That's Philippians chapter 2. This evening we're going to look at that great hymn of Christ, verses 5 through 11. Last week we looked at Peter's discussion of humility, and then Paul also discusses humility as well, but then he gives the greatest example of it, namely in the great condescension of our Lord Jesus Christ. Not only in his condescension, but also in his life, death, and resurrection.
So Philippians chapter 2, verses 5 through 11. We're going to read verses 1 through 11 to set the context for us. Read with me. Philippians chapter 2, verses 1 through 11.
Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation by taking the form of a bondservant and by coming in the likeness of men.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted him, and given him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Amen. Let us pray.
Opening Prayer
O Lord, our God, who is man that you are mindful of him? Who are we that you consider us, and you stoop low to us, O God? We do thank you, O God, that you are the true and the living God, and that Christ our Lord, Christ our King, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself of no reputation, that we who are of no reputation might be exalted with him, might receive a glorious body with him, might be to praise his glorious name for saving us and calling us out of darkness for those that have believed on Christ Jesus. May this humble us, O God.
May this cause us to think right concerning you, and may this cause us to think right of ourselves and right concerning others. Let us love one another with that posture of service. Let us care for one another so much so that we do not grasp the things of this world, but let them go for your sake and for your glory. But, O God, we do pray, ultimately, that Christ our King would be magnified and would be glorified, and that we would praise His name this day, for this day is your Lord's Day, as we come to celebrate the great resurrection of Christ our King.
May we give you the honor and glory that is due unto you. May we sing the praises that are due unto you, O God, for how majestic are your ways in all the earth. How we praise you for your works, the great works of salvation, O God. and each and every one of us who have believed on Christ, you have worked in us. We truly confess that Christ does save his people from their sins, for by your mercy and by your providence and through your spirit and through the preaching, you have worked in us to show us our need for Christ, show us our sin, and grant us the gift of faith that enables us to believe on Christ our King.
For those that do not know Christ today, oh God, we pray that you would grant them that gift of faith, that you would regenerate their hearts, show them their need for Christ, that they might look to this one, look to this humble king, look to this servant, and find everlasting life, find joy and ending in the hope of the gospel. For those that are believers here today, may we be edified by your word, by what you say to us in this text. And may you help us and strengthen us to have the mind of Christ, even though we fail so often. As we seek to have the mind of Christ, may we continually look to Christ, our King.
And we pray, O God, that ultimately you would be glorified in all things. In the name of Christ, amen.
Introduction
Well, the Book of Philippians is written by the Apostle Paul when he is in prison, and he is writing for the purpose of to give thanks to the people, to encourage the people, and to give them some exhortations in the times and in the midst of potential trials that might come. And one of the themes we see throughout the Book of Philippians is the theme of unity of mind. which is what Paul discusses for us in verses 1 through 4 of chapter 2. And one of the ways that we can have unity of mind with one another is humility towards one another. And perhaps then Paul goes on to explain after he gives this charge, he goes on to show us the great example of humility.
The great one who showed us the great condescension that no other man has ever engaged in. in the gospel of free and sovereign grace, in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And so we see here in Philippians 2, verse 5 through 11, that after Paul calls these Philippians to consider others better than themselves, he shows them this great example of humility found in Christ our King. And that is the main thrust, that is the main focus, namely what Christ has done to demonstrate, to show this lowliness of mind as he considers others better than himself. as he looks not only for his own interests, but for the interests of others, mainly for the salvation of his people. And so we will look at this key theme of Christ under three main considerations this evening.
We will look, first of all, at the King who came in verses 5 through 7. Secondly, we will look at the King who died in verse 8. And lastly, we will look at the King who is exalted in verses 9 through 11. So the King who came, the King who died, and the King who is exalted.
The King Who Came
So let's first look now at the King who came, verses 5 through 7. Notice what he says. Let this mind be, in verse 5, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. You see, this very verse ties in what we've already read and talked about briefly in verses 1 through 4.
As we see, Paul says, let nothing be done through selfish ambition. Let nothing be done to show to be done out of our own interest, but for the interest of others. So then he goes on to say, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ our King. So when he says we must have unity of mind together, we must seek to put on the mind of Christ.
And one of the ways what Christ does for us is He is the greatest example of humility, of engaging in that posture of service. And Paul goes on to explain what these actually are, what the great example of Christ, how He demonstrates humility. Because then he goes on to say in verses 12 through 18, he goes on to show that we must work out our salvation with fear and trembling. We must shine as lights in this world.
You see, the imperative, the command in verse 5 and in verses 12 through 18 is very much rooted in the gospel. Rooted in the truth of the gospel, namely in the work of Christ our King. And so he gives them this charge that we must have this mind of Christ, have this humility to look like our Savior. And he goes on to explain how Christ humbled himself.
If you think you're humble, I encourage you to look at our Savior. If you think that you are not prideful, I encourage you to look at the great lengths through which our Savior engaged in humility. Notice what Paul says in verse 6, who being in the form of God. Now this word form of God certainly does highlight the nature of Christ.
He is fully God. He is I Am. He is from everlasting to everlasting. But the very language of form of God is highlighting something else.
Namely, the radiance of God. The radiance of Christ our King as He visibly displays Himself throughout the Old Testament before He came into the world. You see, the focus of this text is very much on status. Who is Christ before He became incarnate and even after He became incarnate?
He is God Almighty. He was there at the beginning. He was there when the world was created. He was in the beginning with God and God created the world through Him.
His great axe we see throughout the Old Testament. He was there. He is God when He brought the Egyptians out of slavery, out of bondage, and into the Promised Land. Perhaps the best way to describe what Paul is getting at here is what we see in Hebrews 1, 3.
Albeit after Christ is incarnate, He is the radiance of the glory of God. He is the exact imprint of His nature. And certainly if one is the form of God, he must be equal with God. But nonetheless, the idea that Paul is highlighting here is the glory of God.
The manifestation of the glory of God as we see it in the Old Testament. We read this in Psalm 45, as Pastor Butler read this already for us. Who is this One? You are fairer than the son of men.
Grace is upon your lips. Therefore, God has blessed you forever. Gird your sword upon your thigh, oh mighty one, with your glory and your majesty. And in your majesty, ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness.
And your right hand shall teach you awesome things. Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies. The peoples shall fall under you. Psalm 145 also highlights the majesty of God.
I will extol you, my God, O King. I will bless your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless you and will praise your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable.
One generation shall praise your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. I will meditate on the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works. Men shall speak of the might of your awesome acts, and I will declare your greatness. They shall utter the memory of your great goodness, and shall sing of your righteousness.
The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works. And we could continue. But what does Moses say in Exodus 34?
He says, Lord, show me your glory. And as he passes by, the Lord proclaims his name. The very same thing we just read in Psalm 145. The Lord, the Lord, a God gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
And we could continue on and on, but the focus is highlighting the pinnacle of glory, the highest being there is in this world, the only, the being who is completely wholly other than what we are. He is the highest of them all. And that's the focus of the text, because he's contrasting between Christ being in the form of God, but also in the form of a bondservant. And we'll get to that in a moment.
Equal with God, Yet Not Grasping
who being in the form of God, notice what he says after that. He did not consider it robbery to be equal with God. I'll be honest with you, this word robbery is a difficult word to understand. Guess how many times it's used in the New Testament?
Once. Here. Guess how many times it's used in the Old Testament? Zero.
Guess how many times it's used in non-biblical Greek? Five or six. So it's a very difficult word to understand, but nonetheless, I think the context helps us understand what it means. And to be honest with you, I'm not a big fan of the term robbery here.
I think a better translation based on the context is, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, as the new King James says in the margin, or something to be held onto to be equal. You see, Christ is equal with God, and He does possess that right, if you will. But the focus is on Christ who didn't necessarily forsake that right, but took on the form of a servant, took on human nature. This One who is the highest of all the beings became the lowest.
He went from, perhaps we can say, in a very limited way of understanding the humility that we see here. It's like a king becoming a peasant. It's like a prince becoming a pauper. A CEO becoming a homeless man.
And I know it doesn't even grip the truth in any sort of way that we can fully understand. But that's what Paul is trying to highlight here for us. He's the radiance of the glory of God. And yet he did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, to be held on to, that he could not let it go for the sake of others.
Not saying that Christ gave up his divinity. We'll talk about that in just a moment. But nonetheless, he did not consider it something to be grasped. And then he goes on to say, in verse seven,
Made of No Reputation
but made himself of no reputation. I think the King James nails this translation here. You see, this is the translation that some say means he emptied himself, and some say that then that means that he emptied himself of his divinity, some divine attributes, namely his omnipresence and his omniscience. Because they're trying to highlight so much his true humanity.
What do you do when you take away an attribute of God? First of all, you certainly say that God can change. But you also then mix the two natures of Christ, do you not? If Christ limits himself, then is there not a conflation between his humanity and his divinity, so much so that we want to highlight his humanity, that we diminish his deity, which is what goes on when people think that this word means he emptied himself of his divine attributes?
The focus here is again on that idea of status. He made himself of no reputation. He made himself of no reputation. He divested himself of position or prestige, perhaps we could say.
And I think the following words highlight further how he does that. You know, you could actually translate he emptied himself, if we did some good Greek grammar here in verse 7, he emptied himself or made himself of no reputation, by taking the form of a bondservant and by coming in the likeness of men." Those words are indicating how he made himself of no reputation, namely by taking on human flesh, by taking on human nature, perhaps by the word becoming flesh and dwelling with man. You see, man is not the pinnacle being. God Almighty is.
And so when God, the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God, condescends to us, comes, becomes incarnate, that is great humility, brothers and sisters. That is a great demonstration of considering others better than himself. And then he further explains, he comes in the form of a bondservant and by coming in the likeness of men. You see, we need him to be God, and we need him to be man, but we need him... there must not be any conflation between the two.
One Person, Two Natures
We confess, with the definition of Chalcedon, that there's one person with two natures. Not any conflation between the natures, but not so much as if there's two persons with two natures, but one person with two natures. And as our forefathers wrote many years ago, he's unchangeable, inconfused, if you will, and indivisible and inseparable. It's an addition, if you will, not change.
And when some say that he emptied himself of divine attributes, they say that he changed. He did not change. He took on human flesh. Because it is man who sinned against God, and it is man who is required to fulfill the law and perfection, and man who is required to make sacrifice or to bear the punishment that man deserves.
But he must be God, because only God is perfect. So we have this great mystery of one person with two natures. And what you can say about the nature, you can say about the person. But what you say about one nature, you cannot say about the other.
Do you catch that? What you say about the nature, you can say about the person of Christ. But you cannot say that because he is omnipresent in his divinity, that he is now omnipresent in his humanity. You cannot say that.
Who is this one, one person, two natures, without conflation or separation? He is the God-man. And we see here very much this humility of Christ in coming and taking the likeness of us, we see his condescension towards us, we see his love towards us. You know, in 2 Corinthians chapter 8, he says, Paul says, though he was rich, for our sakes he became poor. that very much aptly describes what Christ went through by considering others better than himself, by taking the form of a servant, that we who are lowly, we who deserve punishment, might have everlasting life.
We see the condescension and the unchanging love that God has for his people in the incarnation, in the humility of Christ our King. Let us ponder that, let us consider that, let us meditate on these great truths that this Christ, who is in the form of God, made himself of no reputation. So we see this King who came, this Christ who became incarnate.
The King Who Died
Let us look then, secondly, at the King who died in verse 8. Now if Christ just became incarnate, that would be a great evidence of humility. But he doesn't come in the form of a king, in human sense. He comes in the form of a bondservant, right?
He's born in a manger. And notice what Paul says, being found in the appearance as a man, he humbled himself. by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." Now, this word appearance here, there's some who argued throughout history that Christ only appeared to be man. That's not what this word means. It actually means He was man.
So that's kind of just a quick overview of that. The recognized state or form in which something appears, namely, as a man. And that's exactly what He is. He is fully man.
I mean, Paul highlights that further with verse 8, with verse 7. But he said, notice, He humbled Himself. We looked at that word last week, didn't we? That inward disposition.
That humility is something that is inward, not so much outward. But the thing that Paul is highlighting perhaps here in a more intensified sense is that, again, that idea of losing that status. Losing that prestige. Something that he doesn't feel he must grasp.
But it's done again, especially with slaves. Slaves were supposed to engage in humility. Slaves were supposed to be the ones who were the lowest of the low. And you see, in the ancient world, the primary currency that they trafficked in was the idea of honor and shame.
And in honor and shame, it was determined what was honorable by those of the culture. And I'll be honest with you, being a slave was not the highest of the high, but it was the lowest of the low. And so he humbled himself. And notice further how he humbled himself.
Again, I think we need to add the word by here, not and.
Obedient unto Death
He humbled himself. How did he do that? By becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death. of the cross. John Gill highlights that Christ's obedience is not only in his death, but in his entire life.
How did he humble himself? By becoming man, by being subject to parents, by becoming a carpenter, by conversing with the meanest of men, washing disciples' feet, compliance with God the Father's will. As Hebrews 5 highlights, he was tempted and engaged in full human experience, yet he was without sin. In many places we see him hungering and thirsting and weeping and tired and sleepy.
We've even seen several instances where we see his anguish as he goes before the Father in Gethsemane. But He obeys the Father. Even there, we see His obedience to do what God the Father requires of Him. In a lot of ways, we see that great covenant of redemption in action, don't we?
You see, the Father appointed the Son to be the Savior of His people, and the Son willingly offered Himself to be that Savior for His people. And that's what Christ does by being obedient in His life. But not only being obedient in His life, but being obedient unto the point of death, which shows how far Christ, the measure of which He is willing to be obedient, going to the point of death, even so much so that He would die the death on the cross.
The Shame of the Cross
Talk about being humiliated, brothers and sisters. Talk about utter shame when it comes to the cross. One historian writes that during the Romans times that the cross is for dangerous criminals or members of the lowest classes. He says crucifixion satisfied the primitive lust for revenge and the sadistic cruelty of individual rulers and of the masses connected with other forms of torture like flogging.
And to make matters even worse, perhaps sometimes we have seen pictures that we shouldn't see of Christ, but nonetheless there is a garment covering him. That's not the case, brothers and sisters. Victims were displayed naked and usually in prominent places, with most of the men never being buried. Utter shame and humiliation.
Utter pain and utter torture. Certainly physically, but also mentally as well. He's crucified as the lowest of low. He's hung out there that we might have everlasting life.
He's borne the punishment and shame that we should have. For our sake, brothers and sisters, and we haven't even got to the wrath of God being poured out on him yet. Humanly speaking, This is one of the worst deaths ever. This is the worst death ever.
Not only in the pain that they would feel on his body, but also in being humiliated before others as well. And not only is he humiliated in front of others, not as a huge sign or a huge evidence of humiliation, but we also see the wrath of God is poured out on him for our sakes. We deserve eternal punishment. We deserve eternal damnation.
But God bruised him. God poured out his wrath upon him, the wrath that you and I deserve for eternity, that we might have everlasting life. A great evidence of humility, brothers and sisters. A great evidence of condescension.
A great evidence of showing that servant attitude towards us, that we might have everlasting life.
Isaiah 53 and the Servant's Suffering
And very much I think Isaiah 53 is in the background of what Paul is saying here. The one we refer to so often and so frequently, Isaiah 53, that servant song. He is that man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from him.
He was despised and we did not esteem him. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions.
He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed. We are like sheep that have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Skipping down to verse 10. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He has put him to grief. When you make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
He shall see the labor of his soul and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my righteous servant shall justify many. for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul unto death, and he was numbered with the transgressors, and he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." Does this humble you, brothers and sisters? Does this bring you low?
We are thankful for this One who was obedient. We're thankful for this King who did come, who became a peasant, that we might have everlasting life. So we've seen the King who came. We've seen the King who died.
The King Who Is Exalted
Let us look lastly then at the King who is exalted, verses 9 through 11. Notice the connection between his obedience and his exaltation. Therefore God. Therefore God has highly exalted him and given him the name that is above every other name.
And this, I think, highlights back to Isaiah 52 this time, verse 13. You see that word for exalted here is another rare word in the New Testament. It's only found once here, but it's found also in Isaiah 52, verse 13. 52, verse 13. Isaiah writes, Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, and he shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.
You see, God has exalted him and given him the name that is above every other name, but he did that through resurrecting him, raising him from the dead, which is what Paul says in Romans chapter 1. He descended, he was a descendant of David, concerning his son Jesus Christ our Lord, in verse 3 of chapter 1, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead. And because Christ, this judicial verdict that is granted to this one. You see that God gives Him the thing that God the Father gives the Son what He promised Him.
He exalts Him and gives Him a name that is above every other name. But not only that, He gives them a people as well. That you and I, who are His, might have everlasting life. You and I that are His might, as we, when we die or when Christ comes, we shall experience fully everlasting life.
But we do that through praising God, our King. Why do we come on Sundays, brothers and sisters? We come to praise Him for His salvation, praise Him for His work, for the things that He has done. He's the name that is above every other name, the name that has been granted to Him.
You see, Christ's name is exalted and it's also exhorted. Because every, verse 10, the name of Jesus,
Universal Praise of Christ's Name
every knee should bow of those in heaven and those on earth and those under the earth. Highlighting the universal scope in which he shall be praised. He is the true and living God, and He is the one who deserves His praises. And I think we can see an evidence of that in the ministry of the Apostle Paul, because Isaiah 45 prophesies the salvation of the Gentiles.
Paul then speaks about that, quotes Isaiah 45 in Romans 14, praising God for the fact that the salvation of the Gentiles has come. Every tribe, every tongue will praise His name. Because it is a difficult phrase to deal with. Those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth.
But I think it does highlight the universal nature with which He shall be praised. And isn't that true in a lot of ways in which we see today? Many of different tribes and tongues and nations praising the name of Christ for His cross work, for His incarnation, for His humiliation. and exalting Him, for He is God Almighty. As one writer says, this lame Lord, for Paul, Lord is a title of majesty, reflecting the regal lordship of the risen Christ over the living and the dead.
God made Jesus Lord at the resurrection as a consequence of which He now shares with the Father over all creation and the right to universal adoration. as Paul says in Ephesians chapter 1 verses 20 and 21, which he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places far above all principalities and power and might and dominion and every name that is named not only in this age but also in that which is to come. We come to church and we see foretastes of heaven. As we walk along that road to the celestial city, we come and experience glimpses of what heaven shall be like. We hear God speaking to us through the Word.
We hear it, we come to sing praises to our God for salvation. And it gives us that taste, that longing, that as we press on in our trials, and there are many trials, that God Almighty, this exalted one, is carrying us and bringing us home to the celestial city. And there we shall praise Him and honor Him and bow before Him. And even as we do bow now, hopefully not as often as we should, but we praise Him and give Him honor that is due unto Him.
And as Paul says at the end in verse 11, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Application
You know what's interesting? As we go through this text, sometimes we forget that it's an exhortation. And he's giving an example, don't we? I almost feel like Paul is almost forgetting that as you see his enthusiasm come out, perhaps as he's dictating or writing this.
You see him just getting fired up as he's speaking or writing this very thing. We forget that verse 5 is the command that then is rooted in the gospel. We forget that we see in the gospel of free and sovereign grace this one who humbled himself, and that we should have this mind of Christ, not for salvation, but because we have been saved. If you think you're humble, brothers and sisters, look again.
He did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, to be held onto. How often do we hold on to our status so much so that we cannot let it go for the sake of others? Yet he did this for our sake that we might have everlasting life. Behold, brothers and sisters, your humble king.
Well, in conclusion then, brothers and sisters, we have seen this King who came, we've seen this King who died, and we see this King who is exalted even now. And we should have a similar mind to this one to put on the mind of Christ. And I would say today, if you are an unbeliever and you do not know the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, believe on this one. Believe in the life, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
For he truly is your only hope. And you shall have everlasting life. And you shall experience joy unending. Even though there's still trials and suffering in this life, when you die or when Christ comes, you shall experience everlasting life.
Well, let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Lord our God, we thank you that Christ is the King. We thank you that Christ is the one who reigns supreme now. We do thank you that he governs all things, and as your people, we thank you that he saved his people from their sins. We pray that you would help us and strengthen us and help us to ponder and meditate on the truth of the gospel, the truth in which Christ our King, though being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but he made himself of no reputation.
O Father God, forgive us when we hold on to our reputation. Forgive us when we do not humble ourselves. Forgive us for our pride, O God, but help us to always look to our Saviour, look to our King, for He is the humble one. He is the humble King.
May this give us comfort and hope and strength. And Father God, for those that do not know Christ this day, may they believe on Christ. May they look to this humble King and find everlasting life in Him. We thank you for these things in the name of Christ.
Amen.