When Jesus came to the earth
to be among men, Paul the apostle said He did “not think it
robbery to be equal with God”, and He gave us a true example of
humility. In chapter two and verse seven Paul shares even more about
the manner in which Jesus came to be among us where he wrote:
But made himself of no
reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in
the likeness of men:
The
verse begins, “But made himself of no reputation,...”
Jesus was the exalted one and in
the form of God, and still He “made himself”
or “emptied himself” “of no reputation”
which means “make void or cause a thing to be seen to be
empty, hollow, and of no effect”. The Greek words used by Paul are
“alla kenoo heautou kenoo”, and once again we see his repetition
of the same word to emphasize his point. As Paul's perfect example of
the way the Philippian church members should respond to one another,
Paul employs and emphasizes what Jesus did.
The
verse goes on to say, “...and
took upon him the form of a servant,...” Rather
than continue in His exalted state, not only did Jesus make Himself
void of His reputation, but He “took upon him the form”
or the “external appearance” “of a servant” which
is the Greek word “duolos” and means “a slave, bondman,
man of servile condition”. The idea was a “willing servant” who
volunteers for the position. Jesus not only emptied Himself, but He
made Himself externally as a willing servant.
Finally the verse says, “...and
was made in the likeness of men:” Jesus
made Himself void of His reputation, reduced Himself to the “form
of a servant”, and “was
made” or “came into
existence and begin to be” “in the likeness” or “a
figure, image, representation or resemblance” “of men”.
In other words, Jesus as God emptied Himself of all His reputation
and became like a man.
In the context of the text,
we should remember that Paul the apostle is giving the Philippians an
example of the manner in which they should live toward one another.
There is no greater example than what Jesus did. He left all the
excellence and glory of Heaven; He removed Himself from His exalted
position, and He humbled Himself to come and live not only as a man
but also as a servant to man. If Jesus did this because He has such a
deep love for others, how should we be? Perhaps as we consider what
Jesus did, the next time we have an opportunity to “esteem
others better than ourselves” we will not have such difficulty
emptying ourselves of our reputation, humbling ourselves to the form
of a servant, and imagining ourselves being in their place. May the
Lord Jesus help us to live toward others in the same manner as He.
Next
time Paul tells the Philippians what Christ did to identify with us,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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