Yesterday we saw Paul urging the Philippians to greater unity and he gave them some motivating reasons to help bring it about. Today (Philippians 2:5-11) he gives what is the strongest motivation of all: the example shown to us by Jesus. Paul begins by asking the Philippians to assimilate into the very core of their being, the thinking patterns of Jesus himself. It is a call, not just to model oneself on the moral behavior of Jesus, but on the entire Christ event as is depicted in the beautiful hymn that follows. The same relationships should exist among the Philippians as they have with Jesus Christ, that is, they are to love and serve each other as they love and serve Christ. There can be no separation between these two realities.
Paul presents this argument in the form of a hymn. It is not certain whether this was an already existing hymn that Paul borrowed, or that he composed it partially or in full himself. The hymn has several parts, each one highlighting a stage in the ‘mystery’ that is Christ for us:
- divine pre-existence
- the kenosis or self-emptying of the incarnation
- further kenosis in death
- glorification in resurrection and ascension
- adoration by the whole universe
- the new title of ‘Lord’
Paul affirms that Christ had all the attributes of God himself and is fully God, who always was and always will be. Yet Jesus did not cling to that “equality with God”, with all its status and privileges. This does not mean that he renounced in any way his divine nature; that would be impossible. But, in contrast to Adam, who was seduced into wanting to be ‘like God’, he let go of all the honors and reverence that were his inherent right. Instead, Jesus: “…emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, assuming human likeness.” He took on the human condition. He became a slave although he was Lord. In the words of John’s Gospel, “Jesus hid himself” (John 8:59). He hid his true Self by assuming human nature.
The glory that was his by nature and by right could now not be seen (except during the momentary breakthrough of the Transfiguration). He was seen as just a man, a human being. He shared all our limitations, like us in all things except sin.
That said, we must be careful to keep a balance in our understanding—Jesus was truly God, but he was also truly, and in the fullest sense, a male human being. Even today, one hears Christians understating Jesus’ humanity, as if it was only an external veneer. It was a real man who suffered and died on the cross; anything less diminishes the full meaning of the Incarnation and the witness of God’s love which the Passion is.
But Jesus was not just incarnate as a human being. He further: “…emptied himself…he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, death on a cross.”
Here is the ultimate submission and obedience to the Father’s will: the surrender of his life. This is the ultimate in self-emptying. There was hardly anything more degrading and humiliating than crucifixion. The crucified person was a convicted criminal and put to death by a method of appalling cruelty in full view of the public. He was left hanging naked, stripped of every vestige of human dignity. This was the degree of degradation that Jesus accepted to show the depth of God’s love for us sinners. Thus for us, there is no shame in Jesus’ nakedness. It reveals his total innocence. It is a reversal of the situation of our First Parents, when, after their sin, their nakedness became a badge of shame and guilt.
If his death on the cross had been the end, Paul says: “…then our proclamation is in vain, and your faith is in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:14) Paul continues, “Therefore God exalted him even more highly and gave him the name that is above every other name … …every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth…” Bending the knee expresses even greater submission than standing in the presence of a greater person.
Finally, the hymn says: “… every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” This is the very essence of our Christian belief: Jesus is Lord, sharing in the very nature of God. By calling Jesus Lord, we give glory to God the Father.
This hymn is one of the crucial passages in Paul’s letters and indeed in the whole New Testament. It goes right to the heart of what God has done for us through Jesus Christ. As Paul states at the beginning, it expresses the very mind of Christ, and until we have fully assimilated that “mind” into our own way of seeing our lives, we are not yet fully his disciples. We, too, must learn how to empty ourselves and surrender ourselves totally into the hands of Jesus and the Father.
May God Bless You and Grant You His Peace!