November 12, 2017

Of No Reputation

“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”  Phil. 2:5-8

The Word is Jesus Christ.  He BECAME flesh.  What was He before He became flesh?  In a word, He was Divine.  So, divinity became humanity.  Humanity became the swaddling clothing of Divinity.  Beloved, this is powerful.  Flesh encased God, sent as the Son.  Philippians 2:5-8 expresses it this way, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”  His example is our example. 

In what ways have you chosen to be a person where your reputation did not matter?  How have you acted as a servant of the Lord for others?  What areas of your life have been humbled, to the point of those areas dying, having been crucified by the cross in your life?  This is the mind of Christ.

Verses 9-11 inform us of the results of Christ’s obedience to His Father: “Therefore God has also highly exalted Him and given Him the name which above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”   So too, just as the Father exalted His humbled Son, we can be exalted by the hand of God when we choose to humble ourselves, following the pattern of Jesus.