The Activities of Christ’s Session

When the Scriptures describe what Jesus is doing now, they often say that he’s seated at the right hand of God the Father. This language can be misleading to some modern readers. Jesus isn’t just sitting next to the Father waiting for the time of his return; he’s sitting on a throne.

The word “session” is a technical term in theology for:

Jesus’ ongoing rule and governing from the place of majesty and power in heaven.

It refers to all the things Jesus is doing in his current reign as God’s vassal king.

The Scripture tells us that Christ is seated at the right hand of God. This is an anthropomorphic expression that shows that Christ received the reins of government of the church and of the universe. This reference to being seated, however, does not imply that Jesus ascended to a place of rest. He continues in his work as our king and prophet and priest. [Dr. Jim Maples]

We’ll speak of the things Jesus does during his heavenly session in terms of the three smaller facets of his role as the exalted Christ: first, his prophetic word and Spirit.

As we see in Acts 2:33, one of the first ways Jesus exercised his prophetic ministry was by sending the Holy Spirit as a gift to the church. This was a prophetic work because the Holy Spirit empowered the church as Jesus’ prophetic witness in the world. Peter explained that these signs fulfilled the prediction made in Joel 2 that, in the end times, the Spirit would empower all his faithful people for ministry. Jesus’ prophetic ministry during his session also included the inspiration of Scripture. He sent the Spirit to inspire the apostles to write Christ’s infallible word to his people. And Jesus continues to minister to his church through the word by preserving the Scriptures for us, and by sending his Spirit to gift ministers to preach the word to their congregations and to evangelize the lost.

Jesus’ session also includes his priestly intercession. At his ascension, Jesus offered his own blood to the Father for the atonement of the sins of his people. This action is unrepeatable. But its benefits — like forgiveness, cleansing, and healing — need to be applied to our lives on a continual basis.

Sadly, many Christians labor under the false impression that when they sin, they stand helplessly before God on their own, having to answer for their failures. But the wonderful fact is that just as Christ paid for our sins on the cross, he now intercedes for us before our Father in heaven, ensuring that the Father will continue to forgive and to bless us. We’re never alone in God’s heavenly court, because Jesus continually prays on our behalf.

With Jesus’ word and Spirit and intercession in mind, let’s turn to his rule as king.

Jesus governs all things — the church, the nations, creation, and the spiritual world of angels and demons. His rule doesn’t always seem predictable to us. But he rules according to God’s hidden plan. The Bible assures us that because of Christ’s rule over all, his followers have nothing to fear. Our eventual victory is assured. Nothing can happen to us that’s beyond his control and authority. Everything that exists is under his authority and power, from the workings of the entire universe to the tiniest sub-atomic particle. And eventually, all the kings and people of the earth, and all spiritual beings, will acknowledge his supremacy and bow down to him.