“The Triumph of Christ's Humiliation”
Philippians 2:5-11
Today we observe Palm Sunday – and
especially that time when Jesus came to Jerusalem shortly before his
death, we call it his triumphal entry. But triumph, with Jesus, is
not what it looks like to the world. For him, it is found in
humility. It is a strange sort of triumph, a very odd celebration,
in which most of the participants have it right, in spite of having
it wrong. He is the king, but not the way they think. He is there
to save them, but not from whom they think. He is the Son of David.
But David's son is also David's Lord. And his humility is ultimately
his glory.
Humility – the overarching theme.
Today, humility is almost universally
regarded as a virtue. Even outside of religious circles, humility is
held up as a worthy character treat, and important component of
leadership. It is seen as the opposite of arrogance. A willingness
to admit you're wrong. An attitude that doesn't make yourself to be
so important and worthy, but regards other people as just as
important. It's a nice idea, but hard to truly find among humans,
and difficult to practice.
Humility related to the word for the
ground. It means to be brought low or made low. The ultimate
posture of humility is kneeling down, or even lying down prostrate in
front of someone higher. So even the body position can indicate that
you are lower, more humble, than your superior.
But sin wants to be like God. Sin wants
to puff us up. It wants us to call the shots. It wants us to
receive the worship and praise. The devil whispers all sorts of
self-aggrandizing lies in your ear, and your sinful nature gobbles
them up. Who wants to be the servant? I'd rather be the master.
Sin says, humiliate others to raise yourself up. But Jesus humbled
himself, to exalt us.
“Have this mind (attitude)...”
Here, in our text, Paul encourages the
Philippians to have a mindset, an attitude, a way of thinking that is
formed and informed by the Gospel. Similar to Jesus' words to the
disciples from last week's Gospel reading, that with the gentiles
people lord power over one another, “but not so with you”.
Likewise Paul says to the Philippians, and to us - “among you, with
you, in your midst – there ought to be a certain mindset, and one
that is different from the world out there.”
It derives from Jesus – who knows
more about humility than anyone. Think of it. He has sat higher than
anyone. His greatness and glory and power and majesty are from
eternity. By him all things were made. He is God of God and Lord of
Lords. He is, and always has been, and always will be, the highest
and the best. As Paul says, he was “in the form of God”. He had
equality with God.
But he didn't consider that something
to be grasped. He didn't “hang on to it”. He didn't consider
that he should grab on and hold tightly to his high station, and
never let it go. Instead, he did something astounding. Something we
can't comprehend. He came down, down from his throne. Down to the
ground. Down to become human. He put aside his divine rights.
Emptied himself. Only Jesus wasn't
emptying himself of breads and sweets, or fasting from meat on
Fridays. He was putting aside divine glory and majesty. He was
swearing off his omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, at least for
the most part. He still had it all, of course. But he would not
fully use or exercise these divine rights during his sojourn on
earth. And so he entered a state of humiliation.
The creed describes the high points in
his work for us, in the state of humiliation: He was conceived by
the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary. Yes, he began his course on
earth as we all do – in the lowest, smallest way – a single
conceptus. He was born. Just as we are. He suffered – not just
during Holy Week, but all his life – he knew the grief of loss. He
knew poverty and rejection. But certainly in his passion, he
suffered the humiliations of his enemies. Mocking, spitting, beating
him for sport.
Obedient unto Death
Through it all he was obedient. He
obeyed everything the Father asked him to endure. He drank the cup
to the bitter dregs. Never wavering, never flinching, never turning
aside from anything thrown at him.
He was obedient even unto death. If
you're like me, you don't like being told what to do. Sometimes I
want to not do something just because someone tells me I have to.
But who among us would be obedient unto death? Who among us would
willingly, unquestioningly march forth to our certain doom because we
are told to?
No doubt, some do – like soldiers in battle. And we rightly regard those as heroes who lay down their lives this way. But they are all a shadow and taste of the obedience in suffering and death that Jesus showed. They are a small glimpse of the humiliation he endured for us.
He was obedient unto death, EVEN death
on a cross. Not a quick, painless execution. The cross was designed
to prolong the suffering. It was meant to be a public statement, for
all to see. It intended to maximize humiliation. There's a good
reason the Jews recognized that a man hanged on a tree is cursed
(Deuteronomy 21:23). That's never more true than with Christ. Who
suffered the humiliation of a tortured death, and also bore the sins
of the world, the wrath of the Father, and the just punishment for
all. He who knew no sin became sin. All of it, bound up in him.
All of it, put to death, in his body.
Obedient, even unto death, even death
on the cross.
Therefore Exalted
And then the turn. Paul says,
“therefore”.
Therefore – God has exalted him.
Therefore, because of his perfect obedience and atoning death –
therefore, he is exalted, lifted up again.
Up to life. Exalted in his
resurrection, which is history's greatest vindication. It is the
victory cry of life over death. It is the triumph of triumphs.
He is exalted, also, to his due glory,
honor, might, and status as the Son of God. We see him, from this
point onward, taking back more and more, exercising ever more fully –
those divine attributes he had hidden in humility.
He is exalted. Up again to heaven's
high throne. As his disciples watched him go to the clouds, and as
the angels appeared to promise his glorious return. Christ now sits
at the right hand of the Father, ruling all things for the good of
his church.
And God the Father has bestowed on him
the Name above all names. That is to say, the highest honor and
glory of all. And that glory will be made manifest, that is all eyes
will see it, at his second coming.
At his name – all will bow, willingly
or not. All will be humbled, willingly or not. All will – either
willingly by faith, or grudgingly and by force, acknowledge him as
God and Lord. All angels. All humans. Even the devil and his
demons. Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father.
Here will be his final triumph. Palm
Sunday's triumphal entry is a foretaste of his final coming in glory.
We, his people, will welcome him then – not riding a donkey, but
riding the clouds. Not coming to be tried, but to judge the living
and dead. Not coming to die, but to usher in eternal life for all
his resurrected and glorified people. The ultimate, that is the
final triumphal entry.
Christ's humiliation and Christ's
exaltation are both a comfort for us, as Christians. He made himself
low to save us who are rightly low. He was exalted by the Father,
and will bring us with him into exaltation.
So we know that whatever humiliations
we suffer in this world, we too have a greater day ahead. However
low your sins have brought you, Christ pulls you out of the muck and
mire, redeems your life from the pit, and gives you a firm place to
stand. However low this world takes you, into depression or
rejection or anguish or even death. Christ will raise you up, and
give you a share in his triumph over sin and death.
So have this mind among you, which is
yours in Christ Jesus. Don't grasp on to greatness, but live in his
humility. Humbly confess your sins. Humbly serve your neighbor.
And he who has done it all for you, will lift you up.
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