The Place Acts 5:31
The Book of Acts – Chapter Five Another Restatement Acts 5:22-32 14 | The Place | Acts 5:31 “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). The Sadducees issued a demonic threat to the apostles that they eliminate Jesus from their vocabulary and, therefore, their lives. Since the beginning, the leaders of Israel have been adamant about silencing His name! However, instead of a decrease in the proclamation of Jesus’ name, it spread rapidly. In total fury, the council judged the apostles. However, the apostles responded, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). Their reasoning for such a statement is threefold. The “resurrection” of Jesus is first, “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree” (Acts 5:30). The “restoration” of Jesus is second, “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). The “representation” of Jesus is third, “And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him” (Acts 5:32). God raised up Jesus, and God exalted Jesus. What is the difference? The Greek word “egeiro” is translated as “raised up.” It focuses on reversing the horrible fact that “you murdered by hanging on a tree.” God raised up Jesus from the dead. The Greek word “hupsoo” is translated as “has exalted.” While both words present the element of “lifted up,” one focuses on “from,” and the other focuses on “unto.” God resurrected Jesus from the dead and elevated Him to an honored position! There is an exciting interlinkage of the crucifixion in both of these facts. The cross is incomplete without the resurrection, “raised up.” Victory is in the wholeness of the cross and the resurrection. Jesus conquered death through death (Hebrews 2:14). The resurrection is the act of that victory over death, which is the wages of all sin. But the completion of this victorious work is the exaltation Jesus received from the Father. The Father recognizes in Jesus the complete restoration of humanity through the cross in His exaltation. Jesus clarified this in His “high priestly prayer” (John 17). In His last hours before the crucifixion, Jesus prayed to the Father in recognition that “the hour has come” (John 17:1). His singular cry was “Glorify your Son” (John 17:1). But it was not a self-centered prayer. Rather a desire “that Your Son also may glorify You” (John 17:1). The Greek word translated “glorify” is “doxazo.” The word’s core meaning is recognition, focus, honor, or perspective. It is the opinion of someone who recognizes, honors, praises, invests with dignity, and gives esteem or honor by putting another in an honorable position. Jesus did not seek self-glory but cried out for the Father to recognize the fulfillment of the Son’s destiny in bleeding, suffering, and dying. Jesus fulfilled the redemptive plan of the Trinity God. The accomplishment of this plan is what is exalted! The full exaltation of Jesus to the right hand of the Father is not simply about the Person but about the Person crucified. Do not forget that the eternal recognition of Jesus throughout the Book of the Revelation is “the Lamb.” The wonder of this is not merely in Jesus but in us. As the Father destined Jesus, you and I are destined. As the Father uniquely equipped and sent Jesus with great purpose, He has uniquely trained and sent you and me. Our glory is not in self-centered accomplishments but in the wonder of His plan flowing through us! Do not dismiss the phenomenon that we are seated in Christ’s exaltation (Ephesians 2:6). The Father’s perspective of Jesus now includes us. He recognizes us in Him! We have identified with Him in His death and resurrection and share in His exaltation! The Father accomplished His will in Jesus; He now performs His will in us! Who could have imagined that sinful humanity could experience such? Peter made a bold, declarative statement to the council: “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). The action of God’s exaltation is focused on “Him,” Jesus! In the Greek language, this word is an accusative, direct object. Jesus receives the action of the exaltation. Two secondary direct objects give content to Jesus; they are “Prince” and “Savior.” But Peter provides us with the location of the exaltation, which is equally significant. It is “His right hand.” In the Greek language, this is a dative, an indirect object. Peter suggests three vital elements to the exaltation of Jesus. There is the PLACE of the exaltation, “to His right hand.” The POSITION of the exaltation is highlighted in “to be Prince.” The PURPOSE of the exaltation is equally essential, “and Savior.” Place of the Exaltation What I learned as a child, I assumed as a teenager and continued to believe as an adult. I maintained the physical perspective in the perception. In many Biblical references, I quickly concluded a natural progression from the physical resurrection to a physical exaltation. In his great sermon explaining Pentecost, Peter said, “This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear” (Acts 2:32-33). Peter made the same connection in our passage between the resurrection of Jesus and His exaltation (Acts 5:30-31). However, this naturally causes us to focus on the physical aspect of the exaltation as we did in the resurrection. Since Jesus, who was raised from the dead physically, ascended, we assume a physical location for His destination. I imagined His location as a colossal palace somewhere far above. This palace has a great throne room in which a large gold throne is covered with multiple jewels. It has royal cushions upon which Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father, but you cannot see Him, for the Father is a Spirit. Perhaps there is a physical location at the right hand of God, but is that the emphasis? Are the Scriptures trying to communicate a “spiritual” place of exaltation rather than a “physical” location? Since God is omnipresent, could the right hand of God also be omnipresent? Therefore, it becomes imagery for a spiritual reality! The Book of Psalms establishes the basis of many statements in the New Testament concerning the enthronement of Jesus as a heavenly and messianic Ruler. “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool’” (Psalms 110:1; Acts 2:34-35). God exalted Jesus to the place of authority. Consider Jesus in the power of His resurrection, gathering His disciples to commission them to win the world. He began this commission by exerting the exaltation of “the right hand:” “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:18-19). The Greek word translated as “authority” is “exousia.” It highlights the permission given to Jesus to make decisions and determine the course of events. As He challenges the disciples with responsibility, He also encourages them. Nothing can come to them, but first, it must come to Him. While He does not cause everything, He certainly must allow it. He has all authority! Can we contain the overwhelming greatness of this reality? One of our kind, One like us, One with our humanity, has been exalted to the highest place of authority. He dwells at the right hand of God, and he has total access to the Father. “For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted” (Hebrews 2:18). “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25). If this is not merely a physical location at “His right hand,” but a spiritual authority, what is its basis or essence? Cross Place There are many statements concerning Jesus’ exaltation connected with His death and resurrection “Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty of high” (Hebrews 1:3). “Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man” (Hebrews 8:1). “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). “And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:8-9). Jesus’ exaltation flows from the crucifixion not because of the actual event of the cross but due to the culminating display of God’s nature through Jesus. The nature of God is “holy.” The core fiber of such a nature is “bleed, suffer, and die.” This nature never lives for itself! It is expressed in the incarnation as Jesus assumes all the frailty of humanity. Jesus expressed the cross style in every encounter as He interacted with humanity. He bent His humanity under this nature to assume the redemptive position of the sacrifice for the sins of humanity. Now, Jesus displays this nature at the highest level of exaltation given by God to humanity. Paul described this exalted position. “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). He continued saying, “And He is the head of the body the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence” (Colossians 1:18). John declared that this is not a temporary exaltation, “and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen” (Revelation 1:5-6). His exaltation is the context for many to follow in His footsteps, and He includes you and me. The language describes that which God established on our behalf. God did not exalt Jesus because of His incredible feats accomplished on behalf of Himself. We do not praise Jesus for what He accumulated for Himself. If such were the case, Jesus would never have left His throne to make “Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:7-8). He is the firstborn of what we are to be! The exact holy nature of God, “bleed, suffer, and die,” now merges with us as it did with Him. “Don’t ever think about yourself” becomes our thought as we have the mind of Christ! God exalts the cross-style nature merged and demonstrated through us! Completed Place We must recognize that when the Scriptures mention the right hand, the whole individual is claimed, whether in action or suffering. Peter quoted David as saying, “I foresaw the Lord always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken.” (Acts 2:25; also see Psalms 73:23; 110:5; 121:5; Isaiah 41:13; Zechariah 3:1) Peter emphasized this again in our passage; “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). God did not exalt the actions, miracles, or the crucifixion of Jesus. He exalted Jesus! When Jesus’ actions are included, the whole Person occupies the exaltation! We must never forget that the Cross Event is a cross-section of the nature of God existing in the realm of eternity. It is the nature of God displayed in a moment, but is it the entire time? The bleed, suffer and die nature of God (holiness) displayed on the cross is merged with Jesus, engulfs His whole Person, and cannot be separated from who He is. The helplessness of humanity merged with the nature of God defines the new creature. Jesus is the prototype! God exalted this whole Person to His right hand. The reality of this exaltation highlights the plan of God for us. “For it was fitting for Him for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings” (Hebrews 2:10). Our Captain is exalted as the firstborn for it is the pleasure of God to “bring many sons to glory.” We share in the glory of His exaltation, for we are like Him in merging with the nature of God. He is the firstborn of this completed merger between God and man, the new creature of the Kingdom! Paul, with extreme repetition, records the phrase “in Him” many times in Ephesians (1:3-14). He repeats this or a similar phrase fourteen times in these eleven verses. He insists every spiritual blessing God wants you and I to possess is in Jesus! He calls them “spiritual blessings” (Ephesians 1:3). The content of such blessings is long and inexhaustible; it includes: “chose us,” “holy and without blame,” “adoption as sons,” “accepted,” “redemption,” “forgiveness,” “wisdom,” “inheritance,” “sealed.” He clusters these blessings around “the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:6, 12, 14). Is “His glory,” the nature of God expressed on the cross, “the bleed, suffer, and die nature?” The holy nature of God united with humanity and formed the first human being to be the complete living expression of this nature. What the first Adam failed to do, the second Adam accomplished, and the Trinity God exalted Him. We follow in His footsteps and merge with Him in this exaltation! Comparison Place One of the fundamental aspects of being placed at the right hand is the intimate connection established with the one responsible for the placement. When a person of high rank puts someone on his right hand, he gives them equal honor with himself and recognizes him as of equal dignity (Matthew 22:44; 26:64; Acts 2:33; 7:55; Romans 8:34; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1). The Father’s approval of the Son resounded from the heavens repeatedly through Jesus’ earthly ministry! At the beginning of His earthly ministry, when the Father filled Jesus with the Spirit, He ripped the sky open to thunder forth His pleasure. “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). When Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit, defeated the devil in spiritual warfare, the Father sent angels to minister to Him (Matthew 4:11). On the Mount of Transfiguration, the Father descended in a bright cloud declaring, “This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him” (Matthew 17:5)! Even in the Garden of Gethsemane, an angel was sent from the Father to minister to Him as He faced the cross (Luke 22:43). Now to complete the redemptive work, the Father drew Jesus through the ascension to an exaltation of honor and dignity. Carefully consider the tremendous honor Jesus receives in the Book of Revelation! John saw a great throne set in heaven surrounded by twenty-four elders. Four living creatures, night and day, praised God, who sat on the throne. The twenty-four elders cast their crowns before the throne, offering praise (Revelation 4). God received glory, honor, and power; He is Creator, and by His will, everything exists that was created. Contained in His right hand is a sealed scroll which no one is worthy to open, but “a Lamb as though it had been slain” comes and removes the scroll. The Trinity God found Jesus worthy. A new song is written and sung about Him all over heaven (Revelation 5). “And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the seas, and all that are in them, I heard saying: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and forever’” (Revelation 5:13)! Jesus, who the Trinity God exalts, receives glory, honor, and power at the right hand! He is the expression of the nature of God through human flesh. He is the physical expression of the bleed, suffer, die, and never think about yourself holiness of God! No one proposes that we become God. We are not omnipresent, omniscient, or omnipotent. But we are drawn into His nature. In Jesus, God exalts us to His right hand. In Jesus, God accepts us in the Beloved. In Jesus, we become the expression of God’s nature. In Jesus, His essence is revealed and demonstrated to the world. In Jesus, God displays His holiness on the platform of our lives, and the world knows God. Our exaltation is in Jesus, who the Father exalts!