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HAVING THE MIND OF CHRIST IV
Philippians 2:9-11
Bob Bonner
May 4, 2008
To me, the book of Isaiah is one of the most fascinating of the Bible. More is written about the person and work of Jesus Christ in this one book than in any other of the Old Testament. Consequently, Isaiah has been called the “evangelical prophet” of the Old Testament. Interestingly, in contrast to Jesus being highlighted throughout Isaiah, the arch enemy of Christ and the adversary of every Christian, Satan, is featured in a key passage.
In Isaiah 13-14, the prophet addresses the king of Babylon and prophesies the demise of this arrogant king and his kingdom. But beginning with Isaiah 14:12 and down through verse 20, the scene suddenly changes from earth to heaven. Here Isaiah appears to be addressing another individual, a co-conspirator or a supporter of the King of Babylon--someone not human, someone who dared to challenge God for His rightful place as the supreme sovereign ruler over creation. Jesus, several hundred years later in Luke 10:18, would use Isaiah 14:12 to describe nothing other than Satan’s fall from being one of God’s top angels, if not the top, to being the leader over all the rebellious demons of heaven. In fact, the Apostle John in Revelation 12:7-9 describes the battle that took place in heaven as a result of Satan’s trying to take over God’s right to rule. John writes:
“7And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war
with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, 8and they
were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for
them in heaven. 9And the great dragon was thrown down, the
serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the
whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were
thrown down with him.”
If we look at Isaiah 14:12-15, we will see what incited this war in heaven. We read, “12How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn!” Presumably, those are nicknames, if you will, for Satan when he was a former angel.
“You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened
the nations! 13But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne above the stars of God, and I will sit on the
mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. 14I will ascend above
the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’”
These are five arrogant declarations that he was after God’s throne. But then God declares, “Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, to the recesses of the pit.” Later in Paul’s second letter to his disciple Timothy, he summarized these actions of Satan as “conceit” leading to his fall. Ultimately, it will lead to his damnation.
Now, why have I taken this time in our study of Philippians to look at Satan’s arrogant, failed attempt to usurp God’s rule? Because in light of our study of Philippians 2:6-8, these prideful actions of Satan stand in such stark contrast to the humble attitudes and actions of the preincarnate and incarnate Jesus Christ. While Satan is trying to climb the ladder of self glory, Jesus deliberately chooses not to take rightful advantage of being God to promote Himself. He rather limits Himself to such an extent that, stooping down to the level of a slave, allowing Himself to be mastered by His own creation, taking on human form, even becoming obedient to evil and self promoting men, He allows his execution in the most humiliating and despicable manner. Why? His actions are not for Himself but for us, His fallen creation. He came to our rescue that we might be reconciled to Him, forgiven, accepted, fully approved, and deeply loved forever. Why did He love us so? That is a mystery that I doubt will ever be explained. We only know that out of love for us He voluntarily chose to humble Himself that we might live forever with Him.
Satan’s actions demonstrate the dangers of allowing pride to rule our lives. Jesus’ example illustrates the value of humility and submission to God’s purposes. This morning, we want to see God’s response to Christ’s humbling Himself on our behalf.
If you have not been with us for the past three weeks, allow me to give you the backdrop of our study. In this time, we have been looking at a first century Christian hymn that most probably was written by the Apostle Paul. Paul chose this vehicle of a hymn to instruct the Philippians what humility looks like and to show them the advantages of seeking to be more like Christ in this area of humility. The section that encapsulates this hymn is found in Philippians 2:5-11.
In verse 5 Paul introduces the hymn. Then in verses 6-8 we have the first stanza, portraying Christ’s humility. In verse 6, we see the preincarnate Christ’s attitude. These verses remind us that Jesus has always been God’s equal. Christ possesses all of God’s attributes.
Then, as a natural outgrowth of his attitude, the preincarnate Christ takes on actions to become the incarnate Christ. You will notice that in His condescension, there is no display of glory, no pomp, no marching of the feet of the heavenly legions! Instead Christ lays his royal robes aside, the glory that was his from eternity. He steps down from the heavenly throne and becomes a baby in the arms of a mother in a far eastern colony of the Roman Empire, under disgraceful and suspicions conditions.
That brings us to our passage of study for this morning, the second stanza of the hymn, covered in verses 9-11, which reveals God’s response to Christ’s humbling Himself in order to rescue some of the human race. Here we see God’s exaltation of Christ. By the time we get to verse 11, we have gone from eternity past in heaven in verse 6, down to His historical presence on earth in verses 7-8, and then to eternity future in heaven once more in verse 11.
This morning we come to Philippians 2:9, a decisive turning point in this hymn. Whereas God the Son has been the focal point of verses 6-8, now God the Father and His actions toward the Son are highlighted. Let’s begin by first reading verses 9-11 and then return to looking at them one at a time.
“9For this reason also, [Therefore, also] God highly exalted Him,
and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10so
that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in
heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and that every tongue
will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Verse 9 begins with “Therefore.” This tells you that there is a conclusion or a natural and logical consequence of what was said in verses 6-8. In other words, as a natural outcome of Christ’s humbling Himself by becoming a man, a slave, and an object of derision to the point of death on a cross, God highly exalts Christ. And by the way, to exalt is not to reward humility, mind you. God did not reward Jesus’ actions with exaltation. According to Jesus’ own words in Matthew 18:4, “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Humility produces greatness. True greatness is the consequence of living with a humble attitude, not the reward for being humble. Exaltation by God was the consequence of Christ humility, not the reward for His humility. Furthermore, what would Jesus want or need with any reward? He already has everything!
In vindication of and approval of Jesus the Son’s self-humbling, God the Father magnificently exalted Christ to the highest place in the universe. Jesus who most sacrificially “emptied” or limited Himself so that He could serve others, now returns to His rightful place, the One most highly exalted.
This expression “highly exalted” is used only here in the New Testament. It means to “super exalt,” “to raise someone to the loftiest height.” God confers supremacy to Jesus Christ. Some scholars say that God exalted Jesus to a higher state than what He had before He came to earth as the Messiah. But how can that be? How could Jesus, who is equal to God, be exalted to a higher position than the one he held, as fully God, before his preincarnate state? Obviously, He could not. The point of God’s exaltation is to return Jesus to his original position, in contrast to his earthly ranking, a crucified slave. One day, all who perceived Jesus to be less than He was will recognize His most lofty, exalted state of being God.
Hence, what you have taking place here is simply this: In a matter of two verses, Jesus went from being the lowest malefactor (verse 8) to being exalted to the greatest height, one of more power, authority, and honor than any being in all eternity (verse 9). In the end, Jesus will be cleared of all the false charges against Him and will be seen for Who He truly is.
With Christ’s high exaltation comes a name and or title. Paul tells us that God “bestowed” Jesus with a special name. By the way, that word “bestowed” suggests a gift of grace not something that comes as the result of hard work, something earned or merited. Jesus didn’t earn anything. This name was always true of Him. This “bestowing” is more of God’s opening up the eyes of all rational creation to see who Jesus really is. And what special name was bestowed upon Jesus?
First of all, what is a name? A name in the Hebrew mind was more than simply a label to distinguish one patient from another, one student from another, or one member from another. A “name”, as it is used here, refers to rank, office, a dignity, or an accomplishment. As we will see, this special name that God bestows upon Jesus points to His worthiness to be adored, praised, trusted, and submitted to. This name for Jesus points to Christ’s sovereign authority that will be realized by all when He is King in the Millennial Kingdom and in eternity.
Throughout the Word of God, Jesus is given many names or titles. He is called “Immanuel,” “Lamb of God,” “the good Shepherd.” In Isaiah 45, the prophet recognizes several prophetic names for Jesus that describe His role and work when He comes to earth. For instance, He is called “the anointed one” or “the messiah,” which literally means the deliverer through whom blessing comes to both Israel and all the gentile nations. He is called “the Son of man,” which points to Christ’s humanity and his coming again in glory. He is called “Son of God,” a name that points to his divinity. In fact, later in Matthew 4:3-6 this name, “Son of God,” is the title with which the devil addresses Jesus.
So you see, Jesus has many names. But according to our passage, there is one name, one title for Jesus, that stands above all others. It is this name at which all rational creatures will one day bow their knee to Jesus in submission and worship. At the name of Jesus people will not bow. That name will not cause people to bend the knee. The name at which all of creation will bow before Jesus is His title, “Lord.” This name is so significant that in the original language, it is placed in the emphatic position, stressing Christ’s authoritative position of supremacy.
Just so you understand, there are two Hebrew words which our English Bible translates as “Lord.” One is “adonai” and the other is “Yahweh.” Adonai is most often used to refer to someone who is in charge, like a master of a household or a political leader or some high-ranking official. But the second word translated as Lord, “Yahweh,” is reserved only for deity, the supreme being, the creator and ruler of all. In the New Testament, when the Greek word “Lord” is used, “Yahweh” is the intended meaning, not adonai. Hence, God is declaring in our passage that one day all of creation will recognize Jesus Christ as “Yahweh”, the ruler over all creation, and when they do they will bow and admit to this truth.
The fact that one day the Messiah, Jesus, will be called “Yahweh” is not only mentioned here, but I believe the first time that this was prophesied of Jesus was 700 years before He appeared on earth. In Isaiah 45:23 we are told that His name will be “Yahweh.” Of Jesus we read, “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself; the word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness and will not turn back that to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.” And later in Revelation 19:16, we are told when it will be that Jesus will finally be recognized as Yahweh by every rational being. There, we read that His name will be expanded to “King of kings, and Lord of Lords.” It will be to this name, “Yahweh” or “Lord”, and only this name that people will bow to Him.
Today Jesus is indeed “Yahweh,” controlling even the smallest things of life. But all creation does not recognize Him as such. One day, however, He will subdue all His enemies forever, and all of creation will recognize Jesus as God.
As we turn to verses 10-11, I want to first point out the scope, the breadth of recognition, that Jesus will receive concerning His supremacy over all. Let’s read those two verses again. “…So that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Please note that this verse is very specific. It does not say it is through Jesus that we worship God, but to Jesus Himself we pay homage. It is a true statement that Jesus is the only way to God and to worshiping God. We don’t worship God by bypassing Jesus. The intended stress of these verses is that we are to recognize Jesus as God and to worship Jesus as such.
That’s the very point of the statement, “Every knee shall bow...and every tongue confess.” However, those two statements really have more of an intended subject in mind than simply worship or adoration. The language of this entire passage suggests triumph and thus the submission of those who have been triumphed over. Hence, the bending of the knee was a posture or action of submission.
And the second expression “every tongue will confess” points to a verbal admission/recognition/public declaration that Jesus is God and worthy of our submission. That’s what the word “confess” actually means. It is an intensive word stressing a public, open declaration or admission about something. Hence, whereas bowing down is an action of submission, “confession” will be the verbal assent that one recognizes Jesus for Who He really is--Yahweh, the eternal, personal, creating, sovereign ruler over all.
Furthermore, these verses teach that there will come a time when, whether freely or stubbornly, people will be forced to recognize, to submit to, and to obey Jesus Christ as God, because He will be proven to be the conqueror of all. Keep in mind, the Philippians were living in a culture where Caesar was believed to be God, and if you were a Roman patriot you were to worship him as such. Hence, Paul’s words here had an added impact on these Roman citizens who happened to be Christians. In the end, these verses teach us that everyone, whether Jews, Christians, Muslims, JW’s, Hindus, Buddhists, or secularists will bow to Jesus, not just in worship but in submission, verbally declaring, “You are Yahweh.”
It is also important to point out that the word “confess” as it is used here does not mean confession that leads to salvation, but rather, simple acknowledgment that that Jesus is God. Those who in life accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord will reign in glory with Him. But those who refuse to submit their lives to the rule of Jesus Christ will not be able to escape this confession, this final admission that Jesus is God. Yet, whether dead or alive at the time, their eternal destiny will have been determined. They will be destined to eternal punishment.
Jesus has always been Lord, even before His incarnation, but now all of creation, whether they want to or not, are forced to admit that this is the truth. Obviously, the forces of evil are not yet ready to admit that Jesus is worthy of worship, but they will. And even when they do come to realize the truth about Jesus, they probably will not be happy about it or about having to give Jesus His due.
You might be wondering how it is that I have concluded that all of creation will one day finally declare that Jesus is God. It’s simple, really, when you look at these verses. Notice the term “every.” It is repeated twice, defining the breadth of universal submission to Jesus that will come from all rational creatures. No rational being that can think, speak, or bow down will be left out. And just in case we don’t understand how inclusive this will be, the Spirit of God reveals in His Word just who is included here. He points to those beings “in heaven, on the earth, and under the earth.”
The “in heaven” points to all who reside there presently, such as angels, cherubim, and seraphim. In addition, it includes those believers who have already died and are waiting to return to populate the earth during the Millennial Kingdom. The “on earth” points to those living on the earth--the saved, the unsaved, and the invisible angels and demons that roam about. The “under the earth” group refers to bound demons and unsaved dead who are awaiting final judgment and eternal punishment.
Hence, Paul is pointing to all of God’s rational creation in its totality, whether friendly towards God or not. All will bow in submission and declare, “Jesus, You are God!” At this time also, Romans 14:12 tells us “each one of us shall give an account of himself to God.”
I have mentioned several times that this verse points to a time in the future, not now, when Christ will be recognized by all as the victor, conqueror, God. Just in case you missed it, allow me to point out why I say this. First, we can see today that not all believe this to be true of Jesus. Furthermore, there has been no time in the past that all of creation on earth has recognized Jesus as God. So, pure logic dictates that it must be referring to a time in the future.
Secondly, the future tense of “will bow” and “will confess” confirms that Paul is speaking about something in the future; universal admission and submission to Jesus as God will yet happen. And I believe that the rest of Scripture prophetically points to this occurring following the close of the Millennial Kingdom and before Satan and his cohorts are permanently cast into hell.
Furthermore, the Apostle John tells us in 1 John 3:8 that when Jesus appeared on earth, one of the purposes for which He came was to destroy the works of the devil. At the cross and by His resurrection, the power of Satan was decisively broken according to Colossians 2:15. Like a python with a deadly head wound, the devil is today thrashing around and seeking to cause havoc. But one day he and his hosts will bow in absolute defeat and surrender before Jesus Christ.
Finally, verse 11 points to the end result of Jesus Christ being declared “God”. Paul writes that all of this will be “to the glory of God the Father.” By saying this, Paul is stressing that there is no rivalry between God the Father and God the Son. Christ’s universal acknowledgment as Lord does not make the Father jealous. Whenever the Son is glorified, so is the Father. Whenever the Father is glorified, so is the Son. Thus the Father honors the Son, and the Son honors the Father. In this dynamic, both display selflessness and humility by which both receive honor. Hence when all of creation glorifies Christ, the Father is pleased, because His plans have been realized.
And herein lies the point for which Paul is writing this paragraph. There is perfect unity in the Godhead, because there is perfect humility between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They never compete, disagree, or differ with one another in the slightest degree. They are unified in purpose and mind.
Paul’s point, therefore, is that logically, if we are true followers of Christ, then this same one mindedness, this same humility that doesn’t look after our own selfish interests or doesn’t put a priority on our own selfish desires or wishes, is to be the hallmark of the local church. For only then will unity of purpose in living out the gospel and reaching others with the Good News of Christ become a reality. Paul is warning us that we will always have a spiritual enemy prompting us to think of our wishes over what is most important to God. This enemy will try to fracture our relationships and divide us so that we cannot fulfill our God-given commission. Don’t let the enemy win. When we recognize our selfish pride, we are to confess it not only to God, but also to one another in order to bring healing to fractured relationships and to restore unity.
So where does this study of God’s word bring us? Allow me to boil it down to just two points of application. First, this passage clearly teaches that one day all of us will either voluntarily and gratefully humble ourselves before the Lord Jesus as our Savior and God, declaring that He is such, or we will wait until we’re forced to do so. If we act now, we will be saved. If we refuse to confess Jesus Christ as Lord, if we refuse to submit to Him as God and master over our lives while we’re alive on the earth, we will surely concede it one day under the earth. But by then it will be too late. By then our eternal destiny will have been decided, never to be changed. By then we will realize that we will spend the rest of eternity separated from God and each other in the lake of fire called hell.
Jesus is the lifeline that God the Father has lowered for our salvation. There is no other way to be rescued from the penalty of our sins and rebellion against Him but Jesus. We can choose to trust in Him or to reject Him today. Where do you stand in regard to Jesus? Don’t wait to fully submit your life to Christ as your Lord and Savior. Grab hold of Him now while you have the chance.
Here is the second point, the one to which I believe the Apostle Paul has been driving since 1:26. Remember, his letter was not intended for those who did not know Christ, but to believers. What he has written was to spur them on for the work of the gospel. He wanted to encourage them to stop with their petty differences that divide and that bring the work of the gospel to a screeching halt. To continue to take lightly our own selfish behavior and to push or demand to have our own way is nothing but simple and pure arrogance, which in the end is destructive or at least damaging to the cause of Christ.
Instead, Paul challenges all believers to humbly consider others. He is pleading with his readers to be patient with other Christians as they move forward in their discipleship, to be longsuffering with others in spite of their personality traits and their refusal to get with the program as quickly as our time table says they should. Instead of being frustrated and demanding that our way be followed or our expectations be met, we should look to Jesus. Knowing the outcome of His actions, and that of those who live arrogantly, he said in Luke 14:11, “For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted.”
Realizing that all of his dear friends in Philippi truly loved the Lord and wanted to honor Him, and realizing the struggle they all shared with their tendency to live arrogantly, Paul wanted to see them work on resolving their differences. As he wrote to the Romans in 12:16-18, he would be asking his friends at Philippi, “Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind...Do not be wise in your own estimation...If possible, so far as it depends upon you, be at peace with all men.”
If Paul were standing here in our church or in the church at Philippi, I believe he would challenge his friends, us, to consider our relationships with one another as Christians. How are we treating each other and the interests of others? He would be asking us to consider whether or not we have wounded others by our prideful actions and words. If so, Paul would challenge us to go to one another and apologize for our self-centered ways and either seek or offer forgiveness. And he probably would not have encouraged them to begin with their church relationships. He most likely would have suggested starting with the way we treat our parents, our kids, our spouses. He would have questioned us as to how we have dealt with other Christian friends at school, at work or in our clubs. Being on the same team for Christ requires that we keep short accounts with one another for the sake of working together, no matter what arena of life--home, church, work, and so on.
So here’s a question I would challenge you to consider, one that our ReDi groups will be looking at this week. Ask the Lord, “Lord, have I, in my arrogance, wounded in any way another brother or sister in Christ? If I have and I’m not aware of it, will you bring it to mind?” I believe that if there is someone we have wronged, recently or in past months, and an apology is needed, God will bring them to your mind, because He wants harmony and unity to exist among believers. Unity enables the work of the gospel to go forward.
For some of us, a pencil and paper may be needed when praying this prayer, because the Holy Spirit may convict us of several people we have wounded by our selfish ways. If the Lord does bring someone to mind, no matter how small you think the issue is, then as far as it concerns you, do all you can to live at peace with all people. Go to that person and humbly ask them to forgive you for your prideful attitude or action. Without revealing the person’s name, you might want to ask another Christian to hold you accountable to mend the relationship.
Even if the Lord does not bring anyone to mind, I believe when we pray that prayer He will keep us alert to the problem of our pride and our continual need for Him to live His supernatural, humble life through us.Ask the Lord, “Lord, have I, in my arrogance, wounded in any way another brother or sister in Christ? If I have and am not aware of it, will you bring it to mind?” If the Lord brings some incident or person to mind, then commit to Him to do what is necessary to mend that relationship. Do your part to “live at peace with all men.” Without sharing the persons’ names, ask members in your group to hold you accountable to do what you can to heal the wounds you caused.
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