Text: Philippians 2:5-11
This season, we celebrate, not only Jesus the miracle worker, but Jesus the man. Jesus was fully God and fully human.
To admire is “to be inspired within the soul by the substance of another person.” To admire is different than being amazed. Musicians can amaze us. Athletes can dazzle us. But admiration directs us to the core of a person’s being. Talent can awe us and impress us, but character draws our admiration. You can be a terrible human being and pack out a stadium. That’s why the saying, “You should never meet your heroes” came into being. Often our heroes’ exploits are superior to their character. With Jesus there was no such disparity.
It is the job of the Holy Spirit to increase our admiration of Christ. To inspire within us a longing to more deeply connect with the substance of His person, beyond merely looking to Him for stuff and solutions or to be amazed by His deeds.
To truly celebrate Jesus the man we must be mindful that being here on earth was no easier for Jesus than it is for us. For the Scriptures instruct us that He was subject to the same trials and temptations as we are.
Jesus was fully human and fully divine not “half and half.” That means He felt His humanness as much as we feel ours.
With that in mind, let’s explore our text a little more in depth, focusing on verses 6,7,8.
1. Vs. 6 He did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage.
• He didn’t try to leverage His heavenly status for earthly gain.
• He knew who He was but didn’t seek any special favors for Himself.
• Even though He was the King of Kings, He never treated His disciples like they were His personal subjects.
• He could have turned those stones to bread in the wilderness when the evil one tempted Him to do so.
• Luke 9:58 “Foxes have dens and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay His head.”
• Though He was rich, for our sakes He became poor.
2. Vs. 7 He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant,
• What kind of servant was He?
o He was compassionate. Remember how he touched the leper to heal him.
o He was kind. “Let the children come unto me.”
o He was merciful. Remember the woman the people were about to stone?
o He was truthful and honest. “I’m going to be handed over to the Romans and they’re going to mock me, insult me and spit on me. And you in days to come will be persecuted and killed for My name’s sake.”
o He was a strong but meek leader. Not only did He not have them catering to His personal desires, but in His darkest and most needy hour we find Him washing their feet.
• He lived a difficult life with all these qualities on display.
• He used His powers to serve others but never to make life easier for Himself.
Jesus was demonstrating who He is but also heaven’s culture.
3. Vs. 8 He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!
Let us always remember the Lord did not forget our sins. Instead, the Scriptures in the book of Hebrews chapter 10:17, Jeremiah 31:34; Isaiah 43:5, says He has chosen not to remember them. And that choice is based on the work of Christ.
• Colossians 2:13-14 He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.
All of what Jesus chose to sacrifice, all that He chose to do without, and all that He chose to endure was voluntary. Motivated only by love.
By dying for our sins, He loved us right where we needed it most.
• The people of Jesus earthly days thought they needed a different kind of love. People of today are no different. We seek to live from the outside in, but the Lord knows that life comes from the inside out. And it starts with His love.
• He knew we needed a redemptive love. A love that reconnected us with our Creator. A love that gave us new life. A love that gave us new sight. A love that freed us from the power of the evil one under whose control is the entire world.
Infinite love and Infinite justice met at the cross. Love enough for every human being and justice for every sin.
He knows what kind of love you need each day. He knows what kind of love each of us needs right now.
Everything we have in Christ, everything we celebrate, everything we experience, everything we rejoice in, it all goes back to the cross. That’s where the legitimate purchase of all these benefits took place.
Jesus is not a religious scam. There really are glorious dividends, eternal riches for those who invest in their relationship with Him.
Leave a Reply