We are working our way through 2 John. And for the last couple of weeks, we have been talking about the Incarnation. We are looking at this subject because of what John says in the following verse:
For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Yeshua the Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. 2 John 1:7 ESV
John is warning these believers of false teachers whom he calls deceivers and antichrist. And the theological issue here is that these false teachers are denying,"the coming of Yeshua the Christ in the flesh." They were denying the Incarnation, the hypostatic union, and the theanthropic person. So, we spent some time last week talking about the hypostatic union.
I want to add a word of caution here. We need to be careful when we talk about things like this because the hypostatic union ultimately transcends human reason. We are talking about an incomprehensible mystery because we are talking about Yahweh. We don't have any human analogy that we can use to enable us to accurately understand what it means for a divine person to possess not only a divine nature but a human nature, and for a union to exist between them, so that we have one person with these two natures.
We looked at what John has to say about the Incarnation in the fourth Gospel.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1 ESV
The Word was God! And then John tells us that the Word became flesh:
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 ESV
The eternal Word who was with God and was God, the Word who created all things became a human being. This verse teaches the staggering truth that Yeshua of Nazareth was Yahweh become man.
Because this subject is so important and because John does not go into detail, I want us to look at another text this morning that fills in all the blanks for us. What is the single greatest passage in the New Testament on God's becoming man? Without question it is Philippians 2:5-11. This text is majestic in its description of the condescension of the second person of the Trinity into human incarnation. This passage is a Christological gem. It teaches the Doctrines of the Incarnation, the Kenosis, and the Hypostatic Union. This is rich theological ground. Yet, this passage was apparently given as an illustration to teach humility.
Paul never conceived of any practice that was a biblical practice that was not related to the doctrinal teaching of the Word of God. It is a truth of the Word of God that it is "doctrine" that is the foundation of all true Christian living. Throughout Paul's Epistles, he lays down doctrine and then calls for them to live in a proper manner. For eleven chapters in Romans, he gives them doctrine, and then in chapter 12, he exhorts them to live in a proper manner. First doctrine, then duty. We see this same pattern in Ephesians. For three chapters Paul gives them doctrine, then in chapter 4, he calls them to duty.
What is really interesting about Philippians 2:5-11 is that Paul is not looking at the Incarnation, Kenosis, and Hypostatic Union for their doctrine alone but as an illustration of humility. The main point is to show the humility of Yahweh's becoming man. Here you see self-sacrifice, self-denial, self-giving, and humble love.
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Yeshua, Philippians 2:5 ESV
I like the way the Christian Standard Bible puts this:
Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Yeshua, Philippians 2:5 CSB
The word "mind" or "attitude" here is phroneo which means "thinking" or "attitude." The attitude that is being called for is that which is found in verses 3-4. It is Christ's attitude of humility.
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4 ESV
Believers, we must understand that humility is extremely important because God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 1 Peter 5:5 ESV
The word "opposes" here is the Greek word antitassomai which according to Thayer's
means "to range in battle against, to oppose one's self, resist." Yahweh stands
in battle array against the proud. Think about that.
We are to learn from Christ and His example of humility. We can only learn from Him as we study Him through His Word, theology, and doctrine.
For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. John 13:15 ESV
Christ says this in the context of washing the disciples' feet. Christ is our example of humility.
In Philippians 2:6-8, we have the decent of Yahweh the Son to humiliation. We cannot copy His deity, incarnation, perfection, miracles or redemptive work, but we are called to copy His humility.
Verse 5 is a transition from exhortation to illustration. This illustration will have "no" impact on our lives if we do not understand it. So, we must first understand theology so we can then be motivated to apply it.
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Yeshua, Philippians 2:5 ESV
The position of the pronoun "this" makes it emphatic and shows that the exhortation reaches back to 2:3-4 for its definition while the pronoun "who" in verse 6 connects the exhortation with the illustration in verses 6-8. Christ is our model.
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, Philippians 2:6 ESV
This verse answers the question "What was Christ like before His incarnation?" Two Greek words provide the answer: "was" and "form."
The word "was" is the Greek word huparcho. This is not the most common word for "being" in the Greek (that would be the verb "ame"), but it is a verb that stresses the essence of a person's nature. It is to express the continued state of a thing; it is unalterable and unchangeable. Paul said, "Yeshua the Christ unalterably and unchangeably exists in the form of God." This speaks of His pre-existence. We saw this in John 1:1.
The word "form" is morphe. It has nothing to do with shape or size. Moulton and Milligan's Vocabulary of the Greek New Testament states that "morphe" is a form which truly and fully expresses the being which underlies it. It refers to the essence or essential being. Yeshua pre-existed in the essence of Yahweh.
Let's compare two Greek words for form. Morphe is the essential character of something. Schema is the outward form it takes. Morphe is the essential form which never alters; schema is the outward form which changes from time to time and from circumstance to circumstance.
The morphe of any human being is humanity, and this never changes (when this body dies and you receive your heavenly body you will still be human); but his schema is continually changing. We all started out at conception as a clump of cells, then we became a baby, a child, a youth, a teenager, an adult; and someday we will be elderly. Our morphe is unchangeable humanity, our schema changes. Roses, daffodils, tulips, primroses all have one morphe of flowers, but their schema is different.
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:8 ESV
The word "form" used here is schema. When Paul uses hupareco (was) and morphe (form), he is saying something very specific, that is, that Yeshua has always existed in the unchangeable essence of the being of Yahweh. Yeshua is Yahweh and always was. This is the heart and soul of the Christian faith—Yeshua is Yahweh the Son. This is where the incarnation begins; this is the point from which He descends and God becomes man.
If you remember I said last week that Yeshua did not come into being until the incarnation. The Word existed from all eternity because He is Yahweh. The Word was God (John 1:1). But as I just said, Yeshua has always existed in the unchangeable essence of the being of God. How is this? Last week we talked about the hypostatic union which is the "personal union" or joining of the two natures of Yeshua, namely His divine and human natures. His divine nature always existed, but his human nature came into being at a point in time—at the incarnation. And whatever can be said about one of His natures can be said about His person. We will talk about this more shortly.
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, Philippians 2:6 ESV
Paul says that Yeshua "Did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped." The word "grasped" is from the Greek word harpogmos which means "to take by force, to seize." It is used only here in the Scriptures. The noun refers to "taking an attitude of seizing something."
Our Lord did not consider the expression of His Divine essence such a treasure that it should be retained at all costs. He was willing to wave His rights to the expression of His Deity. Let me give you a Curtis paraphrase of verse 6: "Who always being the exact essence of the eternal God, did not consider equality with God as something that must be demonstrated."
The word "equality" is isos, and it means "exactly the same, in size, quality, quantity, character, and number." We use it this way in English. For example, Isomer is a chemical molecule having a slightly different structure from another molecule but being identical with it in terms of its chemical elements and weight. Its schema may be different, but its morphe is the same. Isomorph is having the same form. Isometric is equal in number. Isosceles triangle is one with two equal sides.
Paul is saying that Yeshua is exactly equal with Yahweh. Is Yahweh omniscient? Then so is Yeshua. Is Yahweh omnipresent? Then so is Yeshua. Is Yahweh omnipotent? Then so is Yeshua. Is Yahweh the creator? Then so is Yeshua. Is Yahweh the beginning and end? Then so is Yeshua. But He did not consider His equality with God as a prize that had to be hung on to. He is equal with Yahweh in every way, but while He walked the earth, He did not look equal to Yahweh. He looked just like a man.
Pride says "I want you to know who I am." Humility says "My rights to express who I am are not important." We see these in a contrast between the first and last Adam. The first Adam senselessly sought to grasp at equality with God, and through pride and disobedience, he lost fellowship with Yahweh and was kicked out of sacred space. The last Adam, Christ, enjoyed true equality with Yahweh, but He refused to derive any advantage from it. He humbled Himself and became obedient, and Yahweh highly exalted Him. Which Adam are you patterning your life after?
Humility, therefore, begins with an attitude of willingness to lay aside our "rights." We talk a lot about our rights, but you do not hear many people talking about their responsibilities. Do you know what causes disunity and conflict? Two people concerned about their own rights.
Yeshua didn't grasp or clutch or cling to His rights. But as verse 7 says:
but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:7 ESV
"But emptied Himself"—the word "but" here is a contrastive—"not this but this." The word "emptied" is the Greek word kenoo. It means "to make empty." Figuratively, it means "to abase, naturalize, to make of none effect, of no reputation."
Th Doctrine of the Kenosis is the self-emptying of Yahweh the Son. What did He empty Himself of? Let me give you some false Kenotic theories. William Barclay says "He emptied Himself of His deity to take upon Himself His humanity." What do you see wrong with that? If He emptied Himself of deity, how could He say the following.
Yeshua said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." John 8:58 ESV
Was this true of His human nature? No. Was it true of His person? Yes, the hypostatic union is the "personal union" or joining of the two natures of Yeshua. He is one person, with two natures. Men are not eternal, only God is. All men are mortal. If He emptied Himself of deity, He would cease to exist and so would you.
And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:17 ESV
He did not exchange His deity for humanity. The Doctrine of the Hypostatic Union teaches us that Yeshua had two natures: human and divine in one person. Yeshua was the theanthropic person, the God-man.
Some say He laid aside some or all of His divine attributes. They appeal to the following.
For you know the grace of our Lord Yeshua the Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9 ESV
But this does not teach that He laid aside His attributes. They also appeal to Mark 13.
"But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Mark 13:32 ESV
Does this show that He laid aside some or all of the attributes of deity? If He does not know something, how can it be said that He is God? God is omniscient. The ignorance is in His human nature and not in His divine nature. In His human nature, He learned as He went along. He learned obedience and He grew in wisdom.
And Yeshua increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man. Luke 2:52 ESV
Let me give you four reasons why Yeshua could not lay aside some or all of His attributes.
1. This would be incarnation by Divine suicide. It is impossible to surrender an attribute without changing the character of the essence to which it belongs. To rob God of any attribute would be to destroy His Deity. During the incarnation, Yeshua was God without any change in His deity. The Hypostatic Union is undiminished deity and true humanity in one person forever.
2. This would be an annulment of the Trinity because there would be no more "Son." The Trinity is eternal and cannot become the "Duo."
3. This would be a denial of one of His attributes—Immutability. This is one of my favorite attributes of God.
"For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. Malachi 3:6 ESV
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17 ESV
If the Lord Yeshua laid down some or all of His attributes, then we cannot say that God is immutable. He can change.
But God cannot change because a change is either from better to worse or worse to better. So, we cannot have an eternal God and a God who changes. We must have immutability because all of the promises of God depend upon divine immutability. Our whole saving experience depends upon the fact that He is immutable. He has never changed and He will never change in the future. Therefore, the promises of eternal life are valid forever. If He ever loved me, He loved me forever!
4. It annuls the atoning work of Christ. If He is not God, He loses His saving power. The death of our Lord Yeshua is sufficient for the sins of all men because the person who laid down His life had infinite value before God.
What did the eternal Word empty Himself of?
And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. John 17:5 ESV
Who is praying this prayer? Yeshua. This request presupposes Yeshua's preexistence with the Father and His equality with the Father. But I said last week that Yeshua came into existence at the incarnation. So, how can Yeshua pray for something to be restored that He never had? The hypostatic union is the personal union of the two natures of Christ the human and divine. He is one person. And here the person of Christ is praying and what he is asking for is what his divine nature had enjoyed in the past. As the pre-incarnate Son of God, Yeshua (the divine nature) was united in glory with the Most Holy Trinity before the world was created (John 1:1-3).
Yeshua is addressing the Father here. They carry on a conversation in the sense that our Lord addresses His prayer to Him. You never find Yeshua speaking to Himself. In other words, there is no evidence of a dual personality in Yeshua. The evidence is of just one personality who possess two natures, not two persons. If there were two persons, you might expect them to be speaking to one another. You never have that. Nor does he ever use the plural of himself. Scriptures teach the uni-personality of Yeshua, one person, two natures. Do not make the mistake of talking about two persons, a divine and a human person. It is one person, two natures.
Yeshua is asking to have His glory (the glory of His divine nature) restored because His glory was put aside when He became man. The Greek noun for "glory" here is doxa. At first the verb meant "to appear" or "to seem," and then in time the noun doxa, that came from it, then meant "an opinion." Eventually the noun was used only for having a good opinion about some person, and the verb came to mean "the praise" or "honor" due to one of whom a good opinion was held.
If a man had a right opinion about God, this meant that he was able to form a correct opinion of God's attributes. The orthodox Jew knew God as all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present, merciful, faithful, holy, just, loving and so on with all His other perfections. When he acknowledged this, he was said to give glory to God. God's glory consisted of His intrinsic worth embedded in His character, and all that could be known of God was merely an expression of it.
Our word "worth" is somewhat equal to the word "glory." The worth refers to intrinsic character. The worth of a man is his character. Have you ever heard someone say "That person is worthless"? By this they mean he has no character. The worth of God is God's glory. When we praise God, we are acknowledging His worth-ship. We shorten that word, and we get "worship." That is what worship is folks. It is acknowledging God's worth.
There is another and entirely different meaning of the word "glory" which is: "light or splendor." In Hebrew thought, an outward manifestation of God's presence involved a display of light. This brilliant outward manifestation of God's presence was described by the word shekinah, and in the LXX the word "doxa" is often used to translate it.
Put these two meanings of the word "glory" together and you have a clear picture of Christ's oneness with God and of the humbling of Himself that went with the kenosis. When He became a man, He laid aside the brilliant manifestation of His glory, except for one brief moment on the mount of Transfiguration. Secondly, He veiled His glory in the sense that He did not demonstrate His attributes. He did not walk this earth in the power of deity; He walked this earth in the power of the Holy Spirit in total dependence. Yeshua shared to the full the Divine nature, and He was clothed with splendor that had always surrounded God's person. During the incarnation, Yeshua laid aside the outward glory.
The Jews answered him, "It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God." John 10:33 ESV
They viewed Him as just a man. Laying aside His glory involved the surrender of the voluntary use of the divine attributes. He laid aside the prerogatives of His deity.
Christ veiled His pre-incarnate glory by taking on humanity, but He did not destroy or diminish any part of it. When the sun is obscured by a cloud, there is no real change of its glory. Its beams are not extinguished nor is it changed in any measure. Its luster is only for a time obscured. The sun was never affected by that cloud, but our vision of it was. Christ was never diminished in glory, but He veiled His glory.
From His own will, Yeshua did not use His attributes to benefit Himself. They were not surrendered, but voluntarily restricted in keeping with the Father's plan. Christ gave up any independent exercise of certain divine attributes while living among men with their human limitations so that He might become truly man. Dependence is a necessary characteristic of real humanity. Christ lived in dependence upon the Holy Spirit in all that He did.
But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Matthew 12:28 ESV
And Yeshua returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. Luke 4:14 ESV
We find that in Matthew 4 the temptations of Christ were related to His deity and the kenosis. His humanity longed for what His deity could have provided. He did not exercise the prerogatives of His deity but was dependent upon the Father.
If Yeshua did indeed divest Himself of the exercise of the divine nature and lived among men in real dependence upon His Father and found His strength and wisdom in a pure humanity empowered by the Holy Spirit, then we can understand that His prayers were real prayers, His decisions were real decisions, His actions and reactions were genuinely human, and He is indeed our example in all things.
but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:7 ESV
"Taking the form of a servant"—the word "taking" is a circumstantial participle of manner. The phrase explains how He emptied Himself "by" taking the form of a servant. When He took the form of a servant, it veiled His glory. That is how He emptied Himself.
The word "form" is morphe which means "essential nature." We looked at this word in verse 6. This is not a mask or Halloween costume. In other words, He did not pretend that He was a servant. In His essential nature, He became a servant. He took the essence of a dulos—a bondslave.
In verse 6 we see that Christ was in the "form of God" which refers to the possession of the essential attributes of deity. In verse 7 He takes the "form of a servant"—the slavery of a person who has submitted himself to a master, in order to do his will in every respect.
In verse 6 we see the inner essence of God—nature of deity. In verse 7 we see the inner essence of humanity—nature humanity. Was Yeshua God or man? Yes! He was 100% God and 100% man. This is the Hypostatic Union—undiminished deity and true humanity in one person forever. God voluntarily became a servant for us.
A.W. Pink says this:
What marvelous grace we behold in that wondrous decent from heaven's throne to Bethlehem's manger! It had been an act of infinite condescension if the One who was the Object of angelic worship had deigned to come down to this earth and reign over it as King; but that He should appear in weakness, that He should voluntarily choose poverty, that He should become a helpless Babe—such grace is altogether beyond our ken; [The word ken, meaning understanding or perception, is now rarely used] such matchless love passeth knowledge. O that we may never lose our sense of wonderment at the infinite condescension of God's Son.
but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:7 ESV
"Being born in the likeness of men"—the word "being" emphasizes the notion of becoming, of a beginning. Do you see the contrast here from verse 6, "being?" Christ always existed in the form of God (verse 6), but He was made into existence in the likeness of men.
The word "likeness" is homoioma which suggests similarity but difference. Though His humanity was genuine. He was different from all other humans in that He was sinless. We see this same Greek word in the following verse:
For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, Romans 8:3 ESV
Yeshua had real human flesh—He felt pain, sorrow, wept, died, but He was sinless.
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:8 ESV
"Being found in human form"—the word "form" is schema—"outer appearance." People saw Him only as a man. Christ gave up the outward appearance of God (schema) but not the essence (morphe) of God. His glory was veiled, and He looked like a man.
The reality of His humanity is emphasized in this verse. Our Lord possesses true humanity, which is just as important as His deity. To make atonement, He had to be a Theanthropic person.
We see His humanity throughout the New Testament. He had a human birth. His conception was not human but His birth was. He came through the birth canal and was wet and wrinkled like any other baby. Martin Luther wrote in his hymn: "The little Lord Yeshua no crying He makes." Is that true? No! He was a normal baby—He cried. I'm sure He kept Mary up at night crying. It's not a sin to cry. He had human growth and development. He grew up just like any other human being.
"He humbled Himself"—we think of the humiliation as God becoming man, but the point of humiliation here is from His status as man. The God-Man spent thirty years of preparation under discipline in preparation for three years of ministry.
"By becoming obedient to the point of death"—the word "becoming" is the Greek ginomy. It is an instrumental particle, and it indicates the means by which the action of the main verb is accomplished. The main verb is "humbled Himself." How did He do this? By becoming obedient. That is the best way to become humble—by obedience.
It was to the will of God that the obedience was given, and even when that will pointed to suffering and death, Yeshua accepted it. "Not my will," He said to His heavenly Father, "But your will be done" (Luke 22:42). Can you say that?
"Even death on a cross"—the word "even" calls attention to the shocking form of death. When we think of "Cross," we think of torture. But there are worse tortures. The point here is that the shame of the cross is worse than the physical agony.
There was no greater way in which people of the first century could express their utter disgust with a human being than by crucifying him. It was the chief and most extreme form of human degradation that existed. It was in the fullest sense of the word an obscenity. In polite Roman society, the word "cross" was an obscenity not to be uttered in conversation. Cicero said, "Let the very name of the cross be far removed not only from the body of a Roman citizen, but even from his thoughts, his eyes, his ears." By Jewish law, anyone who was crucified died under the curse of God.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree"— Galatians 3:13 ESV
This utterly vile form of punishment was that which Yeshua endured, and by enduring it, He turned that shameful instrument of torture into the object of His follower's proudest boast.
Why did Christ do it? To be our substitute!
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 ESV
He died for US! Yeshua did all the work; all we need to do is trust what He did. Luther said "Nothing more is required of justification than to hear of Jesus the Christ and believe on Him as our Savior." Salvation is free. but it wasn't cheap.
This great Christological section develops from a practical problem. Notice that the solution to that practical problem does not rest with a psychologist or a psychiatrist but with theology. The apostle, in order to solve the difficulties in the church at Philippi, turns their minds to theology, the doctrine of Christ.
The underlying thought of verses 5-8 is this: Surely, if Christ humbled Himself so very deeply, you Philippians should be constantly willing to humble yourselves in your own small way. Surely, if He became obedient to the extent of death, yes, death by a cross; you should become increasingly obedient to the divine directions and should accordingly strive more and more to achieve in your lives the spirit of your Master, that is, the spirit of oneness, lowliness, and helpfulness, which is pleasing to God.
Thank God that the story does not end here. Paul goes on to say
Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, Philippians 2:9 ESV
Paul says, "Christ was exalted" and the implication is "So will you be exalted if you humble yourself." This is a practical principle that is applicable to all of us. Principle: He who humbles himself will be exalted.
As I said last week, I believe the incarnation was permanent. If the hypostatic union was dissolved, what happen to the person of Yeshua? Yeshua is the God-Man. If one of these natures was removed, you would destroy the person.
R.C. Sproul writes in Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, that "what is said of the divine nature or of the human nature may be affirmed of the person." That's right because there is only one person with two natures.
where Yeshua has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Hebrews 6:20 ESV
His priestly office is forever, and it depends on His "becoming like his brothers in every respect" (2:14–18), in other words, being human.
When I say that the incarnation was permanent, I am not saying that Christ still has a physical body. I believe that He arose in his same physical body.
See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." Luke 24:39 ESV
Then at the ascension He received his "spiritual body," His heavenly body. And now in heaven Christ is still a Theanthropic person in that He still has a human nature but without a physical body.
So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 1 Corinthians 15:42 ESV
What is sown perishable is raised imperishable. These are terms used by Philo and other Jews to describe the gods. They are imperishable. The Stoics use that language to talk about the pneumatic beings, the spirit beings. They're imperishable. Whatever that heavenly body is made of, it is made of stuff that is imperishable, just like those beings who are imperishable. Paul is saying that believers will be like the gods.
When our body dies and we receive our heavenly body, we will still be human. And our great high priest is still the God—Man. Yeshua is a single, undivided personality. The two natures are inseparably united. For all of time, He will be the "God-man," both fully human and fully God, two distinct natures contained in one Being.