“And being found in
appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even
death on a cross” (Philippians
2:8, NIV)!
One of the consistent themes of evangelical Christianity is to reveal
not only Bethlehem’s manger, but also Jerusalem’s cross. Paul seems to make
this aspect of Christ’s ministry as most significant. Dr. Gordon Fee writes, “As a human being “he humbled himself”; that is,
in his human existence he chose, in obedience, to “take the lowest place” (etapeinōsen).[1]
The subsequent participle describes the degree of humility expressed by
Christ: becoming obedient to death.
“There is an emphasis
laid upon the manner of his dying, which had in it all the circumstances
possible which are humbling: Even the
death of the cross, a cursed, painful, and shameful death,—a death accursed
by the law (Cursed is he that hangeth on
a tree)—full of pain, the body nailed through the nervous parts (the hands
and feet) and hanging with all its weight upon the cross,—and the death of a
malefactor and a slave, not of a free-man,—exposed as a public spectacle.”[2]
It’s not common to
reference Christ’s death as obedience.
We think of his death in terms of what wicked men did to him. We even think of his death as a
substitute. But Paul here, as he does in
Romans
5:19, reveals Christ’s death as obedience. Christ saw his death as
obedience to the Father’s will.
So as we celebrate Christmas, it isn’t just a time to reflect on the
baby boy who was born in Bethlehem so long ago.
The Bible clearly calls us to consider his humility. This is not a humility that simply resulted
in God becoming a human baby. Nor is it the
obvious humility to be born in poverty and subjected to a meager existence of a
Palestinian family. No, this humility
was an act of obedience that even led to the cross.
He was born to die for you and for me.
Father, what glorious wonder it is that you would send your Son to be our
Savior. What an amazing reality that He
would be born to die. What glory that He would take on the consequence and
penalty of my sin, under the Law so that sin’s curse would be vanquished.
[1] Fee,
G. D. (1995). Paul’s Letter to
the Philippians (p. 216). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm.B. Eerdmans
Publishing Co.
[2]
Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s
commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume
(p. 2324). Peabody: Hendrickson.
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