"Yet it was because of this that God raised him up to the heights of heaven
and gave him a name which is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee shall bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue shall confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father."
~ Philippians 2:5-11 Living Bible
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Bible Commentary: "These verses were probably written from a hymn which was sung in the early Christian Church. As a hymn, it was not meant to be a complete statement about the nature of Christ. Several key characteristics of Jesus Christ, however, are inferred from this passage:
* he has always existed with God;
* he is equal to God because he is God;
* though he is God; he became a man in order to fulfill God's plan of salvation of all people;
* he did not just pretend to have a man's body, he actually became a man to identify with man's sins;
* he voluntarily laid aside his divine rights, privileges, and postion, out of love for his Father;
* he died on the cross for our sins, so we wouldn't have to face eternal death;
* God glorified him because of his obedience;
* God raised him to his original postion at the Father's right hand where he will reign forever as our Lord and Judge.
"Jesus Christ was humble, willing to give up his rights in order to obey God and serve people. Like Christ, we must serve out of love for God and for others, not out of guilt or fear.
"Often people excuse selfishness, pride, or evil by claiming their 'rights'. They think, 'I can cheat on this test; after all, I deserve to pass this class,' or "I can spend all this money on myself--I worked for it,' or 'I can get an abortion; I have a right to control my own body.' But as believers, we should have a different attitude, an attitude that enables us to give up our rights for the good of others--in order to serve others. If we say we follow Christ, we must also say we want to live as he lived. We should develops his attitude of humble service, even when we are not likely to get recognition for our efforts. Are you selfishly clinging to your rights or are you willing to serve?
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