The Great Condescension

Phil 2:6-11

Welcome to the beginning of the Christmas season here at Mountain View Baptist Church. We consider it an honor to have you in attendance. What a blessing as celebrate this joyful season together with God’s people. If this is your first time joining us today, thank you for attending today. Please stop by our welcome center as you leave today that we might connect with you.

What does Christmas mean to you? For many, Christmas is getting things we have wanted all year. For others Christmas is sharing meals and spending time with family or friends. For some it means time off from work. For some it is parties. For others it means more work. How does the Bible view Christmas?

We would be surprised to learn that Christmas is not celebrated in the first century like it has evolved into today. The lights and the commercialism has over shadowed the meaning of Christmas. While I am not saying it is wrong to give gifts and have family celebrations together, I am saying let us look at the meaning of Christmas as believers would see in the first century. Let us remember the true meaning of Christmas.

This passage takes us to a place were we are to understand the gospel in Christmas. In this passage God gives us insight into an understanding of our need for the gospel. It is called the incarnation where God in heaven came to this earth incarnated in human form to provide for man’s need of salvation.

This passage has been wrongly interpreted and misunderstood because it is a mystery. 1 Timothy 3:16 “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

There are just some things we will not be able to explain and understand.

During this Christmas season, the message series will center around a Gospel Christmas. The Biblical message of Christmas is the gospel of Christ.

There are several considerations of the incarnation.

Consideration 1. . .

The need for man

Emil Brunner gives insight to man’s need in his writing. “. . .God has in his mercy shown us a different way. “You cannot come up to me, so I will comed down to you.” And God descends to us human beings. This act of becoming one of us begins at Christmas and ends on Good Friday. (I would say at the resurrection). God goes to the end. We wish to climb up to heaven; God, however descends-down to where? to death on the cross.”

Powerful words which explains our need for Christ. In Genesis 11 at the tower of Babel, man tried to reach heaven his way. He builds a tower with others to go to heaven on his merits. We are instilled with a drive to worship. In the case of the tower of Babel, they worshipped religion. Religion is man’s doing and Christianity is God completed our need by His death on the cross.

Man might think his greatest need is food or clothing or shelter or money or air or health. While all of those are very important, they are not the greatest need.

The greatest need of man is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

Jesus came so that we could have a personal relationship with Him. He left the splendors and riches of heaven’s glory for you and I have to have a personal Savior.

Do you know Him today? Are you 100% sure you are on your way to heaven? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior?

Consideration 2. . .

The humility of Jesus

In verses 6-8, the Bible shows us His humility by explaining his attitude and heart for the incarnation. Notice: form of God and thought it not robbery to be equal-means He did not demand the right to stay in His position. This is the mystery-how did He come and become man without ceasing to be God. There have been numerous theories and attempted explanations of these teachings. He was total God and total man.

No reputation, form of a servant, fashioned like a man and made in the likeness of men. This humility. He was willing to condescend to this earth to die on the cross. Only Christ was qualified, only Christ could come without sin and become sin for us on the cross. 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

1 Timothy 2:5–6 “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”

God’s Son was humble enough to set aside the privileges and prerogatives of heaven to come to this earth.

The baby in Bethlehem’s manger was God Himself. No, He was not born, because He always was. What happened that day in Bethlehem was God became man. He came humbly and died humbly on a cross for you and for me.

This points to our problem in coming to Christ. When we turn from our sin and accept Christ as our Savior, we must humble ourselves also. We humble ourselves at the cross. It is more of human nature to boast of our good works, our religious deeds, our personal goodness or even what we give to others. God doesn’t look those things when it comes to our salvation, He looks at whether we have bowed humbling before God admitting we are sinners, admitting we we cannot save ourselves, and admitting we need Jesus. It does not matter if you are the president or the CEO of a company or a teacher or living on the street. The cross is level for all and we must humble ourselves before Him.

Acts 4:12 “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” We need Him and that is why He came.

He was willing to die for you, will you be willing to live for Him? It is easy to get stuck in our Christian life. It is like we get stuck in a rut and never grow, never tell anyone about Jesus, and criticize those who do.

Because Jesus Christ came to the world clothed in humility, he will always be found among those who are clothed with humility. He will be found among the humble people.

A. W. Tozer

Several years ago, I sat in room of Christian school administrators. At the time I was the vice president of Golden State Association of Christian Schools. As we were sitting in the room, someone began to criticize a pastor here in our state. My blood began to boil because how could Christian school administrators criticize a pastor? I defended him and left the room. Immediately I tenured my resignation to the entire school association because I did not want to be a part of a group that criticizes pastors or people. When you get “stuck” in a rut, you can get a critical spirit. I had a church member told me that a rut was nothing more than a grave with both ends kicked out.

If someone criticizes you for coming to Christ or living for Christ, they are simply revealing their spiritual temperature.

If God was willing to come to this earth, to condescend to mankind by dying the cross, would you be willing to humble yourself before Him today?

Consideration 3. . .

The exaltation of Christ vv. 9-11

There in the manger in Bethlehem God humbles Himself in the form of a baby but He raises from the dead three days after He is crucified. God exalts Him and places Him on the right hand of God.

The way up is down 1 Peter 5:6 “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” The way to live above the circumstances of life is to humble ourselves to God.

Jesus is the highly exalted One. He is given a name that nobody can claim and one day, all will bow down before Him. Things in heaven, in earth, and under the earth will call Him Lord. Those who crucified Him, those who gambled over His clothes, Pilate, Caiaphas, Judas, Hitler, Mussolini, Marx, Darwin, you add names to the list, but all will bow before Him and call Him Lord.

Today, will call upon Him as your Savior? Will accept Him today? He came to be your Savior Luke 2:11 “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”

If you are a Christian, will you make Him the Lord of your life? Not just part of your life, but all of your life? Is He the Lord of your time? Is He the Lord of your talents? Is He the Lord of your finances? Is He the Lord of your deisres? Why don’t we humble ourselves before Him and decide today, He is the Lord of our life.