Considering the Humbled and Exalted Christ

“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him, and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:5-11).

There are two sides to Jesus, the human and the divine, that are each meant as an invitation to the non-Christian and as an encouragement to the disciple. The apostle’s call to humility in Philippians 2:5-11 is a call to follow the example of Christ’s humility. And it also is a great help in understanding Jesus, both as man and God.

We must understand Jesus as a man.

1.  To appreciate what He experienced, that His temptations were not as to an unfeeling robot or an alien Superman incapable of weakness.

2.  To see no excuse for ourselves, knowing that if He overcame sin by willpower, not miraculous power, we are guilty when we do not.

3.  To have an example for how to live, such that we learn to compare our living to no one but him, letting Him show the way.

We must understand Jesus as God.

1.  To know where He came from, and to realize that He was not from the earth or a creation of the minds of men.

2.  To see how horrible sin really is, by recognizing and appreciating the price it took for redemption from our sins.

3.  To appreciate the greatest of loves, knowing that God the Father gave His only Son so that we could be reconciled to Him.

Either side without the other is incomplete. Jesus of Nazareth was also Jesus the Christ. The Son of Man was also the Son of God. The Father’s plan shows us both. “The world became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself shared in the same…” (Hebrews 2:14-15).
 

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