2:Sit at My Right Hand Until I make your enemies a footstool: 2nd(En)
“1 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.”
Psalm 110:1 KJV
🟢In the first half of last week's portion, we focused two words from Psalm 110:1,
1: "Sit at my right hand." and
2: "Until I make your enemies your footstool”
Through Jesus' salvation and victory, He has assumed the throne of supreme authority and plenipotentiary ambassador in heaven, and waiting for us to live as priests who will exercise that authority.
Let's look again at the passage from Romans 5:17 that we quoted in the first part of last week.
“For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)”
📖Romans 5:17 KJV
The word "reign" here is "Basileuo" in Greek, meaning "to exercise authority”.
Does this mean that we are told that we are to live above them in power, overpowering and intimidating someone else or some other religions? Or should we use our own willpower to overcome sin, evil temptations, and greed, and seek a pure life that does not do evil doing or evil thought at all?
Not so. Here is the scriptures that gives us a clue to how we should live from the words "reign" and "life/live".
“11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
📖Romans 6:11-14 KJV
“11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. 12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.”
📖Romans 8:11-12 KJV
From Romans 6:11-14, we do not let our bodies reign in sin, offer ourselves as instruments of God's righteousness.
But that is because we are "not under the law, but under the rule of the grace of Christ”. It is not by striving to keep rules or morals, but by receiving the resurrection of Jesus and offering ourselves by receiving the life.
From Romans 8:11-12, we live the life God has given us through the Holy Spirit, even though our physical body is limited and weak. However, this does not mean that we are responsible to do our best through our flesh = self-effort.
Reading the following verses of Romans 8:13-17 will help you understand further.
“13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17 and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”
📖Romans 8:13-17 KJV
Yes, we have abundantly received from God the Holy Spirit, forgiveness of sins, His sonship, inheritance, and authority, and we are to exercise every grace we have received.
We, believers in Jesus can not sense what triumph and authority we received, and can not sense the Holy Spirit with our instincts or feelings.
Humans feels fatigue or pain with their bodies. Worrying, stress or sorrows are felt with the heart. But the things concerning the Holy Spirit cannot be felt, but can only be known from the Word of God = the Bible, and not from parts of the Bible, but from knowing the Gospel(Salvation) of Christ, which is the subject of the entire Bible.
“9 (God) who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, 10 but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:”
📖2 Timothy 1:9-10 KJV
As we learn from the Bible, our trust in "God's Word = the Gospel of the Bible = Jesus" deepens. Trust in the Word of God transforms our given life from a state of "I have received it, but I don't really understand its value" to a state of "I am fully aware of it.”
When we understand and trust well what God is giving and promising, we can place them above the pain, suffering, and fear that our bodies or minds feeling.
This is the "exercising". It is very different from the believer's own use of knowledge. By receiving, listening to, and knowing the life from God, which is a total grace, a total free gift, then we are relaxed, surrender, and have peace of mind, and therefore be able to walk bravely and firmly.
What we do as the "kingdom of priests = Royal priest" is to exercise our powerful life, filled with grace from Jesus, and to transcend sin, poverty, sickness, tribulation, fear, and the works of the devils, and to place all of them under the feet of Christ's grace, to live powerful, fulfilled life with showing that His authority far surpasses them.
That is why Jesus, our High Priest, intercedes for us in heaven and helps us. He waits expectantly for us to trust in Him, to put our already defeated sin and evil under our feet, and to walk in life with strength and joy.
“19 and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, 20 which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: 22 and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”
📖Ephesians 1:19-23 KJV
(From the tract distributed on Sep 4h, 2021)
(Source: a book by Dr. Abel Damina “Life before the cross and Life after the cross”)
