#DailyDevotion Following Christ’s Humiliation Will Lead You To His Exaltation
Phil. 2 Now if you are encouraged in Christ, moved by comforting words of love, if you and we have the same Spirit, if you are tender and sympathetic, 2make me very happy – be one in thought and in love, live in harmony, keep one purpose in mind. 3Don’t be selfish or proud, but humbly treat others as better than yourselves. 4Each of you, don’t be interested in your own things, rather in the things of others. 5Think just as Christ Jesus thought: 6Although He was God, He did not consider His being equal with God as a prize to be displayed, 7but He emptied Himself, made Himself a slave, became like other human beings, 8and was seen to have the ways of a man. He became obedient and humbled Himself until He died, yes, died on a cross. 9That is why God also exalted Him up on high and gave Him the name above every other name 10that at the name of JESUS everyone in heaven and on earth and under the earth should kneel, 11and everyone should confess, “JESUS CHRIST IS LORD!” and so glorify God the Father.
Now we must remember that Paul is talking to a Christian congregation. It is only a Christian congregation that can be encouraged in Christ, moved by comforting words of love, have a the same Spirit and be tender and sympathetic. Yet we are not always acting as if this is the case. Of course it is when forget we have these things that we do not act according to them. They are only brought about by the good news of Jesus Christ, whether it is what he has done for you freely by his grace, is doing for you freely by his grace or has promised to do for you freely by his grace. Notice, none of these things are based on the good things you have done.
But if we remember these things given us by Christ Jesus purely by his good graces, then Paul calls us to one thought and love, live in harmony, keep one purpose of mind, not be selfish or proud, humbly treat others better than ourselves and be interested in the welfare of others. Sometimes that seems like a pretty tall order and it is ‘if’ we were calling us to do these of our own power and strength. But he isn’t asking us to do these things of our own power and strength but rather the supernatural power of the Gospel of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Paul further then, in case we have forgotten this power points us again to Jesus. Jesus, being equal to God didn’t show himself, that is, his power, glory and might to us to save us. Instead he emptied himself, became like us in every way. He became obedient to the Father and humbled himself death, even the death of a cross. Believing he did this for our salvation, we are called now to follow in that path. If we believe these things about our LORD and Savior, if we trust he did these things for us, then we will do as he has done. It’s not the way of world. It’s not the way of our fallen nature, our old adam. It is the way Christ Jesus and our new way in him. We will have to repent of our old way, our old adam frequently and humble him and make him obedient to the Spirit.
If this seems hard Paul again points us to Christ Jesus. God the Father raised Jesus to his right hand and exalted him above everything that can be named in heaven and on earth and under the earth. Everything will humble itself before him and proclaim Jesus as the LORD and so glorify the Father. In similar fashion, we should remember that since we are in Christ, our LORD Jesus Christ plans on exalting us before the Father on that day as well. Being humbled in Jesus now, we will be exalted in Jesus as well.
Heavenly Father, grant us a spirit of humility so we may follow in the path of your Son Jesus Christ so we may be exalted with him on the Last Day. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.