Last month we examined the importance of Jesus sitting at the right hand of God. We noticed that the right hand was a place of equal power, authority, and honor. Christ is God. God the Father and God the Son are equals; one is not greater than the other. The fact Jesus is sitting indicates He has completed His task. He accomplished His objective at the cross and now He sits in Heaven next to God. Yet, an interesting scene is presented at Stephen’s death. As the Jewish council prepared to stone him, Stephen saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God (Acts 7:54-55). Stephen said, “Look! I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” (Acts 7:56). This is the only place in the New Testament where Jesus is recorded as standing next to God. Since Luke was guided by the Holy Spirit and a physician by trade, it should not surprise us that he was meticulous about writing every minute detail. There is a reason Luke wrote this account as he did. In this article, the 2 most likely reasons will be considered.
When royalty stands, it is either out of anger or honor for the person before him. The Bible, in several places, validates this statement. King Ahasuerus arose out of anger when Esther revealed Haman’s plot to kill the Jewish people (Est. 7:1-7). Out of anger, Jonathan arose from the table while he argued with his father Saul concerning David (1 Sam. 20:34). When Isaiah was preaching to Judah about their sinful living, the prophet described the Lord as standing up to judge them. God’s anger caused Him to arise and judge those who were living in wickedness (Is. 3:8-15). On the other hand, royalty also will stand when they wish to honor someone. When Jonah’s message of Nineveh’s destruction reached the Assyrian king, he arose and humbled himself before God (Jonah 3:4-10). When Josiah ordered the Law to be read to all the people of Jerusalem, he stood beside a pillar at the temple and made a covenant before the Lord (2 Kgs. 23:1-3). These verses illustrate that royalty stood either out of anger or out of respect, depending on the person. Jesus standing at Stephen’s death may have been both out of anger and honor. Jesus may have stood in anger against those who stoned Stephen, certainly their wicked action would have displeased our Savior (Acts 7:57-60). Jesus may have stood out of respect for His faithful martyr who had preached His Gospel without fear (Acts 7:1-53).
The second possible reason Jesus stood at Stephen’s death was because He was standing as a witness on Stephen’s behalf. The proper posture for a witness was standing; an example of this can be found at Jesus trial when his accusers stood up to give their false testimony (Mk. 14:56-59). Therefore, Jesus was standing as an advocate to the Father on behalf of Stephen. Stephen was confessing Jesus before men and Jesus was in turn confessing Stephen before God. Those that hold to this view find a real-life example of Christ acting on His promise (Matt. 10:32-33). Without a doubt, Jesus is the Christian’s advocate to the Father if we confess our sins (1 John. 1:9-2:2). The imagery of Jesus standing to defend Stephen should warm the Christian’s heart and give he/she hope that Christ will do the same for us if we stand up for Him in this life.
We cannot know with certainty why Jesus stood in Stephen’s vision. The reasons given were possibilities, not certainties. This article was written to draw attention to how important it is to notice the small details. It is beneficial to read your Bible, but it is even more beneficial to study it deeply. May the Lord bless you in your deep study of His Word.
–Brandon Foresha
Did Jesus sit at first, but now is standing?
That is a great question, Mike! Sorry it took me so long to respond, I have since moved from Flatwoods and am now preaching in Kittanning, PA.
There is no doubt Jesus is now sitting at the Right Hand of God, but we should not limit His ability to move and operate even today. Since writing this article I have studied this particular topic further. In Revelation 1:12-20 when John saw Jesus once again, John fell to His feet (Rev. 1:17-18). Jesus is sitting, standing, walking, upholding, and revitalizing us all day, every day! We do Christ a disservice to simply chain our Savior to a throne, Jesus is as active as ever!
Scripture does point to fact Jesus arrived back to Heaven in glory and the Father bestowed Him every honor upon return (Phil. 2:5-11). It is my personal opinion Jesus did in fact sit down on His throne during that triumphal return to Heaven and His victory over death (2 Cor. 2:14-15, 1 Cor. 15:20-28). Yet, does that mean He can only be sitting until Judgement Day? We ought to be careful not to limit our God’s Son power and importance in our lives (Lk. 20:34-40). He is not sitting in His throne, leisurely waiting while we suffer along in life, Jesus cares and is watching over us daily (Rev. 2:2-3:22).
I know that was a long-winded preacher’s answer to say this, yes. It is my opinion Jesus first sat to show He completed His task God the Father set out for Him, but now He is doing as He pleases. I believe He stood up for Stephen because it pained Him to see His servant suffer, just as He stands from His throne when you and I suffer in this life. He cares, Jesus is not a statuesque figure simply waiting for something to do, Jesus is an active King ruling however He wishes!
My desire for writing this article was to make us study deeper and examine God’s word. Mike, you helped me, and others do just that!
Thank you for your question and patience for me to respond,
In Christ,
Brandon Foresha
For passages like Colossians 3:1, “where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God,” I have taken it to mean that Christ’s place or throne is at the right hand of the Father, signifying Christ’s equality with the Father, but not necessarily that he is “continually sitting.”
We use this type of language today. I might tell someone I just met at a gathering that “I am working” at a downtown church. I use the present tense to indicate that the church is my place, and at the appropriate times, I work there. My meaning is not to say that I am literally working there while I’m also at the gathering.
Other times, I see these references as entirely literal, like when Stephen saw our Lord standing – I believe he literally saw a literal Christ literally standing at the literal right hand of the literal Father.
I found this article encouraging and thought-provoking. Thank you!
Glad you found it helpful! Let us know if you have any questions!