Pastor David B. Curtis
Pastor David B. Curtis
Philippians 2:5-11 (NKJV) Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 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. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 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, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This text is majestic, describing the condescension of the second person of the trinity into human incarnation. It is the single greatest passage in the New Testament on God becoming man.
I feel like a little boy who has just seen the ocean for the first time viewing its majesty and glory, watching the waves break on the shore, and going down to the water with a bucket and scooping up some water and coming back to you with my bucket and saying, "Look at the ocean, isn't it majestic?." You can't appreciate the ocean unless you see it yourself. You won't appreciate the doctrine of the hypostatic union unless you study it yourself.
This passage teaches the staggering truth that Jesus of Nazareth was God made man. As John puts it in 1:14, "The Word was made flesh." God became a man; the divine Son became a Jew; the Almighty appeared on earth as a helpless human baby, unable to do more than lie and stare and wiggle and make noises, needing to be fed and changed and taught to talk like any other child.
C. S. Lewis, in his book "Mere Christianity" in the chapter called "The Obstinate Toy Soldier," said this, "The Eternal Being who knows everything and who created the whole universe, became not only a man but before that a baby, and before that a fetus inside a woman's body. If you want to get the hang of it, think how you would like to become a slug or a crab."
The more you think about it, the more staggering it gets-- God became a man! Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as is this truth of the incarnation. What do you know about Jesus Christ? What can you tell me about Him? We must understand that Christianity is not a lifestyle-- it's not about how you live and what you do; Christianity is a relationship with the Person of Jesus Christ. Do you know Him?
In Luxor, a city in upper Egypt, are the remains of the great temple of Luxor. The columns of this temple are over six feet in diameter and reach high into the air. On top of one column near the edge of the excavated area there was a small house. A local farmer tried to find a solid foundation for his home. As sand blew away from his home, he discovered his house was on a hand carved stone. After excavations had begun, the farmer realized that it was a standing column, and after the excavations were completed, he found that his home was nearly eighty feet above ground level.
There is a parallel here to many Christian's understanding the Lord Jesus Christ. Their lives are built on Jesus Christ, they have trusted Him for their salvation, but they know as little about Jesus Christ as the Egyptian farmer knew about the foundation of his house. What can you tell me about Jesus?
Philippians 2:5-11 is unparalleled in the New Testament. This passage is a Christalogical gem. It teaches the doctrines of the Incarnation, the Kenosis, and the Hypostatic union. This is rich theological ground. Yet, this passage was apparently an early Christian hymn in honor of Christ. They were singing theology!
We're not going to get to the text today; today we're going to study the doctrine of the Hypostatic union and learn what we can of the duel natures of Christ.
Why study Theology? Why do we need to get so deep and so technical? It is my conviction that every believer ought to be a theologian in some sense. The word "theology" comes from two Greek words, theos, which means: "God" and logos which means: "word, discourse or doctrine." So, theology may be defined in the narrow sense as the doctrine of God. It is the science of God and His works. So, as we study theology we are learning about God. If you are ever going to know God in an intimate way, you must know theology. And if you are ever going to live for God, you must know Him. Theology is the systematizing of doctrine.
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.
All through Paul's epistles he lays down doctrine and then calls for them to live in a proper manner. In Romans, for eleven chapters 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 give them doctrine, then in chapter 4, he calls them to duty.
Ephesians 4:1 (NKJV) I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
This is why the church today is weak and filled with sin because there is an absence of the teaching of theology and the church is filled with spiritual pygmies who don't know who God is. The average Christian today thinks that God has a body (Kenny Copeland teaches this). But God is immaterial and incorporeal, He is the infinite eternal Spirit.
John 4:24 (NKJV) "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."
Luke 24:39 (NKJV) "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."
If we are going to know God, we must know theology. Theology is to motivate us to proper living. Men live and act according to what they believe.
In Philippians 2:5-11, we have an illustration of a proper attitude of humility. Paul is not looking at the incarnation, kenosis, and hypostatic union for their own sake but as an illustration of humility. The main point is to show the humility of God becoming man. Here you see self-sacrifice, self-denial, self-giving and humble love.
Philippians 2:5 (NKJV) Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
The word "mind" here is phroneo, which means: "thinking" or "attitude." The attitude that is being called for is the one of verses 3-4, which is Christ's attitude of humility. And the reason he calls for this attitude is so that there will be unity, verse 2. And the reason we should work for unity is found in verse 1, which is gratitude.
So, in verse 1, we have the Motive for unity; in verse 2, the Marks of unity; in verses 3-4 the Means to unity and then in verses 5-8 we have the Model of unity which is the Lord Jesus Christ. We are to pattern our lives after Christ:
1 John 2:6 (NKJV) He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
1 Corinthians 11:1 (NKJV) Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.
1 Thessalonians 1:6 (NKJV) And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit,
Matthew 11:29 (NKJV) "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
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.
John 13:15 (NKJV) "For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.
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 Christ to humiliation. We can't 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 don't understand it. So we must first understand theology so we can then be motivated to apply it. This morning we're going to study the doctrine of the hypostatic union.
Let's look at the doctrine of the INCARNATION:
John 1:14 (NKJV) And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
The "Word became flesh" has been expressed by the theological term "Incarnation," which comes from two Latin words "in" plus "cargo" meaning: "infleshment, the act of assuming flesh." God chose to become united to true humanity. The incarnation came about through the miracle of the virgin birth.
Matthew 1:18-23 (NKJV) Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."
Isaiah 7:14 (NKJV) "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
At the incarnation, God the Son, the Second person of the one triune God, was forever joined to true humanity. This joining together has been designated as the hypostatic union. Hypostatic is from the Greek word hupostasis which is found in:
Hebrews 1:3 (NKJV) who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, (hupostasis) and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV) Now faith is the substance(hupostasis)of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hupostasis means: "substance or essence." In theological language, it means person. So the doctrine of the hypostatic union is the doctrine of the personal union of the two natures, the divine and the human, of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is 100% God and 100% man. This is where we get the theological term "theanthropic" which comes from theos, which means: "God and anthropos," which means: "man." Jesus Christ is the God-Man. He is One person with two natures.
Early in church history, theological controversies resulted so the church got together at councils and at these councils they hammered out the doctrines of the Church. Out of these councils, they formulated creeds.
In AD 325, the Church held the Council of Nicea. The purpose of the council of Nicea was because the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ was being attacked. There were people saying, "Jesus, was not really God, he wasn't God's Son." So, this council came together at Nicea and the result of the council at Nicea was "Hommousious" -- of one essence. Meaning that Jesus Christ was of the same essence as the Father. They declared the deity of Jesus Christ.
About 125 years later, at the council of Chalcedon in AD 450, the heresy that was creeping up was that there were not really two natures of the Lord Jesus Christ. They were saying that there were two persons or that there was a mingling of the two natures. So the council of Calcedon was fighting two heresies. They were fighting the heresy of Eutychus, who denied the distinction of the natures. He kind of blended the natures. If you blend the natures, you destroy both of them. If the God nature mingled over into the human nature, it wouldn't be human nature. And if the human nature mingled into the Deity nature, it would no longer be deity. Jesus Christ had two natures, human and divine.
The council at Chalcedon also fought the heresy of Nestorius, who denied the one personality.
At the Council of Chalcedon, in AD 451, a statement was drawn which was to become the accepted definition in the orthodox catholic church.
"Therefore, following the holy Fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change (these are directed at Eutychus) without division, without separation; (these are directed at Nestorus) the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the Fathers has handed down to us."
These men didn't understand the hypostatic union completely, nor did they claim to, but they knew certain things were true. Jesus Christ is One person with Two natures. Nicea debated the deity, Chalcedon, the two natures-- hypostatic union.
The Westminster Confession of Faith, (Chapter 8: Article 2) explains the hypostatic union this way:
"The Son of God, the second person in the Trinity, being very and eternal God, of one substance and equal with the Father, did, when the fulness of time was come, take upon Him man's nature (John 1:1, 14; Gal 4:4; Phil 2:6; 1 John 5:20), with all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof, yet without sin (Heb 2:14, 16, 17; 4:15): being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of the virgin Mary, of her substance (Luke 1:27, 31, 35; Gal 4:4). So that two whole, perfect, and distinct natures, the Godhead and the manhood, were inseparably joined together in one person, without conversion, composition, or confusion (Luke 1:35; Rom 9:5; Col 2:9; 1 Tim 3:16; 1 Pet 3:18). Which person is very God, and very man, yet one Christ, the only Mediator between God and man (Rom 1:3, 4; 1 Tim 2:5)."
Let's define our terms; "nature and person."
Nature: the sum total of all the essential qualities of a thing, that which makes it what it is. A substance with its essential qualities. Substance is the real or essential part of anything. Substance does not have to be material. God has a nature but God is not material, He is spirit. Angels have a nature, but they are not material, they are spirit. When we think of substance we think of material because we are so physically minded. A nature is a substance with its essential qualities. For example, we use the expression "human nature" -- there are certain characteristics about a human being that make up their nature. Or we could say that a lion has a certain nature. There are certain qualities that are essential for a lion to have in order for it to be a lion. A dog does not have the same nature as a lion.
The Greek word for "nature" is ousicea which means "to be."
Person: a complete substance endowed with reason, thus a responsible subject, a nature with something added.
Keep these definitions in mind as we look at some biblical evidence of the hypostatic union.
Let's look first at the biblical doctrine of union. God becoming man. When we speak of union, there are three categories we need to look at:
A. General union -- God is in union with everybody and every thing. I'm not talking about pantheism; I'm talking about the presence of God essentially and actively in all His creatures. God is omnipresent. Omnipresent means that all of God in every place. This is a general union.
B. Special union-- Triune God with believers, it is a mystical union. The God of glory joins Himself with believers by faith in Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 6:17 (NKJV) But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.
We are one with God. It is a mystical union because you can't see it. You can't say, "Look they're a believer, I can see that they are in union with God." You can't see it!
C. Personal union-- this is the hypostatic union. This union was effected when the Logos, the Second person of the Trinity, assumed human nature into his Divine person so that God and man became forever one undivided and indivisible person. One person with two natures, this is the "mystery of godliness."
1 Timothy 3:16 (NKJV) And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.
The Second person of the trinity took on a human nature forever. This union is proved by the personal propositions, that is, the passages in which with reference to the incarnate Christ, it is said that God is man and man is God.
Matthew 16:13-17 (NKJV) When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" 14 So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
What did people think of Jesus? This passage gives us some insight into what people thought of Him. You might be surprise at how the people of Christ's time viewed Him. Some thought he was John the Baptist-- Hell fire and damnation preacher, who called people vipers! Some thought he was Elijah-- you wouldn't want to be around him if your life wasn't right. He confronted King Ahab, "You are the one troubling Israel." No more rain! In 2 Kings 1, Elijah calls down fire and kills 102 men. Some were saying Jesus was Elijah. Some said he was Jeremiah -- He was the gentle weeping prophet. Jesus embodied all the prophets.
15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" 16 Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Jesus asks, "Who do they say that I, the Son of man, am?" Peter answered, "Your are the Christ, the Son of the living God." So here we see the humanity and deity of Christ.
Luke 1:31-32 (NKJV) "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32 "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
The name "Jesus" gives stress to the historical human person. "Son of the highest" speaks of his deity. "The Son of Mary" is the Son of the Highest. So, we see two natures uniting in one person.
Jeremiah 23:5-6 (NKJV) "Behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. 6 In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
In verse 5, we see that he is a descendant of David which speaks of his humanity. Then in verse 6, he is called, "The Lord our Righteousness," which speaks of His divinity.
Jesus Christ is One person with Two natures, we cannot illustrate this in the human realm. Jesus Christ is different from God in that he is mankind, and different from mankind in that he is God. Jesus Christ is the unique person of the universe. He is the God-Man.
Let me give you a little church doctrine on this incarnation and hypostatic union. The human nature had no independent substance of its own. As the human nature came into existence, it was joined to a Divine person, it never had an independent existence.
Christ had two wills-- human and divine.
Matthew 26:39 (NKJV) He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will."
Here we see the human will crying out. Jesus' divine will is one with the Father. God's will was His will.
The church has always taught that conscience and will belong to the nature, not the person. Jesus was not two persons, but one person with two natures.
When Jesus Christ suffered, shed blood and died, the Son of God shed blood, suffered and died. When the Son of God went through his atoning experience, it was not simply the human that participated. It was the theanthropic person. The Divine person participated in all of those activities. He suffered with respect to the Divine personality.
Let's look at the Scriptural proof of the uni-personality of Christ. Jesus was not two persons, even though he possessed two natures. He is One person with Two natures. The hypostatic union transcends human reason.
Deuteronomy 29:29 (NKJV) "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.
We will never completely understand it in this life, but we are to know what has been revealed.
Romans 1:3-4 (NKJV) concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
In these verses, we see the two natures of Christ talked about. He was the:
1. "Seed of David" this speaks of his human nature. David's great grandson. He had a substance with the essential qualities of humanity.
2. "Son of God" this speaks of his deity, his divine nature.
In verse 4, the Greek texts ends with, "Jesus Christ our Lord." to sum up who he's talking about. He is the Son of God and man. He has two natures but only one person is mentioned. He may be described by his human nature or his divine nature. He may be called Jesus, God's son, or our Lord.
Romans 8:3 (NKJV) For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,
God sent "His son"-- deity, in the "likeness of sinful flesh" -- humanity. One person with two natures.
Galatians 4:4-5 (NKJV) But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
God sent "His son" -- deity, "born of a woman" -- humanity. "To redeem those who were under the law" -- this is a combination of the deity and humanity, the theanthropic person was necessary to perform redemption. Again we see the idea of two natures in one person.
John 1:14 (NKJV) And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
The "Word" -- deity, "became flesh" -- humanity.
The Apostles spoke of the hypostatic union often, so it is important for us to know these truths.
Sometime attributes true of the entire person are spoken of. You'll read something about what Jesus did, and it is true of the theanthropic person. The best example of this is when Jesus is called "Saviour, or Redeemer," both natures are necessary for the atonement. He had to be the God-Man to be our Redeemer.
Sometime attributes true only of deity are talked about, but the whole person is the subject.
John 8:58 (NKJV) Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
He is speaking here of the attribute of eternality. This is an attribute only true of deity, but the theanthropic person is the subject.
Sometime attributes true only of humanity are talked about, but the whole person is the subject.
John 19:28 (NKJV) After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, "I thirst!"
God is not thirsty, but the humanity of Jesus was thirsty. The "I" here refers to the theanthropic person.
During his incarnation, Christ was both omniscient and ignorant; omnipotent and weak; omnipresent and localized; sovereign and submissive. Are you beginning to see the mystery of godliness-- God manifest in the flesh?
Acts 20:28 (NKJV) "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
Here the attributes of one nature, "blood", are predicated of the person while the person is designated by a title derived from the other nature. The person is designated as God-- "which He," -- God; purchased with blood. Blood is something that pertains to the human nature. God does not have blood. God is a spirit.
Hebrews 2:14 (NKJV) Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,
The Second person of the trinity took on flesh and blood, he became a man. We see the reverse in:
Romans 9:5 (NKJV) of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.
He may refer to the person in reference to the human nature of the person and call him by a Divine title (Acts 20:28) and he may refer to a divine activity and designate the person by a human title (John 6:62). In Romans 9:5, "according to the flesh" speaks of his human nature. And "the eternally blessed God" refers to his deity. Here the human nature is referred to and said to be God. In this verse, we have the divine nature and the human nature but one person. The one person may be looked at as human or divine and still not have two persons but one.
There is no evidence in all the New Testament scriptures of a duel personality of Jesus Christ. In the triune God, we see one person addressing another. But in the incarnation, we never see this because Jesus Christ is one person. In various Scriptures we see one person of the trinity addressing another person of the trinity:
Psalms 2:4-7 (NKJV) He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The LORD shall hold them in derision. 5 Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure: 6 "Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion." 7 "I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.
John 17:1-2 (NKJV) Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 2 "as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.
Here the Second person, Jesus Christ, addresses the First person, the Father. You never find the Lord Jesus Christ speaking to himself, there is no duel personality. He never uses the plural of himself as is used of the triune God.
Genesis 1:26 (NKJV) Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
Genesis 3:22 (NKJV) Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever";
There is multi personality in the trinity, but not in the God-Man. The Scriptures teach the uni-personality of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is one person with two natures.
Why was it a necessity for Jesus Christ to have two natures in one person?
Bancroft writes, "The union of two natures in one person is necessary to constitute Jesus Christ a proper mediator between man and God. His twofold nature gives Him fellowship with both parties, since it involves an equal dignity with God and at the same time perfect sympathy with man:
Hebrews 2:17-18 (NKJV) Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.
Hebrews 4:15-16 (NKJV) For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
This twofold nature, moreover, enables Him to present to both God and man proper terms of reconciliation. Being man, He can make atonement for man; being God, His atonement has infinite value."
As man, He knows experientially what you're going through and as God, He can get you through it.
Why did the Second person of the trinity leave heaven's glory and become incarnate?
Matthew 20:28 (NKJV) "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
He is God, it would only be right that we served Him. But He came to "minister" -- He came to serve us and give His life to pay our sin debt. He came to die. He is our model of humility. He fleshed out:
Philippians 2:3 (NKJV) Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.
He regarded us as more valuable than himself.
Philippians 2:4 (NKJV) Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.
He was concerned with our needs. We needed salvation and He provided it at great cost to himself.
Philippians 2:5 (NKJV) Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
Christ is our model of humility and if we are ever to have unity, the price is high, very high, unity comes from humility which comes from having the attitude of Christ-- humility, which is seeing others as better than yourself!
Media #074a
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