and I have taken upon myself the judgement that comes with this action”. He will remain in this place until the fullness of time, when He will come back again to bring us home.
