Philippians 2:5-11 The Importance of Being

Philippians 2:5-11

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Background

In the endeavor of building a heavenly community and to expand God’s Kingdom on earth, Paul stresses on the importance of first being the right person as opposed to doing the things. By using a concrete model of Jesus Christ, the virtues of humility and obedience are exemplified. Believers must endeavor to put on the virtues of Christ through which our work will find true significance and to bear fruit.

Observation

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,

Paul gives a concrete model of humility through the example of Jesus Christ whom believers must emulate. Christ possesses the glory and divine attributes that truly and fully expresses Him as God: he was in the form of God. His glory and divine attributes includes: a gloried body and appearance, his righteous character, His holiness and transcendence in relation to creation, His authority and power over all things. Even as He is God and has every right to hold on to His glory and divine attributes, He gave up what is rightly His for the sake of humanity: … did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.

… but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

In order for humanity to be saved, a sacrifice of the highest price is necessary: God has to become mortal, judged by a corrupted human court and die in shame before the world. The word emptied depicts giving up his immortal attributes and rights in exchange for humanity’s mortal nature: being born in the likeness of men. Taking the form of servant describes His lowly heritage being born to a carpenter’s family. The below gives a lists of immortal attributes that Christ emptied Himself of.

Immortal – Mortal attributes:

1. He has authority over humanity – He is under authority and is judged by man.
2. He is transcendent and the darkness of the world cannot tempt Him – He is in the world and is exposed to all its temptations.
3. He is immortal and cannot experience bodily weakness and suffering – He is fully mortal and experience physical tiredness, suffering and death.
4. He has divine cognitive and emotional qualities – He has cognitive and emotional qualities of an ordinary human being that conforms to the phases of normal human development.

The above are conditions that must be met in Jesus in order for humanity to be saved: He must lose His immortality and become an ordinary man; Christ must first give up His divine rights and attributes indefinitely in order to restore creation back to God.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

In order for humanity to be saved, Christ must not only give up His divine attributes indefinitely: being found in human form, He must descend to the lowest point of unimaginable suffering, shame and condemnation. Death refers to everything that is antithetic to a heavenly life: mental anguish, horror, sorrow, hopelessness, infinite emotional, physical and spiritual torment. The cross represents the verdict of shame and condemnation, where Christ accepted full responsibility of humanity’s sins.

Paul surfaces two virtues that led Christ to fulfill His calling through a shameful and tormenting death: humility and obedience. Christ in humbling Himself puts the interests and wellbeing of humanity above His own. He expresses that humility by indefinitely giving up His immortal attributes and privileges in exchange for human mortal weakness. While Christ did not appear to struggle with that decision, He did however struggle at the point of the cross. For He could not fully understand, after all that He has done in giving up His immortal attributes, the cross remains a necessary step. He struggled with the insufficiency of all that He has done to the point of the cross. When reason eludes Him, in obedience Christ said, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39). Christ shows us the perfect example of obedience; that even when reason and the burden of justice fails to provide Him an answer, He obeys.

Truth

1. Humility and obedience are the two most precious commodities in the universe. Humility is to others as what obedience is to God. Humility is an attitude of seeing others as more important and putting their interests above our own. Obedience is acting upon God’s instructions even though we may not fully understand or when every cell in our body cries out in disagreement. In humility we must believe that everyone has potential and bring out the best in them by speaking the truth concerning their strengths and shortcomings. In obedience, we depend on God’s instructions for the day and never depend on our own understanding (see Proverbs 3:5-6).
2. God can do much more through a person who is humble and obedient than through one who is gifted and wealthy. Before God can use a person, he must first learn to walk with God one day at a time, by meditating on God’s word and by receiving His instructions for each day. He must also learn not to focus on his own importance or problems but to put God’s work and the needs of others before His own. God’s ultimate purpose is to use the individual to bless the community, and He does it through His ways that we may never fully understand. He entrusts physical resources and imparts gifts to a humble and obedient person because he can be trusted to release them for God’s purposes.
3. The key to a fulfilling life is found in the being, not in the doing. Hence, we are calling human beings, not human doings. Society expects us to be busy, always doing things and being action orientated. Christians go about relentlessly doing things in hopes of fulfilling God’s call in their lives. However, man’s primary calling is not to fulfill certain tasks or commission but to become like Christ in His humility and obedience. Paul says, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:29. Work is a derivative of one’s being, it flows out of his character. Jesus say, “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45. Therefore, we must put more effort in being the right person, and then our work will bear much fruit.

Application

1. In order to get others to cooperate with you, you must first treat them right by being quick to listen and slow to speak; by believing in their potential despite their weaknesses; by focusing more on their attitudes than their results; by putting their interests before your own and to be fair and righteous in all your dealings.
2. Do you spend more time thinking about the needs of others than your own? Do you plan your day by depending on God’s instructions or do you depend on your own ideas?
3. When something goes wrong, do you examine your attitudes or do you tend to blame it on circumstances?

Dear Lord, I thank you for humbling yourself and putting my interests before your own. Help me to always be sensitive to the needs of others and give me wisdom to help those in need. As I seek to hear you more clearly, instruct me the way that I should go. Give me patience to wait upon you and to learn to be obedient to your leading. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.