Be Humble
He was like God in every way, but he did not think that his being equal with God was something to use for his own benefit. Instead, he gave up everything, even his place with God. He accepted the role of a servant, appearing in human form. During his life as a man, he humbled himself by being fully obedient to God, even when that caused his death-death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8
Have you ever had someone get the better of you? Perhaps you were punished as a child for something you didn’t do. Or someone conned you or swindled you out of something. Maybe someone at work stabbed you in the back to get the promotion that you deserved. It happens right? And it’s not a very nice feeling. To suffer when you don’t deserve it, leaves a really bad taste in your mouth. It leaves a lot of people bitter and twisted.
I think the thing that really gets to us is the injustice. I mean, when you’re on the wrong end of a terrible injustice, it just eats away at you. It’s not right, it just isn’t!
So when you look at this whole thing of Jesus dying on the cross for you, what do you see? Sure, you see Jesus suffering. Hopefully you feel incredibly grateful that He did what He did – after all, where would you and I be without Jesus?
But at the same time, do you see the terrible injustice of it all? Jesus suffered the punishment that you and I deserved.
He was like God in every way, but he did not think that his being equal with God was something to use for his own benefit. Instead, he gave up everything, even his place with God. He accepted the role of a servant, appearing in human form. During his life as a man, he humbled himself by being fully obedient to God, even when that caused his death-death on a cross. (Philippians 2:6-8)
Which of course, is why so many people make such a great big fuss over what happened on that Cross. Jesus suffers for you and me, in our place, taking on Himself the terrible punishment that we deserve.
How do you respond to that? How does that change you? How does it impact how you live your life from here on in?
As you ponder that, let me share with you the verse that comes immediately before that passage:
In your life together, think the way Christ Jesus thought. (Philippians 2:5)
What’s God encouraging us to do, in response to the terrible injustice that Jesus suffered on our behalf?
Be like Jesus. Be humble. Suffer unjustly to share God’s love with a lost and hurting world … just, like, Jesus.
That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.
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