The Best Seat in the House

This message is one of the Times Square Pulpit series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. Other tapes are available by writing to World Challenge, P.O. Box 260, Lindale, Texas, 75771 or calling 214-963-8626.

None of these messages are copyrighted and you are welcome to make copies for free distribution to your friends. Luke chapter 1. I wasn't sure what Pastor Dave was, which direction he was heading in before he made a few remarks about him being hungry. I was wondering if he was telling me to keep it short tonight.

But that's not what he was talking about. And I want to share with you out of Luke chapter 1, beginning at verse 46. And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.

And for he hath regarded the lowest state of his handmaiden, for behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things, and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

He has showed strength from his arm. He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree.

He has filled the hungry with good things, the rich he hath sent away empty. He hath helped his servant Israel in remembrance of his mercy. Look at verse 52.

I choose the title of my message based upon this verse. He hath put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree. I want to talk to you tonight about the best seat in the house.

The best seat in the house, praise the Lord. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you.

We thank you that we have arisen tonight by your spirit to our rest. Lord, in the midst of this season, our energies have been expended in other areas. But Lord, we thank you that your anointing is here and the freshness of your spirit is here.

Lord, thank you for your word tonight. Make it alive to our hearts. Lord, we want to savor every bit out of this season that we can.

But Lord, we thank you that our experience with you transcends even this season. And Lord, that we have Christmas in our heart day by day. Hallelujah.

Thank you, Jesus. Bless around this altar. Bless our communion in Jesus' name.

Amen. Every year at this season, I reread the account of Christ's birth, asking the Holy Spirit to give me some new insight to this most famous Bible story. This year, I was blessed by the prophecy that Mary gave upon the occasion of her visit with Elizabeth.

And how it came about is that after the angel brought the message to Mary that that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God, Mary immediately made haste and went on a journey of some distance to share her joy with her cousin Elizabeth, who was in the sixth month of her pregnancy carrying John the Baptist. And so it was, here are two expecting mothers wanting to share their special joys together. And there was quite a greeting that took place by the two specially chosen women, verse 41, and she spake out with a loud voice, excuse me, verse 41, and it came to pass that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.

Now, that was not an ordinary leap. Psalms 114, verse 4 says, The mountains skipped like rams and the little hills like lambs. And the word skipped used there in Psalms is the same word for leaped when it says the babe leaped in her womb.

You see, little John in his mother's womb got so excited that he leaped, he started doing somersaults in anticipation, perceiving in the spirit that Mary in her womb was carrying the seed of the Messiah of Israel and the one who was the reason for his birth. And I have to look at this in my own way and I just have to imagine when Elizabeth feels that leaping and she had felt that movement before, but this was something different. This was something extraordinary.

And when she felt that leaping, I can just picture her putting her hand on her stomach and saying, Not yet, John. Not yet, John. You've got three more months before you come out.

And then you've got 30 years yet before you announce the Lamb of God, but he was rearing and leaping to go. Amazing, amazing what was taking place. And then also amazingly was Mary then has a spirit of prophecy come on her.

And what a wonderful prophecy it is. And in her prophetic utterance, she magnifies the Lord. Look at it again, verse 46 and 47.

My soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior because of what was going to come to pass. And then Mary mentioned several things regarding the purpose that Christ would accomplish in his coming by his birth. And of course, we must, every time you look at his birth, you must always look upon it as his accompanying it, his death and his resurrection.

And so she was looking at all of these things. And she mentions mercy as one of the things that was going to take place. Pastor Gary talked about that Sunday night so well, mercy.

In verse 50, it says, And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. In verse 54, He hath helped his servant Israel in remembrance of his mercy as he spake to our fathers, to Abraham and his seed forever. And then there was another thing that Christ has come to do and which is the basis really of my message tonight.

And that is Mary says that he has come to break the power, break the powers of the establishment, of the established powers and to establish himself on the throne of God. Which is the best seat in the house. Verse 51, And he has showed strength with his arm.

He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. And then here's the verse that just so blesses me. He hath put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree.

You see, Christ has come to exalt those or them of low degree and give to his people along with him the best seat in the house. Hallelujah. Now I look out and I see some of you, you always sit up here in the front and I thank God for you.

You picked out the best seat in the house. And I don't know if you know it or not, but you're sitting in about, what is it, 45, $55 seats? $60 seats, $75 seats. If this was still regular Broadway theater and a Broadway show, to be able to sit where some of you are sitting, you'd be paying pretty good bucks.

And I'm not going to check the offering or not to see whether you're living up to that or not. But you picked out some of the best seat in the house. I think of a story of a pastor who got tired of his people always sitting in the back.

And the front rows are always empty and he's always having to preach to the back rows. Now it's all right here because you have to sit to wherever you can get a seat here. So that doesn't happen in this church.

So I'm not preaching to anybody here, but this is very typical in a lot of churches and they build a new church. And so unbeknown to the deacons or whatever, he had it devised so that when the service started, he pushed a button and the last three rows got on a little conveyor belt and came down around and they became the first three rows. So he had a front row audience to preach to.

Only the deacons got wind of it and he didn't know it that when he reached, if he preached over beyond 12 o'clock, they had their own button that they pressed and the trap door opened and he disappeared. Well, there are some good choice seats in the front seat in the house of God, but I wanna tell you something, they're nothing to be compared. It's nothing to compare with being made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, hallelujah.

You see, Christ has come and he said this, he comes to take the best seats, the best seat in the house of princes and rulers and principalities and demonic powers. And in their place, he gives his people the best seat in his house. That's what he's saying here in Luke, the first chapter, these verses, verses 52 and verses 53.

But I want to look at tonight how he does this, how he does it. And first, I would want you to consider the seat that Christ occupies. And go with me to Hebrews, the 10th chapter, Hebrews chapter 10, which tells us that the seat that Christ occupies is among other things, it is a mercy seat.

It's a mercy seat. Hebrews 10 and verse 12 says, but this man, but this man, referring to Jesus, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of the father. Now, you recall that in the Old Testament tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant was the centerpiece of the tabernacle, contained in the Holies of Holies.

Now, the Ark of the Covenant had as its cover a slab of gold called the mercy seat. However, it was really not a seat, no one ever sat on it. On it were two cherubims that covered, that were on the top of it, and those two cherubims faced each other.

Therefore, the mercy seat was not really a seat, but it was a lid. No one ever sat on it. And there was a very good reason for this.

In Leviticus, don't turn to it, but in Leviticus 16 and verse two, it says, and the Lord said unto Moses, Speak to Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat. And this was the instruction of what they were to do on the day of atonement. Once a year was the day of atonement when they made an offering, a special sacrifice to cover a whole year's sins.

That could be removed. It was a day of atonement, that's what atonement means, atonement between God and his people. The claims of God that man could not meet and the need that could not be satisfied would be settled on that day, creating a oneness between God and man.

However, the high priest could never sit on the mercy seat and even with the great day of atonement, it still did not remove permanently their sin. It was only a temporary provision because in addition to the day of atonement for any unknown or unconfessed sin, there was also the daily sacrifices that were offered up for known sin. And yet with all of that, with the day of atonement, with all of the daily sacrifices, there was no permanent removal of sin and man had no seat, no permanent seat in the presence of God.

It was not until the Holy Ghost came upon Mary and the power of the highest overshadowed her, only then in that promise was there going to be the possibility of you and I having the privilege to be made seated with Christ Jesus. You see, the first and primary reason Christ came was to go back to the Father and take his seat at the right hand of the Father. But he could not do it until he made provision for you and I to have a mercy seat, hallelujah.

Look at Hebrews 10 and 11. It says, and every priest standeth daily and offereth oft times the same sacrifice, which can never take away sins. But this man, this man sat down at the right hand of the Father.

But what gave him his right to sit down? After he had offered one sacrifice for our sins forever, hallelujah, he sat down. He is the only one who has the right to enter in and to sit on the mercy seat. And he does it as a sign that our sacrifice has been paid, our access to God, we can be at one with him.

And the reason that Jesus could sit and the reason that he now can sit down at the right hand of the Father is because he's finished his work. Christ alone could say, it is finished. And when you and I come to him, we come to the end of our struggling.

We come to the end of our striving. We can come to the end of our battle against sin. We can arise to our rest.

We can rest in him and on him. He is the Alpha and Omega of our faith. And as our Omega, he is our mercy seat.

Hallelujah. That's where the best seat in the house begins, at the mercy seat. Now remember, the mercy seat was actually a lid or covering as a part of the Ark of the Covenant.

It was that which covered the law that had been deposited within the Ark. And you see, man found it impossible to keep the law in order to save himself. And this is why God covered the law with his mercy.

And do you realize what it means? Do you realize what it means to be able to now, you and I, to be able to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus? It is to have the privilege of being seated with Christ on that mercy seat. Hallelujah. You see, on the mercy seat, the blood of propitiation was sprinkled every year on the Day of Atonement.

In other words, the purpose of the mercy seat was to propitiate. And propitiate was the New Testament version of the Old Testament word atonement. Propitiate in the Greek culture carried with it the idea of acting in some way to avoid the terrible destructive powers of the gods and if possible, to win the gods over to act favorably.

And you see, what Christ has done, he has propitiated for us. He has made us at one with him. We can sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus because the blood has been sprinkled.

Hallelujah. Romans 3.25 sounds so wonderful in light of this. It says, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation, a mercy seat, through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God.

And 1 John 4.10 says, hearing his love, not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation or the mercy seat for our sins. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.

The best seat in the house. Christ sits on it at the right hand of the father and we can sit with him. Hallelujah.

Look at Hebrews 10 verses. Let me see. Beginning at verse 11.

Let me read it. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oft times the same sacrifice which can never take away sins. But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.

For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost is to us. For after that he said before this is the covenant that I will make with them after those days saith the Lord.

I will put my laws into their hearts and into their minds will I write them and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is there is no more offering of sin. Having therefore brethren boldness to enter into the house of Jesus by a new and living way which he hath consecrated for us through the veil which is to say his flesh and having a high priest over the house of God.

You see the high priest could only stand because he could not offer a permanent sacrifice. But Jesus now sits hallelujah having finished his work and he gives you and I the privilege to take a place with him because of the mercy seat. Now another part of Mary's prophecy regarding the birth of Christ and the purpose of his first coming is that he will put down the proud from their seats.

You see Christ not only has a mercy seat he also has a judgment seat. He sits on the mercy seat for his children to come to him but he has another seat and that's a judgment seat. Gary talked about the lion and the lamb Sunday night this is along the same vein.

Now again go to Hebrews 10 13 Hebrews 10 13 we see included in this talk about a mercy seat he also makes reference to his judgment seat. He said from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his foot slow. Now this verse follows verse 12 which says Christ has made the sacrifice for our sins and is now set down at the right hand of God.

In other words when Christ sat down it means that he occupied the best seat in the house of his father. That seat is a mercy seat. It's mercy for all who come to God through Christ the great high priest.

But Christ having taken his rightful seat next to the father also means that he operates in another function and that's what it means it says from henceforth these words follow right after it says he sat down from henceforth from the moment Christ having accomplished our redemption on the cross he went back to the father and he sat down as a sign that his work of redemption was finished. But henceforth or from that time on he as well as we anticipate the time when all of his enemies will be put under will be defeated and made a foot rest for his feet. Listen to some of the scriptures that bear this out.

Isaiah 2 12 don't turn there let me read it to you. It says the Lord almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty for all that is exalted will be humbled. I want to tell you something this is being fulfilled before our very eyes every single day as we listen to what and see what's going on in the world scene.

Noriego who two weeks ago had declared himself two weeks or three weeks ago had declared himself the supreme head of Panama now he's trying to hide behind the church the catholic church he's trying to hide behind the priest skirts can you imagine that? In just few weeks and then consider consider the case the one I think that probably has most blessed me is in Romania Nicolae Ceaușescu who was who is noted as probably the most ruthless of all the dictators in fact when I saw East Germany fall and when we saw the other countries fall I in my own self of my own natural self because I follow those events I thought to myself I don't think he's going to fall but I God had other things in mind he seemed impossible it appeared that he had the support of the entire army he had these elite secret police 700,000 of them 700,000 were part of this elite secret group they would spy on their whole job was to was to intimidate and bring fear on people you could not even own a typewriter without it being registered one of the most repressive regimes in modern history and yet tonight he's gone he's gone the mighty have fallen listen that's no accident of politics that's the fulfillment of bible prophecy Malachi 4 1 says surely the day is coming it will burn like a furnace all the arrogant and every evil doer will be stubble and that day is coming that will set them on fire says the Lord God almighty not a root or branch will be left to them and do you know what they're seeking out the whole family the whole clan of them and they're seeking them all out not a root and branch of them will be left that is a modern day illustration of what the Lord is going to do with all of his enemies you see what good is all of Noriego's voodoo now his his bucket of blood his little voodoo charms in one of his houses they found six million dollars it won't do them a bit of good now that's God that's God bringing down unseating those who are in power and you can count on this happening more and more that's and it's the fulfillment of Mary's prophecy that says he hath put down the mighty from their seat the lofty from their seat of power oh but you see the greatest fulfillment of this prophecy of Mary it really refers to Satan's seat and Satan's power because you see all the world rulers gain their power from Satan listen to what it says in Revelation 13 to it says and the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard and his feet were as the feet of a bear and his mouth of a lion and the dragon gave him his power and his seat and great authority you see Satan is the great dragon that's pictured here and listen there's only one way that Noriego was able and I would watch him and I just knew in my spirit that when they came and covered things that they were going to find voodoo or the occult because I said to myself no man can do all of that or accomplish all that unless he has some other power behind him demonic powers Satanic powers and these men draw that power from Satan but what Mary saw in the spirit or when Mary saw in the spirit what would be the fulfillment of the promised seed that she would bear it was that he hath put down the mighty from their seats and she was talking about the dragon and all to whom he would give power and authority and a seat they were to be knocked right off their seats of their demonic authority hallelujah you remember don't you that this was the very first promise in the Bible regarding the seat of Christ Genesis 3 15 says and I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seat and her seat it will bruise thy head and thou shalt bruise his heel and so when Mary was saying my soul doth magnify the Lord I believe that she was referring to the fact that the birth of Christ meant that that one who was coming on the scene who had the power to unseat Satan from his seat hallelujah and I believe one of the signs that we're coming near the end of time is that the Lord is getting rid of all of the powers that are under the control of the great the great seat of Satan he's getting rid of them because he's about to ready to go to the source hallelujah you see the one thing that had to be put down in order that there be peace on earth and good will to all men is that Satan had to be unseated Jesus spoke of this unseating as he approached the time of his death listen John 12 31 he said now is the time for judgment on this world now the prince of this world will be driven out in other words he is about to be unseated Hebrews 2 14 referring to Christ's death and his purpose he says since the children have flesh and blood he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death that is the devil now you know what that means I said all that to say this do you know what that means to you and I today tonight you see for the child of God who is walking in covenant you and I who were sheltered by the blood of Christ the devil has no seat hallelujah he's like noriega he's like honecker he's like tchescu and all the previous dictators of the past they are unseated hallelujah you and I can walk in victory when we recognize that he has been unseated and Jesus sits in the best seat in the house hallelujah revelation twelve eleven says and they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony remember the triumphant christian does not fight for victory he celebrates the victory already won the victorious victory his life is christ business first and then it's ours by faith and by faithfulness and this is what i believe it means they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony recognizing that christ has already made the way for your victory hallelujah he's unseated satan he's going to do it in the universe but he begins by doing it in our hearts and that brings me to my final point because satan has been unseated we can take our rightful seats hallelujah look at ephesians go to ephesians chapter 2 ephesians chapter 2 contains this incredible promise it says but god who is rich in mercy excuse me chapter 2 in verse 4 it says but god who is rich in mercy god who has his son who sits at his mercy seat sits on a mercy seat for his great love wherein he loved us even while we were dead on our sins hath quickened us together with christ by grace are you saved and hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in christ oh we quote that so often oh i sit in heavenly places but you got to understand how it is he went in and he attained it for you by his own blood he's opened the new and living way and then psalms don't turn there but here's the old testament version of it yeah why don't you go ahead and turn to it psalms 132 11 and 12 i like that this one as well talking about our rightful place since satan has been unseated this is the promise to us we sit together in heavenly places in christ jesus but psalms 132 11 and 12 says the lord has sworn in truth unto david he will not turn from it of the fruit of thy body will i set on thy throne the fruit of thy body will i set on thy throne that's you and i folks we're the fruit we're the body of christ we're the body of christ the fruit of thy body will i set on thy throne that's the same promise as in ephesians and then verse 12 if thy children will keep covenant and testimony that i shall teach them their children shall also sit upon thy throne forevermore glory to god over and over again we're promised that if we keep faithful we're given the privilege to be able to sit in heavenly places with christ on the best seat in the father's house you think that's not true listen this is my second closing isn't it i usually have three but tonight this is just my second one i forgot i'm sorry my wife said to me why do you do that you say you're closing and then you preach another 20 minutes i think that's an unconscious habit i got used to doing that years ago when i used to preach because i realized there were certain people only perked up when the preacher said he's closing and that must have been where i got that from that's an old habit i picked up and i'll try to get rid of that habit but i am closing i want to give you a few biblical examples of those who were given the best seat in the house turn with me to luke chapter 8 this is a testimony that i see we've seen here at times square some of you are living testimony of this luke 8 35 luke 8 35 then they went out to see what was done and they came to jesus and he found the man out of whom the devils were departed and where was he he was he was he was sitting in the best seat in the house he was sitting at the feet of jesus clothed and in his right mind now the wonderful thing about that is where he had been sitting before look at verse 32 verse 31 and they beside him that he would command them to go out into the deep no excuse me that's not where i want oh verse 27 and when he went forth to land there met him out of the city of certain men which had devils long time and wore no clothes neither bowed in any house but in the tombs and when he saw jesus he cried out and fell down before him with a loud voice saying what have i to do with thee jesus thou son of god most high i beseech thee torment me not here was a man who went from the tombs to sitting at the feet of jesus clothed and in his right mind and i want to tell you tonight if you now sit among people who are the living dead i want you to know that you can change seats tonight hallelujah if you're sitting in the tombs you can come and be seated at the feet of jesus clothed and in your right mind hallelujah i remember as i was studying this i remember my mind went way back to a young convert in teen challenge i had taken him up to connecticut to a town up there in a beautiful church and it was a big church with rather a small group of people but people who really loved the lord and we had a wonderful meeting and the young man shared his testimony he was loved and received by the people some had invited him to come back to their home to spend some time with him and it was a very prestigious neighborhood and when the young man left as we were driving back he said brother don i just can't believe what i'm experiencing he said just a few weeks ago you don't know where i was the rooftops that i hung out on the places that i was and he said to think that in just one week i now am in the presence of the lord and i would be he said in my past i had never been able to enter into that kind of a church i had never been able to be received by that kind of people but oh he said god has done what a marvelous thing and it was just symbolic to him in his being received by these people of what had happened to him he had once sat in the tombs but now he sat with the king of kings and the lord of lords and tonight that's what god can do for you if that's where you sit but i want to give you one two more examples matthew nine nine matthew nine nine it says you can turn if you want but i'll read it quickly and as jesus was passed forth from fence he saw a man named matthew sitting sitting at the receipt of custom and he saith unto him follow me and he arose and followed him and the reason i pick out matthew because matthew was not sitting in the tombs he was not sitting unclothed he was not sitting with devil's resident within him he was sitting in a reputable place he had a reputable job he was an irs representative if you please he was sitting at the seat of custom and tonight whether you're sitting in the tombs or whether you're seated at wall street or seated in a very good and reputable position like matthew you see matthew was not seated in some slimy secret ungodly seat he had a good job he had a good seat but no seat is good enough unless you follow jesus now the problem is not that matthew had a secular job the problem was not with matthew's job but it was with his heart because where your treasury is there will your heart be also matthew's heart was where his seat was and all of us you see we have we occupy earthly seats having a secular job there's nothing wrong with that there's nothing wrong with earthly seats as long as in our hearts we are seated in heavenly places in christ jesus and you see sometimes it's easier for the man in the tombs to recognize that he has a bad seat and wants to get out of a bad situation it's a lot harder for a man who has a good seat like matthew but also matthew recognized that that seat was fruitless as well and he got up from that seat and he followed jesus hallelujah and then finally i close with another another one there's a third one there it is i got no more notes proof mary the sister of martha chose the best seat in the house luke 10 38 and 39 now it came to pass as they went that it entered into a certain village and a certain woman martha received him into her house and she had a sister which also sat at jesus feet and heard the word and you know the story mary wanted that seat more than she wanted to be out helping martha and martha complains and jesus said she's chosen the better part you see martha had invited jesus into her house but mary had invited jesus into her heart and that's the key and that's the difference hallelujah she chose to be close next to jesus because that is the best seat in the house hallelujah i don't care where else you seat you're seated in an earthly sense or an earthly realm but as long as you're seated in heavenly places in christ jesus hang your head up you're in the best seat in the house hallelujah hallelujah praise the lord let's stand together let's stand together lord we thank you we thank you lord we thank you that you provided for us a way an access unto you yes lord the best seat in the house hallelujah hallelujah lord thank you thank you that you've invited us to sit with you our home is yet on this earth but our heart is with you our heart is with you lord we're seated with you yes we take seats down here but it's not where we belong we belong with you we're seated in heavenly places lord i pray tonight for some who are not in that seat they're away from you they're in the tombs or they're like matthew they're sitting at the receipt of custom they've got a good seat they've got a good seat as far as this earth is concerned but lord it's not close to your heart lord search out on this night what a what a night lord for somebody to come into right relationship with you what a what a wonderful opportunity lord of this christmas season for someone to know the true meaning of why you came lord draw a heart and hearts to you around this altar lord we plead with you we we intercede before you in behalf of any lord who are here tonight and they're not seated in the right place god convict them bring them lord to you we pray in jesus name amen and amen be pardoned hallelujah and so finally name and got the message he finally got the message and so he went down oh i like this