Sweet Little Jesus Boy

In the 1st Advent the Wonder of Christ is seen in His Condescension (vv. 6-7)

Explanation: Verses 6 thru 11 give an incredible in-depth look at the person of Christ. The passage begins with the reality of Christ in Heaven, not in the manger. We are informed that Jesus, being in the form of God chose to enter into His creation. The word being indicates that He already was - it refers to His Eternality. The word for form is the Greek word that speaks to the essence of a being. It “is that which truly characterizes a given reality—those characters and qualities that are essential to any given being” (Harold W. Hoehner, Philip W. Comfort, and Peter H. Davids, Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1&2 Thessalonians, Philemon., vol. 16 (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2008), 169. The 2nd Person of the Trinity chose to come down to our level; He condescended to enter at the level of a helpless baby!

Illustrate: story of nobility who willingly chooses to give up privilege in order to help the less unfortunate

Argument: We generally like stories with this theme because they echo the reality of what Christ actually did. Though He was truly God, Jesus willing chose not to hold onto His rightful privilege. Instead of “grasping” privilege, He condescended (lowered) Himself to be poured out for us. He came to us - what a wonder of wonders if we could truly grasp what was involved in Jesus leaving the realm of Glory and entering into a pain-filled and broken world

When Jesus entered the created order in the Incarnation, however, He did not cease being God. Instead of losing any of His pre-Existent Glory and Majesty, Jesus added to Himself by taking on the form of humanity. He became the God-Man in a supernatural union that cannot be fully explained.

Our text explains that Jesus was “made in the likeness of man” (v. 7). In His physical appearance, Jesus looked just like other people. He did not glow, He did not have a halo around His head, and He walked from place to place instead of flying. He was fully man!

What does this particular truth mean? Great question! It means everything to us! It means we have a Saviour who relates to us, because He was one of us. The writer of Hebrews declares, “we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities" (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus experienced human emotion, He grew tired, He was hungry, He was sad, He was placed under temptation - just like us!

We have a Saviour who get us! You can relate to Him because He is not some celestial being who is way out beyond the Cosmos who doesn’t have a clue. No, we have Emmanuel - God with us! (Matt 1:23) What a marvelous truth - give Him praise and glory!

Yes, He was fully man, but with a crucial distinction! According to the book of Romans God sent Jesus “in the likeness of sinful flesh” (Romans 8:3). Jesus did not have an earthly father so He did not inherit a sin nature from Adam. The God-Man was free from the taint of sin (Hebrews 4:15) so that He could “condemn sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3b)

Application: Jesus chose to come to earth - No one forced Him. He was part of the plan. Gaze in wonder at His willingness to come down. Let this truth drive your worship of the Christ-Child who has lived and will continue to live forever!

In the 1st Advent the Humility of Christ is seen in His obedience to death on a Cross (v. 8)

Explanation: The truth of the Divine entering creation and being made in the “likeness of men” is more than remarkable, and was beyond the wildest thoughts of the Jews. They were expecting another human similar to Moses - they were not expecting God in the flesh to visit them.

The radical idea that their Messiah was also the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 was beyond their ability to comprehend. They could not conceive of a King who would allow Himself to be executed as a common criminal. Not a single human who ever lived would have come up with such a radical idea.

Argument: Our text informs us that Jesus “became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (v. 8). This truth bothers a lot of people. Many cannot conceive of a God who would require such a sacrifice. These folks generally have no issue at all with Jesus in the manger - after all, who doesn’t love a baby? Babies are cuddly and cute and they can be snuggled and held - they don’t threaten anybody’s lifestyle or choices.

But a baby who grows into a man who is obedient to the point of being executed in one of the most barbaric and inhumane methods of capital punishment that has ever existed? That truth is very uncomfortable and often rejected. The obedience part leads to the truth that God required such a sacrifice to satisfy His holiness. The obedience part reveals that sin has a price tag and that we as humans are accountable to this Holy God and that bothers those who cannot see the depths of God’s love being poured out on those who don’t deserve it.

Application: When we approach Jesus in the Manger in this season of Advent, let us never forget that Jesus was on a mission to save the world. He entered this world to bring Glory to the Father by serving as our sin substitute. Jesus grew up in the shadow of the Cross.

The achievement of Christ in His 1st Advent resulted in His Exaltation that will be fully recognized in His 2nd Advent (vv. 9-11)

Explanation: This passage ends with the Exaltation of Christ. Jesus came into the world and successfully carried out His mission. He served without sin, obediently gave up His life, and satisfied the wrath of God against sin - He was able to declare “It is finished.”

As a result, Jesus was and is exalted to the place of highest honor. He IS the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! The Name of Jesus IS the name that is above every name.

This truth is the Universe’s present reality. The majority of people on the globe may reject this truth, but their opinion does not alter this reality.

Illustrate: a person can believe that the E stands for enough, but the car is going to stop running.

Argument: The first Advent ended when Jesus ascended back to heaven after His resurrection (Acts 1:9). His disciples witnessed this event and then heard the angels declare, “this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11)

Just as God fulfilled His promise of a Messiah in the First Advent, He will likewise fulfill the promise of the Second Advent. The last two verses of this morning’s text address what will occur at His Return; every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. This will happen, even to those who have rejected Christ in this walk of life. No one will be absent for His Coronation Ceremony.

Application: You can bow now or you can bow later, but make no mistake - every knee will bow before Christ as King. Those of us who bow know do so as a thankful act of worship. Those who reject Him now will bow later, but theirs will be an acknowledgement of the terrible mistake they made by failing to bow in this life.