When the NT talks about the rule or reign of Christ it does not say that we are waiting for Him to rule but that He rules now. He is seated at the right hand of God Almighty; He has taken His seat on the throne of His father David and rules as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; He is the Son of God. As Peter says in explaining the significance of Pentecost, “God has made this Jesus to be both Lord and Christ.” Jesus is the King.
But Jesus’ Kingdom, we learned, doesn’t immediately transform the nations of the earth. It works like leaven; it operates like a farmer’s crop; it grows like a mustard seed. And so we spoke of the Kingdom coming in phases: the Kingdom is inaugurated or begun through the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus; it continues to come throughout history as Jesus reigns from God’s right hand; and it shall be consummated when Jesus returns in glory and brings about the regeneration or resurrection of all things.
But today I want us to ask in more detail, “What does it mean that the Kingdom has been inaugurated, that Jesus has taken his seat at the right hand of God as King of Kings and Lord of Lords? What is the significance of this?” So this week we meditate a bit more on the inauguration of the Kingdom.