Who [Jesus] has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
1 Peter 3:22 (ESV)
In 1 Peter 3:13-17, Peter encouraged those who suffer for the sake of Christ. He then went on, in 1 Peter 3:18-21, to recount Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection. And he concluded with the verse quoted above about the reign of Christ.
The dual nature of Jesus as fully God and fully human is something I accept as being true. But it is something I struggle to grasp fully. Jesus is the eternal second person of the Trinity, the Son. He has always been one with the Father and the Spirit. But He became a human. And after His death and resurrection, He ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
Reigning
This is not just a return to the place He had from eternity past. This was the Son of Man taking His place at the Father’s side (Dan. 7:13-14, Matt. 26:64). This is Jesus, with His glorified human nature, the firstfruits from the dead (1 Cor. 15:20-23), taking up His reign over His kingdom. The one the gospels proclaim, who died for my sins, and was raised from the dead. That man now sits at the right hand of the Father above (Heb. 2:14-18, 12:2).
And sitting at the right hand of God, angels, authorities, and powers are subjected to Him. In Luke 10:17, the disciples expressed joy that demons were subject to them in Jesus’ name. In this passage, Peter expressed that the rulers, the authorities, the powers of this dark world, and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12) are in subjection to Jesus. They are still at work in this world. But they are subject to Jesus’ authority, unable to act beyond the limits He imposes on them (Job 1:12, 2:6).
It is comforting and encouraging to know that Jesus is currently reigning, not just over His church, but over all of creation. He is in control. Even when I do not understand why He allows certain things to occur, I can trust that He has His reasons (1 Pet. 1:6-9). And I can trust that He will safely bring me into His presence on that day (2 Tim. 1:12).
