- Overcomer Literature Trust
- Swindon
- Wiltshire
THE PRIEST ON THE THRONE.
By G.Wilson.
Our blessed Saviour has all the attributes of a true Priest. In the first place, He is from among men in order that He may represent before the Father those whose name and nature He bears. In the second place, He is chosen of God. This was a distinct appointment, “You are my Son, today I have become your Father” (Ps. 2 v7 & Heb. 1 v5). In the third place, we have a High Priest, holy in character and life, one that is “holy, blameless, pure and set apart from sinners” (Heb. 7 v26). In the fourth place, He has a right to draw near to God, a right first from who He is, “I came from the Father and . . . I am . . . going back to the Father” (John 16 v28). But He also has the right of access because He has done something for those whom He represents. Having purged our sins, the great work which gave Him a right to penetrate within the veil, He sat down at the Father’s right hand.
A True King.
He also has all the attributes of a true King. The very first condition of kingship is authority, the power to say “come” and “go”, the right to command, to dictate a duty. We find in John 5 verses 26-27 these beautiful words, “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself. And He has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man”. The second attribute of true kingship is power. It is possible for a king to have authority but to be without the power to put that authority into practice. Jesus has not only authority but He has the power. Hebrews 1 v3 speaks of “The word of His power”, power to place worlds in the great sphere of the universe, power to enter human thought and control the highest intelligence, yet power to touch the heart of a little child. The third attribute of kingship is righteousness. A king may have authority and power but he needs the ability to rightly judge between thought and thought, between person and person, between deed and reward, and we know that this King is called “the King of righteousness” (Heb. 7 v2, see also Rev. 19 v11-16). The crowning attribute of kingship is peace, He is the “Prince of Peace” and the purpose of His reign is to bring peace.
The Royal Priest.
He is a Priest and King in complete unity. What is the effect of His royalty on His priesthood? In the first place the kingship raises the dignity of His priesthood. We see this Priest standing by the altar that comes between us and God, but it is the King, the King of the human race, the King of the universe, who by His right and power, righteousness and peace, has dominion over all things. We have a Royal Priest. This royalty guards the sanctity of the priesthood of Christ. There can only be one king in a kingdom and when that is allied with priesthood in complete unity, there can only be one priest. Just as Christ has gathered up all the functions of the Old Testament priesthood and embodied them in His high-priesthood, there is no need for anyone but Jesus to be a priest. He is sufficient in all things. In addition to all this there is the Royal seal guarding that priesthood from the assumption and presumption of mortal men.
There is a difference between the sovereignty of Christ as God and the sovereignty of Christ as Mediator. This kingship of Christ as Mediator is grounded upon His priesthood and in His kingship over believers because He has given Himself for us. It is because He has been our Priest and reconciled us to God that He has become our King to reign over us as believers.
His priesthood is also the basis of our hope of His eternal glory. It enables us to say that Christ will come again, because He has been here and died for us. We may know that the victory is on our side, that time is on our side, because the blood of Christ is on our side and it has not been shed in vain. Let us go into the temple where Jesus sits in His great priesthood and listen to the song that is now being sung, that one day we hope to join in, as we join in praises down here, “Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, . . . They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang, “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise” (Rev. 5 v11-12).
The Secret of Life.
The secret of life is that we abide in the priesthood, the royal priesthood of Christ and put our cause in His hand as our Advocate. We need to come to Him consciously and constantly and yield ourselves to His ministry, asking Him to plead with the Father to forgive us our sin, and looking at Him, robed in His holy vestment, abide with Him at the Father’s right hand. Let us stand around the throne of His grace, where He gives us the power.
We are a priesthood, a royal priesthood. He has for us three thrones. He has the throne of grace and it is so sweet to stand around it. He has the throne of judgment and we are glad that Christ is on that throne. And He has another throne, the throne of His glory and we long for that day when we shall be admitted to His presence, and from our hearts will burst the cry, “You are the King of Glory, O Christ, You are the King of Glory”.