What Will You Do With Jesus?
Notes
Transcript
Handout
What Will You Do With Jesus?
What Will You Do With Jesus?
Good morning, over the past several weeks we have been studying the apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians. So far in the last half of chapter one and the first part of chapter 2, Paul has given us an expose on unity, how, having the same mind we are to humbly consider others as worthy to be served. This chapter of the Bible is so rich and so deep, I want to take some time to dwell on its crucial themes. Philippians 2 is rich both with practical application- how we as Christians are to live our lives, and theology- the essence of our faith. Next week, we will return to the practical application theme of Philippians 2, but this week, we are going to jump in feet first into the profound theological truths of this passage found in Philippians 2:6-11.
Louie Gigglio, a famous pastor and speaker for the Passion Youth Ministry,
shares
“We live in a subdivision of the universe called the ‘milky way galaxy’
you may have thought you lived in New Hampshire, but no you live in the milky way
a tiny subdivision of the universe.
A very big universe that is so big that we have to use the light-year to measure it by.
A light-year is how fast light travels in one year
and we know it is fast because it is flying by at 180 thousand miles a second
so in one year, it goes 5.8 trillion miles.
The foot is not going to help you in God’s universe,
the yard no good,
the kilometer is nothing.
No, we need a ruler that is 5.8 trillion miles long
to measure things in God’s universe.
Our little subdivision of the universe, the milky way,
consists of billions of stars.
Not millions but billions.”
Now a billion is a number I have a hard time wrapping my head around
so Kristin was kind enough to do some research for me
and she discovered that if you were to take 1 billion,
only one mind, I billion steps unimpeded,
you would have walked around the entire planet over 125 times.
If you were to have a billion average-sized people,
stand on each other’s shoulders
the ‘people chain’ would reach to the moon and back over 29 times.
So back to Gigglio’s description,
“scientist say that there are billions of stars in just our subdivision of the galaxy
but that there are hundreds of billions of galaxies in the known universe.
If we were to count the stars in our galaxy alone,
just one star per second
it would take 2,500 years to count them all.
Through the prophet Isaiah God says this in chapter 40 verses 25-26,
“To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host, one by one and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.”
Our galaxy is 100,000 light-years across.
So to go visit our neighbor in a galaxy next door
all you have to do is travel at 180 thousand miles a second for 100,000 years
and boom you’re there.
So outside our itty bitty solar system,
outside our small galaxy,
are hundreds of billions of galaxies.
So we come back to our tiny little planet...
In past hundreds of billions of galaxies
to find our little corner, the milky way...
past 100,000 light-years back to our solar system
And on a tiny blue ball called earth
lives over 7.8 billion people.”
Right about now you may be feeling rather
small and insignificant.
I don’t mean to make you feel small.
I mean to tell you that you ARE small
in comparison to GOD’s UNIVERSE.
And yet the most amazing thing of all,
what is totally indescribable,
is that the God who created the known universe
that is billions upon hundreds of billions of light-years long,
The God who can measure that universe with His very hand,
Loves you. He knows you. He knows your name. (end quote)
Friends, because of His great love for you, that great and wonderful creator God became one of us. As Philippians 2:6-8 declares,
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
“Christ Jesus:
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,[c] being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
Philippians 2:6-11 is considered to be Paul’s crowning literary achievement. It is known as THE best description of Christ. When you look at it in your Bible, it may be in poetic format. That is because the early church appreciated it so much and read it so often together that it became a hymn.
Take note of what Jesus did.
1. Jesus did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.
What does that mean. Well, earlier in that verse we learn that Jesus “was in the form of God.” The Greek word used for “form” here is morphé. It means the inner essence or eternal substance of a thing. Jesus’ inner essence, His eternal substance is divine. He is God, He always will be God.
Not once, does Jesus stop being God anymore than you can wake up one morning and stop being human. However, verse 6 declares that He,
“did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.” The word “grasped” here in Greek is harpagmos it means to deem a thing to be a prize- something to be seized upon.
2. Jesus empties Himself.
Jesus who is in His very essence God, did not think that holding onto, clutching onto all the privileges of being God was important, instead verse 7 tells us that He released, He divested, He emptied Himself.
Right about now, you probably are asking one of your wonderful questions.
“Pastor Kimo, of what did Jesus empty Himself? What did He let go of?”
Fabulous question. In his message on this passage pastor Skip Heizig explains, Philippians 2:1
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy,
“Not deity. Don’t’ ever think for a moment that Jesus stopped being God when He came to this earth to redeem us. That is where the cults want to take you. That is not what Paul is saying… He can’t empty Himself of His nature because that is who He is- He is God- always was, always is, always will be. So what did He empty Himself of? Two things
(1) Privilege- or the prerogatives of His deity. For example He gave up the environment of Heaven. He gave up the glory that He had with Father God since before time and before He created the universe. He gave all that up.
(2) Second, He gave up independent authority. While He was on the earth He voluntarily surrendered or submitted to the will of only one- that is the Father in Heaven.” (end quote)
In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus wept and prayed. He knew what was coming. He felt the shadow of the cross stretching towards Him. He didn’t want to suffer, but He still declared, “Not my will by thy will be done.” He willingly surrendered what He wanted for the will of the Father. Philippians 2:1
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy,
Heizig points out, “That is the exact opposite of what Satan did. Satan said, ‘Not thy will but mine be done. Satan was a creature who wanted to be the creator. Jesus was in fact the creator who surrendered to be a creature.” (end quote)
Third point this morning:
3. Jesus was born in the likeness of men
Notice how in verse 8 Jesus takes on human form, the same Greek word for “form” is used: morphé. Jesus is and always will be God- divine, but He adds too that essence and eternal substance the human form. Jesus is both fully God and fully man.
You may think I am crazy but when I read this passage I am reminded of one of my favorite childhood pastimes, comic books. I’m a Marvel man myself, nothing wrong with Superman or Batman but I love Stan Lee’s characters, especially Spider Man. The super heroes of my youth started out as normal every day kind of humans like your average Joe Peter Parker, then some incredible event takes place, like the bite of a radioactive spider, and wham the average Joe becomes extraordinary- climbing buildings, swinging off of skyscrapers, beating up villains, and saving the day.
Jesus is a completely different kind of hero. He started out as extraordinary. He had all the power. He created the vast and glorious universe. And yet, because of His consuming love for you, He gave it all up to become one of us, to save the day by redeeming the human soul.
Philippians 2:6-8 “Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form…”
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Point four this morning is:
4. Jesus took on the form of a servant.
Consider Paul’s choice of words here. He doesn’t just say that Jesus took on the “form” or the morphé of mankind. He could have just said that Jesus became a man. Instead, he says he took on the “form” or the morphé of a servant.
Paul is saying that Jesus is God- eternal-all powerful-glorious God, AND His essence, His very nature is that of a servant. He doesn’t just perform acts of service from time to time, NO He added servanthood to His very DNA. Now, His very nature is that of a servant.
As Jesus declares in Matthew 20:28, “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Point 5,
5. He was obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Yes Jesus’ eternal divine existence is glorious, yes His human birth is extraordinary, yes His earthly ministry was miraculous- but His death is the epicenter of redemptive history! As our text declares,
Philippians 2:6-8 “who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
You cannot truly understand this text unless you have first faced the truth of your human condition. Remember on Easter how we discussed the ever unpopular notion of sin?
Here is a quick reminder:
Sin is an un-popular notion because most people in our Western society do not want to acknowledge that sin exists. “Everyone is a relatively good person at heart,” is the popular belief. What a nice, cozy, feel good philosophy. Too bad it doesn’t reflect reality AT ALL!
Students, what about the other kids in your class? Are they always kind, never selfish, do they always say nice and uplifting things to each other- never gossiping, lying, or mean? Adults, what about the people at work. Their always selfless, right? Always generous- going the extra mile to help others. They never gossip or saying unkind things about each other, never judging one another and are always truthful? Women, you always see yourself as beautiful and are never jealous of others? Men, your mind is always pure right?
Friends, un-goodness is in all of us- in our thoughts and in our actions we are like slaves to sin, As Paul explains in Romans 7:18-19, 24 and 24
For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.
Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.
“For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing… What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?”
Sin infects our lives and harms those we love.
Take a look at this short video illustration. https://youtu.be/wRefcuICmuM
Jesus is my hero.
Because Jesus is fully man- in His very nature fully human- he was able to pay the price for humanity. He did what no other human has done. He lived a perfect sinless life. Where we in our pride said with Adam “I want to be like God.” Jesus in humility, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped and He became like us. We disobeyed God, but Jesus obeyed Him perfectly. We where selfish. Jesus was a selfless servant. Where we deserved eternal punishment for our sin. Jesus took our sin upon Himself through His death on the cross. And because He is in His essence God, He had the power to gain victory over sin and death.
Philippians 2:9-11 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
What will you do with Him church?
What will you do with Jesus?
In the these first few verses we see what Jesus did. He humbled Himself, became man, served, and then sacrificed His life in the ultimate humble act of service.
The next word in our text this morning found in verse 9 is, “therefore.” Now if you remember from last week, when we see the word “therefore” in the Bible we need to ask “what is ‘therefore’ there-for?” In this case, it connects the following verses to Jesus’ actions in verses 6-8.
The next few verses demonstrate what Father God does in response to Jesus’ humble example of sacrificial service. Philippians 2:9-11
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
“Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Jesus humbled himself- down down down until His sacrificial death. God on the other hand lifts Him up, up, up to the highest place until every tongue declares His praise. First, Jesus destroyed sin and conquered death, He then is Resurrected from the dead. Next, He ascends back to His rightful place in heaven where He is eternally praised and exalted. Turn with me to Revelation 1:14-18 where the apostle John describes His encounter with the exalted Christ.
The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.
“The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.” Revelation 4:5
From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God,
Later in chapters 4 and 5 John is given a glimpse of Jesus on His Heavenly throne. He explains,
“From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder… Revelation 5:11-13 Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,
Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”
‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!’
And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,
‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!’”
God exalted Him. What will you do with Him church?
What will you do with Jesus?
Closing: Is He Worth?