From Heaven To The Cross

APRIL 4, 2021 STUDY NOTES PHILIPPIANS 2:6-8 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES FROM HEAVEN TO THE CROSS INTRODUCTION Christ came from heaven and went to the cross, He did it for us So that we could go to the cross of Jesus and have the assurance of heaven with Christ Paul is now going to share with us truths related to the mind of Christ so that we can understand, Php 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Paul explains the mind of Christ Paul begins by reminding us of the truth of the preincarnate Christ, His pre-existent being The pre-existence of Christ presents the existence of Christ before His incarnation as Jesus Incarnation is the word used by theologians to teach that the Eternal Son of God came to be man Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity took upon Himself flesh and became man In the eternal past, before the beginning of time, Christ existed within the eternal Godhead From His high priestly prayer Jesus prayed, Joh 17:5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. Paul tells us that Christ took upon himself the likeness of man, the incarnation of Jesus Paul tells us why He did that, explaining to us what was in the mind of Christ As Christians we are to learn from the illustration of Christ the mindset that we should have These verses are among the greatest doctrinal passages concerning the Person of Christ we find Jesus Christ is God, He has always been God, He is equal to God because He is God Jesus was fully man, yet, He was still fully God, He never ceased to be God He voluntarily laid aside His divine rights and privileges as God to live as man Christ came to be man in order to die on the cross for the sins of man As man He died on the cross for our sins, the only one who could, the only way He could Php 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: “Who” refers back to Christ Jesus in verse 5, He is the one to be our example The word “being” teaches us several things: It indicates a change in Christ that Paul is going to explain It reveals that before the change Christ existed as Deity, He always was Deity “Being” has the meaning of continued existence, the change did not change His Deity He continued to be that which He always was, before the world was, He was Deity At the time of the change, He continued to exist as Deity He is still God and will always continue to exist as God The eternal, infinite “form” of God took upon Himself the form of a servant, He came to be flesh There is no word in the English that will give the full meaning of the Greek translated “form” It does not refer to shape or have any reference to the physical appearance It refers to the inner nature, the essential nature, the abiding nature of Christ It tells us who Christ really is, His true nature, His true character, His real being It speaks of what He is within Himself, He is truly God He is not just the appearance of God He is the very essence of God “Form of God” tells us who He is in Himself, He is truly God who became truly man He could not have been in the form of God if He was not God Page 1 of 5 He has eternally existed as God, the same word translated “form” is found in verse 7 Paul did not say that Jesus “came to exist,” or “entered into existence,” He always existed as God Something that Christ reckoned with, gave serious consideration to, a truth beyond question A truth that did not prevent Christ from taking upon Himself the “form of a servant” THOUGHT IT NOT ROBBERY “Thought” is that which is leading the mind, the reasoning process which comes to a conclusion Jesus “thought” it all through before He made the decision to do what Paul is telling us He did The decision Christ made was based upon facts, it was based upon eternal truth Therefore, the decision was the right one, He “thought it not robbery to be equal with God” “Robbery” is a rare word in the NT, this is the only time it is used, it has the meaning of grasped “Robbery” has two distinct meanings, and both help us to understand this passage Meaning a thing unlawfully seized, to seize upon with force, which was not true of Christ’s Deity Christ did not take, receive, or acquire Deity in any way, He was and is Deity, He always will be Deity is His rightful possession, Christ always has been God, He continues to be God It also has the meaning of a treasure to be clutched and retained at all hazards, to keep at all costs Because He was Deity, He could hold on to all rights in essence of being God All of the rights of Deity could be held on to: Glory, greatness, Majesty, splendor As Christ, He Himself needed no change, He needed no other existence Christ maintaining a state of being equal to God was not an act of “robbery” The being on an equality with God was not something to be grasped or a prize to be retained TO BE EQUAL WITH GOD “To be equal with God,” is a strong point that Paul wants us to understand Paul wants to be sure that we understand verse 6 before we read verses 7 & 8 It is important that we know the truth of Christ, which is His absolute equality with God Read John 1:1-4; Colossians 1:15-20; Hebrews 1:1-3 which tell us what Paul now tells us Php 2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: “But” introduces to us the contrast, even though Christ was who He was He did what Paul tells us, He “made Himself of no reputation,” an important theological truth The original Greek means to make empty, Christ emptied Himself Instead of asserting His rights as Deity, Christ emptied Himself He did not empty something from Himself, He emptied Himself from something, the form of God Which we cannot understand without understanding the previous verse and the following verse Both of which explain to us the meaning of verse 7, the emptying was actually an addition As God, Christ added to Himself humanity, an act of self-denial and self-sacrifice for our sake Christ did not surrender His Deity, His flesh was a veil of the outward manifestation of His Deity He emptied Himself of the self-manifestation of His divine essence, He fleshed His glory He covered His heavenly glory with flesh so that we might be covered with heavenly glory He became a servant of mankind that man might become a servant of God Paul explains it, AND TOOK UPON HIM THE FORM OF A SERVANT The word “form” in verse 7 is the same word found in verse 6 “Took upon Him” tells us that Christ added something to Himself that He was not previously Christ voluntarily added to Himself “the form of a servant,” explaining He emptied Himself Taking upon Himself the form of a servant was the cause of the emptying of self, “no reputation” “Being in the form of God,” He took upon Himself “the form of a servant” Page 2 of 5 The Creator of the universe, the Lord of Glory, took upon Himself “the form of a servant” The “Sovereign One” manifested Himself as a “bondservant,” He clothed Himself with humility A bondservant is one who surrenders their rights to the will of another, which Christ did for us In the Roman world, a servant was the lowest position a person could ever become As a servant Jesus was insulted, humiliated, and rejected by His own people, Joh 1:10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. Joh 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not. Paul explains the meaning of, “He was in the world”--AND WAS MADE IN THE LIKENESS OF MEN “Was made” has the meaning of “to become” which signifies the entrance into a new state Christ entered into a new state of being, something that He was not previously Christ who was God, became a servant in “the likeness of man” “Likeness” does not have the meaning of “exactness,” there was a real likeness But as man there was a difference, 2Co 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. Only the One who had no sin could become the perfect sacrifice for our sins, Heb 2:17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. Heb 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Because Jesus had no sin, He could fulfill His purpose for being “made in the likeness of men” Php 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Paul tells us that if you looked at the man Jesus, you would be looking at a normal looking man His physical appearance was like other men, His outward expression was that of man Paul’s point is an important doctrinal truth of scripture, Jesus became man, He really was a man He became man in a unique way, the only man ever born of a virgin, Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Another major doctrinal truth of scripture, which God revealed to Joseph, Mat 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. The angel of the Lord told Joseph why the birth of Jesus was going to take place, Mat 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. He was born at Bethlehem, lived at Nazareth, because He came to die at Calvary on our behalf Paul said, “He humbled himself,” pay attention to what Paul said, HE HUMBLED HIMSELF The meaning is that Jesus lowered Himself, He bowed down to the position of a servant Which is a difficult task for you and I, which is not the thinking of the world we live in Paul tells us why He did that, AND BECAME OBEDIENT UNTO DEATH His obedience was to the will of God the Father, listen to the pray of Jesus as He faced death, Mat 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. Jesus fully submitted Himself to the will of the Father, Mat 26:42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. The Father’s will for His Son was the cross of Calvary, Peter explained it, Act 2:23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified Page 3 of 5 and slain: Paul said it was EVEN THE DEATH OF THE CROSS Another major doctrinal truth found in scripture, Jesus “died” on the cross The word “death” refers to physical death, the separation of the soul from the body Jesus was nailed to the cross, where criminals were nailed for execution, to die in torment Crucifixion was death reserved for the worst of condemned criminals Crucifixion was the worst kind of death, it was a shameful, violent death The crucified hung between earth and heaven with the thought that neither wanted them Earth had rejected the one being crucified, and the thought was that God did not want them either How wrong the Romans were, God had a purpose for the crucifixion of Jesus, 1Pe 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: This verse is one of the most descriptive verses revealing the meaning of the cross in the NT “For Christ also” is a strong point, even Jesus Himself died, and He even died on the cross Peter tells us five things about the death of Jesus on the cross: 1. He suffered for sins 2. His suffering was once for all 3. The righteous suffered for the unrighteous 4. The purpose of the suffering was to bring those who would trust Him to God 5. He was put to death “in the flesh” but made “alive in the spirit” “Once suffered” does not mean once upon a time, but once for all Jesus “once suffered for sins, the reason Jesus went to the cross was “for sins” His death was concerning sins, in connection with sins, which was our sins His suffering was unique, a once for all suffering, His suffering was for all of us His death was effective, “Once” paid the total price and met all-of the righteous demands of God There is no need for another substitutionary death, the death of Jesus never needs to be repeated Jesus offered one sacrifice for sins, Heb 9:26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. His one sacrifice was sufficient for our salvation, Heb 10:10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. His one sacrifice was “forever,” Heb 10:12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; His one sacrifice provided an eternal perfection for all believers, Heb 10:14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. The truth of the one offering was revealed by the words of Jesus on the cross, Joh 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. He was our substitute dying for our sins, 1Pe 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. It was not his own sins, it was my sins and your sins, it was the sins of the world, Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. The One who in no way deserved to die, died on behalf of all who deserved to die Paul said, 1Co 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; John said, 1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of Page 4 of 5 the whole world. CONCLUSION Christ came from heaven and went to the cross, which was a joy to Jesus, Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. The joy that was set before Jesus was the salvation of every believer His joy was that we could go to the cross of Jesus and have the assurance of heaven with Christ Another way to state that is, “Love came down from heaven and went to the cross” Listen to the song Page 5 of 5