From Now On

And Jesus said unto him, ¨ Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Henceforth ye shall see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.¨ Matthew 26:64 (ASV)

Jesus was still on trial.  He had not yet been condemned to death.  However, those who felt threatened by His presence were still looking for a way to be rid of Him.  The most powerful of the religious leaders of that day, the Chief Priest tried to use the highest authority he thought he had at his disposal.  He commanded Jesus under threat of the wrath of God, to say that He was the Christ.

Our Savior did not need to boast of Himself.  He knew the outcome of this trial and He knew He was not to dissuade His accusers.  Instead, He left them with the knowledge that even though they may kill His body; they themselves had said with their own voice that He was the Son of God.  This is a remarkable testimony to our Lord, but what speaks even louder still is His next statement.

¨From now on,¨ Jesus says, ¨You will see me sitting at the right hand of Power.  And You will see me coming on the clouds of Heaven.¨

In this bold statement He leaves the worldly men no other escape.  They are at odds even with the very Son of God, who had to come.  They got all the proof they needed and the decision is final.  Jesus must die and they would make sure of it.

Rather than turning the story to point fingers and judge men like us who have the same nature we possess to twist things and see only the earthly, let us focus on this promised vision.

Jesus is to be seen sitting at the right hand of Power, from that moment on.  The cards have been dealt.  It only remains for the rest of the execution to play out.  Up until this moment Jesus had been under the wings of protection of His Father and all the angels.  Just as you and I are supported, helped and protected today.  God knows what is needed for our ultimate good and keeps His children with their eternal future with Him always in mind.

But in that moment, Jesus had to be handed over to evil men.  He needed to pass under the measuring rod of death.  For a set time, God had to suffer the loss of His own Son because He knows that in doing so, He was able to justify by that incredible sacrifice, the ransom of His people.

As Jesus uttered those words, His sentence was sure.  But just as sure, was His resurrection and future reign.  He had accomplished His part.  The deal was done and now He could be led off, spat on and hit.  They could mutilate His body, hang it on a cross, and then bury Him in a tomb.  But this only meant that His work was finishing and He could start to look forward to where He would soon sit.

Dear Jesus, thank You so very much for the work You did and the price You paid.  We are amazed, humbled and endeared to You when we think of all You suffered for us.  It still remains, in God´s great plan, for us children to play out our part in turning to You.  We have so much still to learn and so much closer we can come.  But we are encouraged by Your words when You say that we will see You there, at the right hand of Power.  And there is nothing more our eyes yearn to see, than You coming on those clouds of Heaven.

Come, dear Jesus, come soon.

Amen