Singing the Melodies of Christmas to All Nations (III)

Singing the Greatest Story of Salvation to All Nations (Phil 2: 1-11, Continue).

Previously we argued that the heavenly Father not only sends his inifite Son in finite human flesh but, he pours out his wrath on him in such a way that his Son bears ultimate shame and humiliation of the cross. The Father treats his Son as if his Son has rebelled against him, turned his back on him, rejected his rule, and acted like you and I have acted all of our lives towards God…even though He is the only Son who has never ever acted that way towards the Father. He bears the humiliation that we ought to have borne in our place. And this, the Apostle Paul says, displays for us the humility of Christ. The Apostle Paul says, ‘Christian, look at your Savior. How can anyone not be amazed by this display of love! O Come Let us adore him, Christ the Lord!

Christ’s exaltation. What are the consequences of Christ humiliation? (2:9-11). The exhortation leads to consider the humiliation but the humiliation opens the gates on the exaltation.

Hebrews 12:2 catches it, that the Lord Jesus Christ “endured the cross, despising the shame, for the joy set before Him!” Humility is true greatness. True joy in life comes through humility, through the servanthood and through the way of the cross.

That’s not all! There is going to be final exaltation of Jesus Christ. He is going to be “highly exalted.” The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 1:10 says that the purpose of God in sending his Son for redemption is that the whole universe will be brought under the headship of Jesus Christ. Christ for the glory set before him humbled himself and now God exalted him above everything.

There is no exaltation without coronation (2:9). Jesus himself has fulfilled all of the obligations of the covenant of grace that God has made with Abraham, and God has given him not only a great name, but the greatest name. According to the Bible, God alone has the name which is above every name. When the Apostle Paul announces that Jesus has the name which is above every name, what is that but a testimony to the divinity of Christ and his equality with the heavenly Father? There is exaltation, coronation but also:

Global adoration (2:10). This is what happen when kings are chosen. Some will do it willingly others not. A day is coming when from every corner of the universe, at the name of Jesus Christ, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth, and under the earth.”  Since the Bible says we should worship God only, the babe in a manger worshiped by the Maggi is none other than God himself.

In the global adoration, every tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord. Christmas story is a story of humility but more so of adoration. Jesus is not humble because he is born in a manger but because he was God. The manger does not make him humble. He is humble because of his nature and origin. We are now in a political battle over rhetoric. Whether we should say “merry christmas” or happy holidays” and God knows what holiday that would be without Christmas.  Yet a time is coming when there will be no political game. The Apostle Paul says there will be a universal confession that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Let us reflect and meditate on the Incarnation. Let us thank God for entering human history to redeem us from destruction. Let us pray that we would know Jesus in his full humanity and deity. And may we worship Jesus in the fullness of his glory. And finally may we seek the humility to serve Jesus as a reflection of his humility in the incarnation.

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