Humbled and Exalted

Philippians 2 has a great exposition describing Jesus Christ. Paul begins this section by encouraging us to have the same attitude Jesus had.  Verses 5-11 divide nicely into two parts; Jesus humbled and Jesus exalted. This section has only seven verses, but there is a lot to think about in these verses. 

The gist of verses 5-8 is Jesus humbled. His deity is not questioned. He is God, always has been, and always will be. This omniscient, all-powerful Jesus Christ did not consider His reputation worth hanging onto. He became a human. Jesus was “found in the likeness of men,” is repeated in verses 7 and 8. Think about the limits our Divine Creator took on when He became man. Then when you think you understand it, think about it some more, because this really is incredible! Only in Christianity does the object of our worship become human to save humans. Jesus humbled Himself and became a Man. May our understanding of this truth grow along with our worship of Him. 

Because Jesus was obedient to God, God has highly exalted Him. The name of Jesus is above every name. Think about a name above all names. Whose names are exalted in this world? The names which are exalted fit loosely into five categories: money, sports, music, religion, and politics. These names are common, and on the top 10 list, you probably know most of them. None of them compare with Jesus Christ. The question is, does His name have first place in my life?  

Last week, the population on earth supposedly reached 8 billion. Think about that in the context of every knee bowing and each tongue confessing. Jesus is worthy of all this praise and more. Someday soon, He will receive the worship of all people. May we exalt and worship Him now, while we have a choice. This is the reason for our existence, and it brings purpose to every situation. When we live for His glory, all of life is filled with meaning.  

It is a small section of verses, yet so huge in meaning and impact. God’s Word continues to speak to our culture and more directly to us. I’m not sure if we can grasp deity becoming human, but because He became man and died on the cross, He is worthy of ALL praise. Let’s be faithful in giving Him our praise. 
-Arlin Horst

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