Session of Christ
Encyclopedia
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
is seated at the right hand
Right Hand of God
The Right Hand of God or God's Right Hand may refer to the Hand of God often referred to in the Bible and common speech as a metaphor for the omnipotence of God and as a motif in art...
of God the Father
God the Father
God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...
in Heaven
Heaven (Christianity)
Traditionally, Christianity has taught Heaven as a place of eternal life and the dwelling place of Angels and the Throne of God, and a kingdom to which all the elect will be admitted...
—the word "session" is an archaic noun meaning "sitting." Although the word formerly meant "the act of sitting down," it no longer has that meaning in ordinary English usage today. The New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
also depicts Jesus as standing and walking in Heaven, but the Session of Christ has special theological significance because of its connection to the role of Christ as King
Christ the King
Christ the King is a title of Jesus based on several passages of Scripture. It is used by most Christians. The Roman Catholic Church, together with many Protestant denominations, including the Anglican Churches, Presbyterians, Lutherans and Methodists, celebrate the Feast of Christ the King on the...
. The Session of Christ is one of the doctrines specifically mentioned in the Apostles' Creed
Apostles' Creed
The Apostles' Creed , sometimes titled Symbol of the Apostles, is an early statement of Christian belief, a creed or "symbol"...
, where "sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty" immediately follows the statement of the Ascension.
Biblical references
According to the Book of Acts, , after Jesus' resurrectionResurrection of Jesus
The Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus states that Jesus returned to bodily life on the third day following his death by crucifixion. It is a key element of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: "On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures"...
and ascension, he was "exalted to the right hand of God
Right Hand of God
The Right Hand of God or God's Right Hand may refer to the Hand of God often referred to in the Bible and common speech as a metaphor for the omnipotence of God and as a motif in art...
." Preaching on the Day of Pentecost, Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
saw Jesus' exaltation as a fulfilment of Psalm 110
Psalm 110
Psalm 110 is the 110th psalm of the Book of Psalms.-Melchisedek:Psalm 110:4 in the Authorized King James Version reads Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek, which has become traditional in English translations, but the Hebrew contains ambiguities...
:1, The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." In the Bible, the "right hand" is the special place of honour.
The idea of Christ's heavenly session appears a second time in the account of Peter's preaching in the Book of Acts. In , Peter says that God exalted Jesus, "to his own right hand" (NIV
New International Version
The New International Version is an English translation of the Christian Bible. Published by Zondervan in the United States and by Hodder & Stoughton in the UK, it has become one of the most popular modern translations in history.-History:...
), though Louis Berkhof
Louis Berkhof
Louis Berkhof was a Reformed systematic theologian whose written works have been influential in seminaries and Bible colleges in the United States and Canada and with individual Christians in general throughout the 20th century.-Personal life:...
notes that the dative may have to be taken in the instrumental
Instrumental case
The instrumental case is a grammatical case used to indicate that a noun is the instrument or means by or with which the subject achieves or accomplishes an action...
sense ("by his own right hand") rather than a local sense ("at his own right hand").
The heavenly session was important to other writers of the New Testament. In the Epistle to the Hebrews
Epistle to the Hebrews
The Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the books in the New Testament. Its author is not known.The primary purpose of the Letter to the Hebrews is to exhort Christians to persevere in the face of persecution. The central thought of the entire Epistle is the doctrine of the Person of Christ and his...
, , it says that Jesus "sat down at the right hand of God," after he had "offered for all time one sacrifice for sins." As in Acts 2, the language of Psalm 110 is used, the next verse saying that Jesus is waiting "for his enemies to be made his footstool." Other New Testament passages that speak of Christ as being at God's right hand are (God seated Christ "at his right hand in the heavenly realms") and (Jesus has "gone into heaven and is at God's right hand").
Posture
The word "session" is an archaic noun meaning sitting.. Wayne GrudemWayne Grudem
Wayne A. Grudem is a Protestant theologian and author. He was born in 1948 in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin and married Margaret White on June 6, 1969 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin...
notes that the word formerly meant "the act of sitting down," but that it no longer has that meaning in ordinary English usage today. This language is used in and . In , however, Stephen
Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen The Protomartyr , the protomartyr of Christianity, is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox Churches....
sees Jesus standing at the right hand of God. This may represent Jesus "rising momentarily from the throne of glory to greet his proto-martyr," standing as a witness to vindicate Stephen's testimony, or preparing to return.
In the Book of Revelation
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
, , on the other hand, Jesus is referred to as walking among the seven golden lampstands
John's vision of the Son of Man
John's vision of the Son of Man is described in the scriptural Revelation . John sees a vision of the risen, ascended and glorified Jesus Christ, whom he describes as one "like the Son of Man" . Jesus is portrayed in this vision as having a robe with a golden sash, white hair, eyes like blazing...
. Robert Mounce suggests that since these lampstands represent seven churches
Seven churches of Asia
The Seven Churches of Revelation, also known as The Seven Churches of the Apocalypse and The Seven Churches of Asia , are seven major churches of Early Christianity, as mentioned in the New Testament Book of Revelation and written to by Ignatius of Antioch...
, Jesus' motion indicates that he is "present in their midst and aware of their activities."
In the creeds
The Apostles' CreedApostles' Creed
The Apostles' Creed , sometimes titled Symbol of the Apostles, is an early statement of Christian belief, a creed or "symbol"...
says of Jesus that "He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty" (1662 Book of Common Prayer
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
). The words "and sitteth on the right hand of the Father," do not appear in the Nicene Creed
Nicene Creed
The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...
of 325, but are present in the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed of 381, and are retained in all English versions of the Nicene Creed
English versions of the Nicene Creed in current use
The Nicene Creed, composed in part and adopted at the First Council of Nicaea and revised with additions by the First Council of Constantinople , is a creed that summarises the orthodox faith of the Christian Church and is used in the liturgy of most Christian Churches...
.
Theological significance
In the Bible, to be at the right side "is to be identified as being in the special place of honor," and thus "the full participation of the risen Christ in God's honor and glory is emphasized by his being at God's right hand."The heavenly session is often connected to the enthronement of Christ as King
Christ the King
Christ the King is a title of Jesus based on several passages of Scripture. It is used by most Christians. The Roman Catholic Church, together with many Protestant denominations, including the Anglican Churches, Presbyterians, Lutherans and Methodists, celebrate the Feast of Christ the King on the...
. The Catechism of the Catholic Church
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Catechism of the Catholic Church is the official text of the teachings of the Catholic Church. A provisional, "reference text" was issued by Pope John Paul II on October 11, 1992 — "the thirtieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council" — with his apostolic...
says that "being seated at the Father's right hand signifies the inauguration of the Messiah's kingdom."
Louis Berkhof
Louis Berkhof
Louis Berkhof was a Reformed systematic theologian whose written works have been influential in seminaries and Bible colleges in the United States and Canada and with individual Christians in general throughout the 20th century.-Personal life:...
notes that, in his session, Christ is "publicly inaugurated as God-man
Hypostatic union
Hypostatic union is a technical term in Christian theology employed in mainstream Christology to describe the union of Christ's humanity and divinity in one hypostasis.The First Council of Ephesus recognised this doctrine and affirmed its importance, stating that the...
, and as such receives the government of the Church and of heaven and earth, and enters solemnly upon the actual administration of the power committed to Him."
In , however, it is Jesus' priestly office
Threefold office
The threefold office of Jesus Christ is a Christian doctrine based upon the teachings of the Old Testament. It was described by Eusebius and more fully developed by John Calvin...
that is in view. The session refers to the completed nature of the work, in the same way that "a human being will sit down at the completion of a large work to enjoy the satisfaction of having accomplished it." Bruce argues that
The presence of Messiah at God's right hand means that for His people there was now a way of access to God more immediate and heart-satisfying than the obsolete temple ritual had ever been able to provide.
Karl Barth
Karl Barth
Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian whom critics hold to be among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas...
says that the session of Christ is "the first and the last thing that matters for our existence in time," and that
Whatever prosperity or defeat may occur in our space, whatever may become and pass away, there is one constant, one thing that remains and continues, this sitting of His at the right hand of God the Father.
Use in hymnody
The heavenly session is referred to in many hymns, such as Charles Wesley'sCharles Wesley
Charles Wesley was an English leader of the Methodist movement, son of Anglican clergyman and poet Samuel Wesley, the younger brother of Anglican clergyman John Wesley and Anglican clergyman Samuel Wesley , and father of musician Samuel Wesley, and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley...
hymn Rejoice, the Lord is King:
He sits at God’s right hand till all His foes submit,
And bow to His command, and fall beneath His feet:
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!
The Christmas carol
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
Once in Royal David's City
Once In Royal David's City
Once In Royal David's City is a Christmas carol originally written as poem by Cecil Frances Alexander. The carol was first published in 1848 in Miss Cecil Humphreys' hymnbook Hymns for little Children. A year later, the English organist Henry John Gauntlett discovered the poem and set it to music...
contrasts Christ's humble birth with his heavenly session; the last verse begins:
Not in that poor lowly stable,
With the oxen standing by,
We shall see Him; but in Heaven,
Set at God’s right hand on high;
External links
- Of the Session of Christ at the Right Hand of God by John GillJohn Gill (theologian)John Gill was an English Baptist pastor, biblical scholar, and theologian who held to a firm Calvinistic soteriology. Born in Kettering, Northamptonshire, he attended Kettering Grammar School where he mastered the Latin classics and learned Greek by age 11...
, in A Body of Doctrinal Divinity (1767), Book 5, Chapter 8.