Who is this King of Glory? The Awesome Scene of Christ’s Ascension and Session
I enjoy watching movies. The genres I like include fantasy, sci-fi and classic movies. The Lord of the Rings, Star Trek (yes, I am a nerd), Star Wars, and classics like Sunset Boulevard are on the top of my list of movies I can watch over and over again. As a musician, I am especially intrigued by movie scores. Music can make or break a scene in a movie. Imagine a comical music score in the scene in Sunset Boulevard when Norma Desmond is making her way down that grand staircase at the end of the movie. It simply wouldn’t work.
Sometimes I like to imagine scenes from Biblical passages when listening to great music scores. In fact, some scores of music immediately bring to mind scenes from Scripture. Powerful music scores rich with anticipation and awe bring to mind the ascension of Jesus after his resurrection. Let’s think about that for a minute together.
Who Is This King of Glory?
Psalms 22–24 are thought by scholars to be a single unit, or at least should be read together. They collectively paint an astonishing picture of Jesus’ life, death, and ascension. I want to focus on Psalm 24 in this article as we imagine the scene as Jesus enters heaven after his resurrection.
After Jesus’ death on the cross, he was resurrected three days later. He appeared to many during the forty days he spent on earth in his resurrected body. Then, as described in the opening chapter of Acts, he ascended bodily to heaven. Have you thought about what that was like in the throne room of God Almighty as the incarnate second Person of the Trinity stepped foot in the door?
The Blazing Throne Room of God Almighty
The book of Revelation provides vivid details on the awesome presence of God and the throne of God. There is fire, blazing light, and creatures beyond our comprehension who cry out day and night the thrice-holy song to the King. There in attendance is the church triumphant (the souls of those who have died in Christ), present in adoration. All that surrounds the heavenly court is pure and spotless, either inherently, or by the righteousness of Christ. No sinful human being can be in the presence of God Almighty – the glory of God would consume them.
Think for a minute about the ascension of Christ. As Jesus ascends into the clouds (a description of the glory of God), he is taken up into heaven to take his seat at the right hand of the Father as the victorious God-man.
Visualizing the Scene of the Entrance of the King
Ok, now for the powerful music. Cue up this music and continue reading if you like.
Imagine a massive door to the celestial court of God bursting open, and there stands Jesus in his deity and his humanity. Angels and creatures surrounding the throne cry out, “Who is this King of Glory?” (Psalm 24) In essence, they are in defense mode, asking, “What human being dare approach the Almighty God?” No human being has ever entered the throne room of God. (Even the church triumphant is absent from their bodies until the return of Christ.) But, here is One who does. Forever robed in human flesh to be our eternal advocate, Jesus walks over the threshold into the court and heads towards his seat. As the Great High Priest, he will be taking his seat in the true tabernacle (Hebrews 8:2), marking that his great work is done and never to be repeated. He will take his seat at the right hand of the Father, waiting until the Father says to him, “It’s time. Go collect your Bride and destroy Satan and death.”
As Jesus makes his way to take his seat beside his Father, I imagine the clamor of the angels and the seraphim singing the trihagion (“Holy, Holy, Holy!”) continuing to grow in volume.
As the Psalm continues, they get their answer to who dares approach the throne of Almighty God:
7 Lift up your heads, O gates,
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!
8 Who is this King of glory?
Yahweh strong and mighty,
Yahweh mighty in battle.Psalm 24:7-8 LSB
It is none other than God Almighty, who is clothed in human flesh. That is the song they sing as Jesus walks victoriously to his Father’s side. It is none other than Yahweh, strong and mighty!
Jesus takes his seat as the victorious king while incredible celebrations sound forth in heaven. Jesus, the victorious king, has finished his work. He is now waiting for his enemies to be made a footstool to his feet. (Psalm 110:1)
This is why I love taking those incredible film scores and imagining scenes like this. It should draw us up to set our minds on things above, where Christ is seated, in the heavenly places. Doing so helps us to be so heavenly-minded that we are of some earthly good. (Colossians 3:2)
Ultimately, the ascension and session of Christ should cause us to remember that there is one true King. He is the sovereign Lord who controls all things and has destroyed the works of the devil. The battle is done. The church militant (Christians still alive on earth) need not become discouraged when it looks like Satan and the world are winning. They won’t. They can’t. The King Eternal has taken his seat. There will come a day when he will get up to rule over a new earth with his people, all free from sin, suffering, death, and Satan. Until that day, we can live our lives looking to Jesus (Hebrews 12:1) and looking away from a world that offers only fleeting pleasures.