The Throne of God and the Lamb: the Way to Victory
Rev. 22:1-3
1 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
The practical outworking of the victory secured by the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross in this age, is centered in the throne of God. And as Rev. 7:17 states: the Lamb is in the midst of the throne.
For that reason, it’s important to understand what the throne represents and how we are to walk in cooperation with the Lamb that has been delegated all authority by the Father.
Purpose of the throne
Psalm 9:7
7 But the Lord shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment.
The purpose of the throne is judgment. The foundation of the throne of the Lamb is righteousness and judgment (Ps. 89:14). Righteousness and judgment are based upon the revealed laws of God, and the revealed laws of God are based upon the very nature of God.
As it relates to followers of Jesus Christ, we are to continue to learn, obey and teach the laws of God from Genesis to Revelation. In doing so, over time the kingdom of God, which already rules over all (Ps. 103:19), will have that rule victoriously expressed across the earth.
Priest on the throne
Zech. 6:12-13
12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The Branch; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord:
13 Even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.
It’s important to understand that it was prophesied that Jesus Christ would be a priest upon His throne, and of course that has come to pass long ago.
The significance of this is the throne applies to more than government as represented by the state. Righteousness, justice and judgment are the responsibility of the state, while mercy, lovingkindness and grace are the responsibility of the church.
These things apply to more than the church and state, but they start there and work themselves into all areas of life, including self-government, family, economics, the arts, and business, etc.
The state has the responsibility of exercising the sword, the church has the responsibility of casting out those that refuse to repent of their sins.
In the case of the family, judgment can come in the form of spanking or other tools of discipline, depending on the age of the child, while there is also restoration and forgiveness after repentance. In that sense, parents exercise the allowable sword of punishment within the family, as reflected in justice and righteousness. On the other hand, as priests in the family, they offer mercy and grace to the children after they are disciplined.
Rev. 5:10 says that the Lamb has “made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on earth.” We reign on earth by exercising our authority as priests and kings on the throne, learning by studying the Bible and practice, how to discern between when to exercise justice and judgment or mercy and grace.
Conclusion
The practical outworking of the victory of Jesus Christ on the cross comes by embracing our positions as kings and priests of the Lamb. We do that by learning, obeying, and teaching the laws of God as they apply to all areas of life.
There’s a lot more to say about these things, but we need to start with this foundation and built out upon it. Just these things alone will take numerous generations to work themselves out onto planet earth.
The key to success here will be maintaining our faith and not getting discouraged by what can at times appear to be overwhelming odds we are fighting against. Remember, Jesus Christ has already singlehandedly defeated His and our enemies.
It’s our job to work from a place of victory. We do that by faithfully modeling Jesus Christ, His throne and His laws, while planting and watering, leaving it to God to give the increase.
