And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6
One of the saddest sights of the Hurricane Katrina flooding of New Orleans in 2005 was the large numbers of people sitting together on the floor of a large stadium. Their faces showed the misery of being displaced from homes that probably no longer existed, of knowing that many friends and relatives were gone forever, of having the uncertainty of almost everything in their life, of having little food, no comforts, no friends, only sour-dispositioned companions, and a dirty, smelly floor to sit on. I couldn’t help feeling sorry for those poor folks. How much different the seating arrangements for the scene painted for us in today’s text!
For one thing, we are not seated on the floor, we have been raised up. At one time we were at rock bottom and were digging furiously. We had no hope or desire of elevating ourselves above the mire of the Slough of Despond. We have been seated, and in pretty rare company, too. We have been given a seat among God’s chosen and purchased. We have been made to sit among those who God calls the apple of His eye. What a privilege!
But consider where we have been seated. It is not on a fancy chair of earth. Not even on a golden or gem-encrusted throne, no, we have been seated in the Heavenlies. We don’t see, and often don’t appreciate, our seating at this time. But we are assured of it, and we ought to look forward to the manifestation of it.
What does it mean to be seated? Three things come quickly to mind: being seated is a place of fellowship, a place of rest, and a place of privilege. Of fellowship, because we have been seated with God’s elect, of comfort, because we have been given a rest from the load of our sins, and know that the Lord bids us to let Him carry our burdens and sorrows, of privilege, because we are brought unto the table of our Lord forever. If Mephibosheth had wereof to be glad at David’s table, we more.
Today is a day for appreciating our exalted position. Let us live in the good of that, and live like we appreciate that as we should. -Jim MacIntosh