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Philippians 2.8-
February 23rd 2020
MILK
So, we left off with Paul writing:
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
And we spoke all about those verses last week especially as they related to His identity as God and then about His humility – his consummate unbelievable humility.
Before we go on, Dave brought a thought up to me afterward than has really resonated with my heart this week.
As believers we often regale (and rightfully so) the majesty, the power, the omnipotence and omniscience and omnipresence of God, but what about his extremes in the other direction?
Is it possible that few of us will know him or receive Him in full because we miss the additional facts of the utter humility abiding in his person?
We understand his majesty in terms of power and glory but what about the majesty in incomprehensible humility – as evidenced by Jesus in His condescension and mortal life?
I thought that that was a fantastic thought and something we don’t often hear or consider.
So after discussing Jesus humility from heaven to earth, from man to servant, Paul adds a verse we read but did not cover, saying:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Let’s cover this passage before moving on, so –
Jump back with me to verse 5, which says:
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in
the likeness of men:
(And then adds)
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
“And being found in fashion as a man.”
Remember from last week, that he knew, in that flesh in which he found Himself, that he had “the full majesty of God within him,” and then here we see that when he found himself, or being found in the fashion of a man, knowing his origins,
“He humbled himself.”
Which takes us back to that voluntary humiliation He took upon himself and that this is the context of Paul’s point to the believers at Philippi – to do the same.
But in this case we have Paul telling us that the means by which he humbled himself was that he “became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
I find that line, “became obedient unto death,” is really intriguing – and in so many ways. Obedient unto death.
The Greek word translated “obedient” means “attentive listening” to, and then “submissive to . . . DEATH.”
Let’s talk for a minute about Jesus and death and the relationship between the two – which is profound.
First of all – and this is important – when Jesus and a lot of scripture speaks of death, the death that they speak to is usually spiritual death, or the death where we are separated from God.
We know this from Jesus saying things like in John 8:51
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.”
We know that in the physical sense that this is not true – we all see death in the flesh – even though he overcame physical death for all in His resurrection. So, remember that often in scripture, death means spiritual death, going to hell, the lake of fire and being separated from the presence of God forever.
Secondly, we know what is the cause of this spiritual “death” – which is what scripture calls the second death, and what it that?
SIN – sin brings forth death
James said in James 1:15
“. . . When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”
Then we know what causes death – the Law.
In the Old testament, when the COI broke the law, the punishment, result, product of breaking the Law was often physical death, which was a type for spiritual death
Matthew 15:4 says “For God commanded (LAW) , saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.”
Therefore, the breaking of God’s law, which was sin – missing the mark – was death. Similarly we read in Mark what they charged Jesus with – blasphemy – and then concluded that he was worthy of death.
We could go on and on with Laws of God and the punishment of death for breaking those laws.
Paul calls the Law in 2nd Corinthians 3:7
“the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones,”
For this reason, Paul wrote in Romans 7:5
For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
And then he adds Romans 7:10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.
We read in 1st Corinthians 15:56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
Ultimately in Romans 7 Paul adds, knowing that he was guilty of breaking the Law
O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
And we come to our answer to Pauls query in 1st Peter where he wrote
1st Peter 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
Of course, we know when and how Christ suffered for sins “the just for the unjust” it was when he became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, being put to death thereon.
So, his death freed us from the Law which is called the Law of Sin and Death.
Paul wrote in Romans 8:2
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free . . . from the law of sin and death.
How? Its quite amazing. He took all of our sin upon himself, who had obeyed the Law of Sin and Death perfectly, then being obedience to the death of the cross, hung there, and all of the Law was nailed to that cross (by His body which was perfect in the Law) and in doing this, he overcame the Law of sin and death, and the accuser of men according to the Law.
Listen to what Colossians 2:13-15 says
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
So in this death, this obedience to death even the death of the cross, Jesus
Tasted spiritual and physical death for every person on earth, remembering that sin is the breaking of the Law and the law is the strength of sin.
Overcoming the law by obedience, when His obedient flesh was nailed to the cross, so was the law, and so then, was sin and death. And in this way he TASTED DEATH FOR EVERY MAN
Hebrews 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
This opened up for the world a new testament – did you know that? That the former testament or covenant was established in Laws written in stone, but the New Testament was established in and through His flesh, which he offered up in obedience to death
Listen to Hebrews 9:15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. (And then the writer adds)
16 For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.
So, by and through his obedience to death, we have all be loosed from the chains of the grave. Peter, on the day of Pentecost put it this way to three thousand Jews, saying and speaking of Jesus
Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it (meaning death).
Prior to His death we, the human race, were all subject to death (both physical and spiritual) because of Adam.
Paul makes this clear, saying in Romans 5:12
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
And then verse 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
And then 17 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.
And finally verse 5:21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
And as a result we are all resurrected from the Grave and from the confines of physical death.
1st Corinthians 15:21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
And at verse 54 of this same chapter Paul adds, speaking of the resurrection
“So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
And then he adds
55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
See in Christ, because of Christ, those who are His are rendered without sin, without the law, and therefore reconciled to God through His offering.
Colossians 1:22 says:
In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:
Therefore, and again, His obedience to death reconciles us to God as Paul wrote in Romans 5:10
For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
And this means we have passed from walking in the realms of death to life as
1st John 3:14 reads
We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
And the Gospel of John says 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
Isn’t that remarkable! That in and through Him we pass from death – walking death in sin and trespassed and into the holy presence of God which is life.
And then having stepped into life, from the shadows of death, we actually participate in His death burial and resurrection – spiritually, since in the New Testament we are spiritual beings, citizens of a heavenly kingdom.
This is why Paul wrote in Romans 6:4-5:
“Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
And Philippians 3:10 where he writes:
That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
And Romans 6:3 where Paul says
“Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?”
Finally, and this is takes his death and the value of it to new heights – His death abolishes death, and all the powers and participants of death – forever.
Paul wrote in 2nd Timothy 1:10 But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:
In order to abolish death – all death forever, Jesus had to abolish the one who held the power of death over the world – Satan. And so we read in Hebrews 2:14
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.”
In the first chapter of Revelation Jesus said to them then, before returning and sealing the deal forevermore
1:18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.
Between this announcement and His return to His own with Judgment and Reward, there was in place something called the Second death.
In Revelation 2:11 Jesus says to the believers then: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.”
His first death overcame the grave and opened up the doors of hell, emptying her contents up.
But there remained a second death for them them – and Revelation speaks to its reality often.
Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
In Revelation 20:6 we read to them/then:
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
And then in Revelation 20:13-14 describing the end of everything related to that age we read:
“And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.”
Then Paul in 1st Corinthians 15:26, describing the coming of Jesus for and to His own says plainly:
“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.”
Because Jesus, holy, pure, eternal and humble, was “obedient unto death, even the horrific death of the cross,” death in the spiritual sense, in the afterlife is no more.
The world has been reconciled to God and the last enemy that was destroyed was death. Not physical – that will always abide for the physical world – but not beyond, where all experience a spiritual resurrection, and enter into heavenly realms where death is no more.
And then, in the face of all of this, Paul now adds:
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Alright, verse 9
9 Wherefore . . . Wherefore, God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
As a result of, in light of Jesus of Nazareth’s human decision and choice to humble himself and choose obedience to death, even the death of the cross, God also has highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name.
This line adds to the complexity of Jesus and His makeup because in the phrasing we see that “God also hath highly exalted him.”
GOD (has highly exalted) HIM
GOD/HIM
He, Jesus of Nazareth, born of a woman, born under the law,
Hebrews 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
This Jesus “made” – a man, with a human mind, will and emotion – chose, by God in Him, to submit himself, and GOD
“hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:”
Yeshua Christos – only He is the Christ, none other. His name is above all other names given in heaven or earth – the anointed one. He ranks in dignity, majesty, glory, and honor above all others forever more because this dignity is what caused the living God to say at Jesus of Nazareth resurrection from the dead:
YOU are my SON, this day I have begotten YOU.
And God with us, in and through the flesh of a mortal, reconciled the world to himself, and then highly exalted the one through whom He did it, bestowing on him a name upon Him that was and is forever more above all others – His Son, begotten by Him.
He stands alone. Only He is Redeemer, Savior, Anointed. And because of this Paul now says:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
If you are a biblical literalist you would have to interpret this passage as meaning when the actual name of Jesus is said all will bow.
But there is a more reasonable interpretation of this to be had. The name of something or someone, in ancient Hebrew, was presentative of the whole of the person.
There are churches on earth that have taken this passage literally and whenever Jesus name is said everyone takes a knee. I’m not so sure this was the meaning or intent of Paul’s words.
To me the better understanding of this is that His person – and all that he represents, will ultimately cause all – in heaven or earth or under the earth – to honor him, submit to Him, and pay proper obeisance to Him as Lord and Savior.
To emphasize His place over all “things” Paul adds that knees will bow, and because this phrasing in the Greek is in the neuter plural and better yet the masculine neuter plural, it seems to describe beings instead of things.
This imagery Paul uses is in all probability taken from Isaiah 45:22-23 where we read:
“Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.”
Heaven, earth and under the earth is a way for Paul to say the entire universe in my estimation, or “all that is above, around, and beneath us.”
And then the added line,
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
I want to point a few things out before wrapping this segment up that we have been on since last week.
In these passages we find some strong distinction between Jesus and God – they are very present – even in this last passage where the universal confession is “Jesus is Lord” and that this confession is to “the glory of the Father, whom Paul makes plain in 1st Corinthians 8:6 when he says:
“But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.”
This God, in the Man Jesus Christ, accomplished all things out of His love for the world, and this God, placed all things in the hands of His Son, our Lord and Savior, and every knee will bow to Him, and every tongue will confess that He is our Lord TO the Glory of the Father.
We note also that Paul says in 1st Corinthians 12:3 that
“no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.”
So if every tongue is to confess that Jesus is LORD, to the Glory of the father, and since no man can say that Jesus is LORD but by the influence of the Holy Spirit, to me I see these passages as supporting a full reconciliation of the world to the Father by the victory of His Son.
But we also know that just because someone says, Lord Lord does not make them a disciple. And so while there is a reconciliation, there is also a difference between His efficacious works and only some becoming His.
We note, with all respect and all due benevolence, that every tongue is confessing that “Jesus Christ is Lord and not God.”
The word Lord, here, is used in its primitive and proper sense describing a ruling reigning owner, king and noble.
And this would honor God the Father with glory.
And I want to wrap our time up discussion this relationship.
In John 5:22-23 we read
22 For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: 23 That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father which hath sent him.
To honor is to esteem, reverence, praise, and pay homage to. We honor one when we ascribe to him in our hearts, and words, and actions the praise and obedience which are due to him.
We honor God when we obey him and worship him aright. We honor the Son when we esteem him to be as he is; when we have right views and feelings toward him.
John 1:1 declares him to be God (in John 1:1) and here in John 5:23 we read that he has power and authority equal with God, so we honor him when we regard him as such.
The primitive Christians are described by Pliny, in a letter to the Emperor Trajan, as meeting together to sing hymns to Christ as God.
So we honor him rightly when we regard him as possessed of wisdom, goodness, power, eternity, omniscience — equal with God – because He was God with us – in the body of a man.
Since the Son is to be honored EVEN AS the Father, it follows that he must be equal with the Father.
Those who do not honor the Son cannot honor the father. We honor the Son as our Lord, King Savior, redeemer and we honor the Father as our God – to render homage to the one (Son) is to render homage to the other (the Father).
It is the will of the Father that His Son be honored. To refuse this is to refuse the will of the Father.
To deny the Son is to deny the Father.
The same drives that leads us to honor the Father will lead those who honor Him in truth to honor the Son, for, as Hebrews 1:3 says, he is “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person.”
To be Christian is to worship God in spirit and truth – and the truth of the matter is, God gave us His Son to be received by faith.
By virtue of the very words of the scripture it would be impossible to worship God without receiving His Son.
And only those who have received the Son by faith have the ability, the power, the ability, to then become sons and daughters themselves.
So while I am very open to God reconciling the whole world to Himself by and through His Son, I am equally strident in maintaining that there is zero access to the father without the Son and there is zero chance of being a son or daughter of God without faith in the Son and His abiding spirit moving us from our flesh and into the kingdom of the Spirit.
And we will pick it up at verse 12 next week.
Questions, comments.
Prayer
